Such a great article, Leah! I homeschool one of my boys, and one of the great benefits for him has been that he is not at a desk. I often find him doing his math homework while lying on the floor, or reading his assigned books flopped over an exercise ball. (The latter does not look comfortable to me, but he seems to be absorbing the information as well or better than he would sitting in a chair).
Yep. We used to do phonics, math facts, anything else requiring memorization while jumping on a trampoline or marching around or yelling in silly voices.
"Hence her more-famous recommendation for every kid, ideally, to have six hours outside everyday until the age of six, as well as various suggestions and methods for cultivating not only a keen attention to, but also a relationship with the world—with place (from trees to village to country), with particular trees and rivers and creatures, with siblings and neighbors, with stories and songs and books."
What % of American children under the age of six have this today?
There's a huge subculture of homeschooling, I've noticed, that emphasizes outdoor play and outdoor learning for kids. Which, alluded to above, is just not feasible for daycare/traditional schooling scenarios. (A few months ago, I listed to the book "Last Child In The Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder" and it was fascinating... and sad.)
This is such an interesting topic for me, considering I myself was “redshirted” in a way. My preschool teacher recommended to my parents that I start kindergarten a year later. My parents felt like my school experience ended up being stronger for it, and as I got older I started to realize that myself.
Courtney’s anecdote makes me wonder: who is capturing the benefit from the surplus adults that happen because we don’t currently have the educational staffing so that each child could do their phonics lesson at the blackboard? Maybe it’s all of us - perhaps to do that, you’d need a 1:1 teaching ratio that would pull too many adults out of food production or medical care. But what if kindergarten classrooms were 1:10 instead of 1:20? I suspect that many of the things produced by having half as many kindergarten teachers are not as good as what we’d get from smaller class sizes.
I should note that Finland "redshirts" both boys AND girls, apparently. And neither seems the worse for wear as a result. Finland outscores almost every country in the world, in fact.
Such a great article, Leah! I homeschool one of my boys, and one of the great benefits for him has been that he is not at a desk. I often find him doing his math homework while lying on the floor, or reading his assigned books flopped over an exercise ball. (The latter does not look comfortable to me, but he seems to be absorbing the information as well or better than he would sitting in a chair).
Yep. We used to do phonics, math facts, anything else requiring memorization while jumping on a trampoline or marching around or yelling in silly voices.
I resemble this remark! (Or at least I did when I was 8).
"Hence her more-famous recommendation for every kid, ideally, to have six hours outside everyday until the age of six, as well as various suggestions and methods for cultivating not only a keen attention to, but also a relationship with the world—with place (from trees to village to country), with particular trees and rivers and creatures, with siblings and neighbors, with stories and songs and books."
What % of American children under the age of six have this today?
Also, why assume this need goes away for grownups (how many have *one*)?
Not a %, but here's a list of 900+ forest schools across the US: https://naturallykatey.wordpress.com/2021/01/08/list-of-forest-schools-outdoor-based-nature-inspired-schools-in-the-us/
There's a huge subculture of homeschooling, I've noticed, that emphasizes outdoor play and outdoor learning for kids. Which, alluded to above, is just not feasible for daycare/traditional schooling scenarios. (A few months ago, I listed to the book "Last Child In The Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature Deficit Disorder" and it was fascinating... and sad.)
Thanks so much Leah for this article, and the thoughtful engagement. Love your prediction about marriage rates - that's a great empirical question!
Richard
This is such an interesting topic for me, considering I myself was “redshirted” in a way. My preschool teacher recommended to my parents that I start kindergarten a year later. My parents felt like my school experience ended up being stronger for it, and as I got older I started to realize that myself.
Courtney’s anecdote makes me wonder: who is capturing the benefit from the surplus adults that happen because we don’t currently have the educational staffing so that each child could do their phonics lesson at the blackboard? Maybe it’s all of us - perhaps to do that, you’d need a 1:1 teaching ratio that would pull too many adults out of food production or medical care. But what if kindergarten classrooms were 1:10 instead of 1:20? I suspect that many of the things produced by having half as many kindergarten teachers are not as good as what we’d get from smaller class sizes.
I am fascinated & interested in your sneaky, spicy take...!
I should note that Finland "redshirts" both boys AND girls, apparently. And neither seems the worse for wear as a result. Finland outscores almost every country in the world, in fact.
Indeed, it doesn't have to be a zero-sum game.