Project-Based Learning is a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an engaging and complex question, problem or challenge. At The Willow School, our teachers look at the standards required in each grade level and work with each other to find a real-world connection. The students work collaboratively and creatively to answer the questions raised. Teachers are also trained in Design Thinking, which is another creative, problem-solving method

Arts integration is an interdisciplinary teaching practice through which academic subjects and arts are taught and assessed equitably in order to deepen students’ understanding of both. At the Lower School, artists and grade-level teachers work together to find related ideas within both subjects. Together, they plan and deliver instruction connecting academic standards and artistic content. Ultimately, students create a product: a play, a dance, a musical score, or a work of visual art or of creative writing. These efforts culminate at the Lower School’s Arts Happening community celebration, where students share their artistic pieces.

The foundation for Social/Emotional Learning (SEL) begins with K-4 student participation in weekly Caring Counts meetings. Homerooms meet to discuss issues related to our core values, participate in empathy-building exercises and learn more about brain research as it relates to emotional regulation. This is advanced when fourth-grade student leaders, who exemplify the school’s core values, participate on the Care to Change Team. This team is empowered to collaborate with the adult Caring Counts Leadership Team, which steers the SEL vision for the Lower School. This leadership includes facilitating activities in each classroom that offer students opportunities to identify, understand and self-regulate their emotions.

The Willow School’s school culture is based on the four tenets of Project Pride: Be Kind; Be Responsible; Respect People and Property; and Do Your Best Work. Project Pride permeates the school, and the focus on these core values helps create a positive learning environment, a strong community and valuable homeschool connections. Willow has been designated a No Place for Hate School by the Anti-Defamation League