Our School

An educational approach inspired by both established and ground-breaking research

Theory & Practice

Just a few of our favorite inspirational education thought pieces are linked below so you can get a sense of the depth of the research and thinking that underpins our educational approach and intentional school design.

Pedagogy and Approach

New Teaching Method Could Unleash A Generation of Geniuses (highlights Reggio Emilia in evolution of a community approach to self-directed learning)

CNN Report on Reggio Emilia as World’s Best Model – video

Reggio Emilia versus Montessori

‘The Journey to Become a Reggio Emilia Inspired School’ by Mary Bell, JK Lead Teacher at Bennett Day School

The Muse School, Toddler through High School Reggio Emilia inspired school in California, founded by James and Suzy Cameron

Google Offers Reggio Emilia inspired programs for children of its employees

Loris Malaguzzi, Founder of the Reggio Emilia Approach

North American Reggio Emilia Alliance

Reggio Children Institute in Italy

The Reggio Emilia Approach: A Dialogue with the Learning Process of Children

Reggio Emilia Approach and Impact on Children, academic paper from Loyola University of Chicago comparing Reggio Emilia and Montessori approaches

Creativity, Multiple Intelligences, and Design Thinking
Ken Robinson: How Schools Kill Creativity – most watched Ted Talk ever

Project Zero, Harvard Graduate School of Education: ‘Multiple Intelligences Around World’ by Jie-Qi Chen, Advisory Board at Bennett Day School.

The Creativity Crisis and Creativity Quotient, Newsweek

Measuring Creativity

Teaching and Assessing Creativity

Recasting Students and Teachers as Designers

Professional Development
NYTimes Magazine Cover Article on ‘Building a Better Teacher’

 

Grit, Failure, and Persistence
Prof Angela Duckworth research at UPenn showing grit and self-control more predictive of success than IQ

The Secret to Success is Failure — and Grit, NYTimes

Why Parents Need to Let Their Children Fail

Seven Crippling Parent Behaviors that Keep Children from Becoming Leaders, Forbes

Paul Tough, author of How Children Succeed, on grit, perseverance, etc. as critical skills

Habits of Mind: Teaching and Modeling Persistence

Testing and Grades

Letter Grades Deserve an F, The Atlantic

Harvard research on student feedback and how test scores only reveal when learning is not taking place, but not why.

The Future will not be Multiple Choice – Ted Talk

Alfie Kohn on Progressive Education, Grades, and Test Scores

“I was going to teach them the meaning of life, but it wasn’t on the test.”

International Benchmarks
Your Child Left Behind, The Atlantic

International PISA Test shows Singapore, Finland, and East Asian countries leading the world in math, science, and reading. U.S. holding steady for decades while being surpassed by other countries.

Smartest Kids in the World, NYTimes

Can’t we do Better?  Recent PISA results.  Thomas Friedman, NYTimes.

Singapore Teaches the World How to Teach Math and Mastery

21st Century Skills

The Case for Project-Based Learning

Beyond the Transcript: Digital Portfolios Paint a Complete Picture

Programming should be taught just like reading and writing – Ted Talk