A Day at Comini

We'll cover a lot of ground in this playbook. The philosophy, purpose, and practice of education. How kids really learn and what we can do to support rather than hinder their natural development. But first, you should know what the outcome of all these discoveries looks like. A day at Comini.

Four kids are engaged in an impromptu football match on the terrace. Two are building an elaborate castle with blocks. One sits cross-legged with a book, completely absorbed. Another works intently on a detailed drawing. Facilitators move through the space, watching, occasionally asking a question, but mostly letting the morning unfold naturally.

We gather briefly for a guided exploration. We use these sessions to catch up, introduce concepts, move our bodies or bridge ideas we've been exploring. Today the kids are doodling together, something they've been deeply interested in lately.

Around the table, conversations jump between dinosaurs, someone's new baby sister, and whether clouds can feel it when airplanes fly through them. A debate breaks out about whether ants sleep. Two children decide to look it up in the reference books after snack.

Today the kids continue working on their "dream house". They've collectively decided to design their dream home and are discussing how many rooms they need. They're making changes after realizing some choices are impractical, like having all bathrooms only on the top floor. They've settled on a plan with 6 bedrooms, a roof garden, and a slide into a ground pool. Next, they'll design and create windows, doors, and wall decorations, all requiring measurement and planning.

At lunch, some older kids volunteer to serve the younger ones. After eating, the BigKids host a 30-minute activity they've planned and will execute for the smaller kids. Following these classes, the kids rest, free play, read or simply catch up with grown-ups and peers.

2:30 - 3:30 PM: Afternoon Guided Session 

The kids are exploring food this month. Today's science session focuses on acidity and alkalinity in foods and everyday materials. They'll take litmus papers home to continue their explorations

3:30 - 4:30 PM: Snack and Free Play 

Afternoon snack is followed by cleanup time. Each team tackles their assigned area, often with surprising enthusiasm and efficiency. Then comes the choice: gather for storytime (often led by an early-arriving parent) or see who can hang longest from the Pikler.

If you're struggling to reconcile this picture with your understanding of "school," you're not alone. Visitors often ask: "But when do they learn to read?" or "Where's the math lesson?" They're looking for familiar markers of education. Spelling tests, times tables, graded assignments.

What they're missing is that learning is happening constantly, but in forms they may not immediately recognize:

The child building with blocks is developing spatial reasoning, the foundation of geometric thinking.

The kids debating an ant's sleep habits are forming hypotheses and seeking evidence, core scientific practices.

The model-builders are dealing with measurement, proportion, and structural stability. Applied mathematics.

There is no separation of learning into artificial subject boxes or requiring everyone to tackle the same concept simultaneously regardless of interest or readiness.

The difference goes deeper than schedules or activities. It's about fundamentally different assumptions:

Space: Not rows of desks facing a teacher but an environment much like home, designed for exploration, interaction, and different types of engagement.

Time: Not fragmented 45-minute periods but flexible blocks that respond to children's engagement and needs.

Relationships: Not a single authority dispensing knowledge but a community of learners including adults who sometimes lead, sometimes follow.

Activities: Not standardized lessons disconnected from real life but meaningful projects that integrate multiple skills and concepts.

Why is Comini so radically different from conventional schooling? That's what the rest of this playbook explores. The short answer: because children aren't passive vessels to be filled with information. They're active meaning-makers who learn through play, relationships, and engagement with genuine questions that matter to them.

Our approach emerged from observing how children naturally learn and develop. We've witnessed firsthand what happens when we step back and trust this process rather than imposing our own timelines and methods.

Traditional schooling wasn't designed for how children actually learn. This uncomfortable truth is something we'll explore more fully in the next chapter, along with how Comini came to be and the principles that guide us.

For now, know this: children at Comini are thriving. They're developing socially, emotionally, and physically, and academically in ways that honor their wholeness as human beings. They retain their wonder and curiosity, rather than watching it slowly disappear.

And perhaps most telling? They're reluctant to leave at the end of the day. Surely the clearest sign that we're onto something real.