a community of families
Our families are very important.
Because we are all officially homeschooling in the states of Minnesota & Wisconsin, parents are the primary educators, and we respect your right to do so! In our microschool environment, AWS guides technically serve as secondary educators. We serve as academic and social support for our families, who are their children’s first and most important teachers.
Because of this, we trust our families to make mindful decisions with the highest good of their children in mind.
Parents get to choose when to schedule drop-off and pick-up (we have an hour set aside to accommodate all schedules), make doctor’s appointments, schedule outside lessons, and even vacation according to their OWN needs. We do not have ‘tardies’ or ‘unexcused absences’. We trust parents to make the best decisions for their families.
Our community is rooted in Christian values and ideals. We talk about Jesus, God, the Holy Spirit, and the Universe. We pray and meditate daily. We recognize the Bible as a book of Wisdom, AND also recognize that there are other books of Wisdom rooted in love, compassion and grace that serve other paths. There is no one right path to the truth. We welcome with open arms anyone who is comfortable with us using the Bible as a book of Wisdom, whether they consider themselves Christian or not.
We are NOT an academically-focused program…… we focus on the WHOLE CHILD. There’s a saying that “gifted children are kids, too”, which is why we don’t ‘just accelerate’ curriculum, we mindfully make individualized plans for each student so that they are challenged to grow not only in math and reading, but also emotionally, socially, physically and spiritually.
The three greatest ‘pre-requisites’ for our families are an acceptance and commitment to teaching LOVE, COMPASSION, and GRACE to the children of tomorrow.
Family Involvement
-We have monthly ‘Family Dinners’, where we gather as a community to eat, laugh, play, and plan out future events.
-We encourage parent volunteers to schedule time to come in and help during the school days. Do you have a specialty that you would LOVE to teach? Let’s set up a guest teaching day!
-Parents and grandparents are ALWAYS invited along on field trips. We love having chaperones and value spending time with our loved ones.
-We have holiday gatherings (Halloween, Christmas, Easter, etc.) to celebrate and showcase student work.
-Our Roadschool trips are always open for family to join. We have one trip a year is normally set aside as a ‘family-only’ trip, where we give our families the option to come along to learn and explore with us.
Community Partnerships
-We recognize and celebrate our community members who run their own businesses. Listed below are links to our AWS Community Partners, many of whom offer discounts to members.
Amanda Riley Wellness- personal training, fascia release, personal wellness consultant
Emily Hallaway Intuitive Bodywork & Healing- esthetics, custom facial, reiki
Danie Aronson- Dewdrop Creative – intuitive art
Victoria Blackbird- Victoria Blackbird– Reiki Master, Shaman, Healer