Saturday, April 26, 2014

Skateboarding with SF Skate Club

On Friday mornings E has been learning to skateboard with another homeschooled boy. Their teacher is Shawn Connolly, bona fide skater and founder of the San Francisco Skate Club.


I too skateboard and the children's uncle used to skate professionally, so there are lots of skateboards around the house. There are also plenty of skate parks in the Bay Area, and they're empty in the mornings (skaters aren't early risers). Perfect for kids to learn.

Sometimes the girls and I tag along to hang out with them and see what new tricks E has learned:


Shawn and his wife Thuy have been running the SF Skate Club for seven years now. They integrate skateboarding lessons with other creative and educational projects. They run an arts program, painting skateboards, making stickers, teaching film & photography and doing crafts such as sewing.

They recently opened a clubhouse two blocks from us, and our children hang out there almost daily. There are few such places for children to spend social time in an unstructured way with other children outside of home and school – what sociologist Ray Oldenburg would call The Third Place.


It's great to have them in the neighborhood! Also, the skate lesson is on Meetup, and there are still slots left for a couple more kids at this time.

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