At The Learning Cooperatives, we talk to a lot of parents who have kids struggling in school, but who also have anxiety about the self-directed model we use. One of the reasons parents give for deciding against sending their kids to us is this: “My daughter isn’t self-directed at all. She needs structure to get her to do anything. She … Read More
Common Sense Standard (CSS) #4
Kids’ emotional wellbeing matters in their education. If we are serious about education, we must be serious about kids’ emotional and mental health. Maybe it goes without saying that people at any age simply can’t learn or thrive if they are plagued by persistent anxiety or other negative emotions. Or maybe it doesn’t — because we have huge industries built … Read More
Why Are Our Kids So Worried?
Ask any educator, guidance counselor, local therapist or parent and they will tell you the same thing — the rise in anxiety and depression among young people is alarming. At first glance, this is puzzling. I can hear my grandpa’s voice in my head saying, “What, exactly, do kids these days have to be anxious about?” And it is true in … Read More
Jumping Off A Cliff! But, Not Really…
Princeton Learning Cooperative has been supporting young people and their families to be in charge of their life and education for the past 8 years. We’ve seen that providing a flexible, interest-based education in a welcoming community with caring adults can be a LIFE-CHANGING idea for young people. In order to get this flexibility to really do what is in … Read More
The Gardener and the Carpenter
This analogy refers to different styles of raising a child. A “gardener” tends to the fertility of the soil—the access to sunshine, water and minerals allowing for the best development of his charge, while the “carpenter” has a fixed idea of the desired outcome—he cuts, shapes, smooths and joins his raw material until the final product has emerged. The book … Read More
Support and Stand By
In a previous post, Rethinking the Gaps, I argued that in trying to close the skill gaps that we fear children hold, we actually juxtapose pressuring kids and overprotecting them. We simultaneously push kids to check all the customary boxes while denying them the natural experiences of taking risk. Though we do it for good, this results in feelings of … Read More
The Power of Believing You Can Improve
There’s so much talk these days about the need for children to develop resilience and perseverance, to learn to be open to failing and trying again, to be willing to put in the effort when something is hard, to be up for a challenge. I don’t want to oversimplify, but I believe that Carol Dwek’s ideas are a big part … Read More
Alfie Kohn and the Empowerment of Children
As a parent and educator, one of my heroes is Alfie Kohn. If you don’t know him you should check him out. He will challenge you to reflect on the things you think are important for a child. He will also challenge you to reflect on how adults, however well-meaning, control children. One thing he likes to deconstruct (and that’s … Read More
Trusting Children
Kids have much more ability than many of us give them credit for. They have an incredible ability to learn and adapt if we trust them and give them the space to do so.
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