The Situation/Focus

Last week an interesting topic was raised by one of the students as we discussed our wins and challenges from the previous week. In a learning opportunity outside of Astrolabe Academy, someone who should be a better leader felt it was his duty to overstep his position and provide unwanted and hurtful opinions about the student.

Key Insights or Distinctions

1. To understand what boundaries are and why they are important.
2. To learn how to set healthy boundaries for oneself.
3. To understand the importance of respecting the boundaries of others.

Summary

One of the things that are great about our program, is its flexibility. We diverted from our planned Student Success session, and instead, focused on the topic of boundaries – setting our own and respecting others.

The students had a lot of insights to share and it turned out to be a very productive conversation. We touched briefly on boundaries and decided to delve more deeply into this during this week’s Student Success Session. Boundaries are important to our self-worth, success, and happiness.

To start the session, we began by defining what boundaries are and why they are important. We talked about how setting healthy boundaries can help us take care of ourselves and our own well-being, while also allowing us to maintain healthy relationships with others. We also discussed how respecting the boundaries of others is important for maintaining the trust and mutual respect in our relationships.

Next, we explored some common challenges that people may face when it comes to setting boundaries. These challenges included things like feeling guilty or selfish for saying no, fear of rejection or conflict, and uncertainty about where to draw the line, especially when it comes to parents and other adults. We talked about strategies for overcoming these challenges, such as learning to communicate our needs clearly and respectfully, practicing self-care and self-compassion, and setting realistic expectations for ourselves and others.

Finally, we discussed some practical tips for setting and respecting boundaries in our daily lives. We talked about how to recognize when our boundaries are being violated, how to say no assertively and respectfully, and how to set boundaries that are specific, clear, and consistent. We also talked about the importance of being flexible and open-minded when it comes to negotiating boundaries with others.

Overall, this session on boundaries was a great opportunity for our students to learn more about an important life skill that will serve them well in their personal and professional relationships. We hope that our students will continue to explore this topic and apply what they have learned in their daily lives.

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If you want to join a discussion about this or any other high school education topic, we have a group on Facebook called “Alternatives to High School” and invite you to join. The goal of the group is to give parents a place to discuss options to public/private school and standardized curriculum as well as share resources for educating teens.