This guy is called REM, but he doesn’t get good sleep. He’s a Sudbury newbie but fits one of the classic old-school Sudbury molds: playground berserker. So far at school he’s spent most of his time everywhere at once, but mostly outside, running around with his brother Keeg (who REM calls, “the best brother in the world”) and a small posse of other prescription-strength six to nine year olds. And, naturally, he says his favorite thing about school is that he “gets to play with his friends.” REM is fun-loving and tough. He is sweet and good-natured and a little mischievous; we all feel better when he’s around, 100%.
At home, REM likes to chat with his friends and lie around on his bed. He looks up to his big sister who “has her driver’s license and $5,000.” They go to camp together every summer and swim a ton. He likes to hike with his brother Keeg, and they pick up trash while they do “to help the environment.” His favorite dinner fare is his mom’s broccoli and cheese soup.
This year REM is hoping to learn “how to climb a building.” Really? “Yes, because I climb trees but the bark gets stuck under my nails and I fall off. I land on my feet though.” He says that so far he’s loving his new school experience at Sudbury. He says, “I’ve learned that I know more than I thought I did.” REM, we are thrilled to have you with us. We appreciate so much all the learning and growing you are doing so fast, and it inspires us to redouble our own efforts to learn and grow. We hope you stick around a long long time ❤️
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.