2016-2017 RD Viewbook for website

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GROW
INTO GREAT
Challenge is not one-size-fits-all. But when
you find that fit, incredible things happen.
At Redwood Day we set the bar high
for everyone, but tailor challenge to the
individual.
That’s what inspires our students
to grow beyond good enough —
and grow into great.
In the classroom.
On the playground.
Into the future.
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INSPIRED
MINDS WANT
TO GROW
Our curriculum is benchmarked against
the highest standards of academic
excellence. We challenge students in ways
that uniquely suit them and provide the
support they need to succeed.
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ACADEMICS
“At Redwood Day, I had unique experiences
I couldn’t have had anywhere else.”
Redwood Day 8th Grade Student
MATH
READING
Redwood Day’s math program — Math in Focus:
Instruction takes place in classrooms, in fully outfitted
Our reading curriculum begins with phonemic
As students move through the program, reading for
Singapore Math — and instruction are designed to
labs, and in the outside world. In these settings,
awareness and reading comprehension. We encourage
understanding and comprehension becomes central
create strong and nimble mathematicians. Teachers
students learn concrete facts, ask lots of questions,
students to read what interests them in addition
to instruction and practice. From literacy centers and
support individual growth as students move from
test these questions, grapple with unexpected
to our structured curricular materials. And since
classroom book clubs to research projects, library
concrete concepts to the pictorial to the abstract
outcomes, and pursue a variety of possible answers.
early elementary reading abilities change quickly,
class, and comparative literature, students learn to
at each grade level. Assessments measure each
For example: students collect water samples to
we perform continual summative and formative
read for knowledge, understanding, and the sheer
student’s knowledge (content), comprehension
examine the life and toxins contained within them;
assessments to make sure each child is ideally
joy of it. They become confident readers who find
(deeper, process-oriented understanding), and
they observe and track the effects of drought on soil;
challenged and supported to take her next reach.
connections within texts, draw information from a
variation (tackling problems that require students
they examine the impact of exercise on the human
variety of sources, love to escape into the landscape
to apply learned skills and strategies in a new way).
respiratory system; they create and market products
of a book, and enthusiastically meet the challenge of
Differentiation underpins the math curriculum. Each
student is challenged to stretch her understanding
and skills as she uses complex and nuanced problemsolving
with each new concept. Throughout the K-8
program, students work individually, in small groups,
and as class learning communities on algorithms,
that address environmental needs; and they design
and build simple machines. Additionally, students
experiment with chemical reactions, observe plant and
animal biology, and monitor air and soil quality. Our
science classes promote inquiry, research, observation,
investigation, and innovation.
exploring a new writer or genre.
word problems, and interdisciplinary projects (such
as using math to address social and world problems).
Redwood Day students learn, stretch, and apply
math every day.
SCIENCE
Children become scientists early at Redwood Day.
Beginning in kindergarten, students learn the
intrinsic value of asking questions and forming
hypotheses. As they grow, students delve deeply
into biology, chemistry, geology, physics, and
environmental science.
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WRITING
Our writing curriculum — Lucy Calkins’ Units of
Study for Teaching Writing, from the Teachers
College at Columbia University — sets students up
to live, work, and learn as writers. Using this model,
students internalize writing as a process, and grow
comfortable with preparing multiple drafts, editing,
and revising. This builds our students’ writing fluency
and challenges them to move past potential barriers
in written expression by identifying writing strategies
that work best for them.
SOCIAL STUDIES /
HISTORY
Our social studies curriculum engages students with
world, national, state, and local history. Students
grow to understand the historical, political, economic,
and religious connections that are woven throughout
history. As they progress through the program,
students cultivate an increasingly sophisticated
framework for thinking about social and historical
events, places, and people. Meanwhile, we continually
examine history through the lenses of social justice,
All students complete in-depth research projects, read
texts, prepare and practice debate, and participate in
interactive projects that engage and inspire reflection
on how context informs history. Meanwhile, they
learn to make interdisciplinary connections between
history and literature, art, math, science, and music.
