Project Based Learning (PBL) is alive and well here at the Lower Campus and a great place to see an example of it is the enrichments. Enrichments are six-week-long courses that provide learning experiences outside the regular curriculum. This curriculum allows students to sample from a variety of topics, skills, and experiences they might not otherwise discover. I will take you through my process, using the elements of PBL, as I develop the curriculum for the next enrichment I will teach.
First some background is needed. Several weeks ago, I visited the Peabody Essex Museum and there was this incredible piece by artist Pedro Reyes called “Disarm Mechanized II, 2012-2014.” It is made up of several Dr. Seussian-like musical instruments made up entirely of the broken down parts of weapons, played via compressed air. The music it created was enchanting and I must have stood there for 15 minutes entranced by it. Then it hit me – wouldn’t the kids have fun doing something like this! Of course, we won’t use decommissioned armaments, but what if we used found objects and recyclables to make musical instruments? This was the question that I used as I thought about how I could make this work.
There are seven essential elements in PBL. The first is having a challenging problem or question that is the heart of the project. In this case, the specific problem to investigate and solve, or Driving Question (DQ), would be: “How can we make musical instruments using found and recycled objects?” The problem/question should be challenging without being intimidating. A question I have to ask myself is, “Can the students finish this project in the six hours that they will have to finish it?” As the facilitator, I have to make certain that this is possible.
The second element is “sustained inquiry,” which is a more active, in-depth process than just “looking something up” in a book or online. The idea is that the DQ should require students to generate questions, find resources to help answer them, and then ask deeper questions. Projects often incorporate different information sources, mixing the traditional idea of “research” – reading a book or searching a website – with more real-world, field-based interviews with experts, service providers and users. For example to answer the DQ posed for this enrichment, the students might have to figure out what type of instruments there are, what materials they are usually made of, etc. The students also might need to inquire how they can best create an end product to share with others. They might ask Lucy, the Lower School Music Teacher, how to write a musical piece to play, or ask a parent who know about video recording how to shoot a music video.
The third element in PBL is “authenticity.” In education, the concept has to do with how “real-world” the learning or task is. The belief is that authenticity increases student motivation and learning. One question I asked myself as I plan this specific enrichment is, “Will this project involve solving a problem faced by people in the world outside of school?” Or in other words, is the context authentic? Reyes’ piece made something beautiful out of something quite ugly; the kids would be make a similar statement. They would be showing others how something beautiful like music can be made by upcycling garbage. The second question I ask is, “Does this project utilize authentic processes, tasks and tools?” The kids might have to score a sheet of music, or learn how to use video editing equipment, so the answer is, “Yes.” Most importantly, does this project provide personal authenticity – does it speak to students’ own concerns, interests, cultures, identities, and issues in their lives? As facilitator, it will important for me to help guide them to make the project meaningful for them.
The fourth element is “student voice and choice.” I want to enable a sense of ownership in the students. They will have input and (some) control over many aspects of the project by the questions that they generate, the resources they will use to find answers to their questions, the tasks and roles they will take on as team members, and the final product they will create.
Reflection is the fifth element. John Dewey, the American psychologist and educational reformer wrote, “We do not learn from experience. We learn from reflecting on experience.” Throughout this project, the students and I will reflect on what they’re learning, how they’re learning, and why they’re learning. This reflection will occur informally as part of an ongoing dialogue. In addition, the students will be asked to reflect during a public presentation of their final piece that will be shared with the Sparhawk community.
This built-in weekly reflection will lead to the sixth element, “critique and revision.” Each week the students will look at where they are and what else needs to be completed to finish the project in the allotted time. This will require that they make decisions about process and revise their ideas as needed.
And finally, the seventh element, “public product” will entail a finished piece that can be shared with others in the community. It might be a performance during a community meeting or the production of a music video that is shared. The students themselves will determine what form the final product takes.
This is just an example of how a teacher might use PBL as a framework for curriculum planning. If you were to look, you would see many such examples in the classrooms on the Sparhawk School Lower Campus.
Middle school is truly the time when students are finding their individual voices, developing a sense of being and building their self esteem. They are also at a crucial and pivotal place in both their academic and in their social and emotional development. Let's be honest, their bodies and brains are going absolutely bonkers and it's our job to help them reign it all in, all while keeping their love and excitement for learning.
