Beyond the Brochure – Page 28 – By Christina Simon, Anne Simon and Porcha Dodson. A blog for parents who are applying to private elementary schools in Los Angeles. And, what life is really like at some of these schools.

The Sycamore School in Malibu, Opening September 2015

July 15, 2015July 15, 2015 admin Leave a comment

THE SYCAMORE SCHOOL SET TO OPEN SEPTEMBER 2015 IN MALIBU

Revolutionary Independent Elementary School Starts with 20 Students Ages 6-8

The Sycamore School, an independent elementary school featuring a curriculum rooted in collaboration, innovation, and learning through play and creativity, opens in Malibu on September 1, 2015 for 20 children ages 6-8. Sycamore is the realization of Los Angeles-based Catalyst Education’s vision and philosophy. Catalyst was formed with the belief that education can look different and a desire to change the discussion about what learning can be. Its three founders, Tedd Wakeman, AJ Webster and Christy Durham, comprise the leadership team at Sycamore and bring their distinctive approach to learning and their extensive experience to their roles as its founding teachers and administrators.

“We are very excited to bring an alternative option for elementary education to Malibu families,” said Tedd Wakeman, Sycamore School. “The world we live in now demands a different approach to education. Students need a learning experience that is continuous, future-focused and engagement based. We’re giving them just that on this beautiful campus.” Sycamore is located on 3504 Las Flores Canyon Road, in the area formerly occupied by New Roads Middle School. Two school buildings, filled with natural light, are surrounded by trees, grass and green flora, which also serve as learning spaces. On campus, there’s an idea lab, maker space, adventure room (with a soaring ceiling and mobile furniture so kids can create their own learning environment), tinker zone, greenhouse, kitchen, reading nook/game room, sports court and the school office. Beginning mid-April, the campus is undergoing renovations to prepare for opening in September.

Student Experience

The student experience at Sycamore features 10 tenets: reading and writing, social emotional learning, enriched learning, technology, field trips, play, STEAM (science, technology, engineering, art, math), unique learning spaces, making, and environmental stewardship. At a family open house held at Sycamore on March 21, the dynamic leadership team led prospective students in fun games demonstrating these tenets in action. A fast-paced game called “Haystacks” in the adventure room encouraged mathematical thinking, developing numeracy, social dynamics, systems thinking and problem solving. A second game outdoors demonstrated how Sycamore utilizes its outside spaces for learning – in this game, to build literacy, pre-literacy and teamwork. A third project-based maker activity had the kids building a theme park without even realizing they were developing skills in creative thinking, design, physics, problem solving, materials science, mathematical thinking, individualized student instruction or failure redesigned as iteration.

Sycamore School’s Leadership Team

Research shows that schools do better when educators are collaborative. To that end, Sycamore does not have a principal, per se. Instead, the three-member leadership team shares teaching and decision-making responsibilities and each governs a particular sphere of influence. AJ Webster oversees curriculum; Christy Durham, logistics and operations; Tedd Wakeman, community and outreach.

AJ Webster has more than 15 years of classroom experience teaching science, Latin, language arts, math and social science at schools including Buckley in Sherman Oaks and the PlayMaker program at New Roads in Santa Monica. He holds a Master’s in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies. He embraces the Maker Movement, in which students design, construct and “think with their hands.” Webster has conducted workshops for the national Game Learning Society and was the keynote speaker for the 2014 Milken Playful Learning Summit. His work with PlayMaker was featured on PBS NewsHour.
Christy Durham has more than 15 years of elementary and middle school teaching experience. She holds a Master’s in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies and was a sixth grade teacher at Buckley, where she orchestrated an outdoor educational program and created a diversity initiative round table for the faculty. In 2011 she was awarded the Buckley School’s Parents’ Association Award, which allowed her to study in Peru. She received the National Junior Honor Society Teacher of the Year Award in 2012. Durham left Buckley in 2012 to teach fourth and fifth grade at Los Encinos School in Encino, which embraces integrated, project-based learning. She has presented at the Archer School for Girls STEM conference and the Milken Community School Playful Learning Summit.
Tedd Wakeman has been working with children in education, recreation, and research for 20 years. For 13 of those, he taught inner-city youth in LAUSD at the elementary level, concurrently traveling the country teaching and developing STEM curriculum for Nike/Eco Educators. He has taught extensively across the globe, working in the Republic of the Maldives teaching English to groups of adults from more than 25 different nations while diving the local coral reefs as a dive master. In Bali, he lived and worked with Indonesian rice farmers and taught local teenagers. He taught fourth and fifth grade for two years in Costa Rica, while exploring the local rainforest ecosystems. Wakeman then joined the GameDesk team in Los Angeles to found the revolutionary PlayMaker School, which has gained notoriety for its unique approach to 21st Century learning and game-based curriculum.

