From Wondertree
This was written for the families doing the Self Designing course with wondertree.  Even if, like our family, you are not doing this course there are still some helpful thoughts to help families learn by your own design.  This philosophy helps each individual child and person to grow and learn in their own natural way and style.  Through observing and enhancing our freedom to be a unique learner and an inspirational pilot to life.

What is the Natural Way of Learning?

Like the cosmos itself, each person always arises as a legitimate being. When we live with each other in awareness of the other person's legitimacy - exactly as he or she is and NOT as we may want or expect the other person to be, then love arises and natural learning flourishes.

Love is the ground of the natural way of learning and generates the social space for coexistence with others. This space is one of trust, safety and openness that leads to self-awareness and self-respect. At the same time it leads to respect for others, the basis of community.

In Africa, there is a saying, "It takes a village to raise a child". Inherent in this proverb is the description of the environment, necessary to unfold our natural way of learning - the interactions in the intimate, tender and consensual domain of the family, the interaction of the self and others in the consensual domains of community. We are forming our village of conversations to support children and their families to nurture natural learning and to conserve the disposition for wonder within a space of love.

The natural way of learning is so natural within us that it is usually not recognized as a particular aspect of being human. The natural way of learning has to do with recognizing what intrigues us, delighting in patterns, conserving our excitement in learning, wondering about each other and savouring surprise!

The Self Designing Cycle

The four elements of planning, doing, observing and valuing constitute a framework for conserving the freedom to learn naturally within the Self Design process. These activities of planning, doing, observing and valuing constitute a Learning Cycle which we anticipate will be happening on an on-going basis, reflected on each day, week, month and season.

A family is a system of interrelationships - interconnected in such a way that as you "touch" one family member, you "touch" all of them, Each one of us is also a living system tuned with our environment. Living systems and their circumstances constitute a system as well, an ecosystem. As any part of a system changes, all of it changes together. Our work together is to help you generate a learning ecology in your home and community so that your children will thrive in their natural way of learning. SelfDesign is about each child and family generating the learning vision that will fulfill their passion for learning.

Family Learning Environment

Orienting to the Family Learning Environment

Your family learning environment begins with your own experiences. You may wish to put these questions in your learning journal to remind you.

* What gave you the most joy?
* What you struggled with today
* What emotion prevailed today?
* What new ideas did you have?
* What new thing did you learn today?
* What challenged you today and stretched you out of your comfort zone?
* What inspired you today?

When you wake up in the morning, reflect on the learning journey ahead.

* What is your vision for today?
* What miracle can you imagine?
* What will you do more of and what will you do less of?
* What is your self-talk about and what will you change it to?
* What are 5 things that you would like to do this year.
* What question can you ask for which you would like an answer?
* What question can you ask that will keep you wondering for a lifetime?
* What will inspire your heart today?

In a mysterious way, just paying attention and reflecting on questions like these will gradually orient you and your child to the visionary heart of your family's learning environment and, before you know it, you will find yourself laying down a path that is natural, life affirming, and full of wonder.

What is Observing for Learning?

Observing for learning is a powerful concept that provides a framework for understanding how to nurture natural learning and conserve a child's disposition for wonder. The notion of Observing for Learning is based on the concept that "Everything is seen by the observer"1. We are each observers of our own inner and outer worlds as they arise. We are using observing to mean all of our perceptions not only our visual ability to see the other.

The manner in which children are introduced to formal educational structures can cause fragmentation from the natural complex world of imagination and language in which the child lives. The approaches taken can diminish the child's natural disposition for wonder through ignorance or insensitivity to the intrinsically coherent nature of child-thought.

Enthusiasm and passion for learning are natural in children and such emotions must not be laundered in the name of compliance or obedient behaviour. They are the characteristics of the natural way of learning. Everyone has unique experiences which cannot be truly known by another. Our ability to work in language has enabled us to share our private experiences through bringing them forth in language within our conversational interactions.

In supporting our children we constantly observe them, make assessments and act on our inferences about what we think is transpiring in the inner world of the child. Are we aware of our observing for learning? How do we know what the child really wants to learn?

All parents will remember what it felt like when they realized that they had to interpret the baby's action in order to understand what their baby wanted. Parents have been observing for learning ever since. What the Self Design Program intends to do is to help children and parents become aware of observing for learning and, through reflection to deepen in understanding of the natural way of learning.


