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I'd love to see how this worked in practice. I think it could be amazing for my DD, who is incredibly self-motivated. Pipe dream, though, I guess, since there isn't one anywhere near us.

Gosh, my stereotype of boarding school was 'sorting hat' and '3 points for Griffendor' and 'Hagrid.'

bwhahaha! Aiden's too - it's the reason he wants to go to boarding school; just in case he gets to ride a broom and attend potions classes.

That is a great point. Perhaps my son won't share my negative stereotype should we look into boarding later on.

I really like the idea of a democratic school. I think the closest thing I am going to find that works right now is Montessori. While this is very different from a Sudbury school or Summerhill, at least there is some choice of activity allowed.

Nik, thanks again for sharing the information on Summerhill. My oldest son is only four so we have plenty of time.

I loved that info on summerhill - watched the entire set of youtube videos and promptly sent them to everyone I know who would love this sort of school.

The great thing about a democratic school, is that it really can cater for all learning types, speeds and styles.

And there is a good chance of finding another "like you" there too I would think purely because it's the school where being yourself is encouraged.

I told my son about Summerhill. I asked him what he thought of a school where the kids made the rules, they could learn whatever they wanted or they could just play all day. His face lit up "I want to go there!" It was the first time he has had any enthusiasm towards school since preschool. It sort of goes along with his request from several months ago that I "release him into the wild".

I have to say that in my experience kids at boarding schools don't feel like they've been "discarded". (At least, not at the boarding schools we've been exposed to.) I live at a boarding school. (Married to a teacher.) We eat all of our meals there, with our three children. I work in residential life (dorm duty), and the students there seem to love it. In fact, many of them would prefer to stay there with their friends over breaks. At the spring picnic, my 6-year-old son said, "This is so great! It's like having 100 older brothers and sisters, and a party in your big backyard!" It really is a unique experience.

Just thought I'd add to the boarding life information. :-)

Lol, but I have to say a lot of little details in HP brought back fond memories…the description of the train cars was exactly how I remembered them traveling from London to the school. I was so disappointed to see that they have replaced those cool compartment trains with modern bleh trains.


Yes, it is nice because everyone who is in class really wants to be there and they want to learn so you can cover a lot of ground very quickly.


Lol, I think my mom was accused by some of “setting us free to raise ourselves in the wild”. I remember when my mom told us about Summerhill, I was so excited; I immediately packed and wrote a countdown on my calendar even though it was 3 months away.


Yes, well put! It's exactly like having a ton of brothers and sisters...except much better