Friends

I want to talk about something called “the zone of proximal development”, an idea developed by Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky early in the 20th century. He felt that people learn best when either they are learning from somebody who knows a… Read more ›

People always say the J.C. is the heart of the school. They’re right. It’s the way our school handles misdeeds or wrong doings on a daily basis. It’s one of the reasons it’s so enjoyable to go to school here and to work here. There isn’t one… Read more ›

Twenty years ago a Sudbury type school was established in the state of Maryland. Its group of founders, with help, bought twelve acres in a wooded area, built a large structure with their own labors (and with a little help from their friends), and… Read more ›

This was published in our Janury 1998 Journal; a note from Jean and Rick Leif about what their daughter is up to now has been added. Quite a lot has been written about what it is like to be a student at Sudbury Valley School, but I would like to… Read more ›

“It’s fun to have fun, but you have to know how,” said The Cat In the Hat. It seems to me that Dr. Seuss, who obviously understood children, nevertheless, like most adults, was blind to the ability of kids to extract pleasure out of any place or… Read more ›

Part 1 - The Architects Where can insects, rabbits, and snakes go when they’re sick or injured? Two young SVS students not only pondered this problem, they took action. They had a history of creating entire worlds out of sticks, leaves, rocks,… Read more ›

In mid-August the school is in a chaotic state of renovations and deep and thorough cleaning. The furniture is piled up in the corridors, the musical instruments are strewn over the barn floor and lots of people are all over the place fixing… Read more ›

From my teaching days, there is a particular moment I remember with special sadness: It’s the moment in the semester when everything kind of closes up, and it happened without fail just a few weeks into the school year, coinciding directly with the… Read more ›

The following two scenes were unfolding recently on the different ends of one of the low red tables in the playroom, around lunchtime. On the one end, close to me, Josie sat down with her tablet and a snack, joined in quick succession by Nell on one… Read more ›

I love chocolate and eat a piece after lunch and dinner. Pretty much religiously. In the beginning of the year, I used to pack a few pieces to last me the week. Well, Dillon, Elise and Sophie quickly realized I did. They are so charming and cute I… Read more ›

The first two weeks of this school year were blessed with superb weather. It was sunny and cool and the outdoors was full of students who were using the whole campus for their myriad of activities: conversing, reading, taking walks and so much more… Read more ›

It was one of those days that everyone was having so much fun, no one remembered to take many pictures. The day was wonderful from the very beginning to the very last second. A day in which the dilemma that was encountered was where to eat dinner.… Read more ›

During the last Open House, in October of 2015, there was a remarkable interaction. It didn't surprise me, but it greatly pleased me. Unfortunately, I don't think the guests who were with me had enough context for what they saw to appreciate it.… Read more ›

During the summer of 2015, I had what for me was an unusual experience. But first, some background. Back in early 1968, when the school was in the process of formation, the founding group had split up among themselves the various jobs that had to be… Read more ›

In May, the Sudbury schools in Europe usually get together at one of their schools for a few days of deep conversing and even deeper collegiality building. Mostly staff attend these conferences, but some students who are particularly interested in… Read more ›