A few weeks ago we took a road trip across the country. In Jefferson City, Missouri, we visited a history museum which emphasized the Civil War. From there, we went to the National Park in Springfield, Illinois, which houses the home of President Lincoln. Needless to say, since then there's been lots of thinking and talking about the civil war and related topics: civil rights, presidential security, politics, the leadership role of a president vs. kings, the differences between democracy, dictatorships and anarchy, and even why so many civil war soldiers died of mumps and measles (vs. from fighting).
Some people wonder how learning can possibly happen in such an "unstructured" environment. (In our school, we have no classroom, no desks, no bells and no requirements – other than cooperation, respect, and enjoyment of the learning process.) Despite their doubts, learning happens. With the proper care, it cannot help but happen.
It is easy to see and understand structure when it is imposed upon us, or when we create it. It is not so easy to see structure when it is busy creating itself.
Without any intervention, a plant can grow, and no two plants will be exactly alike. Every tree strives to find its own perfect shape and height, with limbs reaching left and right and up to find the sun. Some of the structure comes from within and some is shaped from without. The patterns reveal themselves over time, and time reveals the true character of the structure.
How silly to worry about a healthy tree that fails to reach a certain benchmark height, or label it "disorderly" if its shape dances differently than the norm. Instead, while walking in the forest, we notice each tree for its own particular beauty. Each tree has created its own growing pattern and structure. Why can't our children thrive when we allow them to reach for the sun in an supportive atmosphere which enables them to naturally create their own structure?
