Why The Learning Well - a Parent's Perspective
As my oldest son was in his last year of preschool, my husband and I began a search for the best option for our little guy. One of the coolest things about being a parent is getting to watch a unique human being develop his own personality, gifts, talents and interests. With B, we see a God-given love for life that causes him to charge full speed ahead into all sorts of varied pursuits. He loves to build, to create chain reaction machines, to practice his parkour moves, and to play with friends and family, all with great gusto. He doesn’t, however, stop moving very often. We observe that his light shines brightly and desire for his formal education to grow that light and not extinguish it.
In Wenatchee, we are blessed to have so many different options for schooling. Each child and family is unique, so how wonderful to have unique options! In our search, we talked with public school teachers, visited private schools and homeschool groups, studied educational approaches and listened to the wisdom of people smarter than us. During the course of this journey, we determined that none of the currently existing options appeared to be the “right” option for our family and our son. Instead, our vision for our ideal school began to develop. We dreamed of a school that would help our three main wishes for our children come true:
that they would love God and be builders of His kingdom,
that they would develop the ability to think critically in order to navigate our complex modern culture, and
that they would learn how to learn and love doing it.
One night over dinner with friends Justin and Jeni Harris, we started a dialogue about education. Their daughter is B’s age and they were wrestling with many of the same questions we were. As we talked, we learned that the four of us were perfectly aligned on our philosophies and desires for our childrens’ education. In fact, Jeni, a highly trained certificated teacher, had been considering what the creation of such a school might look like. God planted the seed of The Learning Well into our hearts and the school was born.
And so, in no particular order, here are my WHYS for The Learning Well:
We dream of a school….
Where subjects and skills are taught in the context of the real world and their relationship with each other.
Where the unique gifts and interests of my child are recognized and cultivated as he grows.
Where my child can advance along a continuum of skill and knowledge mastery at his own pace, not held back by age and grade.
Where, because of the individualized learning approach, my child isn't grouped and labeled by current ability for the essential subject areas of reading and mathematics.
Where my child learns how to learn and his natural love of learning is increased and solidified.
Where my child learns how to think critically through discovery, asking questions and testing hypotheses, beginning at the Kindergarten level.
Where math, language arts, science and social studies are learned while interacting with engaging, hands-on activities and materials.
Where interesting and engaging projects drive the learning of the "basics".
Where children can learn together in a multi-age community rather than being grouped by age and neighborhood.
Where my child is under the care of a highly educated, caring and professional educator skilled in the best techniques to convey knowledge and assess progress.
Where educational goals and standards are clearly communicated and I as the parent am aware of my child's progress.
Where my child learns on a regular basis from a person other than me, but I am still the primary influence in my child's life.
Where the parent and teacher work together to create goals for my child's learning and assess progress together on a regular basis.
Where my child gets to be a kid and there is plenty of time and energy left for play and family time after school is done.
Where my child is learning and engaging with a group of other students and the sharing of knowledge and discovery is an integral part of the educational process.
Where the Good News of Jesus and a Christian worldview provide the foundation for all knowledge.
Where God's design is discovered as we learn about His creation and the magnificent order of the world around us.
Where the ability to sit quietly in a desk is not the most important skill for success in school, particularly in the early elementary grades.
Where behavior management involves the modeling of key virtues like cooperation, generosity, caring, respect, honesty and responsibility. When we inevitably fall short of this standard, grace, reconciliation and restitution are practiced.
Where community experts are invited into the classroom to teach, share and inspire.
Where tuition is set at the lowest level possible and financial assistance is available to make this education accessible to more families in the Wenatchee Valley.
We have dreamed a big dream and these dreams have provided the vision, the passion and the framework for The Learning Well.
Do you share these dreams? If so, I invite you to join us. Contact me or Jeni to learn more about The Learning Well. Our passion burns brightly and we are excited to watch these dreams come true in the lives of our students.
