Inner Fire SF

09/02/2026

What happened in our education system to discourage genius, and how we can bring it back:

Aristocratic tutoring I: Explaining the decline of genius

08/26/2026

To Tech or Not To Tech?
Is learning tech effective in the classroom? Almost every school I’ve taught at has a significant share of their work online. While it offers a lot of advantages for distributing, tracking, and grading assignments, I’ve also found it adds challenges to the learning itself.

Challenges of edtech/learning apps:

1) Software is usually built to make things easier, but we retain knowledge better when things are hard. Writing out our thinking by hand sticks in our mind more than typing in boxes, and much more than clicking a multiple choice option.

2) Gamification mechanisms (eg Blooket, Gimkit, etc) shift the focus to external rewards. The idea is that students get game resources by answering questions, then get a bit of game time with those resources. But students end up mostly focused on the game, speeding through the learning questions with little attention.

3) Using edtech means having laptops out, which increases the temptation of student distraction. Teachers end up spending the time trying to keep kids off of youtube instead of teaching.

4) Even when edtech is effective, it's still more screen time in an era where kids are flooded with screen time already. Is it really worth it?

Personally I hope is to strike a balance between building online skills while maintaining our abilities to work and thrive in the physical world too. I find myself more often looking for opportunities to avoid using technology than seeking it out, as it’s already the dominant force in our lives. For example, math problems, reading, and language practice all work as well or better on paper.

In other subjects, we explicitly focus on learning the technology itself: coding, using online and AI resources for research, and creating presentations with software tools. We aim to develop students that are confident both with and without technology, who are in control rather than be controlled by it.

//From our blog:

Sebastian Predescu 8/7/26 Sebastian Predescu 8/7/26 Finding the Balance Two important skills kids should learn:1) How to follow instructions and adhere to social norms2) How to take initiative and trust your own instinctsTraditional teaching emphasizes #1 while progressive methods promote #2. Both a...

08/21/2026

The 80-50-20 Method
Looking for a more engaging way to introduce a new method? Here’s a story.

I was in a middle school math class with a wide range of student ability and interest. In the back was a particular group of that hadn't touched their work, just chatting. I approached the quietest one.

"I notice you haven't started the work yet." (observation without judgment)

"I don't know how to do it. I'm not good at math."

"You just haven't learned this yet. I bet you can do it. Can I show you how to get started?" (encourage, get buy-in)

The next part is critical, and this is where the 80-50-20 method comes in:

First, you'll show the learner how to do it. But you'll only do 80%--find a few of the easier steps they already know (e.g. multiplying numbers, expanding parentheses, etc.) and ask them to contribute those as you go. This keeps them engaged as a partner in the process and builds confidence for the next step.

Once you've demonstrated the process, lead them through it again but ask them to do as much as they can: "how do we start?", "what's the next step?", "and then what?" At this point there will still be lots of gaps you need to fill in and that's okay. The goal is to get to around a 50-50 balance.

Then, let them try to lead the solution in the third pass. They still won't be perfect and you're there to support them through the parts they can't remember, but by this time you'll only need to do ~20% of the talking. They've practiced the steps three times with support, and each time they built confidence by tackling a manageable level of new challenge.

Finally...

"Do you think you're ready to try them on your own now?"

"Yeah." She worked quietly for the rest of class.

A few minutes 1-on-1 with a student can make hours of difference if you use them well.

//From our blog:

Sebastian Predescu 8/7/26 Sebastian Predescu 8/7/26 Finding the Balance Two important skills kids should learn:1) How to follow instructions and adhere to social norms2) How to take initiative and trust your own instinctsTraditional teaching emphasizes #1 while progressive methods promote #2. Both a...

02/05/2026

Have you ever seen a microschool?

Probably not, and for good reason. Microschools serve between 5 and 20 students, typically in mixed-age classes run by teacher-administrators, and using community parks as outdoor spaces. No public school district will ever build one.

There are many good arguments against microschools:

- Specialization is limited (no gym, science lab, dedicated drama teacher etc.)
Teacher/admin profiles are rare (few people want to do both, and on a teacher salary)

- Mixed age learners have different needs (you can’t teach the same thing to everyone)

- Having kids out in public is a liability risk (it’s safer to keep them in one space)

- Managing many small schools at scale is impractical (fewer, larger institutions are easier)

Why would anyone want a microschool? Because, when done right, they are education magic.

The power of microschooling comes from the foundational belief that small class sizes are the #1 driver of student outcomes. This has been shown consistently in study after study. Specialized staff and facilities are nice, but not if they require larger class sizes to cover the cost, especially in elementary years. Microschools run as lean as they can so they can keep class sizes small–and this unlocks a whole new model for education.

Imagine a class with 8 students and 2 teachers.

How is academic teaching different? Not only do students get more attention, you can actually individualized the assignments and level the work bespoke to each student. Acceleration for faster students, more time to review and ensure comprehension for those who need it. Mixed age groups are not a problem, because each student gets what they need.

What about the school culture? You can give students freedom and autonomy without risking chaos, which lets them build their confidence and develop social-emotional skills through lived experience. Teachers spend less energy on classroom management and grading, more goes into planning and delivering great lessons. Less stress and less rigidity means more joy and humanity–that’s what we need to get back into our classrooms.

This is the promise of microschools. Is it hard to pull off? Yes, very hard. Is it worth it? Absolutely.

~~~~

Curious to learn more? Check out our blog: https://innerfiresf.com/blog

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07/16/2025

Interested in learning more about our school? Come join our open house tonight!

July 16, 2025
6:00p-7:30p
2130B Harrison Street
San Francisco

Does a camp focused on chess, math, and outdoor games meet your child’s interests? If so we have some spots for the week of August 4-August 8 with flexible enrollment from just 1 day to the entire week. Learn more and register here: https://omella.com/th283

07/16/2025

Hello! We don't maintain an active social media presence, this page is updated very sporadically. Please visit our website for the latest:

2024-25 Overview & Enrollment Build A Lifetime Love Of LearningInner Fire is a micro-school for gifted and neurodivergent 5-12 year olds. We take only 8 students per class and tailor our courses to fit each learner’s ability and interest, so it’s easy to be fully engaged.Our mission is to make s...

03/04/2025

Tip of the Month: Handling Low Confidence

When your child says "I'm bad at this", how do you respond?

The immediate impulse is often to counter: "no you're not, look at all this great work you did", or a similar attempt to convince them of the opposite.

But this can backfire if they insist that they really are bad. Now the energy and attention is focused on that idea, with them reaffirming the negative. And what they say is what sticks--not what others say to them.

Instead of trying to convince them otherwise, we recommend a different approach: "It's not about being good or bad at it". The point of math/writing/art/sports/life is to do it, whether or not you're 'good'.

Removing judgment of outcome from the activity promotes openness and confidence, as well as resilience: we show up and try regardless of whether we're "good", it's just what we do.

Confidence is not the belief that you'll succeed, it's the knowledge that you'll be okay either way.

What are your favorite activities to build confidence?

08/01/2023

There's a fair amount of debate around teacher-led vs. student-led learning. For us the key is striking the right balance of the two.

Here's a story from our blog that shows how we find that balance:

How to teach new skills in an engaging, confidence-building way that will stick.