Our Agreements

 Emily, Matt, Myles, and Jackie have unanimously agreed to the following:

- We agree that we will come together each day rested and well nourished. This helps us to all be our best selves and do our best work together.

- We agree to protect our own physical and mental health by practicing good hygiene, dressing appropriately for daytime, and keeping our learning environment clean and tidy.

- We will speak to each other with respect and kindness. All of us could be making a different choice than we are. The kids could choose a regular school environment and I could be choosing to return to my career. All of us agree that this is the choice that we want to be making, and we all agree that our experience is enhanced by the presence of the others in our little co-op. So we each need to make sure we show that we value each other be always treating each other with kindness, dignity, consideration, and respect, and apologizing when we make mistakes.

- We will respect each other's needs for space when requested.

- No means "no." We will no badger one another. The only exception is when Emily (as the legally responsible adult, entrusted with the care and safety of the kids under 18 during school hours) gives an instruction or set a boundary.

- Emily explained to the kids that she needs to have a boundary around discussions of politics and religion. She will gladly support them in learning about the political system in the U.S. (particularly during this election season) but is not going to explain her own political or religious views because that privilege belongs to their own families.

- Emily is committed to maximizing the extent to which each kid is able to pursue their own interests and passions. This means she will seek out resources to help them and dedicate time to allowing them to dig deep into areas of interest. There will be a few exceptions in that we will not delve into content that explores gratuitous violence or otherwise adult themes.

- A big part of interest-led learning requires exposure to new areas of potential interest. Therefore, Emily commits to exposing the kids to lots of new activities, topics, skills, sports, and experiences. The kids commit to sharing their own areas of interest with the group. All of us agree to exploring all these new exposures with an open mind and a curious spirit?

- We are all committed to treating others the way we want to be treated.

- We are going to try things that are hard and persist through difficulty. If we aren't being challenged we are not growing. So, we are all committed to saying positive and encouraging things to one another, praising each other for persistence, and encouraging each other to keep trying even when at first we fail.

- We will read for at least 20 minutes every day. This reading can come from books, poetry, news or instructional articles, or any other source but we will commit to this amount of time. This is a minimum. There is no maximum.

- We will go to the library at least once a month.

- We will go to the Anchorage Museum at least once a month.

- We will go swimming at least once a week unless the pool is closed.

- We will spend time outside every day except if the weather is truly horrible and clothing cannot make the situation sufficiently comfortable and safe.

- We will document our experiences as thoroughly as we can without detracting from them. We will do this using our blog and our private Facebook photo album. These will both be available to kids' families for perusal and also to selected other advisors and experts who Emily may wish to consult for guidance and advice along the way.