The Hyde Leadership Public Charter School

                               By Taylor Kerlin Smith

         We all had a wonderful experience at The Hyde Leadership Public Charter School. The kids there were really nice and seemed interested about where we lived, especially when they heard about the landscape. I listened to Jackson and a couple of other Marlboro students talking to three of the Hyde students about Vermont, and I heard someone say something about bears and coyotes. Another kid from Hyde asked if we got lost finding our houses. Someone said that there were no sidewalks on the road, they said they would die if they had to live in Marlboro.

We also visited some classes: 8^th grade class in art doing self-portraits, 7^th grade social studies classes preparing portfolios, 6^th grade Science class playing bingo with definitions. 

         I thought their school was really organized and they all knew what to do. If they came in late they went to the teacher’s desk and gave him/her a note and then they did what everyone was doing. If they get in trouble or are in a bad mood or are just sad, they have to follow the Dean of the Middle School everywhere until he gets a chance to talk with them.

         On just about all the walls there are posters hanging all about how The Hyde School is the best school in the U.S. There were other “inspirational” messages on these posters, encouraging the students to do their best. This is a school that teaches their students about character and leadership. We found out that we have something in common: they also keep portfolios for student-led conferences

         It was only an hour visit, but it was interesting to see how they learn.