Charter Schools have a different message to send than a regular public school. The ones I visited in the last two weeks definitely have their own flavor.

Even the name of the Lake Tahoe Environmental Science Magnet School http://www.ltusd.org/subpage_schools/schools/ltesms.php tells you what to expect from this preppy K through fifth grade school. It’s science throughout the curriculum. All subjects are studied. The children don’t miss reading or math, but they learn to read and do math for the purpose of doing scientific activities and experiments. It starts as early as that preppy kindergarten where four year olds come to class with their kindergarten friends so they’ll know how to be in kindergarten the next year. Cutting, pasting, recognizing letters and writing their names all means they’ll be ready.

By the time the children are in fifth grade they are into serious science. According to the Tahoe Daily Tribune, “In 2006, teacher Bob Comlossy's fifth-grade class won Jiminy Cricket's Environmentality Challenge for their project "Build it and they will come: Bat houses for the Cookhouse Meadow restoration.’" I looked at a project they built for determining the best solar products and this year they are into raising seedlings for forest restoration after a fire devoured the area. The kids are interested and motivated to be there. A comment from a parent following the Tribune article tell sit all, “This school is the main reason we are moving back to Tahoe. I know we have to get on the list, but I am sooooo excited!!

Charter schools have the ability to pick their area of focus. A school visit just yesterday has another version of focus.

Terry Tozier met me at the door of the Four Winds Charter School http://www.bcoe.butte.k12.ca.us/sps/schools/lccs.htm on the Butte County Fairgrounds. We laughed about the ability to use facilities wherever we could find them. The school’s charter is to serve the Native American population of the area. Their student make-up appears to have expanded a bit, but the idea of recognizing and respecting culture is still very evident throughout the school. Their stated purpose is to recognize the culture of the students as fundamental to education.

Like Lake Tahoe this charter begins the learning process early. There's a preschool program on the site. Children then continue into the school years and add an afterschool component which allows them to extend their learning day. On a Friday at 1:45 PM kids tumble out of classrooms surrounding the gym floor to begin their afterschool session. There’s a bit of chaos until everyone settles in, but once order is restored, learning proceeds.

The teaching staff also then settles in for their afterschool sessions, some days to learn new techniques for teaching and working with their community and other days to prepare for the days ahead.

Charter schools are unique and their uniqueness is what allows children to be that much more of who they are.