Camp Daggett: Leadership Uncovered ABOUT A 2 MINUTE READ –  The sun beamed down on our faces, and at night we were warmed by sparkling fires. The snow glistened off the towering maple trees and the frozen surface of Walloon Lake. It was the perfect setting for a peaceful retreat. But peace was only a small part of last week’s mid-winter adventure. Instead, students and faculty spent most of their time stepping through deep conversations, performing acrobatic acts on a 40-foot high ropes course, trusting each other while blindfolded, and practicing some of Leelanau’s core values. We were reminded that self-awareness, resilience, courage, integrity, and leadership are often discovered together – and when we least expect it.  I spent time with the sophomore and freshman cohorts during our Camp Daggett exploratory program. I witnessed these students building outdoor shelters as a team, soaring through the air on ropes to be sure their whole team made it to the other side (because lava bubbled below them, of course), and climbing a 30-foot rock wall....

The Island School: Where the Obstacle is the Way ABOUT A 3 MINUTE READ –  Even before arriving at their tropical destination, Leelanau’s Winter Term exploratory group found themselves practicing the motto of the host school.  The obstacle is the way. You see, our Leelanau world travelers missed their connecting flight from Nassau to Eleuthera at the very outset of the trip. Instead of panicking, they treated the airport staff with grace and made the best of it.  They arrived the next morning at The Island School, where they would be asked to meet daily deliberate challenges –learning the only way to overcome them was to go through them. Junior Sara House put it beautifully, “You don’t have to have everything figured out beforehand to take that first step in the right direction.  Throughout the whole trip, I kept telling myself that.” Sophomore Mark Porter also realized this during xer first-time scuba diving. Mark said, “Before getting into the water, I was holding my mask to my face. I was wearing all of this heavy equipment, sitting on...

For the Love of Art ABOUT A 2 MINUTE READ –  When you walk into the art building, you’re greeted by an unruly ponytail palm in the doorway. And funky cacti fill the windowsills.  But the art building is anything but prickly.  After you walk in, there’s a set of pottery sitting on a table, inviting you to give them a look, perhaps a touch. You’ll hear students singing and stringing the guitar, all because they love the way it makes them feel. Once you step into the different art rooms, you’ll notice unfinished works of art by students. Maybe it’s a lantern in the metals room, or a ceramic bowl in the pottery space.  The art in this space is living, breathing life into all who walk in it. You see, after serving my first semester here in the Learning Center (or LC as the students call it), I’ve come to call the art building home during the winter term. And home, it quickly became.  As a learning specialist, working with students in the art building has reawakened my creative spirit. Along with the art teacher, Elara Coleman, I get to work with...

Wintering Well and Taking Risks… Together ABOUT A 2 MINUTE READ –  It’s no secret that the winter months in Northern Michigan can be grey and cold. Some Michiganders seek the hygge practiced in Scandinavian countries, wanting to stay inside, grab a cup of coffee, and snuggle up with a good book, distracting themselves until things start to bud again. While cozying up can bring peace and fulfillment, if we’re being honest, sometimes the lack of sunlight can get to a person, bringing weariness rather than coziness. But at The Leelanau School, we’re focused on wintering well.  It’s risky, of course, to kick off the warm blanket and try something new. But when we step out into the winter world, we find there’s a lot of magic blooming during this time, too! At The Leelanau School, winter term can be when our lights shine brightest. So bright, in fact, we forget that the sky may be grey and the temperature brisk. During our winter term, the campus is abuzz with creativity. And creativity is vital to, well, vitality – especially during a time...

The Leelanau School: Where the ADHD Student Thrives ABOUT A 3 MINUTE READ –  On an average day here at The Leelanau School, you’ll find Mr. Blondia and his students dressed in waders stepping into the Crystal River to fish or study the river’s slimy inhabitants. You’ll see Mr. Hood and his students sliding on beekeeper suits to collect some honey or Mrs. Hood mountain biking through the trails. In the winter, students learn about survival in the great outdoors and whirl down ski hills on the daily. This is experiential learning.  And this kind of outdoor learning is what many students with ADHD need to thrive. Nature experts like Richard Louv and psychologists like Dr. Carl Sherman agree that green time helps those with ADHD. In Louv’s monumental book, The Last Child in the Woods, he describes our children and teens today suffering from what he has coined, Nature Deficit Disorder. He claims that without the outside world, kids suffer. But with adequate time in nature, their anxieties and even ADHD symptoms can decrease. Because without walls...