Sudbury education discussion - Page 5

[Snuzzmom]

Originally Posted by CurlyTop

Before I left, I found the girl who had to complete her sentence. She forgot her music tape so there was no music to dance to - she improvised. She did a 3 minute "Brittney Spears" type routine. All the while the son of the Yale man sat with his back to her saying, "I am *so* glad I'm missing this." After the routine, I applauded heartily and she went off to play. I asked what she had done to "deserve" to do a dance routing for a visitor. The staff member and the Yale man's son said, in unison, "You don't want to know." Yes, I did. The staff member told me the girl (remember she is about 7) has trouble with acting out sexually. She is no longer allowed in rooms with doors and must not go behind the school because she has tried out unwanted sexual behavior on other students. The dancing as consequence was not well explained. No one made much eye contact during this discussion. It was WIERD.

Oh. My.

Well, that's pretty distubing.

[LaughingRedhead]

Hi there!
We're new to the whole homeschooling/unschooling thing. Oldest son (almost 6) started Kindergarten in the local public school this year and it's been a disaster. He's distracted, just wants to socialize, won't do his work and is BORED. So, school calls meeting, says it's ADD, we take him to get the full eval. with an independent psych.--he's gifted but totally not being challenged. We tell school, they say who cares, gifted programs are "elitist," we're not going to challenge him, he just needs to behave and do his work (but if he had learning disabilities, they'd have programs and aides lined up to help him). Sooo...we're starting the homeschooling thing, but think what our son really wants is the socialization first, education second. Once the first is satisfied, then he'll throw himself eagerly into his passions.

That said, we're looking at a local Sudbury school. Anyone familiar with the model? We've done all the research and it's intriguing to us, think it might be the right thing for our little guy. It's a HUGE leap of faith for us that he'll pursue his own interests and that we don't push him to "learn" or take "classes," but that the learning will occur on its own. I think we're worried that he'll have trouble when he goes to college years from now because most programs have pre-requirement subjects one must take before one gets to one's "major/interest" and that is very anti-unschooling philosophy. Any thoughts?
Erin

[gurumama]

My boys now attend SVS in Framingham--we moved here for the school after a long time of considering it.

It's been AMAZING and the boys are THRIVING. They went from Montessori in the younger years to homeschooling for a few years to Sudbury and it's been outstanding.

We visited a tiny Sudbury school in New Britain, CT that I have to recommend to anyone considering it: Mountain Laurel Sudbury. There were only 12 or so kids but the staff were wonderful, and in our case we chose SVS over it simply because DH's family is closer to SVS.

[LaughingRedhead]

Yeah, Yeah, Yeah!!! That makes me so happy to hear!!! Our son LOVED Montessori when he was in Preschool, so we knew that child directed learning was his thing, but SVS seems like such a wonderful thing, we're so excited to see it! We've got an interview there in two weeks. How old are your boys?

[gurumama]

9 and almost 6. We plan for them to stay at SVS until they do their thesis and graduate.

[sapphos]

we are returning to Miami this Fall and look forward to many of the options there. There is a Sudbury based school about to open in South Florida and we are looking carefully at it as a possiblity instead of unschooling. DD is 15 months now but it's amazing how quickly the time is passing so we're preparing with all haste to make our decisions. We're also considering the possibility of letting her attend a Reggio Emilia school for awhile.
In all reality it's so challenging to make the right decision particularly since we continue to plan to delay or selectively or maybe never vacc.

[KathyJo]

I am one of the founders of the sudbury school in south florida, Inspire Young Minds.
We are planning our opening for September '08. We have several information meetings and fundraisers coming up over the next several months. Join or mailing list on our site at www.inspiresudbury.com or send an email to [e-mail] for more information.

Our next information meeting is

Saturday, May 3 at 3:00pm
The Hollywood Birth Center
2316 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, FL 33021.

[sunanthem]

We're going to check out and interview at a Sudbury school here on thursday. It seems very intriguing.

[sapphos]

Originally Posted by KathyJo

I am one of the founders of the sudbury school in south florida, Inspire Young Minds.
We are planning our opening for September '08. We have several information meetings and fundraisers coming up over the next several months. Join or mailing list on our site at www.inspiresudbury.com or send an email to [e-mail] for more information.

Our next information meeting is

Saturday, May 3 at 3:00pm
The Hollywood Birth Center
2316 Hollywood Blvd
Hollywood, FL 33021.

I so can't wait to see what you guys are doing, I was following in teh AP group when you first announced but since we haven't moved back yet I've been unable to attend anything.

[Artemnesia]

I was a student at SVS Framingham for 3 years and did my thesis in 1994. It was an amazing experience. Going there allowed me to travel with a youth orchestra, and to focus my attention where I was most interested in an independent yet totally supported way. I went on to graduate from college with highest honors. I am definitely a believer in this kind of education.

[brooktosea]

The big difference is that the kids are in a place of self-responsibility that models America's judicial system at large. Students have rules that they need to follow, yet they also can write motion to change, improve and ammed the rules that they themselves are governed by. They can vote on hiring staff. They have freedom to explore subjects without the watchful eye or judgements of thier parents.
Homeschoolers are not equal to everyone around them. There parents can influence their day. At the schools the kids are not in a dictatorship. They are equals and they have the chance to share in the responsibility of an intentional community.

[zeldabee]

Subbing. My son is starting at the Village Free School in Portland, OR this September. I'd love to see more discussion about this!

