All too often students feel that school is disconnected from purpose. They don't see how what they're learning has any relevance to real life. The general mood is "What's the point?" A national survey recently conducted by CASEL found that 1 in 3 high school students were bored all or most of the time in school.
Perhaps you can relate, having felt that way at some point in your educational journey. Or perhaps it's one reason, among others, that you've explored homeschool options for your children.
In partnership with Home CEO Academy, Adsila Kids is developing a complete K-5 curriculum for homeschool families looking for a program that does more than check off a list of standards. While standards provide an important and critical check for content coverage, we believe students thrive when learning is connected to a deeper purpose.
We believe every student has been gifted with unique talents and interests and when we allow even the youngest students to explore them, they will be more engaged, more excited, and more resilient to withstand the pressures and distractions that will inevitably come at them through the realities of social media, entertainment, middle school and beyond.
While "leadership skills" are nice to have, we believe that actual leadership, student-initiated activities, and community contribution, as evidenced by a portfolio of such experiences, is more meaningful. Thus, our program drives toward contribution, creativity and student initiative as the desired end.
We're inspired by students like Boyan Slat who was investigating pollution issues and contributing to water cleanups at a young age and now, as an adult, leads one of the most innovative ocean cleanup nonprofits in the world today.
Your student could be the next such innovator.
We want more students to know their interests, discover what brings them joy and experience initiating projects so they come to identify as contributors with an abiding sense of purpose and connection in their lives.
Our program starts with Kindergarten Heroes. In this program, students engage with all subjects while also learning about 36 real-life "heroes" - people who've used their gifts for good in a variety of ways. Through this survey of careers, students begin to notice what interests them and become inspired by others who found what mattered to them and discovered ways to contribute to a particular field. We are currently accepting 12 students in 2022-23!
As First Grade Creators students hone their creativity with weekly artistic projects and begin learning the basics of research and more structured writing. Accepting 12 students in 2022-23.
project-based learning units.
As Second Grade Solvers, students learn about more real-life people who have used their gifts for good in creating, engineering and innovating to solve real-world problems. Students will begin learning the basics of the engineering process and continue honing their pure creativity as they brainstorm "ideal" solutions to problems.
As Third Grade Thinkers, students refine their analytical and critical thinking skills while learning how to logically construct and communicate their thinking. Students will practice accountable talk, conversation and presentation skills as a focus for the year. They will engage in STEM projects and research to refine the initial ideas they set forth as Second Grade Solvers.
As Fourth Grade Fact Finders, students are ready to begin exploring, in more depth, their own individual interests. They are guided through the research process and begin to even teach their knowledge to others.
Finally, as Fifth Grade Founders, students will put all of the previous years' experiences to use by initiating their own service projects or even starting their own for-profit or nonprofit organizations. Homeschooling parents are uniquely able to support student projects, having more time to mentor and work one-on-one with students.
Through a fifth grade showcase, students will also have the opportunity to get their projects funded!
To guide students to be creators and not just consumers of technology, use of various technology tools to research, analyze and present projects and understandings will be a key component of the program.
As grade-level content is released, weekly live teacher-led small group cohorts (online homeschool co-ops / learning pods) will be available to provide homeschool students opportunities to collaborate, communicate and develop lifelong friendships with other homeschool students.
We believe Adsila Kids is stronger through the participation of many voices. In that vein, there will be opportunities for parents, students and alumni to participate in the organization's growth and key events.
We have a lot of exciting opportunities on the horizon. Be sure to sign up to our email list to stay in the know!
