“What do you want to be when you grow up?” – a question often asked of children.  Typically we expect career-oriented responses such as doctor, firefighter, engineer, etc…  In his TEDx talk, Logan LaPlante reveals that what he wants to be when he grows up is HAPPY.  He shares research from Roger Walsh regarding healthy life practices that lead to happiness.  Two particular ones that stood out to me were a focus on service to others, as well as an emphasis on relationships. 

Logan wasn’t finding a significant emphasis on these elements in his experience in education, so he “hackschooled” his learning path.  Hacking conjures up wreaking unauthorized havoc in the computer world.  However, it can also be defined as, “to cut with rough or heavy blows.”  Logan connects the term to challenging and changing systems that lead to innovation and the mindset of remixing or mashing up the status quo.

While this young man chose to leave traditional schooling in his quest to learn to “make a life” vs. “making a living,” that is not necessary for our Eagles.  In the words of Jack London (author of Call of the Wild), “You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.” 

At Almond, “hackschooling” is underway and we’re chasing after the elements of happiness.  At last Friday’s assembly we announced the February 25, 2015 We Day date [related Tweet].  We intend to make service a significant focus next year. Students demonstrating the greatest contributions to others will be honored at this event.  In addition, we are constantly looking for ways to bring learning alive through experiences like our 5th grade Colonial Day [picture] and the heart dissections that took place today [check out this Tweet].  LASD is a learning community that strives to remix learning so that it is engaging and relevant.

Our energies as a staff will be focused on propelling students towards lives filled with happiness as we pursue our LASD #1 Goal:  Meet the individual learning needs of all students.  We will accomplish this through a) ensuring meaningful formative feedback is included as a constant in student/teacher interactions, b) developing a communication process that allows teachers, students and parents to utilize actionable feedback about each child’s learning, c) regularly incorporating small group instruction as a method for meeting individual student needs, and d) designing learning opportunities that allow for student choice and passion.  I look forward to sharing more details with you about this upon our return in August.

In the event that you need a little pick me up today, check out this amazing video from one of our kindergarten classes.  I couldn’t help but experience joy as I danced with these little squirts and know that your heart will be filled with joy at watching their happiness.