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Competition or Collaboration, what are we teaching?

11/7/2022

 
There was a lot of flower picking and arranging that day. Conversations unfolded as they worked, about colours, the role of different plants while arranging, the names of things and when they knew a flower lasted well if cut.

At the end of the day, there were six bunches all lined up together. Everyone looked at the day's work, at the row of bunches.

At this point, what the Facilitator asks of the Learners will either grow Convergent Thinkers and active Survival Brains or Divergent Thinkers and Integrated Brains.

"Which one do you like best?" or "What do you like about each one?"

"Which one do you like best?"
Here, we teach Convergent Thinking by getting these young brains to sort 'best from worst', 'good from bad'. The impact from this yard-stick approach often leads to people feeling 'great about their work' or 'never going to try that again' based on public opinion. Questions like these, phrased in such a way, grow skills of criticism, judgment, comparisons, and competition, all of which erode inclusivity and the mindset required to support unity in diversity.

"What do you like about each one?
Here, we are getting these young brains to see the positives in everything, to observe, to speak with opinion-language in place of judgmental-language. This question develops Divergent Thinking, where the perspective develops to see inclusively and embrace the diversity of their world.

The way we speak to each other matters. We all know that relationships impact development, and this is a great example of how. The language pattern we use to relate in the relationship develops the person (group, or culture) thinking, language and has a say in which behavioural part of the brain they will be operating from ('Survival' or 'Executive Function').

Authentic Learning Environments put the relationship first. What kind of relationship? A language pattern-aware relationship.

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How We Teach Eco-literacy

31/5/2022

 
By Clare Caro

While putting together the Authentic Learning Environment education model, it was essential to address the environmental crisis. The planet is struggling with a decline of nature, increasing pollution and ecocide, all happening at local and global levels. This is everyone's crisis, especially for our children!

We need to educate now, people who can address this growing crisis. The future - their future - will depend on making some big changes to how our culture operates. Currently, the culture is steering toward ecocide. We need to change the trajectory toward a more sustainable way of living.

Education is a cultural game-changer. We can make that trajectory change through education, especially education in childhood. Because in childhood, views, beliefs, ways of thinking and habits are all formed.
So how do we educate children, the future citizens, for a sustainable culture? How will we educate them to be the problem-solvers, decision-makers and change agents?

This article identifies four learned behaviours that contribute to ecocide and how we can educate for change, they are; nature disconnection, normalised pollutants, isolated thinking, and the lemming effect.
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It is worth pointing out here, that this is not a case of creating a 'subject', working from books or rote learning. The 'teaching' will be in the 'hidden curriculum' where learning is gained through total immersion and modelled behaviours, and the education structure where children learn from daily activities and the culture in the learning environment. 

One, Nature Disconnection
Problem: Nature-disconnection and the severe lack of experiential knowledge of the flora and fauna species in the immediate local ecosystem. The lack of understanding that we are part of nature and play a role in the interconnection of everything.

For the last century, there has been a trend that ties education to the inside of a building. Children spend around 12 years of childhood in education, which is 12 years of childhood inside a classroom.

We cannot bond with the Earth from inside a room.
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Solution: Connection Time
We want children to spend their childhood education years outdoors and in nature, forming a first-hand relationship with their natural surroundings. The foundations of eco-literacy are built on time spent in nature and mapping in a strong nature connection.

To achieve this, we will be spending the majority of our time outdoors in all weathers, seasons, and various habitats. 
A side effect of creating and maintaining the nature-connection is that we start to value time spent in nature and nature itself. Values centred around a bond and care for nature guide us.
Two, Normalised Pollutants
Problem: Plastic and many other pollutants have become normalised to the point where they are 'invisible'. We do not see the toxic materials we surround ourselves with. 

