This spring, our ninth-grade students left the classroom behind for a week-long immersion in sustainable agriculture at Deep Roots Farm, a working organic farm nestled in the hills of Northern California. The trip is part of our hands-on, place-based learning approach that helps students connect deeply with the living world and each other.
Each morning began with caring for over 100 chickens and a beloved pig named Thor. Evenings were spent gathering and cleaning eggs for sale at the farmstand, giving students a full-circle view of farm life and the responsibilities that come with it.
Students worked side-by-side in the greenhouse preparing soil and planting tomatoes, and each night they cooked meals using ingredients they harvested themselves — a delicious, tangible reward for their efforts.
The week included eye-opening excursions:
At Hog Island Oyster Farm, students learned how sustainable ocean farming works — and sampled its flavorful results.
At Freestone Ranch, they discovered how cattle grazing can be integrated into regenerative land stewardship.
At Moon Fruit Mushroom Farm, students saw how mushrooms can be grown on logs in harmony with nature.
They also gained hands-on experience growing and packaging organic microgreens for sale — all part of the farm’s small-scale, low-impact ethos.
In addition to deepening their relationships and building resilience, students engaged directly with scientific concepts in biology, ecology, and systems thinking. Whether observing ocean-based food chains or exploring soil health and fungal networks, they brought their classroom learning into the field — and brought new insights back home.
This immersive trip reflects the uniquely rich experience of high school at WSP, where students are continually challenged to engage with real-world questions and develop the confidence to navigate complexity with care. It’s one of many ways we prepare students to lead courageous lives and cultivate the capacity to learn, think, and act with purpose.
At WSP, we see humanity’s fullest potential and brightest future in every student. Blending the time-tested principles of Waldorf education with the forward-thinking spirit of Silicon Valley, we offer students an education that is both rooted and relevant.
There is a lot of conflicting advice out there about how to parent teenagers. For this month’s high school takeover of The Messenger, I thought it would be interesting to go straight to the source and ask two of my classmates: “What insight can you share with parents of teens?” These were the key takeaways from our conversations:
Work on That Connection
“First of all,” said one 11th grader, “each parent knows their child best as an individual.” So, looking to external sources may not be as useful as just talking it out with your kid. If there is conflict, she says, “work on building that connection,” even if it seems like they don’t want you to. Truly understanding where your kid is coming from can make a huge difference in how they respond to or collaborate with you.
Nudging, not Nagging
“Encourage your kids to do the things that seem difficult and help them find a way to enjoy it,” advised my classmate. For students, juggling friendships, academics, extracurricular activities, and personal growth can feel overwhelming. Yet both classmates I interviewed emphasized that they appreciated the support of a tactful push from their parents. When done thoughtfully, it can be the support needed to help teens reach their fullest potential.
Four Magic Words
When asked about the ideal parenting approach, another 11th grader said, “Four words: watch from a distance.” But, he clarified, this doesn’t mean withdrawing all support. Instead, it’s about becoming a safety net. “The school we go to is the perfect opportunity for students to figure out time management, their work ethic…what it means to be a functioning human being, all on their own,” he continued, “It’s not too intensive and it helps them create it by themselves, for themselves.” Allowing your teen to explore and develop independence can be the most valuable gift you give them.
To Rising High Schoolers
When asked what they’d tell their freshman-year selves, both of my classmates simply wished they’d known that everything would work out. One said, “It’s a little scary not to have things planned out all the time, or not to know how things are gonna go, but it’s OK. You’ll be fine.”
I’m sure some of you have something that has been passed down in your family for a long time — a grandmother’s watch, your great – uncle’s favorite book, etc. Now what if someone took this prized possession because your jerk of a neighbor said it was okay. Not only this, but the thief walks around flexing their new antique and showing it off on social media. That would suck, right? Well, this is exactly what happened to the Rosetta Stone.
The British Museum has long overlooked its convenient imprisonment of the Rosetta Stone. This, sadly, is not new. For centuries, museums have benefitted from the spoils of war; looted treasures and colonial gains. This was not only unjust in the 1800’s — museums in this day and age are still displaying artifacts that they have no right to possess. Looted by French soldiers during Napoleon’s conquest of Egypt, the Rosetta Stone is one of said artifacts: stolen from its original home, passed around by colonial powers, and eventually, same as many others like it, assimilated into the stomach of the British Museum.
Despite the arguments of the British Museum, the Stone was not obtained through honest means — it should be returned to Egypt, along with the multitude of other artifacts that the British Museum has marauded.
The solution seems to be simple: return the Rosetta Stone. However, the Board of Trustees of the Museum do not wish to. Furthermore, they point the finger at the British legislature, claiming that the removal of the Stone would violate a convenient law that explicitly forbids the taking of any item from the collection of the British Museum. The British government argues that the decision is up to the trustees. Really, both groups are at fault: the government does not wish to remove the law, designed to keep colonial spoils of war from returning to their rightful homes, and the Museum does not wish to admit fault, and, in doing so, lose their prized Rosetta stone.
This must change. The British Museum should not be able to own these stolen artifacts, let alone benefit from them. Of course, the British Museum says that all the world’s treasures are safer with them, protected by the might of the British Empire. Predictably, they fail to mention that said empire no longer exists. As well as this, they look down on poorer countries, claiming that they aren’t secure enough to house important artifacts. This is, of course, wrong. The security of the British Museum itself has come into question: 2000 objects, formerly in the collection, were stolen by the museum staff and sold- on eBay! This is like stealing and selling a dog that your neighbors pay you to walk each week, and then claiming that you are the best and safest dog walker!
A removal of the Rosetta stone would not only act as an apology by the British Museum, but opened the gateway for the eventual quested return of many other artifacts, stolen during England’s unjust expansion of empire. This is what the museum’s trustees are worried about. They are accustomed to the privileges of being colonists, and any newfound equality to them feels like oppression. They do not want to stop injustice because it benefits them: Britain is still profiting from colonial crimes committed centuries ago. In reconciling with those they wronged, the museum fears a result where they lose power, prestige, and privilege.
The time-honored tradition of exploiting the relics of others must end. Just because it is “the way it always has been” doesn’t mean that it is right – in fact the opposite could be argued. Many museums, including the Smithsonian, are already taking steps to reunite items in their collections with the ancestors of their original owners. The British Museum should follow the examples of these other museums and return the Rosetta Stone to Egypt. It is only right, and, while not changing its unjust abduction, would stand as the first steps of reconciliation between the British Museum and the formerly colonized people whose important cultural relics they have long benefited from.
