Wild Oak Elementary Program

We believe that all students can love learning. Given the right type of individualized attention, non-judgemental and supportive circumstances, and access to content that engages their curiosity, they will learn. Our culture at Wild Oak will be one of discovery: to find out what makes kids tick, discover what they need to learn, and to provide them with the resources to flourish as learners. 

We also believe that everyone is different and therefore has a different combination of “intelligences” and learning preferences. Our approach will be to make teaching as multimodal and multisensory as possible so that all children are able to be engaged.

At Wild Oak, we believe in the power of experiential education, recognizing that learning goes beyond the confines of the traditional classroom. Our commitment to hands-on learning is evident through our engaging field trip experiences. These excursions provide students with the opportunity to apply classroom knowledge to real-world situations, fostering a deeper understanding of various subjects. Whether exploring local museums, natural habitats, or cultural landmarks, our field trips are carefully designed to enhance the curriculum and ignite students’ curiosity. These experiential learning opportunities not only enrich academic content but also contribute to the development of critical thinking, problem-solving, and social skills. We believe that by immersing students in real-life experiences, we nurture a love for learning that extends far beyond the classroom walls.

Our class sizes are very small, with 13 students being our largest class. Small class sizes have been shown to help foster deeper relationships between teachers and ensure that students receive individual attention.

Our elementary school features multi-age classrooms, including a Kindergarten-First Grade class, a Second-Third Grade class, and a Fourth-Fifth Grade class. This structure offers children greater flexibility in mastering skills, recognizing that learning is not always linear. In multi-age settings, students can progress at their own pace, free from the pressure of keeping up with or being held back by the entire group. Teachers benefit from an extended timeframe to understand each student and their family, enabling them to tailor instruction to individual needs. This personalized approach fosters a supportive learning environment, where teachers can engage students effectively and create an atmosphere conducive to success.

In lieu of typical letter-based grading systems in separate subjects, Wild Oak will have a more robust and comprehensive assessment system that incorporates goals set in concert with the student rather than for him or her. Goals will represent not only mastery of academic topics and ideas, but will include social and emotional aptitudes, and levels of creativity and engagement, qualities shown to be better indicators of success later on than traditional grades and testing. Portfolios will be used extensively.

(Wild Oak can, if requested, translate the grading system into a traditional A-F scale should a family need it for transferring or other purposes.)

Wild Oak’s close-knit community and intentional curriculum will function in tandem to challenge students to listen to, empathize with, and collaboratively work with others. We will expect them, with guidance, to be open to self-discovery and comfortable with feedback. Social and emotional learning will not just consist of one-off activities, but will be woven through the entire curriculum through lessons, journaling, and group projects. Time is built in daily for mindfulness exercises and self-reflection. 

Wild Oak will employ restorative circles within the community to foster positive learning environments and relationships not only between students, but between students and teachers, and amongst teachers. Restorative circles are processes that facilitate positive communication through dialogue and mechanisms to ensure that all voices are heard and “at the table.”
Students will also learn about positive, nonviolent communication practices; building a community of individuals who can differ in experience and opinion, but know how to listen.