Authors' Reception 2020

Children learn to write in elementary school. A single draft. Done. At Diegueño, the drafting process is elevated to an art form. Children recognize their inner voices when they express their innermost thoughts in an honest, meaningful way because we provide a safe environment where questioning the unknown is embraced, where answers lead to more questions, and where questioning the obvious is a matter of course. At Diegueño, children write to understand themselves and the world around them, where the discovery process turns inward and outward in a dynamic process where teacher and student are intertwined in a literary dance of self-expression. 

Every draft is lovingly commented on and corrected by teachers again…and again…and yet again! That is the magic of the Diegueño process: good enough–isn’t! Refining our words and ideas is a life skill that is deeply embedded in a Diegueño graduate’s mindset. Sifting through and polishing sentences, paragraphs, essays, narratives, and poetry empowers our children to understand the deep impact of metacognition and critical thinking. Indeed, the pen is mightier than the sword…