The infamous hero inventor, Thomas Edison, once said “I have not failed, I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”  This known hero of science created oodles of inventions that vastly changed the world and his heroic contributions to science and character of persistence is the reason why this session’s Quest at Acton Main is called Edison’s Lab. It is said to have taken Edison around 1,000 attempts to invent the light bulb. He was determined, focused, and relentless in his pursuit for greatness. Can you imagine, 1,000 times? Many years ago in Spark we counted out one bead for every try! Can you imagine your life without electricity or recorded music?

Many years ago my 5 year old daughter asked me “what does love feel like?” The question caught me off guard and so I muddled through and started talking about butterflies, smiles, and then veered towards a better definition: you love someone when you feel safe to be yourself and you are excited to see and spend time with them. My daughter thought for a moment and then immediately lit up and said “I love Cora!” Cora was her new fellow 5 year old friend at Acton and that day they were about to have a playdate. My daughter was all action and that evening she nonchalantly asked Cora to marry her. Cora was a lady of many options and she kindly asked if she could think about it. This was my daughter’s first rejection but it also was her first experience thinking about the intricacies of love and love outside her immediate family. Love is many things and on this LOVE day I’d like to share the many intricacies of how love is abundant and diverse at Acton. 

“This is the most productive I’ve ever seen our studio work!” “It feels really good to have accomplished so much!” These were the words of two different learners in two separate studios this week at Acton Main. What’s most amazing is their words were echoed by many learners with ripples of variety. So, what’s different at Acton? Sure, the new space and the rays of sunshine has helped inspire learners however the one thing that has changed this session is our school’s approach to goal setting. Learners are making plans and their plans are truly SMART (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Timely)!

Imagine this…you put on a magical pair of glasses that when you look through the lenses they give you the ability to see the world with fresh eyes. Your foe now appears like an opportunity for a second chance, a possible friend. Your work that felt too hard is now a magical mountain adventure to climb. The studio routine that once felt monotonous is now a mystery game to discover and find your flow. Putting on these magical glasses is the practice that every Guide at Acton strives to wear daily. No, it is not a literal pair of glasses but instead it is the mindset of Maria Montessori: to look at each learner with fresh eyes.

Imagine this…it’s the morning of Creativity Camp and you spot 3 learners huddled together. They are focused, eyes with a glimmer, and you wonder what they could be so excited about? One learner says to the other “That’s awesome, we have to do that!” The other learner says “Yeah, that’s good, but maybe we could try this one, it looks hard but I think we can do it.” You wander over and ask what they are so interested in and they reply “We are looking at the menu, we want to get started right away!” It’s not a menu for lunch, it’s a menu of choice activities for Acton campers. The menu has visual art options, theatre options, and the favorite of this trio: culinary delights!

Through out the year our Guide team has been consistently discussing and pursuing the topic of joy. We’ve been asking one another where joy lives in our day, what activities and interactions light us up with joy, and we have been experimenting with observing the many ways learners exhibit joy as they learn. Finding joy in the simple and the complex journey has been our team’s pursuit and top priority. As models of life long learning, we know that when each Guide exhibits joyful work there is a ripple effect of learners engaging and investing in themselves and their community.

Imagine walking into school and seeing banners of the Slytherin House, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, and Hufflepuff flying high from the ceiling. You hear the magical and hypnotic sound of the Harry Potter theme play in the distance and as you arrive to your Quest discussion you are told that you have magic inside you and a chance to train as a wizard. Later, the sorting hat is placed upon your head and with tickles and grumbles the hat finally announces your placement in a House that best fits your personality and future. You beam with joy to begin your magical adventure! This is the memory of every Discovery and Adventure learner on the first day of this session’s Quest.

A story from Spark Land Vol. 2 from our Assistant Director, Jeni Vash:

Once upon a time in Sparkland, a new city was born. The only parameters: a giant cardboard box lid for the platform and placement of each learner within a team. Guides threw out a few questions to launch learners into action: What is the purpose of your city? Do people live there? Are there stores, restaurants, businesses?

The days are getting shorter, darker, and there are only a handful of days left on our calendar year. Fall is approaching Winter and as I honor this change of season around me I was reminded of a helpful Blog post from Acton co-founder Laura Sandefer about the inner seasons of an Acton Parent. Today, I’d like to share Laura’s words with you as her thoughts have always guided me…

“Along the Acton journey, I have found a predictable pattern in my inner seasons. They go something like this:

My son quietly sat in the backseat as we drove home from after school activities. It was calmly quiet and all of a sudden I hear him gasp with excitement! He shares “Can I tell you what I want to be when I grow up?” With intrigue I said “Yes, I would love to know.” My 5 year old son then rippled with words. “I decided I want to be Architecture! I am so good at building and drawing and I love buildings so I think…my new passion is architecture and I’m really sorry but I changed my mind. I wanted to be a pizza maker but I have to change! Is that ok?” My heart burst with joy that this Quest deeply inspired my son and my heart broke that he felt he needed to choose his profession now, that it may not be ok to change. I thought: Does he need to decide this or can he just love building?

