A model of democratic open school - l'Arbre des Possibles (Belgium)

The school l’Arbre des Possibles (“The Tree of Possibilities”) is a private alternative school located in Belgium, and was founded in September 2018. It currently hosts 30 children from 3 to 18 years old. It is a so-called "giraffe democratic school ”. This means that decisions are taken under shared governance by the adults and children, and that all learn to use non-violent communication (hence the term“giraffe”) The educational project is based on the following principles : “Free to learn”, connection with nature, multi-age and inter generational grouping, benevolent and secure environment, the richness of the social, material and natural environment (quality of the team, the accommodation, the governance and of the food and pharmacy).

Everyone is free to use their time as they wish and to follow whatever excites them. The child, immersed in a rich and diverse environment, will naturally develop what is necessary for him to evolve in the world in which he lives.

The school building is surrounded by a garden with a vegetable and herbs garden, a cabin for games, a sand playground, a small creek, paths to the woods, the fields and the village where the children live. The children dispose of a lot of space and material to explore their creativity, movement, studies, scientific experiments, observation of nature, the library, computers, wood work, handcrafts (basket weaving, leather,...) and much more.

“Good relationships with oneself, the others and with nature”: this is one of the basics of the Arbre's values. Outdoor learning plays an essential role in our school: there are two “forest days” a week. The children stay all day in the woods, close to a burning fire and sheltered if necessary, doing various activities.

“Education”, “raising” children and young people, means supporting them in their development and fulfillment. This task is too often insufficiently accomplished by traditional education with certification exams, stress, limitations on children's freedom, the excess number of students in classrooms, teacher exhaustion, lack of support for spontaneous curiosity, … By child development, we refer not only to his learning (theoretical, practical, knowledge of the world, experiences, ...), but also to his well-being, his psychological and social development.

It is through interaction that humans learn. Discovery. Experience. Going outside. Classical schooling is usually centered on theoretical and intellectual development, and mostly enclosed in the building of the school. It is crucial that today's schools recenter their objectives on the real skills needed by the children to live in our society. In a benevolent and diversified environment, with rich interactions possible, they acquire the skills they will need all their life.