I've seen things and participated in events that I will never forget for the rest of my life. The Phoenix School has been an active partner in the regional effort to bring a replica of the Friendship to Salem Harbor to serve as a permanent educational exhibit. Throughout the course of this project students have learned about geography, history, culture, economic development and trade as well as how ships were built, rigged, sailed and navigated. This week-long adventure has taken students to the Florida Everglades, Mammoth Cave, Carlsbad Caverns, Crow Canyon in Colorado, Georgia's Okefenokee Swamp, St. John in the U.S.Virgin Islands, Tortola in the British West Indies, and the Netherlands. Late in the spring, the entire school sets off on a four-day adventure to a site in New England where the whole Phoenix community learns together.
All students begin their Phoenix education by identifying, building and strengthening basic skills.
Children in all grades set goals, ask questions, seek help, evaluate their own work and make decisions. They learn to plan their time efficiently, develop good study habits, make mistakes and take responsibility for their belongings and materials. Phoenix students learn basic skills through firsthand experiences, applying them to real lif situations in authentic ways. Concrete experiences build strong conceptual frameworks that can accommodate individual learning styles. Each student's basic skills are essential tools used to facilitate his or her learning.