Emma is 10 years old and will be attending 6th grade at BASIS San Antonio this fall. I invited her to write a guest blog post about BASIS. She wrote two letters, one for parents and one for kids.
Dear Parents of great kids,
What do you think of when you hear the words charter school? Most people say that they think of a private school or a very good education, which the second one is a very good answer. Basis is a public school. When I hear the words charter school I think of Basis. Basis to me is the best middle school and high school that was ever created. Some of the reasons why I think that Basis is a great school are that it has a great curriculum. Also, they have great extra curricular activities and clubs such as hiking club, choir, tennis, LEGO robotics, and much, much more. Parents, some reasons that make it a great idea to send your kids to Basis are that there are great and understanding teachers who care for your kids as if they were their own. They want you to succeed and do great things. Also, there is a time right after school were your kids could stay and visit the teachers to talk about stuff that they didn’t have time for during school hours. There’s a lot more homework, but they will help us learn ways to get it all done. Basis wants your kids to learn. You can also help your kids learn different languages such as French, Mandarin Chinese, and Latin at Basis. Your kids will get a chance to get into all kinds of AP [advanced placement] courses which means that they get college credits before they are ever in college. To me Basis is heaven on a silver composition book just waiting to be read. Do you want your kids to have the best education? If the answer is yes, send your kids to Basis today!
Dear Kids with smart parents,
When I went to the Basis informational session I learned that Basis isn’t only a school with a great curriculum, it is a school with fun, learning, and excitement. Hey kids, this paragraph is for you. Most kids ask what there is that they can do that is fun. Well, there is something fun to do at this school for everyone. In fact there are tons of fun activities at Basis. Some of these things listed above in the parent’s paragraph above are great electives and clubs to choose from. Hiking club, choir, tennis, LEGO robotics are some of the things I am looking forward to. Also if you are one of those kids who want to go to a great college, well here is your chance. Basis gives you a really good chance to get into a big name college, and possibly scholarships too. The teachers have all gone to college and have degrees, so they are better able to help us learn about the subjects they teach. Chemistry from a chemist? They don’t have that at my school, but they have teachers like that at Basis. They also won’t have to just focus on teaching us tests. Sometimes we get really great teachers at my school and sometimes we don’t. I got lucky this year and my teacher is awesome. But at Basis we get great teachers all the time, not just by being lucky. Do you get bored in school? I get bored a lot and I don’t like it. All of these things I have listed together are the reasons I know I won’t be bored in class at Basis. I wish all students had a chance like this. I’m glad my Mom found out about this school and that we went to get more information about it. I can’t wait to start class at Basis next year!
Emma’s mom, Adele Williams, would like to add:
As a parent, I want what is best for my daughter. What parent doesn’t want that? We have been blessed with a great public elementary school and staff for her first through fifth grade education, but the number one concern we’ve had year after year was that she was becoming increasingly bored. She makes fantastic grades, has attended the Alpha program for all five years, and explored all academic extracurricular activities we could find in the local area, and yet she’s still telling me “Mom, I’m bored”.
Luckily for us, some friends with kids about the same age let us in on the upcoming opening of a new charter school for San Antonio. I did what any parent would do. I got skeptical, read up on their information on the web, and started to snoop around looking for reasons it would or would not be a good fit. I started asking questions of charter school parents – both past and present. Then I signed up to attend an informational session hosted by the school itself. I opted to bring my daughter to gauge her reaction. Within thirty minutes our entire family was glued to the slide deck being presented. It honestly sounded too good to be true. BASIS San Antonio hosts a curriculum suited to each student. No busy work. No more holding back. No more “Mom, I’m bored”.
When they showed the slides on language, my daughter leaned over to me and asked “Mom, does that mean I can actually learn Mandarin? Because I really, really want to do that.” Her eyes were lit up and she was sold. I was still a little skeptical.
I needed to do more research and ask more questions. So I emailed the speaker from that night and in record time had full answers to my long list of questions and concerns. This school and their curriculum truly was proving to be in line with my own ideas of educating my daughter in a positive, supportive, and self-paced environment.
When we got the confirmation that she was confirmed for attendance for the following school year we went out and celebrated. My daughter talks non-stop to her friends about how excited she is to attend the new school and keeps looking up information online on other BASIS schools to see what other students have done. Every day it’s another you tube video, or an article about a great accomplishment or college acceptance.
For us, BASIS San Antonio comes at a perfect time. As she transitions out of elementary school and into middle school I feel confident that she will do so in an environment that will keep her brain stimulated and finally battle the “Mom, I’m bored”. We can’t wait for this coming school year and we are very much thankful to those who brought BASIS to San Antonio.
—Adele Williams, Technology Solutions Architect
Ready to sign up? Join the BASIS interest list at http://www.basislink.org.
