Curriculum Overview and Core Values
Curriculum is an intentional design for learning developed by faculty through their specialized knowledge and in the context of students' needs. It is both what one teaches and how one teaches. At PS1, how we teach is as important as what we teach. Our core values of Competence (What we know), Confidence (How we feel about what we know), and Connection (What we do with what we know) provide the foundation for our K-6th students. These core values are what make our school unique. Our students develop relationships, strength of conviction, self-knowledge and empowerment. We foster academic learning in consort with interpersonal reasoning.
PS1 has a history of sending balanced, resilient, successful students into the world. As our graduates move into secondary school they often become leaders. They think deeply about issues that matter and understand ideas from the inside out. They are motivated, engaged, confident, curious, and ready to take on new challenges. The ability to ask questions, express ideas, think critically, and maintain passion for learning distinguishes PS1 students.
At PS1 we start with Pluralism as the foundation of our mission and build our program around the three core values you see in the outer ring of this circle. We call these our Three C’s:
- Competence (what we know and learn)
- Confidence (how we feel about what we know and what we bring to any situation)
- Connection (what we do with what we know)
We view elementary school as one seven-year experience, not seven one-year experiences, and these values are integrated into the daily lives of our students. At every age and stage of learning the children’s natural development is respected. Learning is organized around problems, projects, and questions and the teaching is typically interdisciplinary, in a context and for a purpose. There is an emphasis on collaborative problem-solving, where interdependence counts at least as much as independence. PS1 is truly a caring community of learners.