By Natalia Rodriguez
After two successful years, Acton Academy Santa Cruz will be increasing enrollment due to parent demand. The founders, Carol Bowles and Annabelle Drake, currently guide 35 learners in Aptos and have more coming this fall.
The latest program is the Spark Studio to include children ages 5-7; this studio will focus on game-based learning, play, and social engagement.
Along with typical classroom curriculum, the learners at Acton Academy focus on lessons derived from the journey such as taking on challenges and allowing failure as part of the process. They are split into multi-age groups: Spark Studio (ages 5-7), Discovery Studio (ages 7-12), Journey Studio (ages 12-15) and Launchpad Studio (ages 14-18).
Using the vocabulary “learners” and “guides,” the philosophy is to foster self-advocacy and reliance, remove the position of authority from the guides, and encourage the learners (also known as heroes) to have autonomy in their learning process.
There are 300 Acton Academies worldwide, an each is independently owned and operated with the liberty to adjust it to fit the needs of the community. Most are pioneered by families who want this educational freedom for their own children and start it for them.
That’s how co-founder Annabelle Drake’s family got involved. She wanted to find a homeschool program that empowered her two sons.
“We started the program two years ago when they were 11 and 15. Now, they are 13 and 17. Over these two years, we’ve seen a tremendous boost in their confidence and character as they’ve become more responsible, resilient, and engaged in their learning, growing into confident and well-rounded individuals, thanks to the supportive community environment,” she explained.
- A deep respect that children have important work to do and are capable of far more than most people can imagine.
- Learners helping other learners.
- Hands-on, real-world challenges.
- Each learner is respected as a genius who will change the world.
- Use of Growth Mindset language
- Acknowledgment of the necessity to fail early, cheaply, and often.
- Guides respond to questions with another question or a choice.
Families who believe that children are very capable, and “who feel inspired by giving more autonomy and freedom to our young people in regards to their education” are great fits for Acton Academy Santa Cruz.
In lieu of hours of sitting in a desk, Acton Academy provides freedom and space for a young person to accomplish any educational or personal goals. They’ve had learners enter and advance multiple grade levels in a single year.
Learners can dive into their interests such as learning to crochet stuffed animals or creating campaigns for the community or businesses. The Discovery Studio learners (age 7-12) are currently leading a campaign asking the County of Santa Cruz to install a play structure at Aptos Village Park after they realized it was a shared desire.
Felton parent Kerry McBurnien endorses the positive character growth in her children from Acton Academy. Scarlett, 12, and Winter, 8, are members of Acton Academy’s first generation; they’ve attended since opening day.
“My children are more confident, outgoing, and their communication skills have thrived…the social aspect and conflict resolution are benefits of the Academy,” she says.
With the freedom to pursue her own learning journey, in her first year Scarlett wrote a 40,000-word novel, “Feline Fables,” and is currently working on the sequel. After the writing period, Scarlett noticed math had taken a back seat and independently refocused and progressed two years ahead in math. Kerry credits her daughter’s self-motivation to the Acton Academy philosophy.
Acton Academy encourages community engagement for their learners and is seeking partnerships with local businesses to provide apprenticeships and educational material to encourage real-world work experience for teens and pre-teens. Any establishments willing to share expertise with the Acton Academy heroes is encouraged to connect by emailing info@actonsantacruz.org
The calendar is not traditional. Instead there are seven sessions, 3 to 6 weeks each, with one-week breaks in between and a longer break over the holidays. These breaks are for family and travel time, they also provide individualized education for learners. Families can decide how many sessions and days per week their children will attend. Learners can attend full- or part-time and take their other subjects at home. The next session begins Sept. 3 with a beginning of year celebration Aug. 25.
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Acton Academy’s next open house is Sunday, Aug. 11, from 1-3 p.m. at 7979 Soquel Drive, Aptos. Families can see the campus, meet the guides, and ask questions. For enrollment information, contact: info@actonsantacruz.org
TOP PHOTO: Architect Jonathon Strnad visits the studios to inspire the Heroes in their architecture quest.