Page 20 - Acton Info Kit

Q

What type of family thrives at Acton?
Q

We have found that parents who identify with these
statements deeply appreciate the learning environment What type of student is Acton Academy for?
Acton offers:
- You put a lot of effort into creating and maintaining a
positive relationship with your child. Acton is for your child if they are bored in school or feel
- You explain the reasons behind your rules. school doesn’t quite works for them. Acton is for your
- You enforce rules and give consequences, but take your child if they see things differently or would like school to
child's feelings into consideration. be more about doing projects around their own interests
- You invest time and energy into preventing behavior with just a few dozen other young people. Students who
problems before they start. might like to build things or program computers or make
- You incorporate positive discipline strategies to reinforce art or start businesses or champion a social cause or dive
good behavior like praise and reward systems. deeply into a subject they excel at. Young people who
- You validate your child’s feelings while making it clear are kind, hardworking, committed and who care about their
that you are ultimately in charge. future and want to find a calling and change the world.
- You recognize that when your child makes a poor
decision, it is important for them to take responsibility for
their mistake and work to make amends. Q

Acton Academy requires that all involved adopt the concept How do you hire and equip a new Guide for an
of radical responsibility by denying the victim mentality of Acton startup school?
whining, blaming, and complaining and embrace the idea
that we are each responsible for our own choices and The most important step in hiring a qualified Guide is to
future. Parents who struggle allowing their children to fail ensure whomever you hire believes each child is a
or who do not hold them accountable for their choices will genius with the potential to change the world. Guides must
not thrive at Acton. serve as mentors, offering challenges, not lecture-style
learning. Guides step back and allow children the space
Q level, Guides are caring, professional, tech savvy, able to
to self-regulate their learning environment. On a practical

Does Acton Academy offer sports, music, art, or multitask, creative, and innovative. Guides do not
after-school programs? necessarily need to come from an education background.
There are many resources in the Acton Toolshed that will
help you onboard and train a Guide.
Many of our affiliate schools offer varied after-school
activities such as LEGO robotics or team sports. You have
the freedom to incorporate varied activities that meet the
needs of your learning community. Some schools have Q
weekly art and music offerings while other schools have a
greater emphasis on tech and engineering activities. Among the Acton Academies that have started, what factors
The choice is yours and the sky is the limit. do you believe contribute most to their success or failure?
Q Each Acton school has its own flavor and success is

Do you suggest opening a full Kinder-12th defined differently for each campus based on their individual
goals. Overarching factors for success include the ability to
grade program? problem solve, professionally engage with parents and their
children, excellent communication, and successful delivery
Many Acton owners open with the grade levels needed on the Acton promises. Successful Acton owners invest the
to serve their own children and then expand in subsequent time and financial capital to nurture their new school, laying
years as their school grows. We have observed that the foundation for success.
attempting to open a full Kinder-12th grade program is very
challenging. Successful Acton schools launch with Frequently Asked Questions
lower grades and organically grow into the upper grades
often adding an additional grade each year.