A love of learning may be less a skill or an innate quality and more a set of conditions — choice, curiosity, space for frustration, and time to dig into what matters to you. At Acton, we deliberately create and support those conditions, then equip learners to recognize and create them for themselves. The result is learners who want to keep going even after the day ends, simply because the work means something to them.
What does it take to love learning? And once you have it... is it consistent? Does it stay with you forever? Or perhaps a better question: is the love of learning a skill or an innate quality?
Love of Learning has many facets, but at its core it is a personal orientation, one that happens within the self. The VIA Institute on Character names it as a Character Strength, placing it in the Wisdom category.
At Acton Academy, Love of Learning is a core component of a Hero's Journey at the heart of our model. It's present when a learner wants to learn regardless of setbacks. When they are excited about it. When it means something to them.
How does Acton foster a love of learning?
This is where choice comes into play, and choice is vital to what makes the above possible. Which begs the question: what if Love of Learning is neither a skill nor an innate quality, but a set of conditions? Ones that, at Acton, we create and support and then equip learners to understand so that they can create them for themselves.
This happens through research projects, one-off challenges, creating and leading launches, and following the writing process during communications. It happens through making space for curiosity and asking questions instead of giving answers. It happens because there is space for frustration and uncertainty and time to really delve into something they are interested in, the same space that makes deliberate practice possible.
Many learners talk about being so excited by what they're working on that they want to continue at home and often choose to use their free time during the day to keep going. No one asks them to. That's the moment. That's what the conditions make possible.
How can families foster a love of learning at home?
You could look up Love of Learning and find lists of definitions, benefits, and rewards. But instead, I want to invite you to reflect: what are the conditions that support you loving learning? When is the last time you pursued learning about something you loved? (And I might gently challenge you to take a stand on whether you think it's a skill, an innate quality, or something else entirely.)
Imagine if you had more time, more space, and more creative prompting to go there. What do you think the biggest benefit would be?
- Perhaps you would feel more alive.
- Maybe you'd discover something about yourself.
- Maybe you would find freedom.
- Or perhaps find a cause you cared about that might change the world.
There are many more benefits we could add to that list, but just imagine if you were given that space. Now consider: this is what learners (and adults) at Acton have available to them. If those are the benefits...
What might you do differently to foster these conditions?
- Be more present to the things your learner loves.
- Ask more questions.
- Encourage them to continue.
Love of Learning might be less a quality you either have or don't and more a quality of how we live. We foster it at Acton. What might happen if you fostered it further, not just for your learner, but for yourself?
