Our First Twenty Days of 2019-20

The early days of school are such a dance — of connection and compromise, finding rhythms and making space, reaching out and looking in — and at PCS we are all about slowing down during these first weeks and embracing the transition into a new school year.

So much of our work as learners at PCS is founded on creative collaboration. Utilizing practices from the Responsive Classroom approach to the first twenty days of school, we dedicate time and attention to establishing a dynamic and supportive learning community, one in which each person knows how both to hear and be heard. This vibrant community is crucial to fostering inspiring relationships and meaningful learning all year long.

Together, students and facilitators:

  • explore and create their classroom environments,

  • practice daily routines and rhythms

  • articulate classroom cultures and agreements, and

  • document learning hopes and dreams for the year.

Working explicitly to create these structures and expectations together helps kids feel secure and successful in an orderly and cooperative learning environment.

The first week is a time to help children see their school as a place where they belong and where they know and can meet expectations.

— RESPONSIVE CLASSROOM

The pace, attention, and routines of the first twenty days instill a sense of belonging, significance, and safety.— RESPONSIVE CLASSROOM

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