Learning is Natural, School is Optional with Ken Danford!
Do you hope to create a positive future? Do you want support in building a life that is relevant and specific to you?
If YES? Then join us in Clubhouse for a open discussion on Alternative Education choices with North Star co-founder Ken Danford.
Since 1996, Ken Danford has been working with others to make school optional for any interested teen in Massachusetts, US. He is the co-founder and executive director at North Star.
"North Star teens are individuals moving forward in unique directions at a pace that is right for them. North Star is not a school. We do not offer diplomas, credits, or grades. Rather, North Star offers an alternative to school where teens learn in the way that suits them best.”
The environment and instruction offered in school is not for everyone. Some North Star teens and families come from an alternative mindset. They are already comfortable with nontraditional choices. Others never planned to choose an alternate path. Many have tried to make school work for them in various ways and in various locations, with similar results.
A Customized Academic Plan
Together we envision and map a personal educational approach. The academic plan is based on the teen’s interests while also fulfilling the family’s needs. North Star facilitates this process through discussion and recommendations based on more than two decades of experience.
If the teen is younger than 16, we will help you prepare this plan as a homeschooling proposal for submission to your local superintendent. This is a very straightforward process. Your superintendent’s office will certify you as a homeschooler. This is the contract that makes leaving school legal for students 16 years of age or younger.
A Personal Advisor
Each teen is assigned a personal advisor. Through weekly meetings between advisor and student, we help imagine and realize goals, track progress, and facilitate tutorials and community connections. This relationship is at the core of the North Star experience.
family meetings
Advisors meet with teens and their families at least three times per year to envision possibilities and to review achievements. More meetings are scheduled as requested. Parental involvement is encouraged. There are many opportunities for parents to be a part of our community.
Classes, Workshops, and Tutorials
North Star offers classes, workshops, and tutorials between the hours of 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM Mondays-Fridays, September-May. In 2020-21, most of our classes, workshops and tutorials will be delivered online, via Zoom. (See the links in the announcement bar at the top of the page to read more about our fall plans and experimental Distance Memberships.) Our classes represent the interests and passions of our core staff and volunteers, and include a wide range of topics. Most classes have fewer than 10 students.
A New Way to Approach Learning, Education, and Life.
Our focus is on individuals and their particular strengths, needs, and goals. We meet teens where they are and support them in becoming whomever they want to be. Rather than focusing on weaknesses, we ask: “What are you good at? What do you love to do?” and build from there.
At Galileo, we feel inspired by Ken Danford's work over the past 30 years and can't wait to discuss the future of teen education with him.
Join our club in Clubhouse to be notified when the event starts.
By registering to this event, we will send you a reminder before the event happens and you will be the first to receive a link to the recorded event afterwards.
