Which is more worthy of our children's daytime hours, academic rigor, or time in nature? Many schools believe that shortening or sacrificing outdoor time to pack in more hours of lessons will benefit children's future career prospects. Others believe that students can sacrifice lessons to learn from Mother Nature alone. At Lucas Literacy Lab, our primary goal is to open as many doors for our students as possible. Our children need ample time in nature to remain grounded and healthy. Yet, they need a worthy academic education to stay competitive in our communication-driven, innovation-hungry world. Is it possible to have the best of both worlds? We know that it is, and we are determined to deliver.
The beauty of microschools is our ability to step outside traditional schools' bureaucracy and stifling requirements. Our freedom to create our own school experience allows us to restructure the school day to incorporate everything that matters. Time in nature keeps our children healthy and emotionally regulated. It gives them perspective, increases gratitude and empathy, and teaches them to respect and honor the natural world. That is why we maintain a full hour of outdoor recess every day and the option for students to spend their afternoon enrichment time outdoors. It is also why we partnered with a local farm to incorporate Farm Thursdays. Every Thursday, our students visit the farm where they garden, fish, can and preserve food, care for the animals, go fishing, hiking, horseback riding, and even spin fleece into wool. Time in nature is invaluable and irreplaceable; without it, we cannot care for the whole child. Our goal as stewards of the next generation is to prepare them for a successful future that they can confidently navigate, which requires more than this unrivaled time in nature.
At Lucas Literacy Lab, success occurs when our students realize they belong in any room they decide to enter and can confidently obtain opportunities or even create them. Confidence comes from a well-rounded, appropriately rigorous education. Our focus on literacy (reading, writing, speaking, and listening) allows students consistent opportunities to grow and hone their tools for effective communication. Our model will enable families to select a curriculum for their learners, and our learning coaches can help each student in our small classroom setting with any difficulties that may arise with academic concepts. Swapping standardized testing for creative, self-led projects and presentations leads to mastery and retention of the concepts taught. Business owners and industry leaders visiting our school to share information with students do not sit at the front of the classroom and give lectures. Instead, our students prepare for their visitors with research and interview questions. They then invite our visitors to be guests on our school's podcast, which the students write, record, produce, edit, publish, and promote themselves. We know our students have limitless potential, and the worst thing we can do is censor their learning opportunities.
We believe in balance, in stretching our students' ideas of who they can be and what they can achieve, in the unparalleled power of Mother Nature as a lead teacher, and in our job to set our students' natural creativity ablaze. We are dedicated to supporting our students in every way as they forge the path to their boundless future.
Learn more at our info session with founder Amanda Lucas this Thursday at 6:30 pm.
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