Kids don’t have a lot of choices in their lives compared to adults. For example, if a kid wants to buy something, they need their parents’ permission. Almost every subject and the projects they have to do is chosen for them in school, at least until high school. It’s only fair that kids get to choose some things in their lives. School can be a place for kids to practice making choices. The incoming 4th graders at Peninsula School should have Choice Time, where kids plan and lead most of the choices while parents plan and lead a few. This would be good for the students and the school for many reasons. This new type of choice, led mostly by 4th graders, would benefit the students and the school. It would build responsibility, independence, and teaching skills.
Students would become better students by learning what it’s like to be a teacher. In an article from Stanford’s School of Education, entitled Stanford-led Study Highlights the Importance of Letting Kids Take the Lead, researcher Jelena Obradović explains, “Too much direct engagement can come at a cost to kids’ abilities to control their own attention, behavior, and emotions. When…kids take the lead in their interactions, children practice self-regulation skills and build independence.” This shows that adults having too much control over children and always reminding them what to do and how to do it depletes their ability to learn how to do things themselves.
Kid experts leading interesting choices offer more options than only parents offering them because there are about 22 students but only a handful of parents with busy schedules. Examples of the choices could include a class about aircraft, teaching cooking, leading Dungeons and Dragons, and more, depending on the specialties of the students.
In conclusion, this new kind of choice would be better for the students and the school because students would have more fun, more options, and become more independent. I hope those who make the decisions will catch this learning opportunity while there is still the chance.
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