• Abby’s Corner: Project Based Learning and More

    December 16, 2019

    Getting In the Pit: Developing Growth Mindset during our Winter Performance As we wrap up 2019 at Tapscott, teachers and students are heavily immersed in preparation for our Winter Performance, Maisie’s Journey of Friendship. In past years, we have chosen a story that we could retell. This year, we asked our incredible drama teacher Matt..

  • Nathan’s Notes

    November 4, 2019

    Welcome to Nathan’s Notes, your monthly report from middle school! Each month I’ll share some moments from the classroom, curriculum thoughts from me and/or our amazing teachers, some ideas about education that I’m excited about, and more. One thing that got me excited this month… Janis Chun’s 5th-grade science class. The students were using ratio..

  • Experiencing Joy at Prospect Sierra

    November 4, 2019

    Joy is watching first graders in colab work through their partnership by offering endless suggestions for compromise. Joy is listening to our third graders share their process and pride  in the detailed work of their insect drawing art pieces. Joy is witnessing our fifth graders walk arm and arm down the hallways of Avis. Joy..

  • Abby’s Corner

    October 24, 2019

    October is Underway While some may say Halloween is the most exciting event in October, I’d say that the head-to-head division race at Panther Picnic is a close second! Rachel, Luis, and I are geared up for another great race this year and we hope you all will come out and cheer on Team Tapscott...

  • 2019 Prospect Sierra Summer Stories

    September 5, 2019

      Abby Guinn My husband Jon, daughter Shelby, and I took a car camping trip up the California coast to Oregon this summer. Along the way, we stopped at Jug Handle Beach and camped at the Jug Handle Creek Farm. Both the beach and the farm were amazing spots – highly recommended from the Guinn-Stewart..

  • Our Commitment to Environmental Sustainability

    September 4, 2019

    Greetings Prospect Sierra community, near and far! We are committed to environmentally sustainable practices on campus and a curriculum that gives our graduates the tools to be future stewards of our planet. We have been recognized both locally and nationally for these efforts, earning designation as a Green Ribbon School and a Certified Green Business...

  • Abby’s Corner: Summer Learning Fun

    June 24, 2019

    Summertime Fun Happy summer to you all! Hopefully, you have already found some ways to relax. The heat wave that hit El Cerrito was an intense way to start our summer, and my hope is that you all were near a pool or beach on those 100 degree days. Summer work is already underway at..

  • Dr. Jo Boaler Opens Minds

    March 19, 2019

    The PSPA Authors & Lectures team recently brought Dr. Jo Boaler to campus to talk about maths. We intended to write “maths” because Dr. Boaler, who is British, refers to “math” as “maths.” Further, the “s” on “math” makes the subject expansive and full of possibilities and “expansive” and “full of possibilities” is exactly what..

  • Everyone Represented: Advocating for More Inclusive Health Education

    March 11, 2019

    “I applaud each of you for your courage to write me and for also embracing what we must all do to respect and care for each other. How can we do that? One way is doing just what you did—learn about the wide spectrum of gender as well as the facts about sex and sexual..

  • Project Based Learning Comes to Life in 7th Grade Science

    March 7, 2019

    Project based learning, a dynamic classroom approach in which students actively explore real-world problems and challenges and acquire a deeper knowledge about a subject, is one of many approaches that our classroom teachers use at Prospect Sierra. But what does project based learning actually look like in the classroom? And how specifically is it employed..