A Sycamore School advisory board is being assembled and will include local and national leaders in education, business and development.

Funding and How to Apply

Funding for the Sycamore School is provided by a generous private grant. Tuition is relatively low due to this funding. Financial assistance is available. Applications are due May 15 and admission is determined on the basis of applications and family interviews. Interviews for qualified applicants will be conducted starting April 13. Please see note below.

For more details about Sycamore’s mission and educational philosophy, and to download an application packet, please visit www.sycamore-school.org.

Contact Heather Boylston at heather@h-rpr.com to set up interviews or a campus tour.

Note: Information provided by Sycamore School’s press release. The school’s first class is full, but there is a wait-list so if you’re interested, go ahead and contact the school! –Christina

Sequoyah School in Pasadena Will Add New High School, Fall 2016

July 8, 2015July 8, 2015 admin Leave a comment

“Sequoyah School is an independent, K-8 day school located in Pasadena, California. Sequoyah is now expanding its program to high school starting with enrollment of 9th and 10th grade in the fall of 2016. Founded in 1958, the school is committed to an education that “challenges the mind, nurtures the heart, and celebrates human dignity”. Through Sequoyah’s project-based curriculum, language arts, mathematics, social studies, Spanish, science, the visual and performing arts are all taught as related subjects in the elementary and junior high program. Teachers guide students to be able to work independently and collaboratively, and to make inspired connections between one discipline and another. Sequoyah’s high school students will be further challenged to apply their knowledge and skills in advanced college preparatory coursework and interdisciplinary field studies emphasizing global perspectives and cultural competency.

The school is named after the Cherokee leader and silversmith who invented an alphabet for his native language. The Sequoyah community honors and reflects the ethnic, cultural and economic diversity of Southern California. Sequoyah is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools.”–Sequoyah School

For more information, click on Sequoyah High School

See Beyond The Brochure’s School Profile of Sequoyah School’s K-8 program HERE.

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Weekend Links: Happy 4th of July!

July 3, 2015July 3, 2015 admin 1 Comment

Happy July 4th weekend! This is my favorite holiday because it reminds me of what it means to be American. It’s also perfect for a long, lazy summer weekend where we can host friends for a BBQ and swimming. We visited family and friends last earlier this week in Washington D.C. on what has become an annual trip. What a fun city…so many things to see and do.

Here are some interesting links to browse from around the Web:

This is one of the most powerful pieces I’ve read about one mom’s search for a school in L.A. Wow. Definitely a must-read! (Dame Magazine)

Why would a New York school application ask how the kid was delivered? I would refuse to answer the question. Whatever happened to privacy? (NYT Motherlode)

To trust your ‘parenting instincts’ or not…two pieces with different perspectives tackle this issue. I’ve always relied on a combination of my own maternal instincts and the advice of parents I respect. In the spring, I definitely relied more heavily on friends and family more than ever before to get me through a rough parenting year–I mean really rough– like make me cry and knock me flat–kind of year. (Brain, Child)

If you’re hearing terms like ‘project based learning’ on L.A. private school tours, but need more information check out Educopia. Also, tons of interesting articles on education trends and what’s happening in the classroom. (Edutopia)

A nice shout-out to Viewpoint Basketball. Coach Prince and his team are well-deserving of the accolades. (Los Angeles Times)

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Finding YOUR Tribe At L.A. Private School

June 24, 2015June 24, 2015 admin 1 Comment

It can look intimidating at first. You’re at a new school and you look around. The other moms all look richer, more confident and more involved in the school than you’ll ever be. On top of that, they already seem to know each other. It’s hard to imagine you’ll ever fit in.