1Humberto Maturana- Everything is seen by an Observer, in Gaia: A Way of Knowing, William Irwin Thompson(ed.) Lindisfarne Press, New York 1987

Observing Learners

Observing for Learning for Learners

Self Design is about planning what you want and then working your plan, reflecting on it and adjusting it to suit what actually happens and you really want that is central to Self Design.

The Learning Plan is about figuring out what you really want to learn and how you might go about doing this. Who can help you? What will you need?

Tracking your learning is about your weekly record of what is significant in your week that contributes to your learning plan.

If something really important happened to change your learning plan, this is also something you choose to do…Often when we pursue one particular direction we find inside it what it was really wanted to know.

Observing for learning is about paying attention to what was significant for you each week in your learning. As we grow and look back on our lives, we become the history of the significant things we remember. Think back till you were little. What stands out in your memory? What stories would tell to explain who you are and where you come from?

What is significant for you usually has an emotional character…you were intrigued, excited, frustrated, disappointed, angry, curious, happy...

When you start paying attention to your own process of learning, figuring out what really excites you, what frustrates you or blocks you, then you are on your way to self design. Only you can change your emotional responses.

This is a good place to begin your reflections - what did you feel like today?

Deepening Observing

Unless we pay attention to something, we often do not deepen our understanding. For example, I am not a football fan yet I can see that someone who is a fan can see nuances and intricate plays to which I am quite blind. However when they are pointed out to me I can begin to see the patterns.

You have already been observing your child learning from the moment of conception. We hope to help you deepen in your understanding of what you are seeing and to support you in your family's development.

The Stages of Growth of Learning
We know that when children learn to walk and talk, no one teaches them. Yet we can observe patterns in their development as the child progresses from not being able to do something to being able to do it quite naturally. We can use an organic metaphor to understand this natural growth.

For example, we can see the seeding of language very early in infants, yet the full flowering of language does not happen for several years.

It is the same with learning to tie shoes or to do multiplication or learning to read.

There is a time of
Seeding we see the beginnings of understanding
Rooting sometimes we see the concept used
Growing we see the child usually doing what has been learned
Flowering the child always can do the action or use the concept
Fruiting we see the child using the concept or action in a novel situation.

When you begin to observe for learning and keep records of your reflections, you will begin to see the patterns of your child's learning as it develops.
Growth is Spiral in Nature
As we know from observing our children, this growth is not linear, it is spiral in nature as over a period of month's the child shows flashes of understanding, major AH HA's, yet needs time to deepen into the full understanding.

You may find that as you observe your notes over a period of a few months you will see patterns of learning that show the kind of organic growth that we know characterizes the natural way of learning.
* On a daily basis, reflect on what you are observing - you can make a mind map, keep a learning log or journal.
* On a weekly basis summarize the significant events of the week and the approximate time spent.
* On a monthly basis look for patterns of growth in the different areas of your child's interest and learning plan and assess what changes you have noted. You can use the idea of seeding, rooting, etc. to indicate the developing learning that you see.


Why Observing for Learning?

We observe for learning in order to see the child and open a space of love.
To see the child we must observe what the child is doing and not what we think he or she should be doing or what we want to see.

We observe for learning in order to listen to what the child is saying, wondering about and asking.
To hear the child we must listen to what the child is saying and not what we want to hear or to our own response.

We observe for learning in order to understand what is right for the child in this moment
To understand the child we must observe the child's emotions and not what we think the child should feel in the current situation.

We observe for learning in order to encourage the child to unfold the emotional disposition for wonder
To encourage wonder in a child we must observe what teases the child's imagination, peaks interest and sustains attention.

We observe for learning in order to understand the child's questions.
To acknowledge the child's questions, we must not always provide the answers but probe further with our own questioning. The knowledge we offer children may provide answers to questions that they have not asked. This may stop the questioning.

We observe for learning in order to assist the child to become aware of his or her own actions.
To encourage awareness in a child, we must observe how the child connects to his or her experiences and to other people and what it is that makes these relationships significant and meaningful for the child.

We observe for learning to help the child generate significance and meaning from daily experience.
To help a child develop a history of significant learning and experience, we must observe what the child cares about and help create a context for caring.

We observe for learning in order to correct what the child is learning.
To correct a child's learning, we ensure that we are not correcting the being of the child. We may be attracted to the child's emotional state - whether it is excitement, curiosity, wonder, frustration, anger, and disappointment. These emotional dispositions must be accepted as legitimate before any intervention to help the child change an action or understanding.

We observe for learning in order to learn from children the world they want to co-inspire and co-create with us.
If we are to learn from the children we must observe how we participate in bringing forth a world together. We will live and learn together in mutual respect and support.