HOMESTAR IS ABOUT COMMUNITY

Homestar has been caring for children for over 15 years. In that time, we have realized that for a school to be a truly loving, safe, engaging environment, it needs to be closely linked to home and the family. Children want the adults in their lives to be connected, to know who they are and what they need. Although this begins at home, once a child enters school, there is the potential for the school to become like an extended family. In addition, parents have told us how much they long for stronger ties with other parents and to build what used to be easily found in neighborhoods. This desire to belong, to feel as an integral and valued member of community, is one of a child’s greatest and deepest needs. For this reason, we have extended Homestar past the normal functions of a daycare center in order to create a community of teachers, children and parents.

The Over all Vision

Homestar’s vision is to create an educational system that begins before birth and continues all through a child’s education. It includes what we already have, which is an infant/toddle/preschool and elementary school, and will eventually extend backwards into working with pregnant families and forwards into middle school and high school. We believe that a new model of education is needed for children to be able to fully develop emotionally, mentally, physically and spiritually. Because a child is so alive, spirited, animated, sensory and experience oriented, how they use and relate to their body is how they will live their life and develop their capacities and gifts. This includes such aspects of education as nutrition (the foundation for life long health), a focus on learning about and experiencing the great outdoors (our first teacher about life), a chance to fully engage their bodies on a daily basis, including developing a confident and intimate relationship with nature, learning communication skills, time to be alone and stay in contact with what is inner, being given a chance to express in ways that suit who they are as individuals as well as being part of a team, and an emphasis on life skills and eventually when they are older, meaningful community service. In order to do this there needs to be strong parent involvement, staff trained not just in teaching techniques but in how to live a healthy lifestyle, and an interconnectedness between the school and the world.

The Parent Support Group

In 1996 Homestar started offering Parenting Workshops that touched on such subjects as nutrition, discipline, learning, communication, physical development, creativity and daily schedules and routines. In order to make this information more available to all the parents, in 1998 the Parent Support Group was formed. This group was open to all parents and was held twice a month right after work. Dinner was served, the children were cared for, and parents had the opportunity to talk with other parents and teachers about problems, issues, successes and questions concerning all aspects of parenting. Not only did parents find that most parents had the same concerns and dealt with similar difficulties, but that they all had useful and concrete help to offer each other. This group was facilitated by Nancy Monson, the co-director. Nancy hosts a radio show at KGNU called “Parenting Solutions” and has published over 15 articles in the local parenting magazines. Her 26 years of experience as an educator has helped parents look at parenting and education from many different angles.

At this time, the Parent Support Group meets the last Monday of every month, for dinner and including child care. It is open to every parent at Homestar and is a great way to meet other parents, talk about your children and being a parent, and hear about other parents successes, lessons learned, struggles and joys, as well as receiving new educational materials.

The Parent Volunteer/Help Program

In order for the staff at Homestar to get everything done that is needed to run a full day center and keep the environment clean, safe and beautiful, the Parent Volunteer/Help Program was formed. All families are asked to contribute one hour a month to all the various kinds of chores, repairs, upkeep, or administrative jobs that seem to endlessly need doing. A $10 fee is charged on the monthly billing, which can be worked off or paid. There are four workdays during the year where families and staff come together for two hours of projects and then have dinner together. There is also an ongoing list of work that parents can sign up for to contribute in their areas of expertise. In this way, Homestar has been able to upgrade in almost every area: aesthetics, financial planning, cleaning, repairs, building equipment and even working in our kitchen. The extra money that is gained from the program goes to extra cleaning, new paint, computer upgrades, or repairs that no one else can do!

The Parent Advisory Board

Once a month a group of parents meets to contribute ideas, opinions, planning, organizing and time to all the policies at Homestar. We have organized fundraisers, looked at tuition rates, created the Parent Volunteer Program, sent out surveys to parents, and been a sounding board for parent’s input and concerns. This group is open to all parents and counts for the one-hour a month of volunteer time. Meeting times are arranged according to the needs of the parents involved. This is a great way to help Homestar be a strong, committed center with quality communication for all the families and the staff.

The Staff

Homestar’s staff combines teachers of all ages and experience to form a solid team of teachers and directors. Every week all the teachers meet to talk about the center’s policies, to go over rules and regulations, and to help each other develop skills in communication with parents, working with children and being solid co-workers. They also talk about and plan curriculum, work on enhancing the classroom, check in about all the children, and help each other through a feedback process. A few times a year a special staff dinner is held and teachers get together to talk about how their lifestyle can support their work as teachers, and how to find and create balance in their lives. There is a bond between the teachers that comes from working so closely together all week, and friendships between staff members contribute to the children feeling that caring and love are at the heart of Homestar.

Running River School

In the fall of 2000 Homestar was extended into an elementary school. Running River School focuses on integrating all subjects through studying the natural world. Children are able to continue with experiential learning, using their bodies and their incredible love of fully engaging the world around them, to approach learning. The strong involvement from parents includes a Parenting Forum for all families to discuss education issues, and parent involvement on a monthly basis in the classroom. Information about Running River School can be found at www.runningriver.org, or by talking to the Director, Nancy Monson.

The Gathering of Friends Family Camps

Every summer a family camp is offered to Homestar parents as well as other families. The camp is held on a remote Retreat Center in the Gila wilderness of southwestern New Mexico. The camp combines a wilderness camping experience with educational opportunities for parents, children and for all the families together: from camping, to cooking, gardening, hiking, swimming, exploring, learning wilderness skills, doing crafts, storytelling combined with music and special rituals, as well as time for parents to be involved in some time for parenting discussions. Not only do families get to spend time on a pristine, isolated, incredibly beautiful and varied piece of land surrounded by national forest while at the same time being a retreat center and organic farm, they get to spend time alone, with their partner, and with other adults while their children have the time of their lives with a highly qualified staff. The camp is also geared towards giving parents a chance to be part of a community experience.