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Engaging Creatively

The Étude Group believes that all students should participate in designing and developing their learning experience, right from the beginning. We ask what matters, and we listen to what they tell us. We balance traditional classroom studies with experiential learning, often involving nearby parks and wildlife. Projects are driven by the imagination of students, guided by the experience of our staff.  

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Project Flow by Grade Level

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Exhibitions of Learning

At the end of every semester, every student participates in an Exhibition of Learning - typically a small-ensemble presentation to the entire school of a carefully crafted, semester-long project. Students select and organize their projects, and there is a role for everybody and an emphasis on connection between arts and sciences. Research demonstrates that such integration stimulates the young mind to not only acquire knowledge but also to apply it.

In kindergarten, students studying food and nutrition might visit a farm, raise chicks in their classroom, grow plants from seeds - then develop a dance to depict the stages of growth. A Native American artist-in-residence guides second and third graders through wonders of pre-Columbian culture - beliefs and values, arts and crafts, dances and games. In fourth and fifth grades, students discover aerodynamics by designing, building, and demonstrating life-size model sailboats.