It is vital that educators cultivate a learning environment that is both consonant with the nature of boys, and at the same time challenges them to live self-control, diligence, focus, and deep work.The wildness of boys is not a problem; it is part of who they are. It is up to us to find ways to direct it towards the good. How can we inspire and guide them through an imaginative and adventurous approach?

 

For the last decade the Riverside Club has been fulfilling a vision of education as it is meant to be: a way to light a fire in the hearts and minds of the young so that they find beauty, goodness, and truth. We are not teaching these boys skills and content in the elementary and middling years merely to help them prepare for high school. Rather, the Riverside Tutorial program is about creating cathartic experiences based in story, adventure, craftsmanship and prayer. Through a fellowship of creative endeavor, the boys gain insight into the vital connection between creative gift, friendship, meaningful work, and life…or as we call it…the adventurous pilgrimage to Heaven.

 

The idea here is to think about what is necessary for a boy to live boyhood in the best way possible and then to find a way to incarnate this vision. Peter Searby will share with you Riverside’s approach, the development and meaning of the Riverside Code and how educators, parents, and leaders can implement these same tenets.

 

The Riverside Code:

Build the Brotherhood

See Beyond

Create Don’t Criticize

See the Gold

Live the Work

Rough It!

He Went Off Alone to Pray