Plastic is a top example, we live in a culture where there is plastic everywhere, a lot of it disposable and only a small percentage recyclable. Plastic is a real threat to the environment and a growing problem with daily consumption.
If we wonder how plastic has been normalised and become invisible, here is our answer. Children build first-hand relationships with their surroundings, so a childhood surrounded by plastic normalises plastic. And many childhoods are furnished with plastic and synthetic fibres - plastic crockery, plastic cutlery, plastic toys, plastic furniture, plastic bottles... Even the first cute little bunny or teddy bear they snuggle with for comfort is made from synthetic fibres.
Understanding this is the first step to seeing the vicious cycle of one generation normalising plastic for the next.

Solution: Normalise Sustainability
We want to give young people a lens for identifying plastics and other pollutants normalised in our culture. With this lens, we can start to make choices away from environmentally harmful materials, out of the vicious cycle and towards the best collective outcome.

We want to normalise non-toxic options and alternatives to plastic and other pollutants.

To achieve this, we evaluate all materials brought into the learning environment and how they will impact the environment in the short and long term. The materials we choose, use and dispose of are carefully considered.

Three, Isolated Thinking
Problem: Lack of circular thinking, the inability to see the whole picture and join the dots.
Now days, it is relatively common practice to buy food in single-use plastic packaging, more pairs of shoes than we need, throw-way items like 'festival tents' for example, and cheap electronics not built to last, all without thinking it through.

The 'thinking' is isolated, when a consumer is not thinking about the entire cycle of the products they are purchasing.
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Instead the thinking is isolated to personal needs-and-wants associated with consumerism. The other 'dots' on the circular-economy cycle, such as origin, resources, sustainability, social conditions of manufactory, longevity, purpose, and waste disposal, are not even on the isolated thinker's radar, let alone there as dots to be connected. 

Solution: Circular Thinking
We want to embed circular and holistic thinking into the learning environment, our practice and the children's work. Circular thinking is a tool for change and actively considers the entire ecosystem and our impact in and on it.

To achieve this, we will be using a project-based model that combines and links multiple disciplines. This is a conscious move away from the practice that trains the brain for compartmentalising (dividing into discrete sections or categories), located in years of subject-based teaching-learning. We will base as much learning as possible in real-life, in context, using real-life tools, objects, experiences and purpose, so that learning is not 'once removed' from reality.
Four, The Lemming Effect
Problem: The road to ecocide is paved by the Lemming Effect. A phenomenon where crowds of people from all walks of life, exhibit a certain kind of behaviour for no reason other than the fact that a majority is doing so.

What if following the one-size-fits-all status quo, with the underpinning fear of not fitting in or meeting the standard has been learned. There is a school-of-thought that this is a learned behaviour, learned by spending years shaped by the (mainstream) one-size-fits-all curriculum that comes with ramifications if we rebel or don't meet the standard.
Solution: Empowerment, Communication and Leadership
We want to empower our children with communication and leadership skills, for them to be confident in making changes and walk the path less trodden to align with environmental values and morals.

To achieve this, we provide the platform for children to develop their voices and get messages across clearly. Coupled with listen reflectively and being open to hearing and seeing other points of view without shutting down. They will learn how to manage their individual needs, wants, time and interests while sharing time, space and resources with others. We do this by implementing Personal Curriculums and a cooperative leadership power model, steering away from the authoritarian-submissive model.
These four education design features are a great start to teaching our way toward eco-literacy and educating a generation of problem-solvers, decision-makers and change agents. By consciously building the solutions into the model structure, we can deliver a new set of learned behaviours.

How we group children

22/3/2022

 
Written by Clare Caro
Authentic Learning Environments put the relationship first

What do we mean by that? We all know that relationships with caregivers are essential to healthy development. And, no nurture means no survival.

So should we be careful with group sizes and the adult-child ratios? What if there is no adult available for a child, to meet their needs, and provide a Secure Attachment?

Children who have their needs met, develop differently to children who have to work to get their needs met.  Or to put it another way, as Dr Gordon Neufeld explains, "Children Must Never Work For Our Love, They Must Rest In It."

