Christen Parker-Yarnal

The peak of this past week’s activities was arguably the MarioKart tournament organized by a 13 year old student. Sometimes adults will react to something like this by saying that video games “have no place at school,” but we think that’s missing some very valuable considerations.   Yes, video games are usually played at home rather than at school, but they’re not only fun, they’re social and involve both the skills to play the game and “durable skills” like frustration tolerance and...

This week’s reflection was written by Michelle! 🌈 On park day this week, I noticed one of the younger voting members was sitting by himself and joined him to check in. He expressed that he just didn’t know what to do at the park that day. During the conversation, I mentioned that I had chalk in my car and offered to bring it out, but Julen politely declined and continued to try and decide what to do. Later in the day, he approached me again and said that he had changed his mind, asking if he...

This week a crew of three have added the extra challenge of trying to become a connected caravan of motley riders. They line themselves up at the top of the ramp, hold on, and plunge down. The wonky wheels and momentum create a careening effect that requires continued experimentation to perfect. And at the same time, perfection is clearly not required. It seems part of the joy to unexpectedly disconnect as much as it is to reach the bottom and continue still connected. “Let’s go again!” This...