Mar 28, 2022

Weekly Update + Upcoming Offerings

BEE APPRECIATION WEEK

Sapna learners welcomed spring by celebrating the beautiful bee this week. We read books, played games, created art, wrote stories, and decorated our room with all things bee! One little learner was so excited for bee week that she wore a bright yellow dress and pigtails (her antennae). Another family sent in a learn + create bug book. When they saw the butterfly project, they were inspired to create their own.

After planning various bee-themed activities, I had certain ideas of how the kids would interact with the materials. Of course, our students immediately went in directions I had never imagined. The kids used the materials in so many different ways. That is the beauty of process art and self-directed learning. It is not about the end project, but the journey. Working through the process and figuring out solutions to problems is where the learning really happens. We recently read a quote that spoke to us and our calling as educators and facilitators in this ever-changing world:

“[The future is] going to be a world where being a creative person is normal. Where there are hundreds of millions of us that when we graduate school—or not—we think of being a creator and a podcaster and a video creator like being a doctor or a lawyer or an accountant or anything else. And we’re pretty close to it. As all these changes happen over the next decade, we’re basically gonna get to a culture where the stigma of the starving artist fades away completely and artists are valued, respected, cherished members of society who are adding value to the world and global production like anyone else.”

- Jack Conte, Patreon CEO

This is the world we want to believe we are preparing our learners to take part in and excel. By providing open-ended play and questioning, we allow them to shape the process and the outcome. They are active participants in their own learning, preparing them to make decisions and build confidence as they develop. By shifting the focus to strengthening these skills, we are readying them for jobs and careers that have not been created. We are trusting and supporting their vision for their future.

Honeycomb Printing with Bubble Wrap