Reflections At Sparhawk School, we value time for reflection about what makes our community a treasured place to learn and grow. Listen to the words of our headmaster, parents and students as they reflect on their experiences at Sparhawk. We hope you will visit us one day to discover, first hand, why we love it so much. Faculty: I will start with our faculty, full of zeal and idealism. They are committed to doing their best, recognizing that the job they do, providing nurturance and intellectual fuel for our precious children is so powerfully important, that nothing less than their best would do. Here are some of the things parents have said of them: "Usually, right in the thick of things, the teachers are as spirited, bright-eyed and eager to learn as the children around them." "These teachers don't just think of teaching at Sparhawk as a job, it's a way of life for them!" "...their enthusiasm about learning is contagious. They teach with the same degree of enthusiasm. They teach outside of the box and encourage the children to learn outside of the box." "Sparhawk School's teachers show students that the challenges inherent in learning are not roadblocks, but rather exciting journeys on which to venture forth." Students I am proud of our students. This is not an easy time to grow up. The dominant culture, presently, is a murky hodgepodge of weakly or negatively defined values. We give our students an antidote to the messages implicit in that worldview. In the Sparhawk Credo, and in daily interactions, we give students guidelines for a better life in a better world - a world worth working for and in which to achieve. We help students become reflective about their actions and to become efficacious. Success leads to confidence, and confidence is a feeling that endows happiness. Now there is a goal worth aspiring toward. "The thing that impresses me most about the Sparhawk School is the happiness on the kid's faces, the kindness they show each other, and the trust and respect they have for one another. It's a true reflection on the staff and how the kids are treated at the school." "The relaxed atmosphere allows students to feel confident in exploring possibilities. They are not afraid to make mistakes, because the focus is on a positive approach to learning, overcoming obstacles, and enjoying new challenges." "With his teachers' encouragement to express himself and his views, as well as learning to listen to and work with his peers, (my son) has shown a deeper sense of purpose and connection to himself and to the hearts and minds of others. He is happy to go to school everyday because he is going to a place to be with people who honor what matters to him. (They) take him on exciting journeys he could never go on alone." I am proud of those students who joyously accept challenges in the academic arena and of those who are moving in that direction. For some, that entails abandoning long-practiced passivity. The pleasures one can take from a job well done, are intrinsic and inherent. When goals are reasonable, support is available, and reflection is encouraged, growth is inevitable. This is the choice that the Chinese proverb expresses so well, "Teachers can open the door, but the student must enter alone." "The Sparhawk teaching staff has the skill, experience and dedication to know which key would open the door to my daughter's educational future. Before she came to Sparhawk, she knew how to memorize but not how to learn. Most importantly: she really enjoys the process; feels so much better about herself; and is so much more self-motivated." Some of our students come to understand that they too can open doors. This willingness to take what is provided, and also to be proactive - to become seekers is a powerful possibility at Sparhawk. And when that change happens, there is no limit to what our students can accomplish. In a reflective piece of writing, Angela Hasler, a seventh grader in her sixth year at Sparhawk School says, "It is part of the curriculum at Sparhawk to teach us that our whole lives are basically up to us, and the way it turns out depends on the quality of the ingredients we add. At Sparhawk, teachers often say that it is up to you to learn. I never really realized how true that is. You can just sit and listen to a mini-lesson, not taking in and thinking about a word said, or you can pay attentive attention and learn a great deal. A lot of things in life are like that; it's your decision as to who you want to be, what you want to know, how much you want to get out of an experience. Our responsibilities, our decisions, who we are, the extent of our knowledge - all that and more, are up to us. Sparhawk helps us get ready for all that." If a majority of our students learn that lesson here, our mission is accomplished, and what a glorious accomplishment it is. Bravo Sparhawk.

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