The underlying principle of GES’s educational program is fostering rich, authentic understanding by connecting students to their learning. We expect our students will learn not only from books and teachers but from their direct experience of studying the environment and community in which they live. We seek to enhance their inherent curiosity and creativity, develop their abilities to be critical thinkers and effective problem-solvers, and spark their passion for life-long learning.

For example, students studying geology may go to Artist’s Point, Pincushion Mountain, or Cut Face Creek to see the rocks that surround Lake Superior and Grand Marais. They may read historical fiction or research primary documents focused on the role of mining in Minnesota.  Local experts may lead field tours or classroom presentations.  Students may use the Internet or other resources to investigate the geology of other places in the world and analyze similarities and differences with this region.  Their work may include updating a nature journal or writing an essay about their insights.  Groups of students may develop presentations to share with other classrooms or the broader community.  We have used all of these methods and more to develop and support hands-on, interdisciplinary, student-centered learning experiences.

Using this approach to teaching, educators guide students through in-depth studies of real-world topics.  The goal is to help develop children who are highly motivated, feel actively involved in their own learning, and produce work of high quality.

A Community of Respect and Responsibility
Students will not take the emotional risks necessary to fully engage in these rich learning experiences until they feel safe, supported, and confident in their ability to meet the social and behavioral expectations of school life.  Using the Responsive Classroom approach, we strive to create an environment where clear expectations, consistent follow-through, and personal responsibility are woven into all aspects of our operation.  The goal is not to force compliance to a set of external standards, but to help students develop both an understanding of the value of an interdependent learning community and the skills necessary to be an effective member of it.  This includes allowing students to create the classroom and other school rules necessary for all students to achieve their unique educational hopes and dreams.

Multi-age Classrooms
GES has established stand-alone kindergarten through second-grade classrooms, believing that this is the most developmentally-appropriate environment for helping these students prepare for success in school.  All other GES classrooms are multi-age, with the following current grade combinations: 3-4, 5-6, and 7-8. Students with differing ability levels and ages are taught in the same classroom without dividing them or the curriculum into grade designations.  Teachers from 3rd grade on teach each grade of students for two years and students alternate between being the “youngers” and “olders” in the classroom.  The corresponding relational and social dynamics provide a powerful framework for maintaining a consistent, supportive, and productive classroom.

Integrated Curriculum
With consideration of our accountability for student proficiency, classroom teachers have done extensive work to create curriculum maps that help ensure mandated grade-level academic standards are addressed.  They have also developed units, themes, and projects that incorporate standards from multiple academic disciplines, often blending or resequencing content requirements to create a more cohesive whole.  Students read and write across curriculum areas, and integrate concepts from different disciplines as they work through their assignments.  As a result, students see connections between subjects, invoke a broader range of problem-solving strategies, and begin to develop a sense of life’s over-arching themes and enduring understandings.

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