{"id":8999,"date":"2021-10-29T12:00:28","date_gmt":"2021-10-29T12:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/2021\/10\/29\/full-circle-learning-in-action-building-a-thinking-place\/"},"modified":"2023-11-20T16:08:38","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T16:08:38","slug":"full-circle-learning-in-action-building-a-thinking-place","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/2021\/10\/29\/full-circle-learning-in-action-building-a-thinking-place\/","title":{"rendered":"Full Circle Learning in Action: Building a \u201cThinking Place\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>When a Clonlara School <a href=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/our-programs\/off-campus-program\/\">Off-Campus Program<\/a> parent followed her 12-year-old son\u2019s interests, she almost ended up with a giant caboose in her backyard!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thankfully, constructing a private \u201cthinking place\u201d\u2014 no matter what its design\u2014was the inspiration behind her son William\u2019s project, and he was willing to settle on building a smaller playhouse-sized version of their house. As William explains, \u201cI wanted a space away from others where my thoughts wouldn\u2019t get interrupted.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Begin with a Question<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>For some, the most difficult part of employing Clonlara\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/approach\/\">Full Circle Learning (FCL) Model<\/a> is deciding where to begin. Parents may be tempted to assign what they think will be an \u201cenjoyable\u201d topic of study rather than guiding students through the personal (and sometimes laborious) process of discovering their own meaningful subjects to research.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>William\u2019s mom, Amy, started by simply asking her son, \u201cWhat do you want to learn?\u201d Because they have a playroom full of Legos, it was not a surprise when William answered, \u201cI want to build like Legos, but on a larger scale.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As her son began to think seriously about erecting an actual inhabitable structure in their backyard, she followed up by asking, \u201cWhat questions do you want (need) to answer?\u201d In response, William realized he had a <em>lot <\/em>of questions he needed to answer in order to make his project happen. Here are just a few:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li>How do I make a list of materials that are needed?<\/li><li>How do I round numbers when estimating the price of the materials for each stage?<\/li><li>How and where do I locate the appropriate materials?<\/li><li>What is a good way to plan and prepare for each step?<\/li><li>What types of wood do I use and what types of dimensions should the boards be?<\/li><li>How do I use an electric drill, an electric screwdriver, a jigsaw, and a palm sander?<\/li><li>How do I use a level?<\/li><li>How do I use a measuring tape?<\/li><li>How do I shingle a roof? What materials do I use to do this?<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p> <br><a href=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/2016\/09\/22\/questions-questions-questions\/\">Strategic questions<\/a> asked by parents or teachers can do wonders in sparking student imagination! But what if you can\u2019t answer a student\u2019s questions or assist them practically in the completion of their learning project?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-gallery columns-3 is-cropped wp-block-gallery-1 is-layout-flex wp-block-gallery-is-layout-flex\"><ul class=\"blocks-gallery-grid\"><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-foundation-225x300.jpeg\" alt=\"William prepares to lay the foundation for his \u201cthinking place.\u201d]\" data-id=\"9923\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-foundation-rotated.jpeg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/?attachment_id=9923\" class=\"wp-image-9923\"\/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\"><em>Preparing to lay the foundation&#8230;<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-frame-300x225.png\" alt=\"William learns to use a drill and L-shaped brackets while framing his house.\" data-id=\"9926\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-frame.png\" data-link=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/?attachment_id=9926\" class=\"wp-image-9926\"\/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\"><em>Learning to use a drill and L-shaped brackets while framing&#8230;<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><li class=\"blocks-gallery-item\"><figure><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-staining-300x225.jpeg\" alt=\"William seals the gaps with caulk and stains the floors.\" data-id=\"9941\" data-full-url=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/william-staining.jpeg\" data-link=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/?attachment_id=9941\" class=\"wp-image-9941\"\/><figcaption class=\"blocks-gallery-item__caption\"><em>Sealing gaps with caulk and staining the floors!<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Find a Mentor<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>When your child\u2019s questions lead you to unfamiliar terrain, it\u2019s helpful to find someone who can help navigate the way. In William\u2019s case, neither his mother nor his father possesses construction skills or building experience, but they found a mentor (or rather a mentor found them) at the local lumber supply store.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amy was describing their building project to a store employee and mentioned how William\u2019s learning style included strategies for coping with severe dyslexia and ADHD. A man standing nearby overheard their conversation and shared that he, too, struggled with dyslexia in school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When he learned the specifics of William\u2019s project, he walked with them through the store showing William which products to purchase for the roof and helping them load the materials into their cart. He even transported the items to their house and modeled for William how to properly shingle a roof! Furthermore, he assured William that if he needed help, he would send one of his employees (he owns a construction company) to help William build.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Trust the Student<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Familiar with and even trained in the idea of following the lead of a child, Amy still experienced a few hesitant moments throughout the FCL process of William\u2019s building project. What if their new mentor ended up not delivering on his promises to offer help if needed? What if, after investing in the expensive materials, William decided not to complete the project?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amy acknowledged these questions as legitimate concerns, but in the end, she decided to <a href=\"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/2016\/11\/10\/think-you-can-educate\/\">trust her son as a learner<\/a>. William concurs saying, \u201cIt\u2019s important that you [the student] are really interested in the project before you start. [Parents], let your children come up with the ideas and then follow their imaginations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In the end, Amy committed to following her son\u2019s lead, admitting, \u201cI went with it because he went with it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Expect Difficulties and Push Through the Problems<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>Even though it was William\u2019s idea to build a playhouse, and even though he drove the entire process, Amy shared that there were still days when William just \u201cdidn\u2019t want to deal. When he was like, \u2018I\u2019m mad. This is frustrating. The wall just fell on my head. I don\u2019t want to do it.\u2019\u201d In those cases, he learned to walk away and take a break, which, in Amy\u2019s words, \u201cwas huge!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Upon reflection, William admits the project ended up being much bigger than he envisioned and taking much longer than he wanted or expected. Even so, he says, \u201cI pushed through to the end because I wanted it to be finished.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When facing problems, William knew his mother wouldn\u2019t bail him out. \u201c[She] knew the answer,\u201d he said, \u201cbut [she] made me figure it out.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Amy certainly celebrates William\u2019s accomplishment of building his \u201cthinking place,\u201d but even more, she delights in the development of his persevering spirit and problem-solving prowess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Enjoy the Results<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>As students gain more experience with Full Circle Learning, they begin to use the concepts intuitively. After building a playhouse, William went on to complete an extensive model train layout, build three-quarters scale arcade machines, and construct full desktop PCs all the while employing\u2014organically and on his own\u2014elements of FCL to his process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The more students practice FCL, the more self-directed and comfortable they become in their learning journey. Perhaps Amy says it best: \u201cWilliam\u2019s \u2018thinking place\u2019 helped him develop as a reader, writer, mathematician, explorer, creator, designer, engineer, and most of all a happy, successful, confident student who loves to learn.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ultimately, isn\u2019t that our goal for every child?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>We would love to hear your experience with Full Circle Learning! What was your student\u2019s favorite FCL project?<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When a Clonlara School Off-Campus Program parent followed her 12-year-old son\u2019s interests, she almost ended up with a giant caboose in her backyard! Thankfully, constructing a private \u201cthinking place\u201d\u2014 no matter what its design\u2014was the inspiration behind her son William\u2019s project, and he was willing to settle on building a smaller playhouse-sized version of their [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9000,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8999","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-full-circle-learning","category-hands-on-learning"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8999","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8999"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8999\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9041,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8999\/revisions\/9041"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9000"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8999"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8999"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/clonlara.org\/br\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8999"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}