LEADPrep students are seen, heard, valued…thriving. This pedagogy of care is intentional. Pedagogy is the science of teaching. Our LEADPrep pedagogical approach includes fostering student-teacher relationships that are reciprocal, with students having voice and choice, “agency.” Students are seen and heard, with teachers demonstrating care by adapting their teaching to meet the needs of all… Read More »
Category: Innovation
Moving to Learn
Kinesthetic or tactile learning is a learning style in which students carry out physical activities to gain information, rather than passive activities such as listening to a lecture or watching demonstrations. For students who are kinesthetic learners, moving helps memory happen. A kinesthetic learner has a hard time learning through traditional lecture-based classes. To put… Read More »
Birdwatching for Mental Health and Environmental Awareness
If you see a group of LEADPrep students on one of their weekly Friday experiential learning outings, don’t be surprised to see them looking up. They are birdwatching for mental health and environmental awareness. Birding is becoming a more and more popular past time, and with a younger and younger crowd. But it’s more than… Read More »
“Gifted” Students Thrive with Us!
In education, traditional gifted students are sometimes identified as “low maintenance.” The thinking is that they are “so smart” they don’t need much help. These students can get their work done and done well on their own, so teachers can concentrate on the students with larger academic needs. At LEADPrep, we know that each student… Read More »
Teaching Multi-Age English in Micro-Schools
Our guest blogger this month is Jacob Janin, who is in his second year teaching English at LEADPrep. He received a BA in philosophy from Whitman college, and loves audiobooks, cooking, and sports. At LEADPrep, we believe that our primary responsibility in English class is to foster within our students a lasting love of reading… Read More »
Stepping out of Time for Intensive Active Learning
Most schools today, in the 21st century, employ the same type of schedules for education that were used way back in the 19th century! Micro-schools have the benefit of being able to use time as a tool – and to create ways for students to delve deeply into non-traditional subjects. “Intensives” are a unique opportunity… Read More »
Outdoor Education – Changing the Way Kids Learn
Desks, chairs, tests, homework, and classrooms are the traditional components all firmly labeled in our minds as the most obvious and mandatory aspects associated with education. Obvious, yes, but not mandatory. Recently, you might have seen the news that Washington is the first state in the nation to license outdoor preschools. This model is nothing… Read More »
The Joy of a Small Class
Common sense tells us that smaller class size is good for students. Large public schools are often partly judged by their average class size. As a micro-school, LEADPrep has the benefit of small class sizes. But how is that really a benefit? Project Based Learning Small schools can specialize in hands-on and project-based learning that… Read More »
Benefits of a Micro-School
LEADPrep is a micro-school. We know what a micro-school is, but what are the benefits? Here are just a few: Personalized curriculum A micro-school is able to personalize the curriculum to the needs and abilities of individual students. There is less reliance on external data like standardized testing and more on learning about the student… Read More »
Exploring the Benefit Mindset
In our classrooms at LEADPrep it’s important for all students to feel like they are part of a community, and that they have choices about how they learn. Being part of a community and part of a collaboration makes learning more meaningful is at the heart of a concept called benefit mindset. Having a benefit… Read More »