New Vision School provides classes for children grades Preschool up to Grade 8.

Preschool:
The New Vision Preschool program is a nurturing, play-based program that emphasizes hands on creative fun. We provide young children a wide range of experiences in a very caring environment.

Because Toddlers and Preschoolers are emerging from the comfort and security of their homes, our Preschool programs ease them gently and playfully into the world of peers. At New Vision School, children come to trust their teachers who are loving, supportive and knowledgeable about this journey.

Respect for the work and play of children is combined with developmentally appropriate expectations of classroom routine and social learning. Children begin to learn how to get along with others – to share, to be aware of other people’s feelings, and to express themselves in words to resolve conflicts.

Basic Daily Schedule/Preschool

9:00 Arrival
9:00-10:20 Free Play/Morning Project
10:20-10:30 Morning Circle
10:30-11:15 Snack/Recess
11:15-12:00 Music and Movement, Games and Play
12:00-12:30 Lunch/Read Aloud
12:30-1:00 Quiet Time
1:00-1:40 Group Activities Time
1:40-1:55 Closing Circle/Organize for Departure
2:00 Departure

Kindergarten/Grade school

General Curriculum: The New Vision curriculum is highly individualized to meet the needs of each student. The accredited, Oak Meadow, curriculum is used as a base, in conjunction with many other resources, to form the child's school year. All curriculum is shaped and specialized to honor each child’s unique learning style and ability. This allows for the ultimate in creativity, efficiency and communication between teacher and student.

Curriculum Pacing: Children learn skills at different paces, and at different ages. New Vision teachers recognize that there is not a set pace, age, or learning style that meets the needs of every student. Therefore, we are sensitive to the pacing and development of our students. We create challenging work for areas students are gifted in, and support them when work feels difficult with curriculum and projects that build confidence. In this way, we create a very harmonious educational experience, where the child is uplifted and feels positive when learning new concepts.

Group Work: There is a daily balance between individual work and group projects, in order to promote team work, cooperation and communication.

Inner Development: Equally balanced with academics is character development and awareness activities. We reinforce and practice important values, such as: giving, respecting, loving, consciousness, thought awareness, focus, and much more. Daily quiet time and communication open pathways for deeper learning and revelation. Underlying the whole curriculum is a value of and emphasis on service and gratitude.

Projects: Starting in the middle of kindergarten or beginning of first grade, the class votes on a variety of topics that they would like to study in the school year. We incorporate these as “Units of Study”. At other times, students will choose their own individual topics of interest to study independently, while the teacher serves as a guide to their project. Examples of units of study chosen by past New Vision students are: volcanoes, space, home and structure building, animals in the Northwest, Native Americans, boats and buoyancy, ocean life and bridges. Children also do home projects and group presentations. In this way, we work with the flow of interest and curiosity and weave it into each child's essential learning.

Inspiration from Influential People: Beginning in 3rd grade, we integrate into our curriculum a focus on people who have invoked positive changes for mankind in the way of forgiveness, love, courage, and creativity. We study their messages and contributions to society, which leads to student projects in the realms to which they offered their strengths.

Extracurricular: Physical education and music are taught by the primary teacher and they are woven into the daily schedule.

Art: Art is viewed as more than an extracurricular activity. We use it to teach each educational discipline and it is integrated into most subjects. In addition to this integration, art is viewed as a subject in itself and we do ambitious, specialty projects.

Play: Children are at work when they are playing together. They learn important skills in communication, making compromises, imagining, and relating. We do our best to create opportunities for children to have fun playing, being and creating together. New Vision students have done amazing group projects together, without direction from the teacher, such as: creating a life size tee-pee out of sticks, building a dam and water way for run-off, organizing whole-group games, building snow forts, and digging for geological gems to name a few.

Outdoors: Whenever possible, our learning takes place outdoors. Children do many observations, hikes, art projects, science activities, math lessons and reading in our outdoor sanctuary.

Standards: Oregon State Standards are used as reference points, and are referred to in order to ensure that children are learning what is required, but with the perspective that each child has unique timing for when they will be ready for new concepts.

Daily Life: Each day has a rhythm and structure. However, many projects are spontaneous and co-creative, based on intuition, flow, direction, student interest and subjects of the day.

Basic Daily Schedule K-8th
Mon-Thurs 8:30-2:30

8:30 Arrival
8:30-9:15 Free Play
9:15-10:20 Morning Lesson Block
10:20-10:30 Group circle
10:30-11:15 Snack/Recess
11:15-12:00 Rotating: Music/Art/Movement (P.E.)
12:00-12:30 Lunch/Read Aloud/Independent reading
12:30-1:40 Afternoon Lesson Block
1:40-1:55 Closing Circle/Organize for Departure
2:00 Departure

In addition to our daily rhythm, we take occasional field trips throughout the year and invite workshop teachers into our school.

Examples of our enrichment adventures:

Field Trips:
Kinderconzerts
Home At Last
OMSI science labs
Tears of Joy theater
Discovery Center
Art walk and community mosaic participation
WAAM, the local aeronautics museum
KV Ceramic Studio
Dancing Moon Farms harvest trip
Apple cider pressing at local orchard
Beaver dam excursion
Railroad ride
Portland Art Museum
Portland Children's Theater
Stream restoration project with the local Forest Service
Spring Creek Fish Hatchery-raise and release salmon project

 

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