In nature, we can sort mammals into two kinds; precocial and altricial. Precocial mammals are born in numbers of one and two to mothers with the mammary glands to match. Young precocial mammals require frequent care and are constantly close to their primary caregiver for food, protection, development, and nurturing.

Altricial mammals are born in litters to mothers with mammary glands to match. They do not require the one-to-one care precocial mammals do and can be left for long periods of time. For example, the altricial mother rabbit can leave her new litter for up to 24 hours in their first week.

Young mammals thrive when the environment meets their biology.

Humans are precocial mammals and require one-to-one relationships. Humans are not altricial and do not thrive in litters.

Imagine education settings designed for precocial mammals - where the relationship is put first for every individual to thrive.

Authentic Learning Environment - taking education outside 'the box'
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Above: Group model for Altricial Mammals.
(Photo: Creative Commons
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The tale of the classroom ghost

22/3/2022

 
Written by Clare Caro
There is a great movement happening; educators and settings are begin to remove the classroom walls and take learning-about-the-outside-world outside! This move enables experiential learning, learning in context, learning with real objects and real-life. However, while children and teachers are stepping out of the classroom, for many the classroom is still following them.

This is the "classroom ghost", the ghost that interrupts with 'teachable moments' and 'scaffolding to further a learner'. We spot it where we see clipboards, books and activity sheets to 'reinforce learning', worksheets to fill their time, directed activities to tick boxes. Crowd control creeps in to get everyone's attention, and children's choices and human rights fade away.

With classroom ideology being such a strong influence in our culture and very much alive in the mainstream education model, at first, we may find this classroom ghost hard to see. Many of us have classroom ideology embedded through firsthand experience from our formative years. Others of us have been trained to install and maintain classroom ideology, as a way to teach a one-size-fits-all cirruculum and manage large crowds. Making this ghost hard to shake.

It takes a while to see the difference between taking books with you into nature and 'taking books and the ghost with you into nature'. Or taking a group of children to work and play outdoors and 'taking a group of children to work and play outdoors with the ghost'.

When we step away from treating children like empty vessels, step away from mass rote learning to a captive audience, then we also need to step away from the ghost of classroom ideology. First, we have to see it.  Do you see the ghost of classroom ideology?

Authentic Learning Environment - taking education outside 'the box'
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Play Time?

22/3/2022

 
Written by Clare Caro

Play-time?

After years of creating spaces for play to unfold, slowly, something has come to light; when a child feels safe, the play is peaceful and fun. It can be exciting and thrilling yet never crosses the line into stress or states of distress.

So there I was the other day, walking along the street. When I could hear playtime at a local school nearby, I could hear yelling and screaming, a huge commotion of sound. I remembered back, the feeling of being 'let out', being able to move and have a voice. I remembered the yelling over others to be heard, the stress released and the relief of being out in the open for a short period of time.

As I listened to the difference between squeals and screams, to voices fighting to be heard, I realised this kind of "play-time" was not peaceful, or flow-state, or forging connections to the Pre Frontal Cortex. This play-time was a pure expression of stress release.

We can see and hear with a trained eye and ear to differentiate between flow-state play and stress-release play.

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Teaching eco literacy through children's craft activities

21/3/2022

 
Sustainable Children's Craft Activities
Written by Clare Caro
"Crafternoons" came about as a way of offering crafts for children that don't end up in the bin! We wanted to give children something meaningful to make and for their creations to be use-full with a real-life purpose. 

On top of that, we noticed that many children's craft activities were using materials harmful to the environment, such as glitter, foam board, synthetic fabrics and many forms of plastic. The list could go on. 

This combination of bin-destined 'makes' and toxic-materials raises concern, at a time when we need to be teaching eco-literacy and raising eco-consciousness.

These sustainable children's craft sessions are designed to meet this need, working with three key components: Nature-Friendly Materials, Meaningful Purpose and Open-Age-Appropriate. Creating craft sessions that stick to eco-literacy principles, raise eco-conscious and are sustainable.
Nature-Friendly Materials
We consciously choose materials that are biodegradable and non-toxic for children to work with at our sessions. We know that people form sensory relationships with materials they work and play with in childhood; it is time to stop normalising the relationship with materials that are harmful to the environment.

