Resources

"Tell me and I will forget.
Show me and I may remember.
Involve me and I will understand."
                       ~Chinese Proverb

Frequently Asked Questions are listed below, with printable resources to answer these questions.

 

What philosophy does your school follow?

Article: "What is Progressive Education?," Manzanita School

Webpage: "What is Experiential Education?" Association for Experiential Education

Article: "Multiple Intelligences: Gardner's Theory," ERIC Digest, 1996 (.pdf file)

Article: "Reggio Emilia: Some Lessons for U.S. Educators," Rebecca New

Article: "It's Time to Start the Slow School Movement," Maurice Holt PhD, Phi Delta Kappan, 2002.

 

Why not keep my child in a traditional school?

Video: Sir Ken Robinson's speech: Do Schools Kill Creativity? (An AMAZING speech!)

Book synopsis: "Dumbing Us Down" by John Taylor Gatto

Book synopsis: "How Children Fail" by John Holt

Article: "Ten Signs that You Need to Find a Different Kind of Education for Your Child," Jerry Mintz, Alternative Education Resource Organization.

Article: "The New First Grade: Too Much, Too Soon?," Newsweek, September 11, 2006.

Article: "Old-Fashioned Play Builds Serious Skills," National Public Radio, February 21, 2008.

 

Do you assign a lot of homework?

Interview of Alfie Kohn, author of the book "The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing."

 

Why do you have multi-age classrooms?

Article: "Ode to the One-Room Schoolhouse," Mothering Magazine Issue 129, March 2005.

 

Which educational theorists influence your school most strongly?

Howard Gardner (multiple intelligences, teaching disciplines), John Dewey (experiential/progressive education), Alfie Kohn, Paulo Friere, Maria Montessori, John Holt, John Taylor Gatto... these are good names to begin with!

 

**Learn more about our school in this New Times cover story, August 10, 2006.

 

More on the Reggio Emilia approach to education

Article: "The Best Preschools in the World," Howard Gardner

Poem: "The Hundred Languages of Children," Loris Malaguzzi, Reggio Founder

Resource: Camp Creek Press

* Please note that the Reggio discussions involve primarily younger children, but explain the core educational values that we adapt for older children.

 

Recommended Books

• "The Unschooled Mind: How Children Think And How Schools Should Teach" by Howard Gardner
• "How Children Learn" by John Holt
• "Last Child In The Woods: Saving Our Children From Nature-Deficit Disorder" by Richard Louv
• "Teaching With The Brain In Mind" by Eric Jensen
• "The Case Against Homework: How Homework Is Hurting Our Children and What We Can Do About It" by Sara Bennett & Nancy Kalish
• "Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life" by Marshall Rosenberg
• "Respectful Parents, Respectful Kids: Seven Keys to Turning Family Conflict into Cooperation" by Sura Hart & Victoria Kindle Hodson

 

Progressive Schools

Manzanita School is inspired by what we have learned from other progressive schools throughout the United States. We encourage you to explore their websites to see the many exciting possibilities in non-traditional learning.

Golden Independent School

Voyagers Learning Center

Opal School

Kino School

Wingra School

Friends School of Minnesota

St. Michael School

City and Country School

Diablo Valley School

The Alternative Education Resource Organization: The Alternative Education Resource Organization (AERO) is a non-profit organization that works to advance learner-centered approaches to education.

 

Child Development Resources

National Network for Child Care - Resources