Educate
the
Whole
Child

It’s time to let the wholeness of the child engage with the wholeness of the world.

WHAT IS

WHOLE CHILD EDUCATION

AND HOW DOES IT WORK?

To the extent that we narrow the purpose of schooling to what can be measured, we fail to
engage those sides of children that must be developed in order for them to pull learning
from life. We also increase the likelihood that
they will be bored, question the value of school,
and in some cases even drop out.

Instead of starting with the questions “How do we prepare kids to compete in the 21st century
global marketplace?” or “What will insure that graduates all have command of basic skills?”,
suppose we start by asking what qualities we want to encourage in children as they grow toward
adulthood.

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OUR

SCHOOLS

Putney Central School

Putney, Vermont

A beautiful rural school with forest classrooms in Putney, Vermont

Zaharis School

Mesa, AZ

At Zaharis books are plentiful and reading is as natural as breathing, but scripted textbooks are set aside in favor of inquiry-based learning. That means students pose questions and carry out projects. This builds teamwork and motivation for learning.

Compass School

Westminster, VT

Compass School’s unusual model accommodates both independent and public school students for its sparsely populated rural communities in Vermont. The school is open admissions and this arrangement works well for them. Upon graduation, students enjoy a high level of college acceptance.

OUR

RESOURCES

Educate the Whole Child expects to offer a graduate level 12-credit certificate–Teaching the Whole Child. It will consist of four online courses that may be taken as a series or independently. See details here.

Play in the Preschool Classroom

Ashiabi’s 2007 article, “Play in the Preschool Classroom: It’s Socioemotional Significance and the Teacher’s Role in Play” (Early Childhood Education Journal, Vol. 35, No.2) provides a detailed description of the benefits of play in early childhood education. 

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The Self-Organizing Revolution

One of the best books surveying the alternatives to mainstream, accountability-oriented education. Dr. Miller has a broad view and is not sectarian in any way.

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Dr. Mary Goral

For anyone interested to see what happens when Waldorf methods are applied in public, usually charter, schools, here is a link to Dr. Mary Goral giving a talk to parents.

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