Wouldn’t life be grand if it came with an illustrated map to get us where we want to go? I think this each time I work on a jigsaw puzzle using the box cover to figure out where to put my next piece. Imagine if we had to put one of those 1,500 piece puzzles together without the cover to guide us? What a chore; it would seem next to impossible and we may give up after a few fruitless tries to fit one piece into another.
Life can be like a jigsaw puzzle if we establish goals and have an end in our sights. Steven Covey’s second habit is to begin with an end in mind. Much like using the cover of a puzzle, when we visualize where we want to go, we are able to work backwards to establish the steps to help us get there.
Our students can only benefit from a process that helps them develop a personal mission that guides them to their end in mind. Heck, we all could benefit from mapping out our end point. Who do you visualize yourself being 10 years from now? What do you want to have contributed to the world when you look back? Knowing where you’d like to go can only help you get there.
Santa Clarita Valley International Charter School’s Mission is to empower students to become conscientious, compassionate, and responsible citizens of the world. How will we succeed in our mission? One way is to view the education of our students differently than traditional test-oriented schools. Our end in mind is not training students to pass a standardized test. Instead, we believe that the key to our future is inspiring students to become creative thinkers and leaders, with a lifelong love of learning. In order to accomplish this, we focus on individualized instruction, hands-on learning methods, and opportunities for self-directed learning. We celebrate and foster each student and support them in discovering their highest potential. Finally, we help them visualize their destination in life and guide them through the process of planning how to get there.
Here in Santa Clarita you can choose a different path to prepare your students for the future. SCVi is dedicated to developing the 21st Century Leader.
Visit www.scvcharterschool.org to learn more about cultivating the leader in your student. For more information, please call 661-705-4820.