The Workshop

Where ideas become tools — and where you can see everything we're building.

What You'll Find Here

steamHouse follows a Think Big, then Be Real design philosophy. We articulate purpose and possibility before calculating constraints — then build what we can with what we've got.

The result is a project with significant breadth: curriculum, books, tools, programs, research foundations, position papers, and a story world. Some of this is polished and ready to use. Some is rough and still taking shape.

This page is the honest staging area — everything we're developing, organized by type and maturity. Items marked 🟢 are ready for use. Items marked 🟡 are complete drafts in review. Items marked 🔴 are early concepts or outlines.

For finished, usable resources, see [Commons for Mentors →] and [Commons for Everyone →]. For the strategic case and research foundations, see [Commons for Partners →].

Book Drafts

steamHouse is developing a suite of books spanning brain science, decision-making, relationships, team dynamics, and more. These are working drafts — written, but not yet professionally edited or published. Each is paired with (or planned to be paired with) a companion interactive tool.

Core Sequence (Read in Order)

BookWhat It CoversCompanion ToolStatus

TrickedHow your brain's shortcuts get exploited — cognitive biases along an evolutionary timelineThinking Bias Profiler🟡 Draft complete, tool built

HookedHow digital platforms hijack attention, validation, and social instinctsDigital Vulnerability Profiler🟡 Draft complete, tool built

MismatchedStone Age brains in a modern world — the evolutionary mismatch driving anxiety and lonelinessMismatch Quiz🟡 Draft complete, tool planned

You Are the AuthorMoving from autopilot to authorship — the five practices of conscious livingAuthorship Assessment🟡 Draft complete, tool built

Stone Age MindsThe deep evolutionary context — how understanding your brain changes everything(shares Mismatch Quiz)🟡 Draft complete

Applied Series (Use Alongside Any Activity)

BookWhat It CoversStatus

Think ClearlyPractical thinking frameworks for everyday decisions🟡 Draft complete

Team WorkHow teams actually form, struggle, and succeed🟡 Draft completeConnectBuilding genuine relationships in a disconnected world🟡 Draft complete

Stay SafePhysical, digital, and emotional safety — what young people actually need to know🟡 Draft complete

Stay CuriousMaintaining wonder and learning drive in a world that rewards certainty🟡 Draft in progress

Speak UpCommunication, persuasion, and finding your voice🟡 Draft complete

Your Money StoryPersonal finance through the lens of values and purpose🟡 Draft complete

Good Habits Free Your MindHow automatic patterns serve (or undermine) your purposes🟡 Draft complete

Better StudentLearning how to learn — metacognition made practical🟡 Draft complete

Reference & Depth

BookWhat It CoversStatus

The Action CalculusA complete decision-making framework — the theoretical backbone🟡 Draft complete, 3 tools built

The Giving CalculusApplying the Action Calculus to charitable giving🔴 Outline complete

The UnderstorySystems thinking through the lens of what grows beneath🟡 Draft in progress

The HouseholdFamily systems, parenting, and the home as development environment🟡 Draft in progress

Globe Team: Finding Where You FitUnderstanding your place among 8 billion humans🟡 Draft in progress

SupertribeThe philosophy of choosing your broadest community of principle🟡 Draft complete

Five HenrysLeadership through five historical lenses🟡 Draft complete

Convergent WisdomWhat endures across traditions — and why that convergence matters🔴 Early outline

Framework & Curriculum Reference

DocumentWhat It IsStatus

Framework Guide (31 chapters)The comprehensive theoretical foundation for the entire steamHouse system🟢 Complete

Manual (4 volumes, 680+ pages)Practical implementation guide — age-staged, activity-ready🟡 Volumes I-III complete, Volume IV in progress

Mentor's Guide (4 volumes)Companion guide for adults working with young people🟡 Complete drafts

Journal CompanionStructured reflection journal for participants🔴 Concept

Proposed Programs

These are designed programs that exist as detailed plans but haven't yet been formally piloted or launched beyond Fairmount.

ProgramWhat It IsStatus

Trek-Quest CampMulti-day immersive camp combining outdoor adventure with curriculum delivery. "Trek" is the journey phase; "Quest" is the mission phase.🟡 Detailed design complete

ORLO GameStrategic board/card game teaching steamHouse concepts through gameplay🔴 Concept and basic rules

Globe TeamCurriculum focused on global awareness — understanding your place in the world🟡 Framework designed, companion tools built

Home TeamParent/family-facing curriculum for applying steamHouse principles at home🔴 Framework outlined

Lifelong LearningAdult education pathway — potentially through university partnerships🔴 Concept with Adams State exploration

Credentialing PlatformOnline system for tracking Development Marker progress — making growth visible🟡 Detailed vision document complete

Position Papers & Essays

Writings that articulate steamHouse's stance on contested or important questions. These represent considered positions, not policy documents.

