Parent’s Weekend – A time to share

Alzar School | 03.10.17

Parent’s Weekend is almost here! So comes the time during each semester when the Alzar School invites all current families to visit our campus in Idaho and witness first-hand the power of the Alzar School semester.

As six o’clock on Friday evening approaches, marking the official start of the weekend’s events, students dorn their best formal wear and anxiously await the arrival of familiar faces they nervously left behind two months prior. Emotions run high as empty nested parents see their fledged children and students excitingly tour parents through their independent lives at the Alzar School. By this time in the semester, students have settled into an Alzar School routine — the curved walls of yurts embody the comforts of home, classes are not necessarily confined to classrooms and daily gratitudes and hand waggles are the norms. From personal bunk spaces to the communal compost pit, students beam with pride and ownership as they usher family and friends around campus.

Parent’s Weekend also provides great opportunities for parents to check in on and witness Alzar School academics. Each family has designated time to meet with both the student’s mentor and a teacher of their choosing. In addition, all students prepare two demonstrations of their learning: one academic presentation and one skills-based presentation. These presentations can range from demonstrating how to treat a hypothermic patient using Wilderness First Aid skills, to solving a trigonometric problem involving wildfire and resources. Needless to say, we are greatly looking forward to welcoming our Fall 2017 parents to the Alzar School campus and community this weekend.