Laying the foundation
Our Lower School teachers create classroom environments where every child is seen, known, and understood. We prioritize the quality of our relationships to nurture an atmosphere of trust, joy, and belonging. As a result, this warm and welcoming environment enables children to feel comfortable setting goals, learning from mistakes, and striving to be their best.
Heartwork
The Lower School’s signature Heartwork Program emphasizes skill development in empathy and kindness. In classrooms and at weekly assemblies, students regularly engage in discussions related to social justice and making choices that bring positive change. Using Heartwork as a tool to deepen understanding, teachers assign tasks that enable students to practice skills in compassion. Some examples include writing notes to staff at Buckley, interviewing their parents, and engaging in a volunteer activity that supports communities outside of Buckley.
Nature Trail Education
Lower School students visit the Nature Trail and Outdoor Classroom on a regular basis, for exercise, to commune with nature, to learn about native plants, or to socialize. Lower School Head Adrienne Parsons (pictured here, at right) on one of her regular trips up to the trail with students.
The RULER Approach
Lower School teachers engage students in RULER, an approach to social-emotional learning from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. RULER is an acronym that stands for:
- Recognizing emotions in oneself and others
- Understanding the causes and consequences of emotions
- Labeling emotions with a nuanced vocabulary
- Expressing emotions in accordance with cultural norms and social context
- Regulating emotions with helpful strategies
RULER shows up in our classrooms and on our playgrounds, enabling our students to develop fluency in understanding their emotions and empathy when problem solving and creating connections among peers.
Kindergarten at Buckley
Development is naturally accelerated during the kindergarten year. Brains grow, social interaction becomes plentiful and routine, and skills form. Students learn reading, writing, mathematics, science, and social science in the homeroom setting and engage in theater, dance, music, art, library, and physical education under the expert instruction of Buckley’s specialists. Collaboration, teamwork, kindness, and responsibility are practiced in all subjects. Each homeroom consists of 22 students and two teachers.
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