Paul and I have been participating in a community, parent-lead effort to start a Reggio-Emilia inspired preschool in Uptown New Orleans. The dream is about to be reality; by the time we get back to the city with Kate, Will should be able to start at his new school.
Today, the school policies, procedures, and release forms arrived. The Abeona House release has to be the coolest, most positive child-related document I’ve ever seen.
THE ABEONA RELEASE
I release my child, ___, into the care of the loving staff of the Abeona House Child Discovery Center.
I am fully aware that my child will participate in the following:
– Making mud pies
– Dancing wildly
– Looking for and playing with bugs
– Eating sugary birthday cupcakes
– Laughing hysterically
– Thinking deeply
– Getting wet
– Making friends
– Playing with glue, paint, clay, plaster, and wood
– Building with sticks, toothpicks, shoeboxes
– Getting new hairdos (sans scissors)
– Stretching…mind, body, and ever-beautiful spirit
In essence, participating whole-heartedly in CHILDHOOD.
I have read the Abeona House policies and procedures outlined in the general information guide and fully comply with them.
Signed: (Will’s very happy parents who wish they too, could enroll)
Matt | 12-Apr-06 at 7:17 pm | Permalink
Laura and I keep trying to figure out how we’re going to deal with having kids in the public schools. We keep bringing up the idea of forming a co-operative school with other parents who share like-minded concerns about the public education system yet share similar values and want their children to get a good education.
I keep wondering how hard it would be to keep things small enough to manage, hiring some staff, but making use of the expertise of involved parents to split up some of the teaching duties. I bet a lot of employers would be willing to let their employees make up some hours each month so they could spend some time teaching their children on topics they know well.
Evie, Bethany, & Scott | 13-Apr-06 at 5:46 am | Permalink
Can I sign up too?
eli | 13-Apr-06 at 6:15 am | Permalink
I want to go! Good luck with the school. How do you find one of these in California?
Holly | 13-Apr-06 at 9:10 am | Permalink
Watching this place come together has really been incredible. I’m sorry that we haven’t been able to be more involved (being abroad for two months and now about to leave for another month sort of makes it difficult to do a lot). It has absolutely been a tremendous amount of work.
Believe me, living in New Orleans, there are few issues that concern parents more than education.
I first learned about Reggio-Emilia when I lived in Reggio nell’Emilia, Italy, for a few weeks in college. I just remember that our teachers had their kids in this incredible school. NOLA had a RE-inspired center called Gris-Gris House pre-Katrina. Post-Katrina, parents got together and decided to open a similar preschool with RE principles.
We also love the parents in this group. While Will’s current school is great, the parents (NOLA’s “trust fund” generation) aren’t exactly our peer group. (Not to mention the incredible expense of the center.) Abeona House has hooked us up with some great like-minded folk.