written by David Núñez, Interim Head of School

Dear GRS Community,

Welcome to the new year! Coming out of a long break followed by two snow days means we’re all just getting back into our routines, but I know we at GRS are all excited that the students are back and I think deep inside they’re happy to get back into it as well!

I wanted to share with you all that the staff has been doing some work around Key Experiences this month. In the fall, the Leadership Team was discussing why we do these trips and we realized that with all our new staff we could use some community time talking about why these trips are so essential to who we are as a school and a community. Also, we want to get a jump start on planning next year’s trips!

The Leadership Team started this exploration by putting together a list of the reasons why we think that Key Experiences are such an important part of what we do. Then, in December, the entire staff gathered together to talk about the “why” behind our Key Experiences and now, in January we are starting the planning for the remainder of this year’s experiences and trying to get into the planning for key experiences for the Fall of 2023.

Here’s the “why” we came up with as a team:

Pedagogy of Place - Our key experiences are important because we are able to learn from the places we go to launch and enrich our curriculum.
Shared History - Here at GRS students take the memories of their key experiences with them both as experiential learning but even more so as a shared history that they all hold as a community. It builds our culture as a school and allows us to build something new together.
Social Emotional Learning - Our Key Experiences build the relationships between guides and students, and between the students themselves. During Key Experiences students engage every moment in problem solving, learning to interact and be together, work in a team, bond, and resolve conflict.
Independence - As follows directly from Maria Montessori’s writings, removing a child from their regular surroundings and their families helps build their independence as they construct their own learning in a new and unique situation.
Interdependence - Also a tenet of Montessori learning, when students appreciate that they are an interdependent part of a larger system with others and with place they grow and learn about their world.
Rising to a Challenge - These trips build resilience in our students by helping them move out of their comfort zones.
Connection to the Outdoors - We as a community value the experiences and skills in the outdoors that students gain from these trips. Also, these trips allow some students who might not otherwise have it gain access to the outdoors.
Observations - Adults are able to observe and get to know students in a way that will help us set the students up for success throughout the year.
Building Confidence and Valorization of the Individual - Students get built up and see themselves as a valuable aspect of our community.
And finally, Having Fun!

I’m also excited to share, if you don’t already know, that our 3rd year students will be going on a key experience trip to Eagle Bluff Environmental Center for a 2-night stay from May 31-June 2 for the first time this year! This trip will be designed to help prepare our 3rd graders for a five day Key Experience in their fourth year. We are all really excited to be including 3rd graders in our Key Experiences and know that they’re going to have a great time!

I hope you are all staying warm this winter.

Peace,

David