Summer Camp starts now!
This summer, we will be offering a wide range of camps, both full-day and half-day camps. Painting, singing, robotics, dancing… and even some learning. More info on the Camps page.
I believe that people are born perfect, whole and complete, and the task of the adults who work with children is to provide a nurturing, stimulating environment in which they can grow into the full expression of their already-perfect selves. I have had a strong calling to work with children, for as long as I can remember.
I have been a homeschool mom for the past twenty years, and am mother to three children. I spent two years as a Montessori assistant, participated in numerous homeschool co-ops and, since 2004, I‘ve taught the Game of Village, a cross-curricular, experiential learning game.
My fondness and passion is for teaching through games. In an atmosphere of play we are released from the significance placed on the varying aspects of life. We are left free to explore, unconcerned with “getting it right”. When people play, their hearts and minds open and learning comes as a natural consequence.
Ecoschool is my first opportunity to teach/play Village fully integrated into a school curriculum and I am thrilled to be a part of the teaching team here.
When I first played The Game of Village, I knew that this was the teaching tool I had been seeking all of my life. It is no ordinary game. Its box is the imaginations of the people that play, its playing field is a plot of real land designated as the village site, and its period is any time in history or future. Game tokens are miniature people, “Peeps” and the game itself is life.
A time frame for the game is chosen, a village site designated, and the game begins. Each child builds a “Peep” and writes its life story, then stakes out and maps a piece of property for their “Peep”. They design and build miniature homes, and possibly develop “Peep” businesses as well. Currency is created, a trading post opens, a wide variety of building materials are purchased, and commerce thrives.
In the Game of Village children have the opportunity to answer for themselves the nagging question of “why do we need to know geometry, accounting, government, etc?” They have the opportunity to explore history, cultures and lifestyles, to express themselves though creative writing, building design, landscaping and more. They have the opportunity to explore numerous answers to the question “What might I want to do as I grow up?”
Children learn about the world at large by creating a world in miniature. The possibilities of Village are limited only by the time allowed for playing and the imaginations of the people who play. It is an environment in which all the classroom disciplines can be brought together into a beautiful working whole, and put to practical use.