How's this for a sales pitch?

Last night a attended an information session because I finally convinced my sister to come check out HVSS with her kids. At one point there must have been talk about video games or computers(I missed a lot because I was looking after my 3 y/o nephew) and I heard a student say "Well, I'll tell you that I don't just spend all day in the computer room. I don't really know what I do all day but it isn't on a computer." He then went on to say "For instance, today I spent most of my day throwing rocks into this gigantic puddle."

If there was someone attending who was on the fence they would probably use this as Exhibit A against Sudbury, just like someone could read my previous posts about screen time and use them against the school. Whatever objections I may have against specific activities I still very much agree with the core philosophy of the school: That kids should be given the freedom to learn what they think is necessary to be a productive member of society.

My neice asked me, "But is it possible that they can give me so much freedom that I become a total loser?" (She may have been using the term loser in place of the idea of being ignorant but I chose to interpret it as miscreant) My answer was that the freedom at Sudbury was the freedom to learn and pursue your interests, not the freedom to beat people up or destroy property. I said, "Take a look around. Do you see all these signs? there are rules everywhere." That teaches the kids that for communities to be successful they need to agree on some standards of behavior or nothing works. JC lets them explore the real and practical reasons for behaving ethically. School Meeting is about learning to present your ideas, learning to listen to others, learning to debate the merits of a propasal and the intricacies of Robert's Rules of Order. :) All of it is about empowering the kids. Instead of saying "Do it!" Sudbury says "You can do it!" and there is a difference.