I love a good party. I love it from the moment I receive an invitation, until the parting words are said. I love it when the music provides a soundtrack for the evening. I love it when the host or hostess pays special attention to the details. But most of all, whether it’s a simple gathering for a friend’s birthday at a local restaurant, or an extravagant event, I love the connectivity of good conversation.
So, what does this have to do with learning? Intellectual Virtues Academy (IVA) held its first public event, an informal information night, on Friday March 1st. It was so great to meet inquisitive parents and their students! As I have been reflecting on our time, I cannot help but get excited about the vision at IVA to be a “small, intellectual virtues-based learning community that is uniquely personal, relational, reflective, active, and academically rigorous. This community will equip all students to think carefully, critically, and creatively.”
What a fantastic gift that would be for my children to learn in an environment that invites good conversation and connectivity. This school will be a place where curiosity is valued and inquisition is prized. I imagine the result is a sense of vitality and life that comes from an exchange of meaning in shared conversation like I feel after a fun gathering. Naturally, middle school isn’t going to be one big party! But I believe this will be a life-giving way to learn.