World School
The hardest part of this trip by far has been holding the kids to doing their school work and then grading it. And let’s be clear, the kids are not the problem here. It is 100% our problem as the parents who have not kept pace with grading each assignment in a timely manner or who often schedule the day in such a way that school work is not feasible.
There have been multiple times when we will offer a fun option for the afternoon or evening and the kids will ask to stay in to catch up on schoolwork instead. When this is in lieu of seeing something like the Trevi Fountain in Rome, we push them towards going out and saving the work for another day. When it is to go get one more Belgium waffle (they are SO good), we let them stay in. Yes, even the temptation of a sweet dessert is sometimes not enough. Again, the kids are complete rock stars when it comes to school. We’re the problem.
But here’s the thing, while we know they need to learn the 3rd and 5th grade math and english concepts necessary to keep pace with their friends back home, we also know they are learning so much more from the people, places, and experiences they’re encountering on this trip. That was part of the point of taking them now at the ages of 8, 11, and 11. They are old enough to enjoy and remember the trip, but also young enough to absorb and be shaped by the diverse cultures and perspectives at each new destination. As we researched other families that have done something like this with their school age children, we kept hearing about the concept of World School as opposed to Home School.
Just the other day we went to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam. Before exploring the incredibly well done Museum, we had an in depth introduction by a guide that spoke about the history of WWI, the Treaty of Versailles, the rise of Hitler and the Nazification of Germany, the persecution of the Jewish people in Germany and the Netherlands, the Final Solution, the Netherlands during the war, and of course the story of Anne Frank, her family and the friends who hid them. While Paul and Sophia had heard the name Anne Frank, they really had no clue about her story or all the history surrounding World War II and the Holocaust. This is not something they’ll soon forget. This is World School.
While in Amsterdam, we also stayed in a very unique area of the city called NDSM, a former shipyard located on the banks of the River IJ in northern Amsterdam that is now a cultural hotspot and hip new neighborhood. Our AirBnB was actually a sailing ship called the Waterwolf. We had to take the free ferry from Amsterdam Central - about a 12 min ride - and walk about 5 mins past the Street Art Museum and the Netherlands headquarters of Nickelodeon.
Aside from our visit to the Anne Frank House, we took a “pay what you want” walking tour with a guide who gave us a great overview of the unique, pragmatic, and truely capitalistic laws the Netherlands has put in place to handle everything from drugs (despite common perception, marajuana is not legal in Amsterdam or the Netherlands…it is tolerated and even regulated, but not legal) to prostitution (which is legal and even provides a prostitute’s union). For the kids, much of this information whent well over their heads, though Ben did use the opportunity of walking near the Red Light District to give Paul and Sophia the “sex talk”. I’m not quite sure how well that went over, but I can tell you that what they did gain was a clear picture of how different countries approach challenges like drugs and how their laws impact people and communities differently. This is World School.
Our final experience in Amsterdam was one chosen by the kids. A “Playful Art” experience that had us using the right side of our brain a bit more. This was an intuitive painting class with a full time artist who promised a “free space without expectation or condemnation” and asked that we bring an open mind and “good energy”. This was too much for Ben and my parents to handle, so Joanna (visiting from Kentucky) and I took the kids. The kids loved it! After learning a bit about intuitive painting, we got to create three different pieces of art, two individually and one collectively. It was fun to play with all the various colors, techniques, and painting tools available. I loved the splatter paint and spray bottles, the kids loved the spray paint and collective artwork. Joanna enjoyed being with everyone, but admittedly would have enjoyed more structure and direction for how to paint “correctly”. But we all had a great time and created art that would have been right at home in our NDSM neighborhood. This is World School.
So while I have some angst about the fact that the kids are on day 45 of their home school curriculum and their friends back home are on day 79 of school, it is not enough to drastically change how we are approaching their days (with the exception of our grading practices).
Side note: while grading sounds easy, we haven’t had an answer key for most of their work and so, especially with 5th grade math, we find ourselves having to take a bit of time to review their answers or redo their math problems to confirm they are correct. And I can tell you, I do not enjoy solving word problems with fractions!
