Trusting the Natural Intelligence of Children

“Let’s Begin with a Moment of Silence.”

At Oak Grove School in Ojai, California, we often share moments of silence with our students, from preschool through 12th grade, as a whole community, in small groups, and individually. We begin, and sometimes end, assemblies, events, and meetings with silence. Silence is weaved through our learning and teaching practices, including academics, arts, and outdoor education. We trust children’s natural intelligence and believe that self-understanding is essential to the full expression of that intelligence. These things are at the core of our ethos as a school.

What is a Moment of Silence?

A moment of silence can be an act of remembrance, tribute, prayer, or compassion; it may be a form of meditation and mindfulness. Often, silence is found in relationship with nature, in deep academic attention, and in complex problem-solving.

A Practical & Important Practice

According to scientific research, silence can assist us to concentrate, be more creative, achieve a higher level of awareness, cultivate more patience, provide a sense of calm, and encourage a higher level of learning and productivity.

“…if I think back to my schooling at Oak Grove, silence speaks loudly to what Oak Grove tries to foster in its students. We were never really instructed on what to do with the silence. It was not time for prayer, although maybe some use it that way. It was not a time to “think about what you did.” Actually, it was more like ninja training than either of those. It cultivated our long-forgotten attention spans. The silence we held together worked. You didn’t have to believe anything for it to work, it still worked, in the sense that it honed our abilities to sit with ourselves, in a very practical way.”

— Juna Rosales Muller ’06