Session 2, Week 5
My grandpa was a great storyteller. He told stories about the Great Depression and the orange he would get for Christmas. He told stories about living on his own at the age of 15 and the 3 jobs he worked to survive. He told stories about WWII and the sacrifices made by so many. And he told stories about his schooling, getting paddled and meeting in a one room schoolhouse. I loved his stories. There was so much wisdom in his generation. I try to pass on as much as I can to my own children. And while we aren’t bringing back everything about his schooling to the children at CHOICE (let me be really clear that we are not paddling anyone!!) we are bringing back the one room schoolhouse model. This model groups children of multiple ages together in one studio and encourages interaction between studios. We observe gifts from this model everyday…
In the Spark Studio we love it when our Middle School heroes visit. Since we have been exploring deserts, oceans, forests, rain forests and the animals who live there, some of the Middle School heroes brought Charlie the Gecko to our studio this week. We got to learn about what he needs to survive and aspects of his habitat. 
During Tuesday outside time, we discovered the parachute that the Fire Studio had used and left by the door. Of course, we were inspired to use it too. It was fun to see the process of the heroes learning to coordinate their efforts. The middle school came out for a quick, overlapping, brain break. It looked like all the Middle Schoolers had planned on playing soccer but couldn’t. Some were still able to participate in a half field high intensity soccer game and some joined in with the Spark heroes. It was a beautiful thing to see how they didn’t take over, but just played along. It’s a rare thing in this world to have young children lead an activity for someone so much older than them, but it happens at CHOICE in a one room schoolhouse model.
Within the Spark Studio itself, the mixed ages provide a beautiful opportunity for mentoring. Because every hero is learning at their own pace, and there aren’t grade designations, no one is embarrassed to learn from someone younger. Regardless of age, when a hero has mastered a work or a skill, that hero begins to give presentations to other heroes. Whether it is giving a presentation on how to tie a belt around your waist,
Or giving a math presentation,
Or demonstrating how to sweep,
It is beautiful to watch heroes formally mentor one another.
We also witness a plethora of informal mentoring…
The heroes have started anticipating variables in the day and asking things like:
“What story are we going to read?” and “What is today’s challenge?”
So we added signs displaying the answer to their frequently asked questions. Emerging readers will focus on the signs as they come close to figuring it out. The youngest will seek out an ally to help them decode the information, and the most advanced are able to model the value of the skills they have developed.
When working on a group project, heroes naturally find a way to contribute at their skill level. And they are often inspired by the ideas of their allies.
At the end of each day, we yell “Tribe time!” A tribe is a unified group where everyone can contribute. In the Spark Studio because there are diverse ages with a diverse landscape of skills and skill levels, heroes can contribute and progress from wherever they are without feeling like an outlier from the group.
In the Fire Studio heroes are in a unique phase of their CHOICE experience—being older role models to the Spark Studio, and being younger learners from the Middle School. In both roles, heroes thrive and grow through their interactions with the others. Here are a few examples:
One Fire Studio hero chose to work on the Mentor Heroic Habit and spends 15 minutes each day helping a Spark hero with their reading.
When a Spark hero needs first aid care, Fire Studio heroes jump to action.
On Halloween, the Fire Studio made a human arch tunnel for the Spark Studio to parade their costumes through—cheering them along. Later that day, Middle Schoolers voluntarily joined the Fire Studio for part of their Halloween Party.
The Fire Studio welcomes Spark heroes to play with them before and after school!
Every morning, snow, rain or shine, the Middle School heroes lead the FS in grit challenges.
Each day after lunch, the Middle School heroes lead the FS in meditation.
Within the Fire Studio, the older heroes are often cheerfully putting aside their work to help a younger hero with a challenge.
But because there aren’t grade designations, heroes of all ages work together and help one another to accomplish many challenges and goals.
During Quest this week we finished our road trip brochures and explored different National Parks (voting on which one we would want to go to for our 20 year tribe reunion!) With heroes of mixed ages in every group, heroes get to model, teach and learn from one another. When heroes finish their culminating activity treasure hunt next week, their final challenge will be to pass off their secret phrase to the middle schoolers. Having the heroes account for each other, even others in different studios is such a unique, beautiful opportunity here at CHOICE!
In the Middle School the heroes spend considerable time discussing how they can be better mentors to the rest of the school. They have come up with different ideas such as choosing FS buddies during Meditation, forming groups with FS heroes during Grit, and brainstorming how to respond to various conversations with younger heroes. They strive to be aware of their example and how they treat the younger heroes.
At lunchtime, Fire Studio and Middle School heroes share the same lunchroom, play yard, soccer games, and even studios, working out on their own how to respect each other’s space and have fun together, too!
Our final daily discussion in the MS sometimes takes us just past 3:00 PM when school is supposed to end. Without fail there are Fire and Spark Studio heroes waiting anxiously at the door to visit Charlie the Gecko, play games with the Middle Schoolers, give an older sibling or friend a hug, or just hang out for a few minutes in a new space. There’s never a sense of “our turf” vs. “your turf,” but just an unspoken acknowledgement that all the heroes are part of the same big CHOICE family.
We had a beautiful and full hero-led day trip on Thursday that included visits to the downtown Salt Lake Public Library, the Eyring Science Center, the Monte L. Bean Museum, BYU’s Museum of Art – and food all along the way. Just along for the ride (and the driving), the guides stayed in the background as heroes kept track of schedules, meal-planning, budgets, and their own learning in a variety of enriching locations.
Without age-based rivalries or judgements, heroes at CHOICE are free to learn from and help out all their fellow travelers, expanding opportunities for friendship and connection to heroes of all ages. When so much interaction in childhood can be framed by hierarchies of age or privilege or skill, I love that the culture being created at CHOICE is one of inclusion and love! I love my Grandpa and I love his One Room Schoolhouse model!