In 2015, we celebrated the 25th anniversary of the Internet, and everything that came along with it. It revolutionized our economy, our workforce, and how everybody, everywhere shares information.
That said, there are definite drawbacks to the inter-connectivity fostered by the worldwide web…
For example, getting off the grid is easier said than done, and people around the world are constantly seeking ways to disconnect and unwind.
Meanwhile, concerns are emerging about the effect that rampant technology has on young minds — as we saw in this poignant commercial for Nature Valley.
Time and energy that would have once gone into drawn-out games of make-believe is now poured into smartphone games and television.
With that in mind, one amazing school in London is going back to basics.
Taking things several steps further than most schools, the London Acorn School has not only banned most technology from the classroom, they’ve also made an impact on how students use technology at home.
What do you think of this technology-free school? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!
[H/T: The Guardian]
Located in a historic building in Southwest London, the London Acorn School prizes academic engagement and creative discovery above all else. Students in the Lower and Middle School — essentially anyone under the age of 14 — use minimal technology in the classroom.
Instead, they rely on chalkboards, make-believe, and tactile lessons, all of which parents might remember from their own, pre-Internet school days.
The school charter also requires that parents curtail tech use at home, noting on their website that, “The boundaries of [school charter] include restrictions on computer and internet use, media devices, television, cinema, and social events.”
Here, two girls build a model of a traditional thatched cottage.
While this policy might strike some of us as unnecessarily strict, the Acorn School makes an excellent point, noting that the best way to foster creative thinking skills is to allow childhood to be a time of critical thinking, play, and exploration.
Here, some of the older students hone their wood-working skills, taking the lesson outside on a nice day.
In the classroom, emphasis is placed on the power of imagination, as you can see in this involved blanket fort taking over a Lower School learning space.
In fact, skipping technology opens the lower school classrooms up to a wide range of learning experiences.
Here, a little girl demonstrates mathematics principles on the chalkboard.
In addition to academic subjects like writing and math, kids participate extensively in woodworking, music, and art classes.
Here, you can see the kids working on felting with wool.
They create experiments in science class, recreate chapters in history, and spend active time swimming, sailing, and working in the school garden.
Here, some of the kids work in the vegetable garden.
Of course, the Acorn School isn’t blind to the importance of learning to use technology.
From age 14 up, computers are introduced to the classroom, and films may be used in lessons.
Computers and technology, after all, aren’t going anywhere, but this school knows that childhood is a precious time, and should be spent actively engaged with the world, as you can see with these kindergartners learning to bake bread by hand.
If you wish more schools would adopt this attitude, please SHARE on Facebook!
