More to Explore
Social Media
Slideshows
Selected Blog Posts
The benefits of play
Play is a hot topic these days, and every article I read on the subject reinforces for me the "rightness" of the Circle School experience. Here's an article about the benefits of play, both social and "academic." Enjoy. 🙂 -Julia
Growing
The nice man is just trying to be friendly. “So you two girls go to The Circle School…What’s your favorite subject?” The young girls are a little nonplussed. “We only take classes if we want to.” “Oh. Well what do you do at school, if you’re not in classes?”...
Infinity and the backyard bell tower
Nature impels us to avoid death and seek infinity. Call the first a biological imperative and the second a spiritual imperative. The first is the survival instinct. Maslow's hierarchy of needs suggests you must satisfy the first before you can do much about the...
Washington gridlock and democratic schools
Tomorrow we Americans elect a president. Two days ago we Circle Schoolers hosted a group of families and educators here, telling them about life in our democratic school. Now I'm thinking about the connection between Washington gridlock and American schools. About...
Low Test Scores Are Not The Problem
Staying Calm
I was glad to come across this article reminding me how helpful it is to stay calm when interacting with others, especially when it is most difficult to do so! Re-framing my thinking to make it easier to remember others are not intentionally out to annoy me, but often...
Freedom & creativity
I don't have a lot to say about this article by Peter Gray except to recommend it. Dr Gray cites studies indicating that creativity is one of the most-desired qualities in potential employees, and recent research indicating that creativity is declining in American...
A Regular Person
A few days ago I experienced my 29th first-day-of-school at The Circle School, and I imagined what a child's first first day might be like... It's your first day at The Circle School and you are Alice down the rabbit hole. You are in a strange new world: fascinating,...
THE CI_CLE SCHOOL
There is something about the spray bottle -- and maybe the missing "r" -- that makes this feel iconic to me.
How Children Succeed
I heard most of this radio interview the other morning, with Paul Tough, author of How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity and the Hidden Power of Character, and I was thinking of The Circle School the entire time. I wonder if Paul Tough has heard of what we do here; I...
A new blog, & a disclaimer
For years, I've wished The Circle School had a blog -- a place staff (and students!) could post articles they found interesting, thoughts about the school and education in general, and maybe even lovely pictures of life here. But...obstacles abound. A blog is a lot of...
Other Writings
What Kind of School?
The Learning Edge
Focusing on the latter, The Learning Edge offers thoughts about how and why self–direction is important and effective in education, proposing a framework of ideas supporting the practice of self–directed schooling.
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Selected Newsletters
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