Lower School – Gutenberg
Lower School
Students Help Lead the Way in Their Learning Journey
Everything our Lower School students experience is rooted in how to take risks in our nurturing setting where making mistakes is embraced as part of the learning journey. Our students are known, understood, supported, and free to be their very best selves.
Empowered Students
Everything we do builds upon inspiring curiosity, engagement, and leadership in your child. By empowering students to direct their own projects, we tie place-based education to the interests of our students and bring learning to life in meaningful, relevant ways.
Academic Engagement
We make learning sticky with authentic curriculum, integration of ideas and skills, and a learner-centered approach. Projects are interdisciplinary, connecting all subjects in a realistic way. Students receive individualized instruction in core subjects through hands-on, teacher-guided activities to ensure students are appropriately challenged and supported.
Character Development
We equally value students’ academic and personal growth. We integrate restorative practices into classrooms, encouraging students to develop conflict management skills and to be accountable for their behavior. We build skills through our Character and Leadership class, practice mindfulness each day, and end each day with a gratitude circle.
Community Focus
Community begins in the classroom, where we foster an inclusive, supportive classroom environment, so students naturally develop a love of learning and new challenges. We take both single-day and extended journeys into the nearby community. Many projects throughout the year involve connections to our local community as we prepare students to become global leaders.
“Our daughter just started at Mountain Academy a few months ago and we have already noticed how much more she is enjoying – and growing from – her new school. The individualized approach is just what she needed. As parents, we are so grateful to see her thriving in both her social and academic development. As a student, she is excited to be able to pursue customized creative writing projects and stretch her comfort zone in an extra-challenging math group. Thank you for seeing her whole self and meeting her needs in such supportive and thoughtful ways.”
Quote from a Lower School Parent’31
Specialized Classes
A robust Lower School education is one that teaches different strengths and learning styles and builds a comprehensive foundation for schooling. We provide specialized classes in Spanish, Fine Arts, Outdoor Education, Science, and Farm and Garden to provide students the opportunities to explore different interests through varied content areas. Each of these classes is incorporated into a regular weekly schedule and aligns with our place-based educational model.
About Our Schedule
K/1 Daily Schedule
(Sample daily schedule)
8:00 – Warmup
9:00 – Literacy and Snack
10:30 – Recess
11:00 – Math
12:00 – Lunch
12:45 – Music/Art/Science/Explorations
1:30 – Recess
2:00 – Science/Explorations/Social Emotional Learning/Project Lab/Outdoor Education/Spanish
2:45 – Hands to Work
3:15 – Dismissal
2/3 Daily Schedule
(Sample daily schedule)
8:00 – Warmup
8:30 – Morning Meeting
9:00 – Literacy and Snack
10:30 – Recess
11:00 – Math
12:00 – Lunch
12:45 – Art/Music/Science/Character and Leadership
1:30 – Recess
2:00 – Project Lab/Outdoor Education/Learning Lab/Science
2:45 – Hands to Work
3:15 – Dismissal
4/5 Daily Schedule
(Sample daily schedule)
8:00 – Morning Work
8:30 – Morning Meeting
9:00 – Literacy and Snack/Music
10:30 – Recess
11:00 – Science/Outdoor Education/Character and Leadership/Art
12:00 – Lunch
12:45 – Math
1:30 – Recess
2:00 – Music/Capstone and Project Lab/Spanish
2:45 – Hands to Work
3:15 – Dismissal