INNOVATION AND
DESIGN
Principles of innovation and design are built into
every grade level. Students use our Innovation and
Design Studio to explore ideas or concepts that
tie into their current areas of study. For example,
students can ideate, design, and build as a way of
extending their understanding of electricity and
simple circuits. Similarly, they can build geometric
structures using basic 2-D shapes from their math
studies to explore the creation of 3-D shapes.
Through mini-lessons, teachers use mentor texts
and questioning to engage students in strategic and
reflective discussions about how to strengthen their
writing. Teachers become writing coaches, offering
tailored, focused mentoring and feedback through
individual and small group sessions.
Students write narrative, informational, and
opinion pieces from kindergarten through 8th
grade. These can take the form of research papers,
letters, restaurant reviews, science project reports,
persuasive essays, literary analysis, and more. Our
service learning, and diverse perspectives.
Our K-8 curriculum starts by learning about families
as well as local and regional communities. From there,
students undertake a historical and geographical
investigation of California, an examination of our
nation’s history, and, finally, an extensive study of
global history. Along the way, students study culture,
ancient world history and civilizations, religion,
the rise and fall of great empires, early political
structures, imperialism, colonialism, U.S. history,
world wars, and current events.
In grades 6-8, Design, Innovation, and Technology is
a required course that intersects with core academic
subjects. The 6-8 curriculum includes a three-year
cycle during which students learn and apply
design thinking principles. They use these tools to
design and fabricate solutions for social and physical
problems. Content areas include thought processes,
drafting by hand, computer-aided design (CAD),
computer programming, and the use of hand tools as
well as digital fabrication tools such as 3-D printers
and computer-driven cutters.
K-8 program grows strong writers with an extensive
toolbox of skills, a deep understanding of grammar
rules and writing mechanics, and the ability to pull
from a variety of genres.
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CURRICULUM
Grade Language Arts Social Studies / History Math
Science Spanish
K
Differentiated center instruction in
sounds, guided reading, reading
School community, family, holidays
and cultural traditions, Oakland
Number sense, patterns, the
calendar, measurement, estimation,
Life cycles, the five senses, trees/
wood/paper, animals
Exposure to vocabulary through
movement, stories, games, drama,
comprehension, writer’s workshop
community
addition, subtraction, shapes,
songs, and comprehension
number facts
warm-up routines
1 st
Phonetic awareness, comprehension,
writing mechanics, grammar, guided
Families, cultures, continents,
classroom and world communities,
Number sense, place value,
operations, addition, subtraction,
Sound and light, air and weather,
insects, the rainforest, penguins,
Simple grammar patterns through
movement, stories, and games;
reading, story mapping, word
individual heritage
graphing, geometry, patterns,
spiders
verbal questions and responses;
families, spelling, poetry, narrative
comparisons, time and money,
introduction to reading
and information writing, penmanship
multiplication and division through
grouping
2 nd
Reading, personal narrative,
research paper, opinion letters,
Local community, citizenship,
maps, heroes, cultures and
Measurement, number sense,
multiplication, division, fractions,
Pebbles, sand and silt, solids and
liquids, oceans, botany
Deeper vocabulary through
movement, stories, and games;
information writing, grammar,
traditions, biographies
geometry, mental math, rounding
listening; reading mini-stories;
paragraphs, peer review, editing,
numbers
speaking complete sentences;
poetry, spelling
beginning writing
3 rd
Personal narrative, information
writing, opinion writing, persuasive
Oakland history, including studying
the Ohlone peoples; collecting
Addition and subtraction up to
10,000, multiplication and division
Simple machines, water and
climate, structures of life, magnets
More complex verbal responses;
expanded vocabulary through
essays, reading comprehension,
oral histories from families and the