Unsure about which materials are safe? Consider this; if we can put it in the compost knowing it will safely decompose to enrich the soil, then it's safe.

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Watch out for plastics and anything with synthetic fibres; these often breakdown over time and are the source of micro-plastics that pollute our water and soil systems. 

If we are 'recycling' materials by using them in children's craft activities, ask, "What is the next part in the cycle?". Many crafts that 'recycle' plastics and synthetic fibres end up in the bin. The bin is the ‘end of a cycle’ not ‘part of a cycle'. 

If we use food products in our craft, are they used wisely? We see too many children's-crafts using good food that ends up in the bin. 

When choosing materials and tools, we also consider where our resources are coming from (buy local if possible), what kind of packaging products come in, and whether we are using long-lasting and repairable tools. These considerations take us closer toward 'circular economy thinking', where we look at our actions holistically and work sustainability.
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Meaningful Purpose
All Crafternoon craft 'makes' are made to be used and have a higher purpose than 'just making something'. 

We noticed that the word 'craft' has two different meanings in our culture, meanings that differ regarding purpose. Craft for adults, is where the creations are used and have purpose, in buildings and homes, items that are treasured, restored and passed down as heirlooms.
Then there is the craft for children, where the purpose is often to fill their time and provide something to take home as a product-for-proof. 

Giving children's craft activity a real-life purpose holds a deep underpinning message. When crafts are worthy of use and valuable enough to keep, it shows value and worthiness in the maker's time, effort, creativity, and hard work. To put it another way, what message of their value and worthiness are we sending, when we give children use-less makes that will later end up in the bin?


To find meaning and purpose in the craft sessions we hold, we look to seasonal celebrations, items for everyday use, and things we can use personally, as a family, or give to loved ones. Children have made festive wreaths for front doors in December, lanterns for Martinmas processions, and multi-use items such as rhubarb string, oak gall ink, and calendula balm. All the 'makes' have a purpose, and all use materials that aid a nature connection and are not harmful to the environment.

Open-Age-Appropriate 
By open-age-appropriate, we mean providing activities that work for both younger and older children and all levels of ability. This open and mixed age-group approach celebrates everyone's unique style, pace, expression and fosters an inclusive atmosphere.
We make room for process-learning and creativity with the materials, time and instruction we provide at sessions. Children can try out new things, come up with something unique, and get into a 'flow-state'. Process-learning and creativity encourage a 'growth mindset' by removing judgemental aspects such as comparisons, assessment and competition. Inclusivity, creativity and growth mindset are all important attributes for future eco-aware citizens.
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Providing for all levels of ability means, offering activities that engage early and more experienced hand development, and giving children the opportunity to develop their hand working skills. 

The three-dimensional handwork done in childhood happens to be vital for child development, specifically with the development of cognitive problem-solving skills. To the extent that when NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory looks for a research and development problem solver, they specifically seek applicants who worked with their hands in childhood.  Because we see the value in handwork, we are careful when offering crafters a 'helping hand' so as not to rob children of this important developmental handwork. 

Why not give it a try?  Sustainable craft sessions are fun and exciting, empowering the children and also work for groups of adults too.  By designing activities that tick all three boxes (Nature-Friendly Materials, Meaningful Purpose and Open-Age-Appropriate), we promote values that nurture individuals, communities, and the environment.

Crafternoon sustainable children's craft sessions were initially designed for the Rutland Home Education Group in 2019. We currently run Crafternoons through Root-and-Branch Out CIC, with sessions for both home educated and school children.  [2022]
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Developing Social Literacy

21/1/2021

 
Written by Clare Caro

Learning Social Literacy

We are not born with social skills, they develop. Learning social skills is an important part of childhood.


Learning to read people, get along with others, what is (and what is not) socially acceptable behaviour in different contexts, and adapt our behaviour is a skill called Social Literacy.

