Like every year, the second session Quest is E-Ship (Entrepreneurship).
It is an experience in which the Pumas imagine, design, and execute their own entrepreneurship project.
Although we often see the final result during the fair or Exhibition, the real learning happens throughout the entire process: in the decisions they make, the changes of ideas, the organization, and the challenges that arise along the way.
Who is Bernardo? Some of you who still haven’t met him might be wondering.
Bernardo is Tinkuy’s dog. Although, sometimes, the Pumas say he is one more Puma and even debate about which studio he would belong to.
Over the past year, new families have joined the community, and I think it’s important to share a little about Bernardo and how he arrived at Tinkuy.
I couldn't help noticing the stark contrast between the world our children are growing up in and the one I knew. In Lima in the 1990s, when people around me finished high school, if they were lucky, they got to choose from the top local options: “la PUCP”, “la Pacífico” or “la de Lima”; San Marcos or Cayetano; maybe UNI or “la Richi”. For us, studying abroad for undergrad was simply unimaginable.
For our children, “abroad” is an option, not a fantasy.
There are moments in the day that aren’t scheduled, announced, or planned, yet they end up shaping the atmosphere of the studio. One of those moments is D.E.A.R, Drop Everything and Read.
The invitation is clear and bold: pause whatever you’re doing and read. No option to “let me finish this first.” Just a quiet shift, choosing a book you are interested in and stepping into it.
Last Tuesday, the Spark Studio engaged in a dialogue about body care. The objective was simple yet meaningful: to help children recognize their own body sovereignty, and express, in a concrete way, what types of contact feel comfortable, uncomfortable, or context-dependent.
Through a dynamic activity using colored paper, valuable reflections emerged from the children. And their families, who joined us to observe during a Parents Coffee, got to see the process first hand.
A few weeks ago, Inés and Gianni (guides of Ascend and Discovery, respectively) traveled with the Pumas who attended the international Acton network gathering in El Salvador. Some Mapaches (parents of the Pumas) took turns accompanying the Discovery Tribe while they were away.
Our task was clear: simply be present, without intervening, unless there was an imminent safety risk.
In this blog we share three parent perspectives of what we observed.
This year in Ascend we are testing a new format for the weekly 360. One single question. The new format asks them to connect the score to what happened, and to name the impact on themselves and others. It also gives them shared language for what we actually care about: honoring promises, protecting teamwork, and keeping the Studio healthy.
We are starting the year and, with it, new adventures in the Spark Tribe. We have new members, and that makes us very happy. This blog will focus on this reconfiguration of the tribe, the mixed-age structure of the group, the adaptation process, and how these young Heroes gradually get to know and recognize one another along their journey.
As we begin a new year at Tinkuy, I return to something simple and powerful: the words we choose can strenghten us or wear us down. A cooked rice experiment in Discovery reminded us that the body listens, that complaining carries weight, and that loving words can protect, heal, and strengthen our bonds, especially when it’s time to repair.
This has been Tinkuy’s most peaceful, learner-driven year yet. No dramatic exits. No dragged-on conflicts. Difficulties, yes. Challenges, sure. But above all, joyful, focused growth and a strong culture of trust and respect. Our families have stepped in as true partners, and our guides have leaned courageously into the Acton philosophy: trusting children, letting them own their learning.
This new session arrived with a wave of change. Our older Pumas moved to a different Studio, and with that shift, Discovery took on a new shape. We are now a younger tribe, full of curiosity, playful energy and facing challenges that look different from those of past sessions. Every stage brings its own rhythm and this one invited us to slow down, observe and think.
As part of our natural desire to know, understand, or figure out something new—or to make sense of a particular phenomenon—curiosity comes up as a key word. It can be “cultivated” and can grow over time. This word—curiosity—has a real impact on how we learn and how we remember what we’ve learned, whether it’s in school, at home, or out in the community. Curiosity is something that’s often seen as innate in childhood—it leads to questions, wonder, and that spark of excitement when something suddenly makes sense. Yet, as adults, we’re also invited to keep observing and, above all, to let ourselves be amazed by the things that spark our curiosity.
The Art of War made me see strategy in a completely different way. Before reading it, I thought strategy was only for military leaders or people in politics. I didn’t realize how much it could apply to everyday life, like preparing for a pitch, solving a problem, or even deciding how to respond when something goes wrong.