facts and algorithms, two-step word
movement, games, listening,
literature discussion skills, spelling
greater Oakland community
problems using all four operations,
songs, and independent reading;
rules, cursive
comparing fractions, studying shapes
increased writing exercises
and angles through comparisons and
classifications
Literature circles, book reports,
California history and geography:
Data and probability, fractions,
4 th 9
Ecosystems, wetland habitats,
Introduction to short Spanish
information writing and research,
Native Californian experiences,
number sense through millions
geographical formations, rocks and
novels, exposure to past tense,
persuasive essays, poetry,
California explorers, missions,
place, multi-digit multiplication
minerals, electricity, circuits, health,
building vocabulary of nouns and
grammar, vocabulary, fluency,
ranchos, and the Gold Rush
and division, geometry, algebra,
nutrition
present-tense verbs, increased
reading comprehension
functions, decimals
written and verbal responses
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CURRICULUM
Grade Language Arts Social Studies / History Math
Science Spanish
5 th
Strategies for generating writing
topics, narrative writing, persuasive
U.S. history from English
settlements to colonization,
Advanced multiplication and
division, fractions and mixed
Chemistry, weather on Earth, the
solar system, the scientific method,
Reading stories and a short novel,
responses to verbal and written
writing, written and oral responses
Declaration of Independence and
numbers, conversion of fractions
microscopes, biology, human
questions in both present and past
to texts, editing, revising, assigned
the American Revolution, colonies
to decimals and percents, algebra,
anatomy, nutrition
tenses, formal study of regular verb
and self-selected reading
to a country, forming the U.S.
area of a triangle, ratios, graphs
conjugation, drama, technology,
Constitution, three branches of U.S.
and probability, angles, surface
group projects
government, westward expansion
area and volume
in the 19th century and the impact
on Native Americans
6 th
Modern and ancient literature,
creation myths, personal narratives,
Ancient civilizations: Mesopotamia,
Egypt, China, India, Hebrews and
Number sense and operations,
fractions, decimals, percents,
Earth and environmental sciences:
density, pressure, temperature,
Transition to Spanish immersion;
grammar, vocabulary, reading,
expository writing, vocabulary,
Greeks; cultural universals
ratios, algebra, prime factorization,
altitude, and plate tectonics;
and writing; Spanish and Latin
grammar
geometry
environmental studies: pollution,
American culture
climate, and human impact on the
environment
7 th
World literature, American fiction,
poetry, elements of literature,
World history, religions, and
cultures: Europe, Asia,
Integrated algebra, proportions
and problem-solving, number
Life science: cells, genetics, human
biology, ecology, human body
Vocabulary; grammar; and written,
oral, and multimedia presentations
analytical essay writing, vocabulary,
West Africa, India, Middle East,
sense, geometry, percents,
systems, and evolutionary theory
grammar
and the Americas
probability
Themes of individual vs. group
U.S. history from colonization
Algebraic expressions, linear
Physical science: chemistry, force
Vocabulary; present and past
identity, identity formation, social
through the Vietnam War:
equations, polynomials, exponential
and motion, Newtonian mechanics,
tenses; written, oral, and
justice, self-selected and assigned
government, politics, and the
8 th 11
growth and decay, systems,
simple machines, energy, and
multimedia presentations;
novels, literary analysis, writing
human experience
algebraic word problems, quadratic
evolution
readiness for high school
monologues, vocabulary, grammar
equations
Spanish II
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WHERE EQ
MEETS IQ
We believe social and emotional
smarts are just as important as
academic learning. We teach
students to work through their
conflicts, to dust themselves off if
they stumble, and to respect and
value our differences. And in
a warm, supportive environment,
they cultivate the courage they
need to face any challenge.
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REDWOOD DAY LIFE
“I want to thank my class for always being
authentic, energetic, compassionate, and just
being yourselves.”
