That's awesome and I agree with you.* I had a similar experience
   with music. I took boring lessons. I mastered the pieces enough
   then would go and do my own thing, changing them around and
   stuff. They tried to convince Mom to send me to Julliard when i
   was in 5th grade.* After a few months of special lessons to
   prepare for it, I said, "Please Mom, No."* and she agreed.* I'm
   glad too.* It wasn't the life for me. I don't have a problem
   with a few things being learned "by rote" - but if it's gonna be
   rote, make it songs and music; singing and writing and drawing;
   make it interesting.* But if it were up to me, beyond some
   really basic basics in math + english and stuff, I'd let kids
   loose and encourage them to explore what interests them... and
   teach the math/english/science/whatever from WITHIN the areas
   that interest them. If they're obsessed with Pokemon... ok,
   then, help me design a Pokemon curriculum for other kids - and
   I'd make it the job of the student to help me design a class to
   teach younger students these concepts using THEIR obsession...
   ALL THE WHILE... I'd be sliding in all of the concepts they'd
   need for that year's class.* And I'd continue like that.* If
   they got bored with Pokemon... use whatever the next obsession
   was. Why?* Because kids get obsessed with things that are WAY
   more complicated then school subjects.* What makes school hard
   is that is uses old fashioned techniques, old fashioned
   language, old fashioned 'stuff'.* It's annoying :)* But I dunno
   - this is just one of 1000 ideas I have that would never fly.
   ----   You guys are awesome!* Yeah, I agree with you both.* To
   me, I'd let the INTERESTS of the students guide the curriculum.
   If someone showed artistic tendencies young and they WANTED to
   pursue it, I'd spent 80% of the time on that, and 20% on other
   subjects just so they're rounded. If they get bored... and no
   longer interested in it and find something else interesting,
   then explore that 80% of the way, with 20% to "all the other
   stuff"... and I don't see why reason why math/science/music
   couldn't be incorporated easily into cartooning.* You could do
   what you love and maybe the other subjects would get put in the
   CONTEXT of cartooning, like, "here's how a mathematician would
   see what you do"... and you'd get some practical stuff that
   could actually be useful perhaps - and perhaps not.. but at
   least it would be related to something real and important to
   you.