Grade School

What is the day? 

Main Lesson is a time of focused exploration that begins each morning. After a song, a verse, or mental math, the class spends nearly two hours on a single subject like botany, ancient civilizations, or geometry. About every month, the block changes. Through the day, there is instruction in music, movement, eurythmy, outdoor education, handwork, and Spanish and Mandarin. 

What is the difference? 

Visit a classroom and you’ll see students strive for more than just the right answerstudents who create beautiful work and try their hands at everything. You’ll meet teachers who stay with a class through the grades, building a deep understanding of each student, and subject teachers who share expertise in their fields. The curriculum, carefully considered, inspires students through each grade and each stage of development.  

Explore by grade

A look at the upper grades

Through a unique dual-language program, children develop contrasts in linguistics and culture. Oral language acquisition in  the early grades builds to reading, writing, dictation, and written exploration of grammatical structures. 

Hands of a child kitting

Oberlin College
The Presidio Graduate School

“When I think about my education, I always come back to the knitting. It is a metaphor for building an interconnected web. It uses the hands, but takes focus and intelligence. A meeting of cognitive skill and physical dexterity - it's gotta be good for the brain!" Read more

Olivia Skyaasen stands in front of a Red Cross vehicle during a humanitarian mission.

International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva
London School of Economics and Political Science

"The teachers know you and recognize something in you... the person that you might become.  My teacher identified, correctly and early on, that justice and fairness were essential to me."  Read more

    

Geometry main lesson, a student illustration.

“When I look at the work of these young people - the exquisite lesson books, the dazzling pastel paintings, the crocheted hats and knitted socks, the museum quality three-legged stools - when I hear their chamber music, catch them rapping, in Mandarin when they think no one is listening... I think, how very talented are every one of their teachers.”

Children draw forms on the chalkboard.

“Children learn to draw these incredibly intricate and beautiful patterns called Form Drawings. The teacher explained that these are a connection to writing, reading, geometry, and so on. It was hard to understand at the time, but now that our child is in high school, we see the impact.”  

Teacher Alyssa Stellar in front of the class during main lesson

“The most spectacular parts of teaching are seeing the children blossom and learning from the rich experiences of my colleagues. I am constantly grateful for their dedication to this movement and our school. They are world-class models of how to educate and prepare children to meet the world.”