by Eric Barajas, Open School staff
March 22, 2021
For the majority of people, friendships are formed with people who live within their proximity. These are people they meet at school, work, community events, recreational activities, or social gatherings. For friendships to grow and develop, people must be in frequent contact and communication, and doing enjoyable things together facilitates that. With the exponential growth […]
by Cassi Clausen, Open School staff
March 15, 2021
Like millions of parents in this last year, you may have suddenly been plunged into the role of a homeschooling administrator, without any other choice. You didn’t ask for it, and you didn’t want it. But suddenly you were setting your day around your child’s Zoom calls or becoming an expert on Google classroom. And […]
by Aaron Browder, Open School staff
March 8, 2021
When the COVID apocalypse descended upon us in March 2020, we all went into hiding in our homes, thinking it would all be over in a few months. When it wasn’t over after a few months, society began to scramble to get children back in school. They couldn’t homeschool forever. The children were going to […]
by Eric Barajas, Open School staff
March 1, 2021
Almost a year has passed since schools worldwide hopped on Zoom to continue classes and instruction. This phenomenon has been captured in news articles, social media clips, memes, and everyday conversations. An unavoidable recurring theme supplanted into the limelight is that “Zoom school” is awful and that it sucks for not only students but their […]
by Aaron Browder, Open School staff
February 22, 2021
Sometimes, you don’t realize how important something is until it’s gone. That’s definitely true of social interaction in the era of COVID-19. In the “old normal,” people were just there, saturating our environment. It wasn’t until we were forced to shut ourselves away for many, many months that we realized we could get sick from […]
by Aaron Browder, Open School OC staff
June 22, 2020
You may have heard about children being bullied at school. Or having their phones confiscated by teachers. Or being punished for expressing themselves with their clothing or hair. Maybe you’ve wondered whether these things are violations of children’s rights. The answer is yes — but the violations go much deeper than that, in ways you […]
by Tay Arrow, Open School TV staff
May 23, 2020
When The Open School of Temecula Valley decided to pinpoint the location of our future “forever campus” at Zephyr Mountain Grove in Wildomar, we started to think about where the avocado farm would end and our campus would begin. There was a natural boundary created by the edge of the current orchard, and a sense […]
by Aaron Browder, Open School OC staff
May 16, 2020
The writer Blake Boles has long been a luminary in the world of Self-Directed Education, having published books such as College Without High School and Better Than College. Now he’s published a new book: Why Are You Still Sending Your Kids to School?, which is a sure upgrade for the arsenals of SDE advocates. College […]
by Aaron Browder, Open School OC staff
May 12, 2020
Teachers (as in those who help others learn, not as in classroom managers or childcare workers) are often helpful. But not nearly to the extent that most people think they are. My first experiences with teaching were, like so many people’s, in the context of mandatory education with grades and tests. And, like so many […]
May 5, 2020
People who work closely with children have always know that children learn primarily through play, rather than instruction or disciplined study. More recently, the scientific establishment has come to agree that free play is an essential and integral part of how children learn. Following are a few quotes from wise men and women who were […]