The Formats

The architecture of the curriculum is built around Activity Blocks, which are like classes or subjects in the traditional disciplinary domains of reading, writing, math, content subjects, and the arts. Each Activity Block is further organized into a specified set of Learning Formats that include Lessons, Work Time, Learning Conferences, Group Work, and Share.

Each Format specifies how teachers and students take part in classroom practices that support collaboration, motivation, and high levels of learning. Teachers and students each assume specific responsibilities within each format, a process that builds a system of accountability into classroom practices, thus ensuring that every child’s potential is realized through participation in classroom practices that are precisely specified. Self-directed activities become the primary context for learning. This model rearranges the instructional context to hand over the content to be learned to the learner.