This is Colder, a notoriously warm-dressing – yet (self-described) “pretty chill guy” whose tree-climbing prowess has earned him a bevy of additional nicknames, from, “Orangutan,” to, “Spaceman.” He might be wearing three snowsuits layered over 44 pairs of merino long underwear, but he can still nimbly climb to heights that would make you dizzy just to imagine. Or it might make you cringe and cross your fingers every time you see it, like some staff members. Once he finds a high-enough perch, Colder lounges up there like the Cheshire Cat making puns and dropping acorns on the heads of unsuspecting staff members. Funny! He says, “it’s pretty nice up there. The wind it nice. I’m working on a wind-powered tablet. Maybe wind-powered medication too. It would be a breeze.” Indeed, Colder is inclined towards the sciences, and sometimes imagines pursuing medicine later in life. You could operate on me any day, pal! He’s funny, smart as a whip, fair, and reflective. He maintains his individuality proudly. He loves competitive games; he used to rage incredibly when he lost (which was rarely), but over the years he’s learned to channel it (“it’s like a power plant, it gives me more energy to play.”) Colder is always willing to help, he’s a fixture of the school, and pretty punderful having him around. I hope that’s an ice enough pun for ya, dude.
Opportunities
At Zena Democratic School, we pride ourselves on offering our students endless opportunities; they are free to pursue their interests, dabble in this and that, or to fall head over heels into a subject without interruption – for as long as the interest remains, or to follow it wherever it may lead.
But the most valuable opportunity we offer students is the time and space to discover who they are. Students at ZDS have time to be, to think, to talk, to play, to discover what they enjoy and appreciate and, equally importantly, what they don’t enjoy or appreciate. We offer an opportunity to practice crucial skills such as motivation, persistence, articulation, and humility, to be part of a democratic community, and to experience acceptance, cooperation, recognition, and celebration. This unstructured time is where the real beauty of the ZDS experience lies and where the most important learning usually takes place.
However, many people do love content and instruction, and there is plenty of organized and formal activity at school. Students often organize this on their own, or with the assistance or leadership of a Staff Member, but they may also request the Programming Clerk to facilitate whatever kind of instruction or activity they’d like to have, from basic reading instruction to skateboarding lessons to sex education; every topic under the sun is theoretically available for our students to explore and to receive instruction upon.