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..

Abby’s Corner

February 14, 2019

It is common for parents to periodically ask me how the year is going. Depending on when you ask me, I might say incredible, busy, or exciting! Recently when asked this question, I shared my amazement at the ways that years of thoughtful work were helping us continue to lead by example in the larger educational landscape, doing what we believe to be best for students while also continuing to reflect, refine, and make changes that will ensure all students thrive.

Bienvenido a los Estados Unidos

February 1, 2019

We know that language learning takes a stronger hold in a student’s mind when it comes to life. Recently, our 8th graders had the opportunity to connect their Spanish language learning with real world events. Because students were discussing current events and the migrant caravan of families traveling to the U.S. from countries such as..

Abby’s Corner – Community, 21st Century Skills, and Parent Resources

November 8, 2018

Building Community Well, it only took three years but finally Team Tapscott scored a win at the annual Panther Picnic Tapscott vs. Avis race! It certainly helped that I had the support of some of the Tapscott team, as Rachel and Luis helped bring it home for us! It was once again a super fun..

Get Jazzed About Math!

September 11, 2018

You may have heard a PS teacher talk about teaching math for conceptual understanding, and you may have wondered what that looks like in the classroom. You also may have wondered how that’s different from how you learned math. At Prospect Sierra, a deep, conceptual understanding of math means that a student understands the “why”..

Building Skills That Make Us Human

July 6, 2018

Exponential advances in digital technologies are reshaping the ways people work, creating uncertainty about how best to prepare learners for the future. Andrea Saveri, a futurist partnering with KnowledgeWorks and a Prospect Sierra parent, is helping to bring direction and insight to our school community. “We owe it to current and future students to reframe..

Our Commitment to Greening Goes Deep

May 3, 2018

Prospect Sierra’s 2018 Earth Week began Sunday, April 22, the date celebrated internationally as Earth Day since 1970. Here at Prospect Sierra there are continued efforts to deepen the curriculum and practices around sustainability every day. Earth Week allows us to take pause and acknowledge this year’s projects and share some special events that the..

Poetry and Inspiration with 8th Grader Estella Zhou

April 23, 2018

Some of you may recall that around this time last year we highlighted the achievements of then 7th grader, Estella Zhou, after she won two medals in a national competition for her short story, China Bird, and her flash fiction piece, The Sunbirds. Both were selected by creative professionals as the most accomplished in the..