Published in the Left Hand Valley Courier, December 12, 2000, page 30
Niwot Elementary students have a special opportunity to broaden
their knowledge of other cultures with the presence of a visiting teacher from
China. Wei Xin, who goes by the Americanized name of Bruce Wei, is spending
the school year both teaching and learning from his base in Dolly More’s
first-grade classroom. Bruce plans to spend time with each class in the school,
as well as to conduct a number of Chinese culture classes in various schools
in the district and for community organizations, such as the Optimists. (He
has become an honorary member of the Optimists and will be cooking dinner for
them later this year.) Bruce says his main missions are to improve his American
English, learn new educational techniques, and "enhance mutual understanding
and respect" between the American and Chinese people.
Bruce is one of 20 foreign exchange teachers from China in the U.S. this year who are being sponsored by AFS Intercultural Programs. He hails from the historical city of Nanjing (sometimes anglicized to Nanking), where he taught high school English for 12 years. His wife works in a bank there while his mother watches his two-year-old daughter Wei Qianyu ("Beautiful Preciousness"). Bruce is currently living with the Mark Casey/Jennifer Tseng family and will move to another host family’s home for the second semester. He enjoys music, fishing, swimming, and virtually "any kind of ball game." He says he especially enjoys trying new foods and activities, as well as meeting new people.
When asked for his impressions of American schools, Bruce says three words come to mind: "realistic, effective, and creative." He commented on the heavy emphasis on the individual student and the strong presence of school volunteers, in contrast to the Chinese system. Some very visible differences he noted are that in China all students wear uniforms and must sit with good posture, plus class sizes are very large—typically with 50 students per teacher. Another difference is with the extended use of Chinese students — as class monitors, group activity leaders, and custodians! All students take their turn, typically weekly, coming to school early to clean up.
Perhaps a more significant difference, however, is the fact that all Chinese public schools need to follow the same education scheme, using virtually the same textbooks and lesson plans. Chinese classes also tend to be much more formal and strict, notes Bruce, with each class period so full of material to cover there is almost no downtime. Similarly, Chinese students have a very heavy homework load, giving them little free time to unwind. Bruce says this intensive homework situation is seen as a problem by some, and there is some movement afoot to relax it.
Bruce remarked on the large amount of time American students spend in discussions and social learning activities, as well as on the variety of ways in which lesson material is practiced. He was surprised to see how well-behaved students are here and how important school attendance is. Being told about American students before he came here, he expected to have to contend with somewhat free-wheeling classrooms.
Bruce also noted some major differences between the American and Chinese life styles. The first difference is the fast pace in this country, with Americans rushing from one activity to the next, grabbing quick and easy (typically sugar-laden) food on the way. In contrast, Chinese people don’t often have such a full schedule of daily activities. Moreover, lunch breaks usually last one and one-half hours, when people frequently nap. The Chinese also eat more fresh food, typically shopping for dinner every night on their way home from work. Public transportation, bicycles, and motorcycles are much more heavily used in China than here. Three generations typically live in a Chinese household, with the grandparents taking care of the grandchildren, and the parents taking care of the grandparents. Perhaps related to this life style, Chinese students are more respectful of their teachers and elders, whereas in America Bruce noted that everyone is treated more equally. Some things Bruce especially enjoys about the American life style are the casual dress and the fact that he finds Americans typically "adventurous, outgoing, and easy to talk to."
Dolly More, who is Bruce’s mentor, welcomes his presence as a great opportunity to expose Niwot students to another culture at a young age. In just the first six weeks, she says, he has already taught much to her class. "The school curriculum fair theme this year is Asia, so Bruce's expertise and resources will become increasingly more valuable as the school year progresses." Since Bruce has already established a reputation as a gourmet cook, perhaps the most eagerly anticipated event on Bruce’s calendar is the Chinese New Year’s dinner he plans to cook for the staff at Niwot Elementary!
Published in the Left Hand Valley Courier, March 4, 2000, page 14
Dwight Wederquist attended Niwot Elementary School when it was
a small, two-story, red brick building affording tranquil views of the surrounding
farmland. Now cars speed over the Diagonal Highway where the schoolhouse once
stood.
"Agriculture was the mainstay of the economy in this area then," says Dwight. "There were two alfalfa mills, plus a big sugar beet plant in Longmont." In 1914, his father, Ray, moved here from southwest Iowa at the age of 17. His parents dead and his prospects bleak, Ray decided to seek a better fortune in the Niwot area, where his sister and cousins were then living. He took up tenant farming, and married Gladys Siglinger, who had moved here from Nebraska with her family in 1902. Gladys' father was a "ditch rider," overseeing management of the irrigation ditches that were the lifeblood of the area.