Redwood Day 8th Grade Student
DIVERSITY, EQUITY,
AND INCLUSION
At Redwood Day, diversity is about each of us and
all of us. It’s at the core of our community and
curriculum, encompassing everything from race,
gender, and sexual orientation, to economic
background, family structure, religion, physical
ability, academic strengths and challenges,
academic interests, temperament, social approach,
and more. We know that students learn best when
they’re seen for who they are, feel connected to
peers and teachers with shared aspects of identity,
and are stretched to consider identities, beliefs,
abilities, approaches, and worldviews that differ
from their own.
Close to half of our students identify as being
students of color, and close to half identify as being
white. Our community includes families with a wide
variety of economic experiences and is made up
of LGBTQ, heterosexual, adoptive, and biological
families as well as families with single or multiple
households or parents.
Equity and inclusion work is core to our school
values, and essential to the development of healthy,
happy children who will thrive as adults. Children
who know who they are will be better prepared
to navigate the world. To that end, every student
at Redwood Day is part of an equity and inclusion
or affinity group that explores a range of topics.
Topics are informed by student identity and interest,
and age-leveled groups are led by faculty and
administrators who have been trained as facilitators.
These groups provide spaces where students can
connect with others who self-identify a shared
similarity or as “alike.” This experience allows
students to develop a strong sense of who they are,
and also lets them practice thinking and talking
openly about identity, stereotypes, privilege,
assumptions, and equity.
SERVICE LEARNING
Our service learning program connects with
important curricular themes at each grade level. This
way, beyond dedicated service learning projects,
service learning is woven into class work, writing,
math, and field trips throughout the year.
An integrated approach to service learning
gives students a unique opportunity to see how
they connect to our local, national, and global
communities. Whether students study hunger
and make sandwiches for those without enough
food, study local watersheds and participate in
creek and lake cleanup programs, study resource
inequality and collect books and art supplies for
other children, examine food justice and participate
in community gardens and growing produce for
Oakland neighborhood stores, or study firsthand
accounts of history by creating oral history projects
with local senior citizens, our service learning
projects open students’ eyes to the world around
them. They learn that it’s not about standing on
the outside and trying to help. It’s about being an
active part of their community, seeing that what
they give and what they gain are equally valuable.
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OUTDOOR EDUCATION AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAM “You’re never going to be alone
at Redwood Day.”
Outdoor education takes students outside of the Community, learning, and fun extend well beyond the
familiarity of the classroom and encourages them school day through our vibrant after-school program.
to stretch, support their classmates, and learn
This program is offered until 6 p.m. daily and is
beyond school walls. Our outdoor education trips attended by one-third to half of our students on any
incorporate science-focused curricula, team-building given day.
activities, discussions about conservation, and
Our small student-to-staff ratio (12:1) allows us
learning that leads to self-discovery and personal
to provide a program that fits each child and
growth.
incorporates both structured activities and free play.
Outdoor education trips begin in 4 th grade and are Our staff are a diverse group of energetic educators,
included in the cost of tuition. Trips are organized dedicated to providing students with a fun, safe
as follows:
experience. Our program has a high staff retention
rate, which helps us get to know each child and build
• Fourth grade visits Pigeon Point (Monterey Bay)
a relationship with the entire family, year after year.
for a two-night trip, chaperoned by parents and
teachers.
In addition to our regular extended care program,
we offer enrichment classes throughout the week
• Fifth grade visits Exploring New Horizons Outdoor
(two 12-week sessions take place each year). These
School (Loma Mar) for a four-night trip, chaperoned
classes provide opportunities for students to explore
by teachers and mentored by naturalists.
interests and talents beyond the curriculum. Past
• Sixth grade visits Pinnacles National Park for
classes include Circus Arts, Minecraft, 3-D Printing,
a week of camping, hiking, rock climbing, team- Carpentry, Hip-Hop Dancing, Girls Club, Spanish,
building, and learning. They are chaperoned by the West African Drumming, Mandarin, Basketball,
6 th grade advisory team.