Essays (The Case for steamHouse)

EssayCore Argument

Stone Age Minds & Modern ExploitationOur brains evolved for a world that no longer exists — and the attention economy exploits the mismatch

Author or AlgorithmIn the age of AI, the question isn't whether machines can think — it's whether humans will

You Can't Grow AloneDevelopment flows through relationships — isolation is the real crisis

The Missing ArchitectureWhat's missing isn't another program — it's the connective infrastructure between existing efforts

In Defense of SynthesisA response to those who say the scope is too broad — why integration is the point

The Case for BoredomWhy unstructured time matters and why we're eliminating it

Consciousness, Purpose & AgencyThe three capacities that make humans irreplaceable

Story as Meaning ArchitectureWhy narrative isn't decoration — it's how humans make sense of experience

Dreams Require LifetimesOn the patience required for meaningful work

Position Statements

StatementWhat It Addresses

Epistemological PositionHow steamHouse thinks about truth, evidence, and contested knowledge

Statement on FaithHow steamHouse relates to religious belief — neutral ground, not hostile ground

Statement on Political ValuesWhere steamHouse stands (and doesn't stand) politically

steamHouse on AIOur position on artificial intelligence in education and development

AI Composition MethodologyHow AI tools were used in developing steamHouse materials — full transparency

The Case for a Super Best BadOur philosophy on failure, risk-taking, and productive mistakes

Position on PurposeWhy purpose matters — and what we mean by it

Research & Reference Materials

Research Foundations

ResourceWhat It Contains

Research Bibliography1,000+ sources organized by domain — the evidence base for everything steamHouse builds

Compendium (38 files)Comprehensive research summaries across 15 domains — from brain science to ethics to planetary systems

Measurement ToolkitLow-burden instruments for documenting program effects without adding academic busywork

Development Markers: Complete System GuideThe full 58-marker framework with progression levels, stage mapping, and assessment guidance

Curriculum Support

ResourceWhat It Contains

Cognitive Bias DemonstrationsHands-on activities that make thinking biases tangible

Emotional Bias DemonstrationsActivities revealing how emotions shape judgment

Core Curriculum Ideas ReferenceThe conceptual architecture underlying everything Commons teaches

Faith Youth Group Bootstrap GuidesAdaptation guides for faith-based youth programming contexts

Organizational Documents

These documents support steamHouse's organizational development. Some are internal; descriptions are provided rather than downloads.

DocumentPurpose

2026 Strategic PlanBoard-facing plan with priorities, milestones, and budget

Grant Funding Action PlanTargeted funder list with timelines and application strategies

Budget OverviewInvestment needs and operational priorities

Crowdfunding & Engagement PlanStrategy for broad public fundraising integrated with interactive tool suite

Board Recruitment MaterialsBoard member introduction packet and recruitment approach

Competitive AnalysisHow steamHouse relates to (and differs from) existing programs

Researcher Outreach StrategyTargeted plan for academic partnerships and validation

Interactive Tools (In Development)

steamHouse has built 11 interactive curriculum tools plus additional companion assessments. These are currently self-contained HTML prototypes being prepared for integration into the redesigned website. When ready, they'll be accessible through their relevant content areas.

Know Your World (Context & perspective)

  • Where Do You Stand? — Your global position across 8 dimensions

  • Perception vs. Reality Quiz — How your assumptions compare to data

  • Random Earthling Generator — Meet a statistically plausible person from anywhere on Earth

  • Cucurbit Explorer — The surprising complexity hidden in familiar things

Know Your Mind (Self-knowledge)

  • Thinking Bias Profiler — Discover your personal pattern of cognitive biases

  • Marker Explorer & Assessment — Explore and self-rate on all 58 Development Markers

  • Yummy Unit Calculator — Your personal exchange rates for what matters

Make Better Decisions (Applied thinking)

  • Decision Audit — A 20-question bias check for any pending decision

  • Decision Advisor — AI-powered adaptive decision conversation

  • Action Calculus Decision Maker — Structured 4-stage decision analysis

Companion Assessments (Book-paired tools)

  • Digital Vulnerability Profiler — Companion to Hooked

  • Authorship Assessment — Companion to You Are the Author

Tools will be linked from relevant pages as they're integrated into the website design. For now, they're available as standalone files — contact us if you'd like to try them.

The Chronicles Story World

The steamHouse Chronicles is an emerging fictional narrative featuring parallel Earth timelines and the TeraTerraTribe — a story world designed to teach curriculum concepts through character and adventure.

ElementStatus

Story Treatment (extended)🟡 Complete

Character Development (Mitch, Clem, Queen Zubby)🟡 In development

60-Minute Content Series Strategy🟡 Strategy complete

Film Studies Curriculum🟡 Draft complete — why film analysis belongs in steamHouse

TimeSlide, Earth ERFers & Cucurbita🟡 World-building document

Compelling Story / Objective Story🟡 Two storytelling frameworks — dramatic and journalistic

How to Use This Page

If you're a mentor: Start with [Commons for Mentors →]. The Workshop shows you what's coming, but the 12 Lessons, Bootstrap Guides, and Measurement Toolkit are ready now.

If you're a researcher: The Framework Guide, Compendium, and Research Bibliography are your starting points. Contact us about specific drafts or data access.

If you're a funder: See [Commons for Partners →] for the strategic case and current status. The Workshop shows the full scope of what your investment would support.

If you're curious: Browse. Everything here represents considered work — even the rough stuff. We'd rather show you the whole picture honestly than present a polished slice.

steamHouse Commons | The Workshop Updated February 2026