Alana explores the concept of learning

Hey, Alana, how are you?

Good, how are you?

I'm very well, thank you. Um, so I was thinking about learning. What do you think about learning?

Well, to me, learning is like learning new things, like, um, like if you're in school and you were learning chemistry or geometry.

Have you learned some chemistry and some geometry?

Um, we're in school, we're doing geometry right now, and but we're not on chemistry yet.

Got it. So, um, do you learn things only at school or do you sometimes learn things outside of school?

I learned some things at school and I also learned some things here.

What kinds of things do you learn outside of school?

Well, um, sometimes, like, maybe they teach me how to ride a bike, or maybe, um, they give me some art tips, or maybe they help me out with math.

And they are your parents?

Yes.

Um, how about Let's see. How did you learn how to create a paper airplane business?

So I thought of making a business and I don't know how paper planes just came to my head. And then I started folding some first models and then I got the World Champion Paper Airplane book and then I started making some other different kinds of models.

So that one just came into your head without anybody teaching you about it?

Well, kind of, because the book like shows you, shows you like the steps and stuff.

So that's kind of interesting that sometimes, um, you just get ideas and then your ideas, your ideas help you figure things out, or— this is kind of interesting, it seems like a mystery how How you, how you had ideas that came from nowhere? Is it a mystery?

Yeah.

Okay, is there anything else where you come up with ideas and you learn stuff just on your own?

Well, sometimes I try to make like an art business just like at home where I either give my mom or dad or sometimes even Logan like an art class.

You just kind of, you create your own art class business, art teaching business?

Yeah.

All right.

Yeah, not just like with mom or dad.

It sounds like you like to create new stuff, is that true?

Yes. Is it?

Go ahead.

Sometimes in like museums like In downtown, there's this thing called the little, the new children's museum. There's this place called the Innovators Lab, and you could, you can hang out there and like make stuff.

Mm-hmm. So you like to hang out there? You like to hang out there and make stuff?

Yeah.

Would you say that you are an innovator?

Maybe.

Okay. So When you create stuff, when you create new things, is that a form of learning?

If you keep doing it and like you, and you go with, and you go with it and it, and it, um, succeeds, I think that could be learning.

So kind of seeing what, see what succeeds and what it takes, takes to succeed, that is a form of learning?

Yes.

Okay, that's interesting. So how about, how did you learn to speak English?

Practicing and my parents talked to me.

Do you think that they gave you lessons or did you just figure it out?

I think I just figured it out because since they were talking to me and I kept hearing them talk to each other, I think that I could have learned by listening.

Is that how Logan learned how to speak?

I don't really know, but it could be.

Okay. How about walking? How did you learn to walk?

Well, sometimes me and my dad would go to Balboa Park and we have like this And we have like, we had like this walker and we still have it now.

But then, did he give you lessons on walking? Did he say put one foot in front of the other and so forth, or how did you actually learn how to walk?

Well, he, we brought the, um, walker to the park and we just kept walking, uh, but I don't really know if he did that though. Maybe he did.

Okay, I'm thinking of other things. So Spanish, how did you learn some Spanish?

Well, I have a— sometimes I go to a Spanish babysitter because me and my brother have one, and I also had a Spanish preschool, and right now I have Spanish tutors.

And do they all teach you lessons, or you just kind of absorb it by listening to it, or a little bit of both?

The preschool and the tutor, they like give me lessons and I think the babysitter gave me lessons, but also I just like listen to, because sometimes when other people come in, they talk in Spanish. So sometimes I listen to them.

Got it. So sometimes it sounds like it's possible to learn just by kind of listening or paying attention or trying things out. Is that right?

Yes.

Okay, um, how about jiu-jitsu? How do you learn how to get better at jiu-jitsu?

Well, you, um, there's lessons, and if like another person in your family knows it, um, he or she could give you lessons. And also there's videos of how to do like certain moves on the TV, so you could learn like new stuff.

Do you think you also learn just by practicing, and do you learn by the competitions?

Yes, competitions definitely make you better.

So how do you learn in a competition?

Well, so if you lose and you know what you did wrong, you could practice getting better at that thing, or if you need to work on a move, you could practice on that move. Got it.

So it sounds like you learn— Sarah, it sounds like you're learning through experience. That is, you have experiences of winning or losing, or— and you, you kind of look and see what works and what doesn't work. Does that sound right?

Yes.

Would you say it's easy to learn by experience or hard to learn by experience?

Um, for me it was kind of easy. To learn from experience, but maybe for other people it was kind of hard. So it could be kind of both.

Do you think that your learning is different whether you're learning sort of by being taught or learning by experience? Or is it— or is the learning the same either way?

I think they're kind of different because just listening and paying attention when they don't even know that you're trying to learn. That could be one thing. And also, um, when you have lessons, like, they know that you're like trying to learn.

And so do you think that you remember things better one way or another, or not necessarily?

Um, I think in both ways you could remember.

Okay. Um, is there anything you wish you were learning but you're not learning right now?

Um, I don't think so.

Okay, well, cool. What are you gonna do today?

Um, I'm gonna go pick up my bike from my friend's house, and then I'm gonna go to the bike shop to pump on the tires and clean it up, and then I'm gonna go, um, to the park and ride my bike for a little bit. And other than that, I don't really know what else.

Like a pretty fabulous day. So I'm gonna let you go and hope you have a really great time with your bike. The park, okay?

Okay.

Bye-bye, Elana.