Social Literacy develops with time to learn with others, while the brain and emotional system are in development.
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Tools and time
The first social skills we learn as children are from the big people in our lives, through our experiences of how they relate to us and others around them. It is part of our 'survival-learning package' that says we adopt these social patterns to 'speak the same language' as those around us.

These adopted patterns need time and space to practice with others in order to master. Through play and working together, we grow communication skills and social skills, both essential aspects of socialisation. 
It is through learning with others that we widen our learning, for example, learning that what is 'normal' in one family might not be the same in another family or appropriate in public groups.

We have isolated three tools to help learners with social literacy:  1/ We choose a relationship dynamic for working together; we have chosen the partnership model where we work 'in agreement'.  2/ Understand behaviour and how there are two areas of the brain that affect behaviour.  3/ We learn a vocabulary of safe language, use gentle feedback and raise problems to achieve agreement and cooperation.
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Working In Agreement
An agreement ensures that everyone has a voice in making the decisions that govern us and works toward a shared vision of safety. The agreement helps us to understand what is expected of ourselves and others in the group.

The In-Agreement model differs from the traditional Top-Down model, where we are told what to do without an opportunity to agree. Working 'in agreement' is key to resolving conflict, learning to work with others and developing healthy leadership skills.
Anatomy of Behaviour
There are two important areas of the brain that affect behaviour; they are the amygdala and pre-frontal cortex.

Amygdala
The amygdala is responsible for emotions, moods and is our "emotional alarm system". Our 'alarm system' can get activated not only when there is something dangerous or harmful, but also when we perceive or feel something as being dangerous or harmful. It is the feeling of unsafety that can send us into survival mode, our amygdala becomes active, and changes happen in our body and in our behaviour.

In the body; our breathing quickens, digestion slows or stops, our heart rate increases, eyes dilate and stress hormones increase so that we are physically ready to fight, take flight or freeze. 
In behaviour; we can become defensive, attacking and forceful, which can be dangerous and harmful to others (fight), we run or cling to safety (flight), or simply be nonresponsive and shut down (freeze).
Pre-frontal Cortex
The pre-frontal cortex is responsible for integrating all parts of the brain to work together, affecting our body and social world. When the pre-frontal cortex stops perceiving threats where there are none, we can observe with logic instead of fear.

In the body; we can regulate our impulsive reactions, recognise when we are becoming over-stressed, why, and know what to do about it. 
In behaviour; we can function in times of stress, assess situations rationally, are open to new information, and hold two opposing views in mind at the same time.
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Developing a stable amygdala and pre-frontal cortex connections are important when learning and developing social literacy.
Safe Language
Safe language is a way of communicating with another person whose "emotional alarm system" has gone off, or someone who is in the habit of communicating with amygdala-led behaviour.

This language speaks in a way that invites cooperation, partnership, and maintains a safe environment. When humans feel safe, there is no need to be on alert, no need to protect ourselves with fighting, fleeing or nonresponsive behaviour.

How to Safely Respond
Gentle feedback is how we respond, rather than our own 'emotional alarm system' going off. With the emotional alarm system turned off, it is possible to hear new information, ideas and different points of view, empathise, work towards a shared view for a team "win-win" outcome, self-regulate and more.

How to Raise a Problem
Safe language helps us raise problems face-to-face, in a way that is easy for the person we are talking to to hear us - and that is easy for us to communicate our needs, opinions and agreed boundaries. We can develop that ability to hear the needs of others and use descriptive language, along with learning how to own a problem and seek solutions that work for everyone involved.
Being Response-able
The goal is to be able to respond instead of reacting. Being responsible for our own behaviour grows our ability to express ourselves and relate to others from all walks of life, in a way that feels safe for everyone.

