Grand Oaks Academy Fund Raiser Show your support for Tree Houses !! Purchase a Grand Oaks T-shirt for $20.00 + shipping. To order a T-shirt, Email your name, shipping address and T-shirt size (S,M, L or XL) to sstevens@compu.net |
Grand Oaks Academy Tree House The World's Only Little Blue Tree House School House A NEW MEANING FOR HIGHER EDUCATION Paris, TN Email |
"... Life is an adventure or it is nothing at all." Helen Keller |
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Playing in the Eagle's Nest of Grand Oaks Tree House |
TREE SCHOOLING: THE NEWEST BRANCH OF HOMESCHOOLING While eating oranges and grapefruits one morning at the breakfast table, my two daughters and I were plopping seeds out onto our plates. J___ then wondered out loud, "If we plant these will they grow?" That short question started us off on one of our first homeschooling science experiments. We collected the seeds, wrapped them in a wet towel, put them in a dark cupboard and waited with anticipation for them to germinate. A few of the seeds germinated, which we tranferred to small pots and before long sprouts were popping up through the soil. The seeds not only sprouted, but they grew and grew until four years later we now have a small citrus tree growing by our kitchen table. Parvis E Glandibus Quercus! Tall oaks from small acorns grow! That quote truly applys to our life as a homeschooling family. Big adventures in homeschooling can start from just a little question! Not long after our citrus seeds experiments in the fall of 1998, while we were searching the local library shelves for building plans for a chicken coop, J___ planted a small seed of an idea. As I was busy reading through a do-it yourself construction book, in which I had located a simple plan for a portable chicken coop, J___ was busy at what she typically does at the library. She was planted on the floor between rows of book shelves, near the woodworking books where I had left her. Several books were scattered around her as she sat intently reading, oblivious to everything around her. "J___, I found a simple chicken coop that you can build for your chickens," I announced. "Yea, OK," she replied, "but, let's build one of these!" She held up the book she was reading. It was called Home Tree Home; Principles of Tree House Construction and other Tall Tales. On the front cover was a photo of a custom built tree house that would be the envy of every kid in the neighborhood, but I knew that it was not built by a kid and probably included an expensive price tag. That tree house was definitely not a scrap lumber, kid's club house project. "Yea, right!" I chuckled, "Right after we build this chicken coop that can be constructed inexpensively out of one sheet of plyboard. That is a neat book though. Check it out and we can read more about it at home." We packed up our bagful of books and shuffled out of the library without realizing that a new seed sprouted in our homeschooling adventure. This was our first year of homeschooling and we were enjoying the freedom to learn on our own. As a former classroom teacher, I had learned that textbooks and pre-packaged curriculums were generally not the best source for learning and usually overpriced. Our math book, which I found at the department store, provided everything we needed for $10.00. The library is our main source of curriculum and our library cards are usually at the check out limit on the subject, be it chickens, math puzzles, puppet shows, mazes, Greece, chemistry experiments, bears or whatever we may be learning about at the moment. Where do all these books and projects end up? On the biggest horizontal surface in the house, the kitchen table! Every evening before dinner, it was the same process of moving one days work from this surface to another, then back again, off again, on again. I began thinking that it would be nice to have some space that was specifically designated for school. I had read an article about a home schooling family that had given their home school a name. It gave them an identity and their children could easily answer the question, "where do you go to school?" I thought, what a great idea! What could we call our school? How can we make it unique and fun? What about that tree house idea J___ suggested a while ago? Suddenly, it seemed like a good idea. We could use the additional space. We would have our own school building. I would have the best student-teacher ratio in the school district and it will be a fun place to learn! I started walking around our 17 acres checking out potential tree house trees. We have a large beautiful white oak that is standing near an old homesite that reminds me of the "tree of life" every time I look at it. It is a fun tree to climb in with its large sweeping branches. One branch seems to reach down to the ground and beckon children to come and play. This branch provides much entertainment for my daughters and other children as nature's carnival ride. The old oak tree has been nicknamed the "Bouncy tree." It is a wonderful tree and provides many climbing opportunities, but I did not really want to change the character of this tree and it was a bit far from our house. While walking back down our driveway, I noticed two trees near our front yard that were in the pasture. A red oak and an even larger willow oak with spreading branches formed a grand canopy. The trees were spaced about 12 feet apart and there is where I saw the perfect building spot for the tree house. Not in one tree, but between these two grand oaks. Now the fun was to begin! I will have to be completely honest that this tree house was built for my kids and myself. Many kids have that dream of building their own space up in a tree and I remember as a kid starting my own project out in the backyard tree. Eventually, my father came out and helped strengthen the platform so my friends and I would not kill ourselves. In many ways a tree house is an outlet for those dreams we have as children. After a few limbs were removed from the trees and some ideas were scratched out on paper, construction began. The two oak trees formed the front supports and a couple of posts were planted to support the rear of the 8 by 14 foot tree house. It took about five months to complete the project, working when I had the chance. Grand Oaks Academy, "The World's Only Little Blue School House Tree House" opened for learning in April of 1999. Not long after the treehouse was completed, J___ attended a field trip with wildlife biologists and helped band nesting bald eagles. After the field trip, J___ and E___ painted a sign for the upper deck, which is 15 feet above the ground,and christened it the "Eagle's Nest." Everybody loves a tree house, so next we threw an "open-tree-house" party for other homeschoolers. It was great seeing all those kids climbing up and down the rope ladder, playing on the swing and using there imaginations in the "Eagle's Nest." They were like a bunch of squirrels chasing each other around the tree. For the first few years the tree house was used almost daily. We have electricity, heat, a computer and the best view from a classroom I have ever seen. It is a great place to start the day, read, work on math, complete a project, play games or write. We even had French classes for a while in the tree house that were attended by other homeschoolers. We read the entire Jack and Annie Magic Tree House book series. J___ and E___ still love those books. The tree house has been featured in the local newspaper and in a magazine for children. A TV news station visited and reported a story on the evening broadcast. For a school project, J____interviewed the news reporter who interviewed her. As J____ was talking with the reporter she said, "... we are always at school. We learn everywhere!" I love that quote! Since building the tree house we have connected with other homeschoolers through our website who have been inspired to build their own tree houses. We have even designed our own T-shirt that features a sketch of our tree house that was drawn by a friend from Japan. As we grow as homeschoolers, it has become obvious that we cannot contain learning inside four walls. We do not spend as much time in the tree house as we first did. Although it is still a special place for reading, playing with friends, working on special projects or completing a math assignment. Imagination will always be alive in the treehouse. By building this tree house we have created many learning experiences and it has been an opportunity for me and other adults to relive those childhood dreams of climbing up in the trees again. Who knows, maybe one day the next generation of home schoolers in this family may pick an orange off of the citrus tree growing in our kitchen, cut it open, plop the seeds out on the plate and ask, "If we plant these will they grow?" |
Grand Oaks under construction! |
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T Shirt picture was drawn by our friend Yoshiko ! |
Girls inside the tree house wearing T-shirts |
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Grand Oaks Academy Fund Raiser Show your support for Tree Houses !! Purchase a Grand Oaks T-shirt for $20.00 + shipping. To order a T-shirt, Email your name, shipping address and T-shirt size (S,M, L or XL) to sstevens@compu.net |