Parent Education
Note: For most Parent Education events and meetings there will a morning session, which will be held in-person in the gazebo on campus, and an evening session, which will be held virtually on Zoom.
In order to help our parents, students, and teachers work together as a “family unit,” we offer a Parent Education program that spans the Oak Grove experience from 1st grade through 12th grade. Parent Education events are led by teachers as well as outside professionals, covering topics like Growth Mindset, social media wellness, college readiness, inquiry-based dialogue, diversity & equity, teen sexuality, and more. In addition, the program emphasizes building relationships and support networks among parents, teachers, and community members.
Our Current Parent Ed Workshop:
Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice – Benjamin Mertz Residency
Our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee is excited to co-sponsor with Parent Council an on-campus residency with musician and racial justice activist Benjamin Mertz. He will be meeting with students of all ages, staff, and parents during his time with us on Tuesday–Thursday, February 22–24.
Benjamin Mertz is a human rights and racial justice activist who leads workshops on racism and diversity with a thoughtful, non-dogmatic approach. In our session, he was warm, sensitive, approachable, and open-hearted; he listened deeply and met us where we are. He seems to have a gift for helping participants understand and deconstruct issues of racial and economic justice through knowledge of historical context and deep compassion, as well as empowering, spicy and provocative, open-minded discussion.
Dates and times:
- On-Campus Session – Wednesday, February 23 : 8:30-9:30 am in the Gazebo (Please RSVP if you plan on attending)
- Zoom Session – Thursday, February 24 : 7:00 to 8:00 pm. Open to the Public—REQUEST ACCESS. Invite your friends; Space is Unlimited!
Our Parent Education program takes a two-pronged approach
First, the program is designed to support parents in raising children and adolescents through workshops on subjects such as child development, communication strategies, harm prevention, and academic support. As students advance to the secondary level, we also include sessions on college readiness and the transition into adulthood. The second goal of the program is to build relationships and support networks among parents, teachers, and community members. Oak Grove is a close-knit community, and we seek to create a healthy dialogue between staff and families in order to best serve the needs of our students.
You can refer to the button above to see the current Parent Education schedule.
On February 11, 1974, the day the school was officially announced, Oak Grove School founder J. Krishnamurti said:
And this school here, we have been discussing with the teachers, with the parents, and with the architects for the last two years. This school is entirely different from the other schools in India and England. Here the parents are involved in it, which is a new kind of experiment because if the children are going to be different then parents must also be different, otherwise there is a contradiction between the child and the parents, and there will be conflict between them. So to avoid all that we thought it would be right that the parents as well as the teachers and the students work together as a family unit.”
Parent Education Workshops Continue on ZOOM
Blog, Events, News, Parent EducationOur first Parent Education workshop in the series of the year looked a little different, but the content was equally impactful. Organized and facilitated by High School history teacher Will Hornblower, Parent Education Workshops have been an incredible resource, and have recently been made available to the greater community.
The Parents of the School
Blog, Parent Education, Parent PerspectiveObserving a pair of California Scrub Jays through binoculars with students and parents in the quiet early hour before school begins… Witnessing the Pavilion transform into the Pale of Settlement of Imperial Russia of 1905… Discovering the studio of Leonardo Da Vinci surrounded by student-crafted renditions of Mona Lisa and Self Portrait in the medium […]
Living Education: Self-Discovery
Blog, News, Parent Education, Parent PerspectiveMarch 31, 2019 by Christina Sbarra Self-Discovery: Making Space for What Really Counts The recent college admissions scandal, dubbed Varsity Blues, hit the news just a few days before the release of Turning the Tide II, the second installment of a report on the college admissions process from the Harvard Graduate School of Education’s Making Caring Common Project. As if part of a […]
Talking to your Child about Sex and Sexuality
Blog, Parent EducationTobi Jo Greene of The Empowerment Workshop joined some Oak Grove parents a few weeks ago for a discussion on how to have healthy and productive conversations with children and adolescents about sex and sexuality. Here are a few of the key points from the discussion: How do I start conversations about sex and relationships […]
On Implementing a Growth Mindset in the Home
Blog, Parent Education, Parent UpdateThank you to those of you who were able to attend our Parent Education workshop on implementing Growth Mindset practices in your household. It was wonderful to see such a dedicated group of parents working together to discuss what actions and language will best help their children to embrace a culture of effort and perseverance. […]
Adult Learning Environment at Oak Grove
Blog, Parent Education, Parent UpdateA school is a place for learning, and not just for our students. It includes an active learning environment for the adults, too. In addition to an emphasis on inquiry and self-reflection, which in and of itself supports a culture of learning, we also set aside time in our regular schedule for professional development, shared […]