I don’t know too much about Montessori Schools. What I can say is that, you may want to think about Charter Schools; they seem to be the best combo of the public/private experience. Most are geared toward Middle and High School age - I’m not sure about younger grades. They are privately run, but if your child gets accepted your public school district has to pay the charter school Emili’s share of the funding. The downside, in so doing, is that charter schools are further depeleting public school funding, but I’m less worried about that and more worried about my child. Call me selfish!

Also I really do agree about the teacher burn out/ break time. Many teachers I know are so disconnected from the reality of the commercial world around them, they can’t teach kids in the skills they need to succeed. I found the solution in where I work now, as it is informal learning, and (hopefully) sometime soon I will be able to dabble in some ongoing science endeavors at my company. This way I (ideally) get to be an educator and scientist.

I just finished reading this book - it has some really good ideas for parents about learning!

Have you heard of Montessori schools? They sound good, but I have yet to meet someone who has put their child through one. Then again, there’s the price. Who the hell can afford private schools these days?

On a different note… Being a teacher yourself, what did you think about the part of the interview where he suggests that teachers should teach for a few years, take some time off and do something else, then come back to teaching?