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comment by nowaypablo
nowaypablo  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: If you were to create an elementary school curriculum, what would it include?

Things I didn't know I was learning until years later:

• self-reliance, goal-setting and self-motivation. encouragement of curiosity.

• communication, group cooperation\compromise, group leadership.

• social tolerance, self-defense, objective thinking.

It starts with egg hunts where one kid leads, or physically directs another kid who is blindfolded. It starts with sharing days where kids bring in object of value to them and talk about it, and the others listen and ask questions if they have any. It starts with simulating genuine human experience in a safe environment that will allow them to acquire resources and knowledge on their own, not get drilled with academic qualifications and times tables.

    (3) the geography of a foreign land, like New Jersey;

NJ resident here, the layouts of the towns, roads and highways make no sense until you've gotten lost in them. Know what I mean?

P.S. perhaps kindergarden is too early, but camping hiking and even an afternoon at the lake..matters.

Edit: I somehow mistook this to be specifically Kindergarden. This comment applies to that only then.





llagerlof  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    encouragement of curiosity.

I think is the most important element of learning. The curiosity, and the creativity are fundamentals. This remember me the TED Talk of Ken Robinson, "How schools kill creativity". It's the most viewed video of TED, and it's brilliant.

http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity

nowaypablo  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I completely agree with you, I have seen that talk and now I must see it again. Courage, resolve, character, resourcefulness and happiness all develop from pursuing curiosity. Of course the people taking care of us want us to be safe and clean and healthy but kids and especially teens don't explore the way they used to. Not in real life, anyway, and the worst part is that never chasing mystery eventually makes you lose all desire to do so.

lil  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Your list of things you didn't know you were learning until years later are things that are actually on the curriculum kind of -- teachers who study in good teacher training schools know that what they are really teaching is how to be an optimally functioning human being. The curriculum is one way of teaching those skills. Kids also learn a lot from paying attention to how their teachers behave and treat others.

nowaypablo  ·  3571 days ago  ·  link  ·  

    Kids also learn a lot from paying attention to how their teachers behave and treat others.

Absolutely, and it's part of that innate human experience-- to observe others and learn from them. A very young kid will be impressionable to the authority figure they spend 5 days out of the week with, and I imagine it's a terrifying risk trusting a teacher to take care of your kid like that.

mknod  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Camping and hiking is a great idea. I actually did do this in elementary school, and learned a lot of great things about making fire and tracking animals. It may have been extra-curricular.

nowaypablo  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

Growing up I spent my summers in Armenia, and occasionally my dad would take me way out of the (only) city, pull over, and we'd just start walking into the hills. I would always feel uncomfortable and gross and basically piss myself every time something buzzed by my ear, but he kept me moving anyway.

Now in the states, when it rains and my friends cower into a shop to keep their manicured carcasses from experiencing nature, I take my clothes off and run in the grass. I'm not saying you should do that, I'm just saying it's a lot more fun than not doing that.

mknod  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  

I think this is just wonderful nowaypablo! I am not a huge nature guy, I've had my share for sure, but to have the pure unadulterated nakedness in the rain is something I'm glad your father was able to prepare you for.

lil  ·  3573 days ago  ·  link  ·  
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