Once children have developed social literacy skills, they are then able to resolve most conflicts quickly with minimal input from adults and any disruptive, unwanted and bullying behaviours are prevented from developing or escalating. This leaves more time for learning, playing and enjoying time together.
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If a child can do advanced math, speak three languages, or receive top grades, but can't manage their emotions, practice conflict resolution, or handle stress, none of that other stuff is really going to matter." 
- Mohamad Safa

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We bring people together, build and connect communities. We embrace diversity and equality by recognising that every person is unique and offer inclusive environments that cross divisions of age, culture, gender, ability and class.  We do this practicing respectful group dynamics and relationship skills.  #socialliteracy

Supporting Reading & Writing Naturally

7/12/2020

 
Authentic Learning Environments follow naturally paced developmental stages
Following naturally paced development in reading and writing means no rushing or forced left-brain development. Instead, we facilitate right-brain development at its peak and wait until the left-brain comes online on time. It also means no directorial teaching until the child has reached seven years of age - instead, we support experiential learning at its peak.

From about the age of two years, the right-brain grows more quickly, peaking at around four years of age. The brain's right-hand side is home to social-emotional development and specialises in regulating stress and our automatic functions (breathing, heartbeat etc.) in conjunction with our developing emotions – through the central nervous system.

The focus for this window of development and learning is an immersive experience. Young children soak in information from their surroundings at an incredible speed, everything at 40 million bits per second! In the early years of life, the brain operates in the frequency ranges used in hypnosis - delta and theta. These are pure download states.

What is learned experientially will largely contribute to our default unconscious behaviours and be the foundations for the left-brain development soon to follow.

After the right-brain developmental peak comes the left-brain developmental peak. It uses all the knowledge gained through experience (experiential learning) when the right brain was in its development window.

"There are some that argue that if you start kids reading too young you shut down, or you circumvent the normal development of that right-brain, which is so important for having intuitions about how to get along in the world with people. …It needs to be immersion in real-life experience, and if you pull kids away and put them in front of a book, it takes away that building of knowledge. …The left-brain accesses all that knowledge that you developed from experience because it can't feel experience, it's more of the right-brain focus." - Darcia Narváez

The shift into left-brain development happens around the age of seven years. It coincides with the Neocortex development, home to Executive Function and our ability to think before acting. And the head-brains newfound access to Alpha 8Hz – 12Hz frequencies associated with conscious processing (filtering incoming experiential information) and insights or inspiration that come from bursts of Alpha electrical activity. The left-hand side of the brain is home to language, patterns (codes), conscious behaviour, rational thinking.

At around seven years, the social-emotional cognitive work is almost done for that cognitive growth window, and the unconscious defaults are set. Soon, the developing child will naturally shift into the conscious state and a deep interest in numbers, letters, infographic symbols, and getting symbols the correct way around. This is when, at around age seven, for most children who have been supported in natural development, reading and writing will take centre stage.

The very experience of being taught something that our brains are not ready for can leave a lasting mark on our default unconscious behaviours, our social-emotional well-being. I have spoken to many people in their later years who can recount emotional tales of how they felt "stupid" or "dumb" as young children at school, and many carry these beliefs with them through life.

By holding back on directorial teaching and allowing curiosity, awe and wonder to drive learning around numeracy and literacy, we save young developing children from the experience of being taught left-brain material before the left-brain is ready. We also save them from the experience of being taught something they are not developmentally ready for, the experience of being measured, judged, persuaded, and the experience of learning relationship dynamics based on those same qualities. All within the window where experience is their greatest teacher.

Top tips
  • Read and write around children. Through total immersion, children who see (experience and download) the adults in their world normalise reading and writing with purpose will naturally be drawn to do the same when developmentally ready.
  • Read to your child. The story, vocabulary, and act of reading are important, and so is the connection time between child and adults when being read to.
  • Hold back from correcting those under eight years old. These early years usually involve some play with pretending to read, write and making marks - play is a place of freedom to explore and no place for getting a 'teaching moment' in, not even when we see an 'S' scrolled the other way around.
  • Answer questions openly. Ideally, the child should feel safe enough to ask the adults in their world any question. Asking questions is a huge developmental step toward 'learning from others' at their own pace. Remember to remain open to every question, the way we respond (or react) will impact this developmental step. Make answers simple with no frills, never roll your eyes or complain about how much children ask-ask-ask.
  • Make available drawing and art materials that are blank and invite mark making. Too many activities and colouring books can leave little room for the child to make their own marks.