[Arolinecay]

Wow, what an interesting thread. I'm a little late to it but...
my husband (post-er of the link and filmmaker of the documentary "New American Schoolhouse") and I are opening a Sudbury school in Baltimore and holding our first open house this Saturday!
I'm getting ready for all the questions.: There were so many great quotes here. I've had 3 years to digest the model; I have to remember how I felt when I first heard about it. HUH??!?!?
It's really flipping everything upsidedown; approaching education from the learner's point of view instead of the teacher's. Now, especially after watching my 5 year old hungrily master one thing after another-reading, origami, breakdancing--I can't hardly imagine any other way of schooling. It seems perfectly logical.

[thisiswhatwedo]

I've gpt two in a dem. free school

My two boys go to our local dem. free school here in Minneapolis. It is small and has been there for thirty years. I could have gone there but never had heard of it before recently. I love the feel of the school and that it is small. The kids are all pretty happy and have an amazing ability to speak for themselves. Drawbacks, there is very little academics going on. But a lot of the families thee combine homeschooling with the school. I work so we are going to be doing homeschooling at night.
baby crying gotta go

[kmeyrick]

I am a public school teacher in a very structured, rigid school. But when my kids do projects that they make up and learn what they choose to learn, they do an amazing job!

I can see why some parents are skeptical about giving kids democratic rights. But from what I have studied in Sudbury, its democracy with RESPONSIBILITY, not just sheer and utter freedom with no consequences. For example, you arrange a lesson with a teacher and don't show up, you're out of that lesson, and you lose an allowance.

The kids tend to be very creative, driven, and eventually become very self-disciplined. I like the idea.

[dewlady]

zeldabee: good to note that Free Schools are actually a different model than SVS. I only mention it because I think they get grouped together a lot because they share some philosophical roots, but the truth is they are very different models in practice. The two biggest differences (although this could be it's own thread) are these: at SVS adults do not offer or provide classes, they wait for the children's interests to emerge and for the children to ask. At Free Schools the philosophy is more open to whatever works for the particular school and most times classes are offered by teacher's and students alike. Another big difference is that free schools don't use the JC or Judiciary committee, and they don't write people up. again, it varies among free schools, but they often use some form of group mediation or restorative justice type model. again, the nuances are subtle, but really different in practice and Free Schools are not the same as SVS schools.

That being said, The Village Free School Teacher's are really great and I hope your son loves it there. They are doing really good work. how old is your son?

[zeldabee]

Thanks, dewlady, for making my brain explode.



My son will be 5 in September. He's chomping at the bit to start school. It will be a huge transition for us--we're moving across the city to be nearer the school, he'll be leaving the family daycare where he's been for 3 years.

And I feel like I'm stepping off a cliff, really hoping I'm doing the right thing. But as a single parent, working more than full-time, I don't have many options, school-wise. I really like this compared to public school, hands down, but I'm still nervous about the non-academic/unschooling aspect. I have many teachers in my extended family, and none of them has any clue what this is all about. Mind you, I'd be just this nervous about sending him to public school--probably more! The thought of that makes me shudder.

Anyway, negative vibes from family notwithstanding, we're excited.

[dewlady]

hahaha....i guess we can all get a little like that sometimes when it's what we do....really, i recently met the teacher of the younger group as well as the director and they both seemed really kind and dedicated. not that i actually saw them in action, we were just talking. good luck! i hope your son has a fun and enriching year. I know it can be a huge step, but like you said, school in general at first is big. I have teachers in my extended family and I just generally avoid talking educational philosophy with them...and I think they avoid it, too! My best advice is to take it one year at a time and check in with yourself/partner and with your son each year. As long as everyone is happy, than it is the right choice for you!

[thisiswhatwedo]

Originally Posted by dewlady

zeldabee: good to note that Free Schools are actually a different model than SVS. I only mention it because I think they get grouped together a lot because they share some philosophical roots, but the truth is they are very different models in practice. The two biggest differences (although this could be it's own thread) are these: at SVS adults do not offer or provide classes, they wait for the children's interests to emerge and for the children to ask. At Free Schools the philosophy is more open to whatever works for the particular school and most times classes are offered by teacher's and students alike. Another big difference is that free schools don't use the JC or Judiciary committee, and they don't write people up. again, it varies among free schools, but they often use some form of group mediation or restorative justice type model. again, the nuances are subtle, but really different in practice and Free Schools are not the same as SVS schools.

That being said, The Village Free School Teacher's For instance the are really great and I hope your son loves it there. They are doing really good work. how old is your son?

well....take this in the friendliest way but I disagree with that assessment, unless you are referring to the difference between democratic free schools and say a public school "open free school". The school my kids go to is a democratic free school and since it started at the same time (late 1960's) as the Sudbury school it wouldn't really call itself a Sudbury school, same with the Albany free school. They are all democratic free schools and since they came about all around the same time they don't call themselves "Sudbury" Although they do all take their ideas from the Summerhill school that was founded in 1921 in England and do sometimes refer to that.

[cloudspinning]

Hi all,
Just wanted to let everyone know about a new blog called Freedom to Learn, by Peter Gray. Here is a link:

http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn

The subtitle is "The roles of play and curiosity as foundations for learning." One of the staff at the school my kids go to mentioned it. Aside from being a professor of psychology at Boston College, Peter Gray is the parent of a former Sudbury Valley student. I read the first entry and it seems like it will be interesting!

-cloudspinning