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| Our Educational Philosophy |
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An educational alternative for families who think outside the box!
We recognize that each child is an individual and has unique educational needs. Many times, these special needs can be difficult to meet in the traditional school setting. Schools are ill-equipped to meet the wide variety of individual needs found in any typical classroom. The reasons for the failure of schools are many and include high student-teacher ratios, emphasis on testing rather than learning and outdated methods of instruction.
The Extraordinary Education Family Learning Center is committed to helping students reach their optimal educational and personal development through programs that encourage critical thinking, initiative, and advanced skills in an enriching and engaging way. By involving the entire family in the learning process, the child's unique educational, social, emotional and spiritual needs can be considered as a whole. We want to help families think outside the box and discover how they can meet the unique needs of their extraordinary child.
Parent as Primary Educator
The Extraordinary Education Family Learning Center is founded on the belief that parents have both the right and the responsibility to direct the education of their children. We believe that the family is the primary sphere of influence for education, and the Extraordinary Education Center functions as a secondary, supportive sphere. We operate with the consent and support of parents to help them achieve the individual educational goals they have set for each child.
Customized Learning Experiences
At the Extraordinary Education Center, we recognize that students are unique individuals. Courses are offered on a choice-based menu so that students, with their parents, can customize their learning experiences according to the student's needs and interests and the parent's goals for the child's education.
We strive to set up an environment that centers on learning for the sake of learning. Students are allowed to pick and choose what they want to learn. There are no required courses. Parents make the decisions regarding the student's participation. Grades are given only in core subject classes.
Skill Levels and Grade-levels
Children do not develop at an equal rate in all areas. A child who excels in one subject or skill area may have knowledge or skills that are at or below grade level in other areas. Students often require intellectual challenges in their areas of giftedness to keep them engaged and excited about learning. These same students may also need special strategies to keep them interested and help them succeed in areas of weakness.
Extraordinary Education seeks to develop classes and programs that will allow students to develop at their own pace and interact meaningfully with other students. Most classes and activities will be taught in multi-age/multi-grade groups and will often encourage cooperation among pairs or groups of students and peer-to-peer learning.
Students will be encouraged to work at their own level, not grade levels, and show what they know through products appropriate to their learning styles.
Students will not be "held back" nor pushed ahead simply because of their chronological age. Class placement will be a team decision involving the parents, the student, the instructor and the program director. Decisions will be based on an evaluation of the student including his or her experience, areas of giftedness, interest level, social maturity and many other factors.
Peer-to-Peer Learning
We believe that there is tremendous value in peer-based learning, and we strive to create group learning opportunities that facilitate meaningful student interaction, discovery, and a love of learning that augments home-based learning. We offer classes with flexible age ranges.
Family-Centered Learning
At the Extraordinary Education center, the family is valued. Learning can be greatly enhanced when families learn together. Because we have multi-age classrooms, it is often possible for siblings to learn together. Some studies will be designed as multi-age co-ops with different learning experiences for each age group offered concurrently. We also sponsor family events and field trips to give families many opportunities to learn and grow together.
We always welcome parents in the classroom. Some classes even require parent participation. In addition to welcoming the parent in the classroom, we support families by offering activities and alternatives for each age group whenever possible. At some times of the day this may include making play space available for younger siblings and their parents or offering a study or game play area for older students while another child is in a class. We also offer classes and activities specifically designed for preschoolers to play and learn together in a comfortably structured way.
Children with Special Needs
All students are welcome at the Extraordinary Education Center. While we cannot operate as a "special education" program and serve the special needs of severely disabled children, we desire to include students with mild learning differences or behavioral issues and help meet their needs. This goal must be accomplished in partnership with parents. Depending on the child's specific needs, a parent may need to accompany the child to class to assist the child with class work or behavior issues. Assisting one's own child in class is not considered part of the family volunteer commitment.
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