The Little Green Sign
The little green sign on the side of the road.
Dear Parents,
I recently had an anniversary that caught me by surprise. The staff had just begun using a new app to manage and track employee leave, and I decided to test it by requesting time off for an upcoming dental appointment. I tapped the icon, and there it was on my screen: Employee hire date—April 1, 2012. Fourteen years.
If you’ll lend me your ears for a moment, I’d love to share the short story that led me to that day.
It was about nine months earlier, in the summer. My son Luke and I were driving to Children’s Theatre-in-the-Woods at Wolf Trap. As we traveled along Route 7, I glanced up and noticed a small green sign on the side of the road: Ambleside School.
“I’ll have to remember that,” I thought.
We enjoyed the performance, played for a while, and then headed home. I remembered the sign, though not exactly what it had said. And then, just as before, there it was again on the other side of the road: Ambleside School.
When we got home, I sat down at the computer and looked it up. I began reading about a woman I had never heard of—Charlotte Mason. I called my husband and said,
“I think I’ve found something.”
At the time, my husband was teaching at Centreville High School, and I had been away from the classroom for five years after teaching Geosystems at Mountain View Alternative High School. Staying home with Luke had been a gift, but he was nearing school age. I began to wonder—could I return to teaching? And could Luke and I somehow go to the same place?
The more I read about Charlotte Mason, the more interested I became. My background was in Biology, followed by a Master’s in Education from George Washington University and four years in the classroom. I had seen how quickly educational trends shifted—each year bringing something new. But what I encountered with Charlotte Mason was different: unified, consistent, rich, and thoughtful. I wanted to understand it more.
Providentially, a three-day internship was to be offered that fall, and I signed up.
In the months leading up to it, I immersed myself in everything I could find about Charlotte Mason’s educational philosophy—When Children Love to Learn with many sections written by Maryellen St. Cyr and the writings of Charlotte Mason herself. Imagine my surprise when I arrived and found that Maryellen St. Cyr and her husband, Dr. Bill St. Cyr—co-founders of Ambleside Schools International—were leading the sessions. Ginnie Wilcox, the principal at the time, was there, along with Kassandra Laushkin, our wonderful art teacher, who was in her second year of teaching.
By the final day, I remember thinking: This education is almost too good to be true. I needed my husband to see it as well, so we attended an open house soon after.
We were fairly certain this was the place for Luke. But would there be a place for me? Could I learn to teach in this way? With time still ahead, we deferred Luke’s enrollment for a year and continued on. I remained in my role as Children’s Ministry Director at our church.
Then, sometime in March, the phone rang.
It was Ginnie Wilcox. She needed an Algebra I teacher for the remainder of the school year. The current teacher was dealing with medical issues and could not finish the term. Ginnie was in a difficult position.
Here was my opportunity.
I agreed—with one condition: I would teach if I could bring Luke with me.
“It’s a deal,” she said. “Can you start Monday?”
That short stint teaching Algebra opened the door. While I taught, Luke sat across the hall with Mrs. Wilcox as she graded papers and prepared to teach the other math vacancy. When Luke began Kindergarten, I became the seventh-grade math teacher. When he moved into full-time school in first grade, I became the seventh grade teacher.
And what a run it has been.
From my vantage point, the goodness, richness, and intentionality of this education continue unabated. What a gift it is to be part of it.
Charlotte Mason writes, “Certainly it is twice blessed; it blesses him that gives and him that takes, and a sort of radiancy of look distinguishes both scholar and teacher engaged in this manner of education.”
I’ll leave it to you, dear reader, to decide whether that radiancy is visible—but as for me, I have been deeply blessed, and I am hopeful for many more years at Ambleside.
Yours truly,
Krise