The Clearwater School

My two kids, ages 13 and 6, could hardly be more different from each other, and they are both thriving at The Clearwater School. I’m so glad my kids love this unusual school I found for them, because I would let them try something else if they wanted, and they know that. Of the more than two dozen different schools I have participated in as a student, teacher, or parent, Clearwater is my very favorite by far. Some of the main things I like about it are:
1) Equality between kids and adults — Clearwater students each get a vote in all school rules and everything about how the school is run. And they are respected as full human beings with the same rights that adults in the U.S. take for granted, including free speech, the pursuit of happiness, going to the bathroom without having to ask permission, choosing how to spend time, going outside, moving around, eating when hungry, etc. With all this practice making their own decisions, big and small, they get really good at it.
2) Best environment for learning that I know of — At Clearwater, students do whatever they want to do all day, to the extent they can without infringing on the rights of others to do what they want to do. And over time they become more and more knowledgable and capable. How? Well, the great success of the human species depends on our incredible desire and capacity to learn, create, bond with other humans, and move our bodies in uniquely human ways. Usually more than one of these at once. Just as true for modern, urban Amercans as it was for prehistoric hunter-​gatherers. And because our survival depends on it, we find learning, creating, connecting, and moving to be intensely fun and rewarding. Most kids find Clearwater to be a really fun place, and all that fun is the result of human brains operating as they are meant to.
3) Individuality — Many things that might be viewed as «problems» at other schools are viewed as individual differences at Clearwater. There is a recognition that what makes someone different from others is often a part of their greatest strength, even if it takes a long time to understand how. This respect for differences creates an incredibly rich environment of individuals being exactly who they really are. At the same time, Clearwater students must figure out how to be community members, because they share the school with 50 or 60 other people. This skill of being completely themselves while also fitting in with others carries over very well into whatever group situations they find themselves in.
4) Evidence based — Sometimes I have been mistaken for someone who would like anything «alternative» or «holistic», but in fact I am always seeking out the «best» solution I can find to anything, based on the evidence plus my skepticism about evidence. Sudbury Valley School, the original one of this type of school, has been around for over 40 years, and there is a ton of evidence that this form of education works very well. Graduates have no trouble getting into college and doing well there, if that is something they want to do. And they are generally happy, successful adults who feel well prepared to meet whatever goals they have. On the other hand, it seems I am hearing every day about the many ways more usual types of schools are not working for people. And so much of the research I see about what really does work for children supports all the things that happen at Clearwater (for example, I often hear that «play is essential for learning», «time outside in nature is good for kids», and «pushing kids to learn to read before they are ready is unhelpful at best»).
Many people talk about education reform as something that is very needed, and something that hopefully might be possible someday. I’m so glad that my kids have this radically reformed style of education available to them right now, every day.

The Clearwater School is a school modeled after the Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts. If you have heard of unschooling, Clearwater is, in a way, an unschooling school. Their motto is «Freedom, Trust, Responsibility.» To truly understand, I recommend checking out their website. My kids have been students at Clearwater for many years. It is an amazing place, a place where they can be free to follow their passions, whatever they may be at the time. It’s a place where they get to truly know themselves. It is not a school for the faint of heart, however. As a parent, you will be challenged. Trusting your children in the Clearwater way can be difficult, because it means trusting them in all situations, despite the objections of many around you. Sudden misgivings about the ways they are choosing to spend their time can wake you up at night. But then they will amaze you with some way that they have changed or blossomed in a way that would not have happened in a «normal» school. In my opinion, Clearwater is about the whole person. Graduates end up knowing themselves deeply and knowing how to follow their own path, a knowledge that is immeasurably valuable.