Free the Children
Donation protected
If we want children to grow up independent, why not give them practice in self-direction?
If we want them to be motivated, why not let them pursue what interests them?
If we want them to be passionate, why not let them engage in and explore what they love?
If we want them to be creative, why not give them the opportunity to design their own education?
If we want them to create a better world, why not let them get started now?
Not one in your area, start your own school!
I’m a dreamer, and I’m not the only one. I hope you will join us in creating a school where children are free to be themselves. Free to learn what they want to learn, the way they want to learn it and from whom they want to learn. A school where the curriculum unfolds naturally based on the students’ interests and learning is measured not by tests but by the learners themselves. A school where students can figure out who they are and who they want to be!
Sounds too good to be true!
Children learned how to walk, talk and ask WHY without being taught! Curious adults are life-long learners. Why do we think that children need to be taught things they don’t want to learn to the point of having no time to learn the things they want to learn? We believe this because in our culture, that is the story we have LEARNED to believe. If you are curious but skeptical, it would be impossible for me to convince you in this short description; instead I encourage you to read my Tale of a Reluctant School Starter blog post to understand the long road that led me here.
We are starting an independent K-12 school and learning community for self-directed learners using the open-source Agile Learning Center (ALC) model . Our founders (myself, Gretchen Aldi and Christi Wynter) are actively working to make this a reality by January 2020. We’ve named it Kaleidoscope ALC because the etymology of the word spoke to us: "observer of beautiful forms” and "constantly changing pattern". The environment at Kaleidoscope ALC will spark dreams, ignite vision and provide the freedom for courageous young people to be the hero in their own story; a story that unfolds bit by bit as they choose what comes next.
How can you help? Glad you asked...
Please share this via social media specifically tagging people you know who believe we need more schools like this, encouraging those who might consider starting one in their own area .
Every donation sends a clear message that YOU want to FREE THE CHILDREN! No contribution is too small and larger donations will make a real difference. We are honored to be one of a handful of projects recommended to CTNext by Thames River Innovation Place (TRIP) for funding . Your contribution will be matched by this grant should we secure these funds!
So where will all this money go?
This initial campaign is intended to cover the following start-up costs:
➽Gretchen and Nicole will attend ALF (Agile Learning Facilitator) training at ALC Mosaic in Charlotte, NC from July 8-19. We will share updates from training to our Facebook page so be sure to LIKE our page so you don’t miss these updates. We would also greatly appreciate it if you would SHARE it with others who might be interested.
➽Christi will be working to get our local website up and running.
➽We already formed the official non-profit organization and registered with the Department of Consumer Protection as a charitable organization in CT but there will be additional filing and legal fees as we pursue federal 501c3 tax-exempt status.
➽We’ve started hosting parent information videoconferences using Zoom but we need to develop some marketing materials to spread the word throughout the community.
➽We hope to share space with a non-profit in New London or Groton. Once we find a location we will need to ensure that we can make it compliant and secure it with any first, last and security deposits.
➽We need to pay for our insurance policies.
What happens if we exceed our goal?
Great question!! I always dream of totally crushing any goal I can imagine! Funds in excess of our goal:
...first, and foremost, would provide funding for our sliding scale tuition so that we can serve students of all socio-economic backgrounds
...would ensure we are sustainable and provide us enough breathing room to coach others who want to start something similar (hint, hint ;)
...might allow us to secure our own space where we could offer creativity and entrepreneurship education for adults in the evening
...might allow us to make a documentary of our journey
Quote from Is Self-Directed Education the Answer to the Creativity Crisis?
Photo by Stephen Isaiah on Unsplash
If we want them to be motivated, why not let them pursue what interests them?
If we want them to be passionate, why not let them engage in and explore what they love?
If we want them to be creative, why not give them the opportunity to design their own education?
If we want them to create a better world, why not let them get started now?
Not one in your area, start your own school!
I’m a dreamer, and I’m not the only one. I hope you will join us in creating a school where children are free to be themselves. Free to learn what they want to learn, the way they want to learn it and from whom they want to learn. A school where the curriculum unfolds naturally based on the students’ interests and learning is measured not by tests but by the learners themselves. A school where students can figure out who they are and who they want to be!
Sounds too good to be true!
Children learned how to walk, talk and ask WHY without being taught! Curious adults are life-long learners. Why do we think that children need to be taught things they don’t want to learn to the point of having no time to learn the things they want to learn? We believe this because in our culture, that is the story we have LEARNED to believe. If you are curious but skeptical, it would be impossible for me to convince you in this short description; instead I encourage you to read my Tale of a Reluctant School Starter blog post to understand the long road that led me here.
We are starting an independent K-12 school and learning community for self-directed learners using the open-source Agile Learning Center (ALC) model . Our founders (myself, Gretchen Aldi and Christi Wynter) are actively working to make this a reality by January 2020. We’ve named it Kaleidoscope ALC because the etymology of the word spoke to us: "observer of beautiful forms” and "constantly changing pattern". The environment at Kaleidoscope ALC will spark dreams, ignite vision and provide the freedom for courageous young people to be the hero in their own story; a story that unfolds bit by bit as they choose what comes next.
How can you help? Glad you asked...
Please share this via social media specifically tagging people you know who believe we need more schools like this, encouraging those who might consider starting one in their own area .
Every donation sends a clear message that YOU want to FREE THE CHILDREN! No contribution is too small and larger donations will make a real difference. We are honored to be one of a handful of projects recommended to CTNext by Thames River Innovation Place (TRIP) for funding . Your contribution will be matched by this grant should we secure these funds!
So where will all this money go?
This initial campaign is intended to cover the following start-up costs:
➽Gretchen and Nicole will attend ALF (Agile Learning Facilitator) training at ALC Mosaic in Charlotte, NC from July 8-19. We will share updates from training to our Facebook page so be sure to LIKE our page so you don’t miss these updates. We would also greatly appreciate it if you would SHARE it with others who might be interested.
➽Christi will be working to get our local website up and running.
➽We already formed the official non-profit organization and registered with the Department of Consumer Protection as a charitable organization in CT but there will be additional filing and legal fees as we pursue federal 501c3 tax-exempt status.
➽We’ve started hosting parent information videoconferences using Zoom but we need to develop some marketing materials to spread the word throughout the community.
➽We hope to share space with a non-profit in New London or Groton. Once we find a location we will need to ensure that we can make it compliant and secure it with any first, last and security deposits.
➽We need to pay for our insurance policies.
What happens if we exceed our goal?
Great question!! I always dream of totally crushing any goal I can imagine! Funds in excess of our goal:
...first, and foremost, would provide funding for our sliding scale tuition so that we can serve students of all socio-economic backgrounds
...would ensure we are sustainable and provide us enough breathing room to coach others who want to start something similar (hint, hint ;)
...might allow us to secure our own space where we could offer creativity and entrepreneurship education for adults in the evening
...might allow us to make a documentary of our journey
Quote from Is Self-Directed Education the Answer to the Creativity Crisis?
Photo by Stephen Isaiah on Unsplash
Fundraising team: Kaleidoscope ALC Team (2)
Nicole Sepulveda Colter
Organizer
New London, CT
Gretchen Aldi
Team member