Cartooning, Kung Fu, and more.
• Seventh grade spends a week in the Santa Cruz
mountains, where they stay in cabins, hike, play
games, participate in ropes courses, ocean kayak,
work at a farm and explore food justice, and visit
tide pools. They are chaperoned by the 7 th
grade advisory team.
• Eighth grade spends a week on Catalina Island,
where they stay in cabins, snorkel (day and night!),
farm, hike, participate in a ropes course, and much
more. They are chaperoned by the 8 th grade
advisory team.
Redwood Day Alumna
ATHLETICS
Our athletics program connects sports to the social, Winter
emotional, and physical well-being of student
• Boys and Girls Basketball (JV and Varsity)
athletes. About 75% of Middle School students
participate in our athletics program each year. The Spring (Co-Ed)
program draws students at many different levels • Track and Field
of experience. Our coaches emphasize values of • Ultimate Frisbee
commitment, integrity, self-discipline, sportsmanship, • Volleyball (JV and Varsity)
and teamwork.
Our program has several goals designed to
Redwood Day participates in a sports league that meet the developmental needs of Middle School
includes 15 middle schools from across the East Bay students:
and offers the following sports:
• To provide a safe, physical outlet for students to
Fall (Co-Ed)
find joy in expressing themselves athletically
• Cross Country
• Flag Football
• To develop and improve athletic skills and abilities
• Soccer
• To provide a level of athletic competitiveness
that is developmentally healthy
• To instill a love for the game
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THE ARTS
Studio art classes (K-8) emphasize exploration,
technique, design principles, and creative expression
through a variety of media. Through learning about
specific artists and artistic movements, students
are given a global perspective of art. They’re also
given the chance to work in a wide variety of
artistic media, including drawing, watercolor, acrylic
painting, sculpture, sewing, weaving, ceramics,
stone-carving, printmaking, and collage. Meanwhile,
classes across all grade levels work together on
interdisciplinary projects that complement subjects
explored in the core curriculum. And in spring, the
Redwood Day Gallery transforms into a showcase of
student art from the entire school year.
Music class is a part of each child’s K-8 experience. All
students learn the basic elements of music: rhythm,
pitch, melody, harmony, tempo, timbre, dynamics,
form, and style. These elements are explored through
a variety of learning experiences, including singing,
playing instruments, dancing, games, and listening
exercises as well as the study of music theory and
history. In the Middle School, students all learn to play
the ukulele and write and record their own music.
Additionally, students can choose to participate in
ensembles outside of music classes, such as chorus,
rock band, strings, and jazz ensemble. In their time at
Redwood Day, students gain a strong foundation of
music fundamentals as well as many opportunities to
expand their musical experiences.
Beginning in kindergarten, each student has
countless opportunities to perform — in class,
during assemblies, and at gatherings. Each year
we also stage a 4th- and 5th-grade musical, a set
of 6th-grade one-act plays, a Middle School play,
and a Middle School musical. Students not only
participate on stage, but also in production roles,
including everything from lighting and sound to stage
management and costume design. Middle School
students participate in drama class for one trimester
out of each year. There, they learn about acting
and theater, character development, storytelling,
improvisation, Shakespeare, script-writing,
performance preparation, and stage direction.
“Redwood Day isn’t just a school — it’s a
community of genuinely caring families,
teachers, and administrators.”
Redwood Day Parent
Specialist classes that all
students participate in:
• Art (K-8)
• Computers (K-5)
• Cooking (K-8)
• Design, Innovation, and Technology
(Integrated K-8 and Trimester class 6-8)
• Drama (6-8)
• Garden (K-5)
• Health (6-8)
• Library (K-5)
• Music (K-8)
• Physical Education (K-8)
• Science (Specialist K-5, Core class 6-8)
• Spanish (Specialist K-5, Core class 6-8)
Hands-On Learning
8th grade students using hand tools for carpentry
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Outdoor Education
8th grade students hiking on Catalina Island
Garden Class
2nd grade students learning outdoors in the Lower School Garden
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READY FOR
EVERYTHING
Students leave Redwood Day
prepared to thrive in a diverse
and complex world. They have the
academic and emotional smarts
needed to navigate any obstacle.
