Leap Learning Center

We are on the downhill side of the year, and I am so impressed with these kids and not because of their grades. Let me tell you what I’ve noticed:

They show responsibility by making sure our tadpole is fed without me ever asking them to.

They are buddies to my 3-yr old son who comes to school with us.

They offer to lend their supplies to their classmates without hesitation.

They use manners with adults and each other.

They are patient when they have to wait on something.

They are kind to each other without hesitation.

They try new things.

They defend what they know is right.

They have each other’s backs.

They are compassionate to animals and to those less fortunate.

And they care about their work.

I just love each of them.

When we first started our genius projects, some of the kids were unsure of what they wanted to do, or didn’t even know what they were even interested in. The idea of starting something from scratch, with no one hovering over them with instructions was intimidating. Now, they come up with their own ideas, follow through with them, explain their process, demonstrate their creations, and use their time wisely (and ask for more time to work). They branch out and take risks. They are learning to be do-ers instead of passive listeners.

Confident, happy kids. It’s hard to ask for much more than that. ❤️

The kids’ genius projects have been awesome the past several weeks. They have been cooking, building buildings and boats, making robots, learning about lava lamps, creating musical instruments and art. We’ve even grown a crazy looking mushroom.

Another week down. The kids created too much to list, but there were books authored, barns improved, lessons taught (by them), artistic models of real life things made, and homemade flashlights built. We used parallel and perpendicular lines to mimic art like Piet Mondreian’s. Did you know there is a plan to put a colony on the moon by 2024? We talked about that and the implications of what that could mean. Also, did you know Daniel Boone fought in the French and Indian war? I didn’t until this week.

We measured, we worked with stem and leaf plots. We made duct tape products (which is harder than it looks). We found out about more European arrivals to America in the 1600s. They researched volcanos and also the history of Groundhog Day. The kids painted pet rocks and wrote detailed instructions on how to take care of them. And we played, of course.