Kindergarten

Robert Fulghum’s best-selling book, All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, is now nearly two decades old, but its lessons remain fundamental. In many ways, these lessons have been almost entirely discarded by contemporary television. We’ve adopted them for MiND because they make sense for a growing community, and because they make sense to us personally. And we’ve added a few of our own. We hope you will be guided by these ideas, as we have been, as we build MiND together.

• Share everything: When you have an idea or you learn how to do something, share it with the rest of us.
• Play fair: Follow the rules; don’t disrespect others; don’t submit so many video programs that there’s no room for others. And if you do submit a lot of programs, add some money to the Community Investment Fund so that others may participate and learn.
• Don’t hit people: Or, don’t hurt them. Express your opinions, state your case, tell your story, but don’t do it in a way in which someone gets hurt. If you hurt somebody, say you’re sorry.
• Put things back where you found them: Production can be a messy business; respect those who helped with locations, props, and other resources.
• Don’t take things that aren’t yours: Don’t feature people on camera without signed release forms; don’t use other people’s music or pictures or footage without their permission. Don’t violate copyrights.
• If you need help, say please. MiND needs your help. Please help us by providing your time, your skills, your money, and your support.
• When someone helps, say “thank you.” Here’s a list of people who have helped. To all of you, a sincere “thank you” from the MiND community.
• Warm cookies and cold milk are good for you: Make people happy with your programs. We’ll try to do the same.
• Live a balanced life: “Learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and play and work every day some.” To which we would add: don’t take yourself too seriously. Have fun.
• Take a nap every afternoon: Or, go out and fly a kite, or take a walk. Do nothing for a while.
• When you go out in the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands and stick together: No reason to elaborate on this one. It’s the whole basis for why we’re doing MiND.
• Be aware of wonder. (Remember the little seed in the Styrofoam cup: the roots go down and the plant goes up and nobody really knows how or why, but we are all like that.) Not all learning involves answers. Sometimes, learning doesn’t even involve questions. Sometimes, it’s wonderful to just watch and wonder.
• Ask a lot of questions. If you don’t understand, or you want more information, ask. Others will be glad you did. Members, please use our MiND Message Board to learn from one another.
• Goldfish and hamsters and white mice and even the little seed in the Styrofoam cup - they all die. So do we. Nothing lasts forever. MiND won’t either. Take advantage of what we’ve got while it’s available.
• And then remember … the first word you learned - the biggest word of all - LOOK. If we do our job well, the community will have plenty to look at. And if we do our job really well, we’ll all turn off the TV and the internet and the portable video device-- and take a walk in the woods. We all spend too much time looking at screens. The real world is so much cooler than technology. Get out and take a look!

Thank you, Robert Fulghum! (You’re one of our heroes!!)

Robert Fulghum's All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten

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