June (2014)
May (2014)
April (2014)
March (2014)
3/25/2014
George's Gift
3/14/2014
Pick Yourself
February (2014)
December (2013)
12/27/2013
Holiday Card
12/4/2013
Good Causes
12/2/2013
Frozen Assets
November (2013)
11/16/2013
Sally B.
11/10/2013
End Game
October (2013)
September (2013)
9/21/2013
Self Study
Useful Recipes
1/14/2004

The purpose of a school should be to set up opportunities for students to achieve successes in challenging, structured environments. This is in contrast to the de facto mission of much education today: to impart as much information as possible....to be measured by achievement testing (we call this "pump and dump"). No, what we want are relationships that provide growth opportunities like the one I witnessed from the bench of JV boys' roundball up at New Hampton Monday.

One of the reasons boarding schools work is that everyone is involved in an afternoon activity that is a metaphor for the classroom. Once again, the adult provides the structure, support and guidance for optimal performance. That's Dwight Erickson above, and girls' varsity hockey coach Emily McKissock below:

Emily engenders such love for the sport that girls spend time playing shinny on Proctor Pond. (My Webster's Collegiate (1977) defines "shinny" as "a variation of hockey played by schoolboys...."!

Every other Tuesday morning, my advisee group meets in my office area for 40 minutes of food and fun. My office is a kitchen, of course, so I whip up tasty treats, like today's apple pie. Below, Robin gets some supportive advice from Ariel and Meredith:

Here's my recipe for success: peel and cut up some apples...drench the pieces in brown sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg....put them in crust purchased at Shop n Save and drizzle a little butter before placing the other crust on top....bake until it looks and smells done. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Opportunities for success in environments that are both challenging...
...and supportive.
Skill building: Tony has no trouble charming the refs during halftime.
Can't get enough: Erin tickles the twine on the pond.
Afternoon activity as metaphor for classtime...
No shinny here. Just girls achieving a goal.
Ariel has been waiting weeks for my apple pie. Her prayers have been answered.