This week we welcomed a prospective family to our campus and I was reminded of the importance of Socrates as I shared an overview of our Acton school. Acton is based in equal parts Montessori philosophy, Entrepreneurship, Socratic discussions, and is wrapped up in a hero’s journey narrative. Today I’d like to share wisdom about Socrates from the best Acton source we have, co-founder Laura Sandefer. Below are her words about Socrates and advice for Acton parents from her inspirational parent Blog.

A story from Spark Land Vol. 1 from our Assistant Director, Jeni Vash:

Once upon a time, Spark Land Studios (ages 4-7) began engaging in a new activity called SparkPLAY. SparkPLAY was new; no one really understood exactly what to do or why they were doing it. There were strange new materials that were normally not available, such as large buckets, wooden boards, pvc pipes, tarps, bungees, and more! There were new groups to work with, new ideas to consider, new boundaries....new waters to navigate.

It’s when I am at my worst that I realize that my most precious humans are watching, waiting, learning. Most recently, my daughter who is now 9 reminded me of her eyes and my role as her model. Picture this, I spent long hours at work and walked through the door with my bag lady items and the day written all over my face. It was late, I was tired, my to-do list was still swirling in my mind and I had no awareness of how I presented as I stepped into the kitchen.

The hero’s journey is not a clear path, it is a mountainous journey with peaks and valleys equally full of challenge and treasure. Learners at Acton are regularly referred to as heroes and one stage of the hero’s journey is finding fellow travelers. Your child is encouraged to find like-minded travelers at school that are willing to help when times are tough, cheer towards the finish line, and celebrate the process of the journey. As an Acton parent YOU are a hero too and you have many fellow traveler parents ready to connect with you on your hero’s journey.

One beauty of our Acton school is that we are one school part of a network of 300 plus schools across the world. This means that at every school there are talented Founders, Guides, and learners that our school can learn from. It is a great gift to be connected and share experience with each Acton leader from the network and it beautiful to be on a hero’s journey with fellow travelers. Today, I’d like to share wisdom from the Acton community. Here is a share about success called The Dangerous Fallacy of IQ

On September 17, 1787 the founding fathers of the United States of America signed the Constitution declaring a list of fundamental principles for how our American country would run. Just like heroes Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, and James Madison, our Acton heroes drafted, debated, edited, discussed, and yesterday on October 3, 2024 ratified their Acton constitution also known as Studio Promises/Contract. One by one learners reviewed their studio contract and just like the founding fathers they used a feather pen to sign their name. Whether 4 or 12 years old the Acton contract creation is a thrill, it is an opportunity to be part of something great, part of a community of heroes that honors and respects the heroic journey of learning to learn, learning to do, and learning to be.

What gift do you bring to the pot? I bring….love in the form of a carrot, laughter in the form of a beet, curiosity as garlic, friendship as a pepper, leadership as celery, dance and art as potatoes, kindness as green beans, adventure as a potato, gymnastics as onions, empathy as black pepper, silliness as broth, and the list goes on and on. With great joy and pride every learner in our Acton village named and placed their symbolic gift in our village pot of Stone Soup. Each villager watched with amazement as learners shared their special ingredient that makes Acton delicious!

You are on your way to the Adventure Studio at Acton. With each step into the basement underworld the sun dims and the sound grows more quiet. You meet the base of the steps, you enter a sea of black, and as your eyes begin to adjust you suddenly notice a small flickering light. This light is a path. You follow the path and stop at what appears to be a make-shift door. You hear quiet voices and wonder, is there anyone inside? You politely say “Hello, is anyone here?” Suddenly, a friendly head pops out of the home and says “Hi, welcome to our gnome home, would you like to come in?” With great wonder you enter. What seemed impossibly small is in fact a spacious gnome mansion full of twinkling lights, cozy blankets, an abundance of furniture, and a group of joyful gnomes working on projects. This is their happy home and they are joyfully ready to give you a tour!

Back in 2020 when our Acton school was just beginning we were gifted a gorgeous rainbow owl painting by a founding parent. It was this magical painting and the idea of the “O” alliteration of Oshkosh Owls that inspired our owl school mascot that we proudly love today. Our choice was simple. Little did we realize that owls symbolize wisdom, intuition, knowledge, protection, and mystery. Owls guide people to see beyond the obvious. This is the role of our young learners, they are our guides that inspire growth. What is a group of owls called? A parliament. Truly, we lucked out with our mascot. There couldn’t be a better word to honor our Acton process of learners being trusted to govern their learning and build their community nest.

“Alexander the Great was 20 years old when he conquered the world. Joan of Arc, 17 when she began her crusade; Ben Franklin 13 when he first apprenticed. At Acton Academy, we believe our young too will change the world, sooner than most can imagine.”

— Jeff Sandefer, Acton Academy co-founder

This first week of school I witnessed a courageous 4 year old walk into Acton. As her mother hesitated at the car door this learner proudly walked into school, shook my hand, opened the door, and said yes to the journey. This brave learner needed no help, had no confusion, and knew where she was meant to be.