They have the drive to continue
challenging themselves and growing
as individuals.
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“Redwood Day gave me a really good
education, and it also allowed me to make
decisions about my education.”
Teju Adisa-Farrar, Class of 2005
Globalist, Urbanist, and Creative Director, World Unwrapped
“Redwood Day helped me become a
leader… It was a recognition in 7th grade
of a quiet leadership that I didn’t see in
myself before then.”
Erin Erickson, Class of 2008
Student Athlete and Journalist
TEJU’S STORY
Teju attended Redwood Day from 1st through
8th grade. She knew early on that she was
interested in people and is grateful for the way her
Redwood Day education connected to her passions
without her ever feeling isolated from those with
different interests. Teju remembers the community
feel of her 5th grade class, playing in the redwood
trees as a young child, being supported by her 8th
grade history teacher to research and write a detailed
paper about South African apartheid, and the
inclusive curriculum throughout the grade levels.
Teju attended Wesleyan University and spent one of
her four years studying in Ireland. After graduation,
Teju worked in the technology sector but kept
coming back to themes of community development.
Today, Teju is a fellow in the 4Cities Euromaster
program, a selective European Union masters
program in urban studies. The program includes
semesters in Brussels, Copenhagen, Vienna, and
Madrid and connects closely to Teju’s own strategic
consulting company, World Unwrapped, which
focuses on the community pieces of urban
development. When she is not studying
and consulting, Teju loves poetry and writing,
and has published work. Next for Teju? She
will be expanding her company, learning, and
helping places and people grow.
ERIN’S STORY
Erin came to Redwood Day in kindergarten and, since
she was little, knew she wanted to become a sports
broadcaster. Besides campus (the trees and the
community gathering space), a favorite memory is
of her 5th grade teacher, who, seeing that she was
struggling with some writing concepts, had Erin
gradually create a newspaper, one article at a time,
each elaborating more and more on details. It was
that experience that solidified Erin’s goal to combine
her love of sports with writing and study sports
journalism.
Today, Erin is a journalism and mass communications
major and plays softball at the University of Iowa.
Both of these were dreams of hers since before she
graduated from Redwood Day. Erin is working hard,
taking every sportswriting job she can, and reaching
for her next goal of becoming an ESPN broadcaster.
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“Redwood Day absolutely influenced
the person I am today. The supportive,
aspirational environment helped me believe
anything is possible, which is the core
characteristic of any entrepreneur.”
Robert Reffkin, Class of 1993
Founder and CEO, Compass
ROBERT’S STORY
Robert credits his relationships with his classmates
and teachers at Redwood Day with instilling in him
the value of collaboration and community. He had
close friendships and remembers one particular
teacher who believed in him deeply and taught
Robert to believe in himself. He enjoyed math from
early on and confidently navigated equations and
problems in his Redwood Day math classes.
Robert went on to receive dual undergraduate
degrees (economics and philosophy) and his MBA
from Columbia University, working in finance in
between his undergrad and master’s. In 2013, he
founded Compass, a technology-powered real estate
brokerage platform based in New York City. Even
more important to him than being CEO of this
fast-growing company that is now servicing eight
major markets are Robert’s wife and two young
daughters, who are the highlight of his life. In
addition to his work and family, Robert has
completed 50 marathons, one in each state, to raise
money for charity, and even started a running club
at Compass. Robert has pivoted several times in his
career path, taking risks that ultimately led to his
creation of a company with a strong vision, a team of
talented people dedicated to a common goal, a great
company culture, and a commitment to growth.
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GROW WITH US
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