A Day in the life

A day in our studios is marked by creativity within constraints: large blocks of time for work and play with clear but broad guardrails, equipping young people to manage their time, set goals, and track progress. As learners demonstrate their readiness, they earn more freedom and responsibility. Mornings are reserved for Core skills and afternoons are for hands-on projects with integrated time to reflect, think deeply, and connect with peers. Within each work block, students choose from a broad range of work options based on their personal goals, passions and commitments.

Each day is broken up into work sprints with a shared purpose or goal. In a normal day:

• Mornings are reserved for Core Skills
• Afternoons are for hands-on Quest projects in the shoes of a real-life hero
• 15-minute Socratic discussions bookend the work periods and provide a time to reflect, think deeply, and bond as a group
• Plenty of time for free play and exercise throughout the day

The flexibility of the schedule is key to the learning design. Work blocks can be shuffled around based on studio needs each session. Within each work block, students choose from a broad range of work options based on their personal goals, passions, and commitments.

Our Learner-Driven Communities are run mostly by our students, where closely connected families of lifelong learners are bound by clear covenants; and “Learning to Do” and “Learning to Be” are even more important than “Learning to Know.”

• Students create and sign a Contract of Promises describing how each individual will act and the consequences for violating community norms.
• Mentor teams encourage younger and older students to listen, affirm, set goals and hold each other accountable.
• "Learn to Be" badges that celebrate character and completing leadership challenges.