School as Poison

My son's school is not bad at all...but it suffers from the same problem of all "good schools" across America:  the element of surprise is almost absent.

Predictability can be a fine thing for young children--as long as it's not over-prescribed.  When it is, like all good medicines, it changes into a kind of poison.  That's true for adults as well, but it's especially true for kids, who desire new experiences and adventure as fervently as they desire pasta and cookies.

I am reminded of this every time my son laughs in a surprised way--which almost never happens at school.  It happened this evening when he was watching a "Magic School Bus" episode about digestion.  Ms. Frizzle's class went for a "field trip" inside a boy's digestive system.  It was hilarious to see the tiny school bus rocking back and forth on the boy's tongue, along with bits of cheese doodles and olive, or to see teeth as big as boulders crashing down as the boy masticated.  My son was entranced, and tickled to his core.

He is getting so much of value from his school; he's learning a lot about teamwork, how to be a friend, and how to work independently and take care of his own things (well, most of the time). And his teacher is one of the most caring and considerate souls I've ever met.

But what he might be losing underneath the flood of worksheets, and the grinding routine of his high-powered public school's curriculum--adventures, surprise, fun--those missing elements are hugely important in a child's life...there's no getting around it.  I'm not saying that this school is poisonous or that it's merely stamping out worker-drones...but sometimes I know, from the look on my son's face when I volunteer in class, that he's extremely bored...and that surprise and excitement are almost never part of his school day.