An institution of learning for children must have the basic learning instructions of reading, writing and arithmetic’s.

I wonder where I  would be,  if I hadn’t learnt to read?

That would have been a sorry shame because I may not have been able to talk to you.

The wonders and places gleaned between the pages of a book would elude such a soul. The man who reads  visits a thousand place’s but a man who doesn’t read,  remains in one place.

The learning process of these basic skills will help the learner’s acquire required skills to function and blend into a larger society, as well as laying the foundation which equally serves as their   springboard to  excel in  their chosen pursuits.

If I had the opportunity to set up  an institution of learning ground up, asides from the usual subjects that are taught in the  four walls of a school, I would emphasize on student’s learning basic survival skill acquisition as well as other skill sets and talents which can be harnessed optimally.

Ethics, etiquette, empathy, generosity, respect and self-respect should also form part of a young child’s social sciences formation, especially in these times when the  focus  seems to be more selfish inclined with the spirit of entitlement pervading the society.

Let us remember that the mind of  a child is a tabula rasa, absent of preconceived ideas or predetermined goals a pure clean slate on which to write and as the good Bible states, we should raise a child in the way that he should go and when he grows, he shall not depart from it.

© Jacqueline Oby-Ikocha

In response to The Daily Post prompt The New School

You get to redesign school as we know it from the ground up. Will you do away with reading, writing, and arithmetic? What skills and knowledge will your school focus on imparting to young minds?