When Dwight was old enough, he began helping his father with tenant farming. Dwight recalls that most children helped out on the farm. "When we weren't working, we made our own amusements from things around us," says Dwight, since money was even more scarce than free time. Dwight remembers that hunting was one of his favorite activities, along with the Saturday ritual of getting cleaned up and driving into Longmont to get a haircut, shop, and socialize with everyone that came into town that day. "My mother would bring her eggs to town and trade them for groceries. If she didn't have eggs, the grocer would put her bill on a tab, and have her pay it off when she did have eggs."
Fifty years ago Dwight married his wife Jean, who was from Denver. "I was a city girl, and I really didn't know anything about farm life," recalls Jean, "but I was in love and I really liked it better in the country than in the city." Jean adds, "I had a wonderful mother-in-law who taught me many things, like how to dress chickens."
Their first farm was north of Niwot, but in 1958 they bought their current farm on 79th Street, just north of Highway 52. The farm had been started in the late 1800s by Nimrod Henry and his daughter, Luella, who raised dairy cows and horses. Although the Wederquists have remodeled their house since they moved in, part of it dates from the house built by the Henrys in the early 1900s. "They used to insulate walls with newspaper in those days," explains Dwight, "and when we were remodeling we pulled out a newspaper from 1913."
The Wederquists raised dairy cows for a few years, and then switched to cattle, which they raised until 1975. At that point, they began raising pigs and sheep until 1993, when they decided to raise sheep only. They recently purchased a llama to help scare coyotes away from the sheep.
While still running the farm part-time, in 1964 Dwight returned to school to get his education degrees. He then worked twenty years in the St. Vrain Valley School District, serving as principal at various elementary schools, including Hygiene and Erie. "It's amazing how agriculture was completely revolutionized from the time I was little, going from horse-drawn plows to sophisticated machinery. Yet I found that education hadn't really changed much in that same time span," observed Dwight. He continued, "They put different names on their programs, but there still is the same fundamental struggle going on between those who believe in rote learning and those who believe in analytical thinking. The pendulum just keeps swinging back and forth, first favoring one side and then the other."
In 1988, Dwight retired from education, but still keeps on with his farm work. Although he has a daughter in Chicago and two sons in Colorado, none are likely to take over the farm. "Even if they wanted to come back," observed Dwight, "they can't make a living at it now." Niwot is fortunate to still have this landmark farm as part of its rural heritage.
Published in the Left Hand Valley Courier, May 13, 2000, page 1
Two generations of Niwot Elementary students have been helped and comforted by Jan Tornow, the sociable and soothing school clerk for the past 30 years. Now the school’s "Super Mom" plans to retire, making many sad to see her leave, but full of fond memories.
Jan began as a parent volunteer when her daughters were students at the school (and physical education teacher Terri Ward was a sixth-grader). She then worked as a lunch room aide before taking the position of school attendance clerk in the early 70’s. Known for her soft touch, Jan can also be firm. Shortly after she started, she remembers astonishing her coworkers by making an unruly student pick up food she had flung around the lunchroom. "There were some tough kids in those early days," recalls Jan. "I got to know some of them quite well since they were in the office so much. Once I got to know them, though, they often turned out to be some of my favorites."
Jan’s duties as attendance clerk are primarily to do the official accounting for the school’s enrollment and to keep track of student records. According to her colleagues, Jan has done an excellent job every year with the October count, which provides the school with its state funding. This year the October count brought in $2 million. Her unofficial duties encompass countless extras for both individual students and the entire school. Such tasks include sewing holiday pageant costumes, telling stories to the kindergartners, selling Carnival tickets, providing seasonal decorations in the office to give it a "homey" feeling, helping with school parties and events, and enlisting her husband’s help for woodworking projects, such as the Cougar mailbox stand. In addition, Jan regularly helps students find their way for after-school activities, and is always ready with a kind word for a child in distress.
Over the years, Jan has worked for four principals and seen the school’s composition change from a strongly rural student body to a predominantly suburban one. "I’d say over half of the kids lived on farms when I first started," Jan recalls. She has also seen a variety of motivational styles and discipline tactics.
Jan expresses sadness about her decision to leave, stating "I’m really going to miss the kids and the staff. The staff at this school really help each other out, just like in a family. I’ve enjoyed working with Connie Brodt—her energy and enthusiasm just flow through the school." However, she feels it is "time to do something different now, something a little less demanding." Upon retiring from the school, Jan says she plans to look for part-time work, maybe as a receptionist. She and her husband are in the process of landscaping their back yard, where she looks forward to spending time just relaxing and enjoying nature. After so many years of helping others, perhaps it is time now for Jan "to cultivate her own garden."
A going-away
party for Jan and other school retirees is planned for May 25 from 4 to 5:30
p.m. in the school gym. Friends are invited to stop by.