My OwnSchool May 1-June 30

Most KIDLINK participants go to school, though some get their schooling at home.
In this project, we will think and write about the kind of school in which we would like to learn.
To create the school in which the best possible learning could happen, what would we need?

 It will be interesting to find out from other students what would be in their made-up schools,
and also to discuss our actual school experiences, sharing with others what it's really like to be in school
or in a home-schooling situation.
Along the way, we will think about the costs of schooling and about who pays those costs.

The moderators for this topic are:

Phase II   May 16-31: My Real School

Phase III   June 1-30: My Own School
 

Phase I--May 1-15  Learning is Like...

 

Let's begin this topic with two ideas from Canadian teacher Steve Toleikis, one of the original "My Own School" moderators in 1994.
Steve gives learners  many opportunities to reflect upon their own positive learning experiences.
He tells them, "We can learn anywhere and at any time.
There are many things to learn and many ways to learn it. Think of a time you really enjoyed learning something.
Tell a story about that positive learning experience.
Describe what you were doing and why it was a good experience."

Let's also try another of Steve's ideas, the writing of a poem about learning.
Start by finishing this sentence, as creatively as you can, as many times as you can:

Then, if possible, put together, all of the sentences to form a poem, written by a group of kids, perhaps your whole class.  Eventually, if all goes well, we can create a world-wide poem about learning.

Here are some examples from Steve's classes:

"Learning is like finding a hidden treasure."
"Learning is like a big puzzle just solved."
"Learning is like a fresh raspberry from your garden."

In this first phase of "My Own School," please try to send in your first responses as soon as possible.
Your writings do not need to be perfect to get us off to a great start!

Phase II--May 16-31

My Real School

In this phase, let's write about our real schooling.
Try to be positive, fair, and honest in what you have to say, and please respond to what others write whenever possible.  Also, whenever you can, if you're in a school, please write as a whole class.
If you're home schooled, many of us will be especially interested in what you have to say.

Tell us about a typical day in your real school or in your real-life home schooling.

What types of subjects do you take?
Do you have time in your day to see and talk to your friends?
 

How do you get to school?
Does the school pay for your transportation?
If not, who does?
Do you eat lunch at school?
If so, describe the lunch time, not only the food, but also the social life.

You might keep a journal, perhaps for just one day,  in which you write about what is happening in school.
If you're home-schooled you might stress the special aspects of your educational experiences, such as working with family members or learning independently.
 

What does your schooling cost?
Can you express this cost in the currencies of the various
participants in "My Own School"?
The currency converters that are available on the World-Wide Web may be helpful here.
One of these converters is at:

http://www.cyberstation.net/~jweesner/ccc/ustccc.html

How does your school support your musical efforts?
Does your school give you a chance to perform in  musical groups?
Does it give you lessons in singing or  playing a musical instrument?
Could you share a school song or music that is  popular at your school?

Phase III--June 1-30

My Own School

Now it's time to design the kind of school you would really want to attend.
When you write, please respond thoughtfully, whenever possible, to what other classes and individuals have shared.

You might start with some of these questions:

How many children will attend your school?
What will their ages be?
Tell us a little about the student population.
What kind of student would you want to go to your school?
What kind of student would want to go there?
How many teachers would the school need?
 

Since you will have to hire teachers, try to describe what you think makes an ideal or good teacher for your school.
What school subjects should they be able to teach?
How much money would teachers earn?
What would students learn in this school?
What would a typical day be like at your made-up school?
How many hours a day would students go to school?
Would there be time for classes in art, music, computers, or physical education?
 

Write about your student-designed school building.
Try to describe the whole school building.
What would we see if we could visit your school building for the day?
What would the classrooms look like?
What other kinds of rooms would we see?
What about lunch time?
What would the playground be like?
Would there be time for using the playground during the school day?
Would there be other times and places in your school day in which students could talk to their friends?
What does your real classroom look like?
What would a visitor observe there during a school day?

You might try creating a series of World-Wide Web pages describing the parts of your school,
such as the classrooms, labs, and gyms.  Then, you could connect these parts with hyperlinks.
For example, at the bottom of your page describing the science laboratory, you might have links like these:

Go down the hall to the language arts classroom
Go down the hall in the other direction to the music room
Go across the hall to the mathematics classroom

If you don't know how to make World-Wide Web pages, the moderators of "My Own School" are here to help.
We can also give you a place to post your pages on the Web.  Feel free to use pictures in your pages, if you like.



Act out a day in the school you have designed.
Some students might play the roles of teachers, administrators, maintenance workers,
and other adults who work in the school.
How have the adult roles changed?
How about students?

Who would pay to build your school and buy books and equipment?
How much money would it take to pay teachers and other adults working in your school?
How much money would it take to operate your school for a year?
What about the cost of transportation?
How would students travel to and from school each day?
Can you write a school budget?
Where will the money come from?

 Sincere thanks to the original "My Own School" moderators,
Marilyn Bemis, Marcia Marlow, Steve Loosley, and Mike Rinaldi, who contributed many ideas on this topic.

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