It is the beginning of the school day, still misty outside; a 1st grader guides me to the top of a pile of rocks, branches, and dirt. I am not wearing the most practical shoes for this exhibition, but I am still upright. I ask, “Where are we now?” She responds, gliding swiftly off the pile and toward a new construction, “It’s the dump!” Ah. This is a quick tour of Roxaboxen, which is located adjacent to the Lost Meadow. It is an emergent civilization born out of these students’ collective imaginations, rocks, and other found items. This may look like recess play, but it is a highly engaging interdisciplinary approach to learning integrating math, engineering, language arts, social justice, social cooperation, science, and the creative arts.

One of the things I have the privilege of doing in my role as Head of School is to visit classes and witness the dynamic learning and teaching happening in all corners of our campus.

In the past couple of weeks, these visits included observing the 6th grade walk through orderly expectations on how to approach their ancient India research projects; the 4th grade engaged in an etymological study of commonly used words (like “rizz”), pulling from various academic sources including their own applied meaning; a middle school science class focus on developing testable research questions to pinpoint and to begin formulating their individual science fair experiment hypotheses. In an upper elementary art class, artists used various materials to form abstract 1- to 2-foot-high sculptures smoothed with plaster and finished in brightly colored acrylics. During Monday’s high school 6th period, Bryant Baker, Director of Conservation and Research at Los Padres Forest Watch, engaged students in a discussion about wildfire ecology while answering their questions about conservation and protecting communities and structures from wildfires.

Recently, during a 5th grade Spanish class brainbreak, I watched as students responded to prompts en español about what they eat for breakfast. In each corner, there was a different sign indicating the extent to which the teacher’s statements were true to them: nunca, a veces, raramente, and siempre. As the teacher prompted (panqueques, yogur, rosquilla. . . . ), the students moved around the classroom giggling and high-fiving each other as they practiced aural comprehension and celebrated eating commonalities and differences among themselves and their classmates.

On Friday I sat with the 7th grade while we participated in an Appreciation, Acknowledgement, and Apology Circle. Each of us randomly drew the name of someone in the circle to express an appreciation, acknowledgment, and/or apology. Once everyone had taken a turn, the students begged to continue, which they did popcorn-style for another 15 minutes until their teacher insisted they get to the math lesson.

The learning here is dynamic and alive for students. Our teachers integrate subjects, incorporate multiple perspectives, take the learning outdoors when possible, and offer moments to engage in partner or small group activities and through project-based or self-directed learning tasks. Students have ample opportunities to put their learning into their own words, make their learning visible to themselves and each other, and present their work to the community through showcases, exhibitions, poetry readings, fairs, and gallery walks. The result? More relevance, buy-in, and student engagement.

Each of our highly skilled teachers continuously updates their curriculum maps, lessons, and classroom learning resources and participates in ongoing professional development. Our teachers make space to demonstrate curiosity, make mistakes, and explore the world of knowledge alongside our students.

It is an inspiration to be at a school where learning is so alive.