The Eight Years I’ll Never Forget...

Nine times out of ten, people of all ages are shocked when I tell them I attended a private school up until sixth grade. I see their eyes widen when I describe the small classes that consist of twelve kids and one teacher. I typically get a laugh when I state the art room used to be a huge storage closet. They think I’m lying when I speak about feasts made by students, for students, and they are astonished when they realize how independent we kids are at Shady Oak Primary School. Okay, I think you get the idea that Shady Oak is unlike any other school out there. So, let me tell you about the school experience that changed my life.

I started attending Shady Oak at age three, and even then, I knew it was different than any other school. In kindergarten, my friends and I worked together to cook "meals" in our play kitchen. By second grade, we were chopping actual vegetables and serving the entire school gourmet meals. We started Speech class in third grade, and by fifth grade, I had spoken in front of a group of 750 adults as part of a keynote speech. Unbeknownst to me, all that collaboration and communication would pay off big time during the 2020-2021 school year. Yep, I’m talking about the never-ending spring break of last year, aka the beginning of COVID-19. No one expected the switch to online school to last so long, but here I am, waking up five days a week and walking three feet across my room to go to school. Turns out, that not-so-standard elementary school set me up to successfully navigate my way through my first year at a not-so-standard junior high.

The first hurdle I had to jump over during this year was learning how to communicate in the virtual learning environment. Since I couldn't hold face-to-face conversations with my teachers, I had to find other ways to get my questions answered. To solve this problem, I resorted to emails. In the beginning, I would put my emails into Grammarly, edit them over and over again, then pull out all my hair because I was scared I was going to miss a typo or risk not getting my point across. But thanks to one class at Shady Oak, I was able to overcome the fear and write emails in my sleep.

At Shady Oak, the Speech class teaches you how to think on your feet and react to different situations.  Before I stood up to speak in front of the class in Speech class, I would play the “What’s the worst that could happen?” game with myself. I would imagine scenarios in my head and figure out what I would do if that were to happen. What if I trip and fall on my way up to the front of the room? Get up and make it look like you did it on purpose. What if I say something wrong? Keep going. What if I don't get my point across? List all the reasons you could elaborate on your topic.

Now, I realize you can't trip and fall in an email asking your math teacher about homework, but you can still ask yourself similar questions. I now email my teachers daily without any self-conscious thoughts crowding my brain every time I look at the "Send" button. If my teachers ask me a question during my video calls, I use all the speech class advice and skills to talk to a class that I barely know.

February of 2021 brought on another challenge: online group projects. I had never done an online project, inside or outside of school. But throughout my years at Shady Oak, we did many group projects and group discussions; really, everything we did had some group aspect. I learned to listen to others’ ideas and work out any complications we came across. It wasn't long before I was emailing my group members and setting up meetings left and right. I listened to my group's opinions, gave mine, and solved any problems we had. What could have been a mess turned out to be a great project, all because I had learned the skills I needed to collaborate successfully at Shady Oak.

Looking back, I found that my years at Shady Oak were chock-full of great experiences that shaped the way I approach virtual learning nowadays. From doing online group projects to emailing teachers, me saying that this school year has been different would be an understatement. But I wouldn’t have tackled those hurdles the way I did if that small private school in Richmond hadn’t taught me all those crucial lessons about success and leadership. - Kaylie B.

I think it’s a really good school because they don’t just teach you Math and stuff; they teach you how to live your life. I [also] like that you put the classes together sometimes (like 1st and 2nd grade) and don’t keep them separate. - Christian S.

I like how they don’t give a lot of homework and when you’re done, you get to play. They teach you manners and to be kind to people. - Dane B.