Please take a minute to watch Gever Tulley's speech at this link:
Would you let your child drive your car, operate a chainsaw, or play with fire?? Most parents would balk at such an absurd notion. Being a parent myself, I could relate. That is until I listened to Gever Tulley give this talk about his “Tinkering School”. A place where children are given real tools, open fire, and unlimited resources and are encouraged to let their imagination lead them. Listening to Tulley I learned of his child like sense of wonder, his unique look at success and failure, as well as ways to change my own approach to learning.
Tulley, a contract computer scientist by trade, has a childlike sense of wonder that you can pick up on by listening to him speak for only a few minutes. The purpose of his “Tinker school” is to rekindle a spirit of creativity and problem solving that is slowly being drowned out by our plastic coated, media culture. He and his partner serve as only motivators and supports, allowing the children to be responsible for both their successes and their failures, which are both celebrated at the school. Failures are seen as a rebirth and a stepping stone, more than an actual failure. By allowing children to explore and think without the aid of technology and adult supervision he unleashes a brand of creativity that is slowly dying in our fast paced culture.
Tully opened my eyes to a type of enrichment that I feel my own child is missing in his life. I feel like I let my child go off and explore the world to his content, but, only under the watchful eye of mother…and with a helmet. I realize after listening to him how much different things are from the time I was growing up. When I was little we could roam the streets doing as we pleased, as long as we were home by midnight. We played in dirt piles, rode our bikes, and got into anything and everything. Today, we have places like the children’s museum where kids are encouraged to explore, but only under close supervision and in a sterile environment. If you were to let your kids into the garage to play with power tools alone, you would surely be cited for some form of neglect. I am for the idea of encouraging children to invent new ways to play, even if it does lead to some cuts and bruises. Flesh heals, but that kind of freedom, and the values learned while doing it, last a lifetime.
In watching Tulley, I think I will be investigating more thoroughly the type of schooling I will be exposing Peter to. I have explored both Montessori and Waldorf schools in an effort to find the best education available to my son. I like the hands on personal approach these schools take. While they may not be quite as liberal as Tulley’s school, they do provide some of that independence and hands on learning that he advocates. I think in the future if I have to opportunity to expose Peter to a camp like the one presented here, I would certainly enroll Peter. This presentation has also given me the freedom and desire to allow my son to explore a world that isn’t covered in plastic and bubble wrap.
