Teaching Philosophy

A strong teaching philosophy is the foundation of any school or classroom. It describes what is most important to the school, how students will be taught and treated, as well as how teachers structure their classroom. The core tenants of Love N Learning’s teaching philosophy are individualized instruction, active learning, and care for the whole person. These tenants are the guiding compass for all instruction.

As a competency based school, individualized instruction take center stage. Our curriculum and class structure is designed to allow students to have choices in what they learn and how they learn it. Additionally, students are encouraged to learn at their own pace, learning new skills as they are ready for them and getting more help when needed. While new topics are often introduced to the whole class together, individual students are able to engage with these topics based on the level they are at. We believe that children have a natural, intrinsic curiosity that drives them to learn. We encourage students to explore topics that are of interest to them and integrate these topics into the curriculum frequently. Our primary role is to present students with new ideas and skills and appropriate activities to explore them.

Active learning guides the selection of activities that students engage in. We believe that children learn best when they are permitted to build their our knowledge based on their experiences. This means teachers refrain from explaining new topics in depth at first. Instead they show students interesting observations and ask questions that lead students to further investigate. Students are provided hands-on activities and real-world experiences. These allow students to engage with ideas and draw their own conclusions, constructing their own knowledge as they go. Teachers are there to guide students, correct misconceptions, prompt further questions, and help in any other way necessary.

While the previous tenants explain how learning is structured, the last tenant is the most important: care for the whole person. Care for the whole person is a practice of paying attention to all aspects of a person’s life. In our school this means our teachers attend to the student’s physical and social-emotional development as well as their cognitive development. Teachers nurture students’ strengths, encourage their interests, and address their weaknesses and struggles. Furthermore, our teachers and administrators go out of their way to connect with families and help them with a variety of factors that effect the whole person. Relationships between our staff, our students, and their families are the most important part of our school. We are more than just a school; we are a community – one that works best when we work together.