As you can see, there is a lot at stake when choosing an education model for our children. In this case, the social-emotional development window and mindset development that comes from being developmentally ready or not.

Imagine an education setting that held the space for children to unfold developmentally in line with their biology and not our current cultural values that rush into reading and writing too-much-too-soon.
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The Active Learner / Part 1

12/6/2020

 
Written by Clare Caro

The Active Learner
There are certain skills and qualities that develop in young learners as they spend more time in Authentic Learning Environments. These skills are skills for life and bring us closer to our 'authentic self'.

These skills are also what make it possible to run a self-directed learning environment efficiently. The learner is active instead of passive and dependent, and they can follow their own interests at their own pace, directing themselves and working alongside others. In providing the Active Learner environment, we support the transition to independence at the learners' pace.
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What is an Active Learner?
Motivated
Active Learners are self-motivated and display the kind of motivation which comes from within, often referred to as internal or intrinsic motivation.  Self-motivated people know what they would like to do and so they do it. They are not dependent on being given content or on activities being provided. The ability for self-motivation eliminates the uncomfortable state of ‘not knowing what to do’ - also known as boredom which many content-provided learners find themselves in. Inspiration comes from their own creative ideas or is inspired by the world around them.

To develop this skill, learners need environments that promote choice, decision-making and creativity. Learners choose to do what they are interested in and their interests push their progress at the correct pace for them. Self-direction and creativity develop when we stop having ideas for them, such as when setting up activities and directing them.

Confident
Active Learners are confident to try new things - sharing and expressing ideas, plans, problems - without the fear of being ‘wrong’.  We live in a culture riddled with self-doubt and fear that confidence can make us arrogant, yet we all know that healthy self-confidence is an extremely important skill to have. We want our children to be confident in the world. True confidence shrinks self-doubt and avoids arrogance.

Confidence gives us the foundations to not only follow our interests and tackle the unknown; healthy confidence allows us to be ourselves.

To develop this skill, learners need environments, which are accepting and free from judgment, yet also provide the tools to work within a judgmental environment. Self-confidence and self-motivation cannot develop when we prompt learners into being ready.
Resourceful
Active Learners find what they need to facilitate their learning and development, projects and play.
Learners become resourceful when ‘learning’ is not laid out for them, instead they seek out knowledge and materials. Fostering resourcefulness develops research skills, problem solving and the ability to think outside the box.

To develop this skill, we make resources accessible. The resources we provide are important: raw materials and equipment (such as paper and pens, nails and wood, material and sewing machines) are all open-ended loose parts and the learner can find what they need to facilitate their projects and play.
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How we supply the raw material also offers learning; laying it out for them or storing it in an access-all-areas environment can develop either dependency or independency.

Problem Solvers
Active Learners find solutions - with their ability to assess risk, overcome challenges and ultimately solve problems – without it being a ‘problem’.  Active Learners can develop the skills to approach and solve any challenges they may face. While this is an internal skill, something we do ourselves, it also includes knowing when and how to ask for help.

Whether we are problem solving alone, in a group, or facilitating someone in their problem solving, we require the same tool kit of lenses, vocabulary and the ability to unpack situations from all angles.
To develop this skill, we offer the level of help which allows the learner to do it themselves. When we solve and fix everything for a learner, we rob them of the time and opportunity to develop themselves. We are aware that ‘help’ is about choices, dependency and power dynamics, and promote an environment where all Learners are empowered to accept or decline help without judgment.

Leaders
Active Learners have skills of leadership, and, just as importantly, know how to be part of a team. These are social skills or ‘soft skills’, central to how well we get along with others and are part of a community.  Leadership is founded on our ability to lead ourselves; developing our own motivation, confidence, and problem solving.

