F. Scott Fitzgerald once said that true intelligence is a mind that can hold contradictory concepts. While your child may be more goal-oriented or more quest-oriented, Wonder creates the opportunity for each learner to experience both of these seemingly contradictory paths simultaneously.

Learning is hard and messy and happens at different paces within the same age range. There are plateaus – even pauses – in learning rather than steady progressions, and these times are difficult. So is resisting the temptation to compare your child to other children.

Any school or person who promises a journey with no frustration, easy progression through grade levels and always-happy parents is either bluffing or just wants to get people through a system to count it as a success. There is no learning without frustration. There is no love without suffering.

"The critical skill of this century will not be what you know but rather how quickly and how deeply you can tap into what the people around you know.”

Giving one’s best effort is a high. When this little high happens, the motivation to feel that way again kicks in because the brain is wired to thrive on progress. We like it. It feels good. We want it again.