Director's Blog
Susie Fahrer publishes the Kaleidoscope periodically throughout the year that illustrates and summarizes what has been happening at our vibrant school. Read to find out more.
Does this sound like you?
What type of parent are you? Read this checklist to see if you help your child build resilience. My favorite is "Make the adage that there are at least two sides to every story a mantra in your home." Nurturing Resilience: Reminding Ourselves What Kids Need
Is your child an introvert?
Rainbow Community School has always been a safe haven for introverted children. In a world where social aggressiveness has be glorified, especially in the competitive public education model, Rainbow has always had a way of understanding and honoring the power of the...
Empowered Teachers = Empowered Students
Why does Rainbow have such dedicated, mindful, creative, and loving teachers? Because we follow every single one of the recommendations in this article. Teachers are still treated like blue-collar workers by politicians. At Rainbow they are highly respected...
Spiritual and Religious Education
Religious children are meaner than their secular counterparts, study finds by Harriet Sherwood for The Guardian If this study is accurate, and religious children are less compassionate, what about spiritual children? If we put people into four categories: 1. religious...
Heart of the Matter: Beauty
“'Walk in beauty,' is sage advice I learned from Native elders. Since my youth, when I was fascinated with Native wisdom, I have strived to walk the beauty way, but it took me until middle age to understand my path. The secret? Being engaged in a purpose – a higher...
Who had a fabulous struggle today?
Try it out for a dinner table discussion. The question, "Who had a fabulous struggle today?" is a great example of what educators call a growth-mindset prompt. Students and adults with a growth mindset believe that humans have almost limitless potential. Therefore,...
Kaleidoscope – January 2016
January 2016 Kaleidoscope: The many colorful things happening at Rainbow, from the Executive Director, Renee Owen As I reflect back on 2015 I am struck by how much was accomplished at our little school. I am so happy we said “goodbye” to 2015 with love. Wasn’t the...
Together, we learn.
Affirmative action isn't just about merit, defined by the same one size fits all empirical measures of the past. The purpose of education can no longer be about sifting out who deserves merit, and taming those who don't. That competitive model is obsolete. If we are...
Empowering students with student-led conferences
Rainbow Community School has been doing student-led conferences since the early 80's. When students lead their own conference, they truly have to reflect on what they have learned, how they learned it, and what their future goals are. Plus, it gives parents the...
Personalized Learning Needs to Include Social Learning
A primer for Mark Zuckerberg on personalized learning — by Harvard’s Howard Gardner I love this letter from Howard Gardner to Zuckerberg. When I first read the announcement that 99% of Facebook stock would be given away and that "personalized learning" would be a...
Who Said This?
“The most vital attribute in the world you’re about to enter is not critical thinking or fluency in another language. It’s about whether you’re able to see the world through another’s eyes. The key factor of success for any society going forward is what percentage of...
Kaleidoscope: November 2015
November 2015 Kaleidoscope: The many colorful things happening at Rainbow, from the Executive Director November is here; it feels like life is being squeezed into shorter days. Classrooms have established their mascot names. Relationships have...
Inmates or Classmates?
Senior Deputy Ben Fields is seen pulling a student from her chair at Spring Valley High School in Columbia, S.C., in these three images made from another student's video recording. AP Like anyone who saw the video of the students at Spring Valley High being slammed to...
What is an educational pioneer?
This brilliant, short, low-cost video explains in less that 7 minutes how we have to hospice old, failing systems (such as fossil fuels and our current public educational system), and pioneer news ones. It provides clarity and hope for the pioneering work that...
IMPORTANT if you think about the future of your elementary-age child
Middle school is arguably the most important years in a child’s educational experience. You owe it to yourself and your child to attend the Middle School Open House on October 26. (I recommend the 9:00 am morning session when classes are in action, but there is also...
Guess what the US Department of Ed’s Mission Statement is…
The US Department of Education's mission statement is "to promote student achievement and preparation for global competitiveness by fostering educational excellence and ensuring equal access." The purpose of US education is about "global competitiveness?" What about...
Heart of the Matter: Truth
Rainbow’s director, Renee Owen, talks about the power of the truth in education, and why Rainbow’ students are being educated to speak the truth and change the world. Read the article... Heart of the Matter: Truth
Kaleidoscope: September 2015
September 2015 Kaleidoscope: The many colorful things happening at Rainbow, from the Executive Director Every year has such a different feel to it. This year? I almost have to pinch myself. I look around at all the things we have wished for, and see it happening. ...