I've had a few people ask me exactly what Joy School is and so I thought I would give a quick explanation.
When I was a kid, my mom taught Joy School. So to me, Joy School is all those wonderful kid memories wrapped up in a purchasable package. I'm sure not everyone wants their kids to have the exact same childhood that they did. But as impossible as that is, I do.
Joy school is designed for 3 and 4 year old children as a pre-school type program. The age where they aren't quite old enough to sit still in a class room, but old enough to learn and experiment and ask questions about everything. Each "Chapter" and each lesson within that chapter focuses on a Joy. The Joy of Spontaneous delight, the Joys of Imagination, Identity, Pride, Uniqueness, Trust and Confidence to name a few. Instead of focusing on learning the ABC's or 123's it tries to preserve that simple childlike joy and enthusiasm that is what makes kids, kids.
The idea is to gather a group of mothers with kids the same age into a group. The mothers then become the teachers and each take a turn teaching all the kids for a week. There are only 2 classes per week, Tuesday and Thursday, lasting from 9:30am until noon. The curriculum is provided by the official Joy School program and must be purchased by each mother for $60 a semester. At first I was taken aback by the price, (there is also a one time $50 membership fee) but after seeing ALL the stuff that is included, music, pictures, stories, a minute by minute guide to each lesson, I decided it is well worth the money.
The kids LOVE it. I catch Alex singing the songs and telling the stories to Heidi all the time. She knows the rule "We never hit or kick or push" very well and often reminds Heidi and Archie of it. It has been so great watching her learn and grow and enjoy going to "school".
I can't speak for all the parents, but I love it! There are so many great and creative little art projects, games and fun little activities included in each lesson. It reminds me to be a better parent and continue teaching Alex these values and Joys throughout the week.
Our group is a little big, 6 kids, which ends up being a little chaotic since the majority of them are still 2 and we have one 5 year old thrown in the mix. I think in the future 4 kids would be just about right to preserve the balance. You want enough kids to make it a fun group, but few enough so you can help each one and not go crazy with the chaos.
It is designed to follow a standard "school year", but our group jumped into it in January (half a year before we would normally have started) because I really wanted some sort of structured, learning fun for Alex. We had just been cooped up inside for so long and she was missing a lot of the one on one attention since Heidi was born. I think it was a good choice for Alex and I, although I certainly see why it would be easier to wait until fall, when the majority of kids would be 3 instead of 2. I can see Alex is learning how to share, and new ways of playing (there are 2 girls and 4 boys, boys really do play differently than girls). She sings songs and tells stories to Heidi and her dolls and blocks and cereal. She had become OBSESSED with cutting paper and glue sticks, and the way she draws has really developed. It is just so fun to see her look at the world differently and ask questions about things I know she learned about in Joy School that week.
I would really recommend this program for anyone, but especially for mom's who want to be a part of the joy and excitement that comes with the 'pre-school' age. Not only does Alex have a fun group of friends she gets to see every other day, but I have a fun group of Mom's that I've gotten to know and become friends with.
If you are interested in checking out the website it is.... www.valuesparenting.com and if you decide to sign up for the program, you can get $5 off by using the referral code bradyk
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