By the Numbers
Teaching the Child or By the Numbers?
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When comparing schools, many focus on scores and numbers.
Here are numbers from The Children's School:
20
Years our school has been in operation. We were founded in 2004
16
The Limit on
Students per Class
30+
Number of Colleges and
Universities our grads now attend
0
Letter Grades or
Standardized Tests
That's right. Zero grades and zero standardized tests. We work with each child individually, gauging their progress by carefully evaluating the quality of their work. We watch the improvement in their reading, writing and math skills from project to project; their behavior and experience in the classroom, and their enthusiasm for learning. Whenever we see a chance to do more to help a child learn, we take action: We change things up - work with them one on one - increase the challenge or reduce it for a time.
Since every child's learning style and potential is unique,
we focus on numbers that really matter:
3067
Number of natural wooden blocks in our block room, in 23 assorted shapes
10,000+
Number of books in our TCS library collection
55
Specific learning goals in our social justice curriculum for elementary students
$2187
Amount raised by our 4th and 5th Graders for "Take 3 for the Sea" in a student-managed event to help clean up plastic trash in our oceans.
662
Estimated number of worms in our Kindergarten vermiculture bin
153
Number of trout minnows in our 6th grade Great Lakes biosystem project
We spend our time and resources making what our students are learning engaging, relevant, and fun. We find it's the best way to create kids who love to go to school and who leave our school with a lifelong love of learning!
We believe education isn't a "paint by number" proposition. Sitting in a desk all day and memorizing facts may suit a small number of children. We've found that most children are more engaged when they play an active role in choosing what they want to learn. We give them a supervised group framework, a broad range of resources, experiences and projects, all based on their individual and group interests.
The time we save by eliminating standardized tests, leaves time for counting our students' tangible
achievements, and counting new ways we can enrich their learning experience.
At The Children's School we have lots of fantastic numbers that we are proud of. And yet, the best reason to choose our school is this:
We'll never treat your child like one.