Back to School

The leaves are beginning to turn red, orange, and amber hues, the stellar jays are making their rounds in hazelnut trees, and squirrels are stocking up their pinecone stashes for winter. The air is noticeably cooler and brings a calmness to the quieting landscape, as plants, animals, and the earth prepares for chillier nights. Meanwhile in the human world, youth are returning to new or familiar places for learning and interaction: school, simply put.

When we think of school, it’s usually a building full of kids learning together. But school isn’t actually all about the textbooks, school supplies, and social aspect. A classroom may be a room full of desks and chairs ready for learning, or it may be the forest, full of opportunities to study and observe. A mentor can be ol’ Mr. Smith the science teacher teaching physics and molecular biology, or it can be a mushroom on the side of a pine, teaching stillness and awareness of one’s surroundings. There’s no right or wrong when it comes to learning, really – even our mistakes have lessons to teach us that stay in our consciousness for life.

This year, I’ll be doing a blend of homeschooling and regular school, but with more project-based and initiative-based learning. My grandpa is teaching me from our school desk at home, and Mr. Bieri is teaching me from the classroom at Homelinks in Creston, BC. I’m also enrolled in a grade 8/9 cohort program with other students my age, which gives me an opportunity to meet new people and work with them. I’m excited to be back learning this autumn, whether in the classroom or the forest.