Praxis Course: PSYC215 Thorne School Practicum
Semester: Spring 2026
Faculty Advisor/Professor: Jodie Baird
Community Partner: Phebe Anna Thorne School
Praxis Site Supervisor: Jodie Baird
Praxis Poster:
PSYCH 215 Praxis Poster - Camille Hart and Mckayla Reyer
Further Context:
Camille Hart:
My time at the Phebe Anna Thorne school will not be something I forget. I have always loved spending time with children but this placement showed me that not only do I want to continue working with children in a professional sense, I can. My future is not in education but in medicine where working with children can be very difficult. However, this placement opened my eyes to ways that I can make things like trips to the doctor less stressful and scary for preschool aged children.
For my Praxis Poster presentation, my partner, Mckayla Reyer, and I took a deeper dive into anti-bias education (ABE). This form of teaching is based around the idea that children will notice differences, whether we want them to or not. For instance, some parents and teachers try to help their students become something known as “color blind” where they believe their child doesn’t see a difference in race. However, this doesn’t promote equity, it promotes suppression. This is a form of teaching that helps children become comfortable with differences, able to identify when something isn’t fair, and feel comfortable in speaking up for themselves and others against inequity. Inequity is highly emphasized here, not inequality. Equality would give everyone the same things but that is not how people are. At lunch, would you give the same amount of food to a toddler and a teenager? Equity is important because it meets each child where they are and teaches a version of “fairness” that is not based on quantity.
Thorne school implements ABE in many different ways, some that are obvious, and some that are a little less visible. While classrooms may not represent every difference a child can have, the books in the classroom do their best. There are books with children from a multitude of different ethnicities, family styles, visible disabilities, food, religions, etc. Teachers use language that promotes the acceptance of difference at every opportunity. At snack time, it is common to hear a teacher identify the differences and similarities that are found in the children’s food. When a child says or does something that lets teachers know that they have been influenced by some sort of bias, teachers will gently step in and help guide the student to a different way of thinking. For example, I watched one day as a child explained to another that their food is weird and gross. With a little guidance from the teacher, these two students engaged in a conversation about how there are some foods they like and some they do not and that is okay.
My time at Thorne was an incredible experience and I hope that others choose to work here in the future.
Mckayla Reyer:
The Phebe Anna Thorne Practicum has been a very insightful and engaging course. It has been so exciting to connect the theories and discussions we have in class to our experiences in the classroom, and I have gained several practical skills that I will carry on to the next steps of my life and my career. My favorite part of this course has been building relationships with the
students at Thorne, and my placement visits have often been the highlights of my week! I am grateful to have gained more experience with this particular age group, as I hope to teach in early education after graduating.
A specific topic I got to look deeper into was Anti-Bias Education (ABE), with my classmate Camille Hart. ABE is an approach to teaching that addresses equity, diversity, and justice in developmentally appropriate and engaging ways. This helps students strengthen the social and
emotional skills to confront stereotypes, bias, and discrimination. Exploring how Thorne implements an ABE approach has been particularly helpful in understanding how these often complicated topics can be taught in PreK. I see this through the books and stories that reflect different identities, intentional and open conversations, and by offering a safe space to play and build empathy. It has been fun to be a part of a space that supports self-identity, empathy, and social action, all integrated into learning and play