Every time I started a new school, or even a new class within the school, I felt that way – destined to be left out. For my family, paying for private schools was a struggle and we sacrificed things to make it happen. Fancy cars and a big house and swank vacations were among the things that we didn’t have. At first glance, you believe you’re the only one without. You also get the sense that either everyone is a stay-at-home mom and you’re not, or that everyone has a job and you don’t. (I’ve been on both sides of that coin).

The funny thing is I can say eighteen years into the L.A. private school scenes, my worst fears were never realized. I always found my people. It’s not always easy, but in fact I would say that of every class of all three of my kids I not only found my place, but took away really good friendships, many of which endured long after the kids stopped hanging out.

If you just drop your kid and run and never get involved at all it’s harder than if you find some committee to join. I mostly worked and couldn’t be one of those rabid PTA moms. There is always a group of moms at every school that seem to run the place. God bless them. They are generally extremely hard working and efficient and way over qualified to serve as much food as they do. They are at every event, befriend each other and it’s not a bad idea to be nice to them, because they know everything that’s going on and sometimes it’s good information.

The flip side of this group is that I’ve seen women nearly go to fisticuffs over whether or not to put the fork in the cake or have people take their own fork. My personal preference is never to get involved with committees that involve food. All the real problems go down there. The battle over healthy food versus sugar snacks alone is enough to send me running to the hills. But they also get into it over serving in a earth friendly way or how to handle food in a totally germ free manner. These things don’t interest me, but I’m always nice to those women because they also know who is about to leave or get fired and what things you need to do to get your kid in certain classes or on certain teams. They are an invaluable resource for those with no opinion on snack food.

I know for women with full-time jobs it’s impossible to dream of adding some committee or serving a lunch, but there a few committees worth popping in on. The fundraising ones usually get you invited to the best parties even if you aren’t a big donor. Generally they involve a couple after hours meetings and making four or five phone calls. Easy breezy and you’ll meet people and be thanked for your service. Or show up at some of the weekend events… even if only one or two in the year to see who’s there that might be fun to meet. It will be worth your while.

The very best source of friends at your school of course is your kid. My kids had surprisingly good taste. They gravitated towards kids from families not dis-similar to ours and usually from that playdate structure a friend would emerge. (This is of course much more difficult in high school where the kids try and prevent you from meeting their friends much less the friend’s mom.)

That does mean however when your kid says they want to play with someone, you have to try and help them make it happen. No eye rolling, postponing, or shoving it off on your husband or a nanny. Every play date is a possibility not just for your kid but for you and maybe even your family as well. You might even discover a family can vacation with. In my son’s current class, two families are going to India together next year for two weeks. They aren’t even that close and their kids are not particular friends, but the mom’s hit it off and an amazing trip is in the offing.

A play date that ends with a glass of wine is often the start of something fun. Most schools say they offer “community” and while not required, finding your place in that community generally adds to your experience and that of your child.

Mother of three, Alice attended east coast private schools as a child and has been in the private school world as a parent for nearly twenty years. Her kids attended Mirman for elementary, then Harvard-Westlake and Brentwood for high school, with one still to go. She is a writer working in film, TV and for various magazines such as Family Fun, Wondertime, Glamour and Brides.

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Differences Between Progressive & Traditional Private Schools (re-post)

June 17, 2015June 17, 2015 admin Leave a comment

If you aren’t sure what school philosophy will be right for your kid, check out this roundup of previous posts on the topic to understand the important differences between traditional and progressive private schools!

5 Important Differences Between Traditional and Progressive Schools

5 Important Differences Between Traditional and Progressive Schools Part 2

Traditional or Progressive School Part 3

Traditional or Progressive School Part 4

Traditional or Progressive School Part 5

Traditional or Progressive School Part 6

Lessons You Learn In Progressive School on BuzzFeed

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