Experiential Learning- What does that even mean right? Families who hear "Experiential Learning" on a tour probably can not grasp how or why our educational model is so different until their child does a day visit with us, or perhaps until hey are enrolled. To us it's really about getting deep into the subjects that we are studying, first hand, up close and personal. We become the lessons. 
An Audubon retreat for educators provides a rich habitat for a Sparhawk Lower School teacher.
You see, the Atlantic Puffin underwent a steep decline in the 19th century across its breeding grounds on the Maine coastal islands due to habitat destruction, invasive predators and hunting for their meat and eggs. The birds are monogamous and each pair returns to their burrows on rocky island outcrops each year to hopefully lay, brood, hatch and raise a single chick before taking off to the open ocean once again. All along the northern Atlantic, from Scandinavia to the Atlantic Provinces of Canada these birds could still be found. But there were dwindling or extirpated colonies in Maine. Until, that is, the early 1970’s, when Stephen Kress, who worked for Audubon, began his life's work, which was to bring the Puffin back to one former colony, Eastern Egg Rock Island, in the Muscongus Bay region of Maine. This project continues today, known as "
I was one of the first of my friends to have a child, and it just so happens that I work in education- this automatically makes me the prime candidate for school related questions in my circle. Undoubtedly the most frequently asked question is, "How do I know when a school is right for my child?" 
Originally written June 2015
One of the phrases that you hear most often about the culture at Sparhawk is that we "know our students well." If you are unfamiliar with Sparhawk, you might think that we are just talking about their academic lives- Billy is a B+ student who likes robotics... but, in truth, it's much much more than that. 
The depth to which we know our students is highlighted at our graduation ceremony. Each year, members of our faculty stand before the audience and give individualized tributes and speeches for all of the graduating seniors. Teachers weave together recountings, fond memories, achievements and joy, showcasing the deep connection and understanding that we have of each student. Here's a snippet of a story that was shared at the 2016 graduation by Emily White about graduating senior Jordan Michel:
At Sparhawk, students of all ages are given the opportunity to solve practical, real-life problems as well as those found in math books. In other words, we combine traditional skill- development and practical applications. The applications, often called “hands-on” or “experiential” learning, allow students to use and practice their emerging toolbox of skills, in context, and in ways that are intrinsically interesting and make sense to them. The result is greater enthusiasm, commitment, sustained interest and, ultimately, comprehension. This dual approach also illustrates the reason for math learning.
I have never heard a child ask why they need to learn how to read, or write. Sometimes, however, kids ask, “Why do I have to learn math?” This is because math is hard work in a way that other academic subjects are not, and this is true even for those with math talent. Math is a new language, a foreign one in the sense that few students have much explicit experience of it before coming to school. Children, on the other hand, are immersed in language experiences even in utero. They learn vocabulary by listening as parents talk away to them and provide nouns for everything gaze or hands encounter. They observe social cues and use verbalizations to interact with others, even before they speak their native language. They literally dance the rhythms of syntax, internalizing the patterns while still very tiny. These are the algorithms of spoken language.
Counting, is not math, it is memorization. One-to-one correspondence is a foundational skill that does occur naturally: One cookie for you and one for me; Let’s count the trucks on this page; but beyond that, for most children, the foreign language of math starts once they begin school. The direct parallel would be to imagine a child whose only experience in language arts, before coming to school, consisted of recitation of the alphabet. No stories. No conversation.
We are often asked, "What makes Sparhawk School different from public school?" There are a multitude of answers, but first, I will focus on three related factors upon which all else depends. These defining differences are: our dedication to maintaining ideal teacher-student* ratios, overall group sizes**, and student-student*** ratios. The 'right' ratios are those that assure the best support for both our students and teachers. 
Consider, for instance, the ability that Sparhawk has to create small, mixed-age groupings of students. This begins with the admissions process, when we select individual students not only for personal attributes that indicate age-appropriate levels of ability, motivation, and self-discipline, but also for their contribution to our community as a whole. These qualities are assessed based on day visits and, after sixth grade, also by the review of questionnaires and letters of reference from previous school personnel. Not every applicant is accepted. Public schools, on the other hand, are mandated to accept all students in its district. Students are then divided by age into groups of a certain number without regard to ability, motivation and self-discipline.