There are many ways leadership can present itself in our world; authoritarian, passive and partnership, are the three key styles we see most often. We promote first-hand experiences of partnership group dynamics, where everyone has a voice, can hear others and work to a shared vision which the Learner will be able to transfer into group settings.

These skills, along with influences from leadership and group dynamics we have experienced first-hand are where leaders pick up leadership skills.  Leadership skills cannot develop when we get too involved in their work and are constantly looking for ‘teaching moments’.
Attentive
Active Learners develop lengthy attention spans which serve them in many ways. We need to ‘pay attention’ when we are learning, and lengthening attention spans grow our abilities in resilience and patience, flow and enjoyment.

Attentiveness paves the way for our ability to plan and manage time and projects – all without overstretching ourselves, or falling into avoidance traps. 

To develop this skill, we need to hold the environment for the learner.

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We do this by providing time, a safe space and place, and reducing adults’ direct involvement. The simple way to see it: if everything is done for us, we can miss developing those skills ourselves.

Lengthy attention spans cannot develop when we interrupt with our questions, praise, frequent warnings and entertainment.

Creative and Imaginative
Active Learners are creative; they can come up with their own ideas and make them into something.
There is a third element we cater for in the creative process, and that is to develop the skills to view ideas in different contexts to examine how they impact each other, where they support or inhibit a system, but also evaluate how to affect change. Running creative ideas though bigger-picture thinking helps to birth safe and fully considered ideas into the world.

Creativity is a skill that is sensitive to its environment and can be reduced or suppressed if now fostered carefully and compassionately.

To develop this skill we provide environments which support the initial image-building ability (imagination) along with the space for ideas and the transition from idea to making; the creation with our own hands.

Capable
Every child is capable of being the Active Learner. The journey of childhood starts with fully dependent babies, finishing as fully independent adults. As the child grows, their capability grows. The support we provide on this road directly affects well-being in childhood and in life as an adult.

Active Learners work within their capabilities, they assess risk and self-manage. The more they develop this skill, the more capable they become in recognizing their limitations, in managing their own physical and mental health, the more competent they become in relationships with others, their community and environment.

The skill of being capable can evolve into responding (instead of reacting), functioning even when on adrenaline, and remaining ‘on-line’ (considered and productive) in the face of emergencies and crisis.  Working within one’s own capabilities is impossible when there are ‘helping hands’ managing learners beyond their own capabilities.
Self-Regulating
Active Learners master the combination of being active and self-care; knowing when to rest, reflect and charge their batteries. This combination is the framework for self-regulation and the foundation for our ability to plan and manage time and projects without overstretching ourselves (hyper) or falling into avoidance traps (hypo).

It would be an easy mistake to think an Active Learner is always ‘active’ and it is important to distinguish between hyperactivity, i.e. running on stressor behaviour and connection seeking, and growing and maintaining the skills to function in the face of stress – not because of it.
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Self-regulation allows a person to check-in with themselves, be attuned to others and their wider environment and to function with opposing ideas in mind at the same time, to recognise when they are stressed and know what to do with that stress.

To develop self-regulation, the authentic learning environment is designed to support the developing nervous system, the social-emotional brain, and executive brain function in the developing child.

This requires practitioners that are highly skilled at co-regulation, which is the ability to regulate themselves as well as facilitating the development of self-regulation in the learner. The environment we create also holds the rhythm that mimics the rhythm of the self-regulation.  Self-regulation cannot develop when the adults surrounding a learner are not able to self-regulate, or the environment has no rhythm-like structure.

How do we teach learners these skills?
We can’t. These are skills that the learners acquire themselves.


Our role is not to 'teach', instead it is to set up the environment that allows the child/learner the time, and the space and a place, held by nurturing adults and a regulated rhythm. An environment where learners have enough freedom and availability, access all areas and furnished with raw materials. It is the environment where they develop and acquire these skills.

COMING SOON THE ACTIVE LEARNER / PART 2

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