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Hearts Afire: The Story of Moonwhistle School
Moonwhistle School was an experimental preschool in San Francisco during the 1990s owned and operated by Lee Marcus, a curious and creative misfit, and her practical-minded lover, Richard (Bull) Muse, each in the throes of midlife crisis. With a preoccupation for brain development, these two designed their school to answer the question "how good can day care be?"
205 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 20, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
June 1, 2018
While I agree with the underlying beliefs about child centered learning and the importance of exploration in young children, I find the author quite condescending and judgmental in her approach. She describes screening families of toddlers and writes about mentally noting, "figure out how to keep this kind of kid out of my school" in relation to a three year old. I am not sure how you develop "social skills of a very high order" while also excluding certain young children. Shouldn't truly exceptional teachers be able to grow any child, not just selected ones, both academically and socially?
When describing parents' decisions to send their children to kindergarten rather than staying at her day care center, she states that they are making the choice "just to obey the conventions of a culture that had no clue about any of it" to "interrupt a perfectly magical course of brain development" in relation to her belief that she alone had mastered the development of five and six year olds. As a teacher and a parent, I would like to ensure the author that she is far from the only person who understands the development of children. I have witnessed numerous amazing teachers and parents help children grow and develop while also modeling the importance of acceptance and inclusion. I believe she could learn a few things from them.
When describing parents' decisions to send their children to kindergarten rather than staying at her day care center, she states that they are making the choice "just to obey the conventions of a culture that had no clue about any of it" to "interrupt a perfectly magical course of brain development" in relation to her belief that she alone had mastered the development of five and six year olds. As a teacher and a parent, I would like to ensure the author that she is far from the only person who understands the development of children. I have witnessed numerous amazing teachers and parents help children grow and develop while also modeling the importance of acceptance and inclusion. I believe she could learn a few things from them.
September 7, 2017
Just finished reading "Hearts Afire: The Story of Moonwhistle School". I was very fortunate to work with the writer, Lee Marcus, and her husband Bull Muse in the early '90s in this wonderful family day care that was in no way just a place to stick your kids. Lee's passion for providing the best environment for learning and discovery was catching and inspiring. There was magic afoot, I had no doubt at the time. Reading it now brings back so many good memories, and more insight into the large hearted person that is Lee. I learned so much and will always treasure that time. PLEASE read her book!
August 8, 2018
The author Lee Marcus writes her story about following her dreams of opening her own daycare. This book talks about early childh0od education/daycare. I enjoyed the read and felt part of Lee's team as she was reading it. Anyone in daycare or early childhood education must put this on thier to read list.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews