St. Thomas's Day School Viewbook

St.D Thomas’s AY SCHOOL HAPPY MINDS. OPEN HEARTS. BRAVE IDEAS.

HAPPY MINDS. OPEN HEARTS. BRAVE IDEAS.

OUR MISSION ESTABLISHED IN 1956 IN NEW HAVEN, CT, ST. THOMAS’S DAY SCHOOL IS A CO-EDUCATIONAL EPISCOPAL INDEPENDENT DAY SCHOOL SERVING APPROXIMATELY 120 CHILDREN IN KINDERGARTEN THROUGH GRADE SIX.

St. Thomas’s Day School is a diverse community of children, teachers, parents, and parishioners working together to foster learning in the context of faith and personal commitment. As a mission of Saint Thomas’s Episcopal Church, the Day School seeks to educate children broadly by cultivating intelligence while engaging heart and spirit. The School is open and inclusive and seeks to motivate children of diverse races, creeds, and backgrounds to become independent thinkers who appreciate, understand, and serve others.

S TAT E M E N T O F I N C L U S I O N Diversity is a core value of St. Thomas’s Day School and has been since the school’s founding. The community finds much joy in embracing and celebrating each individual’s uniqueness along the lines of age, gender, religion, ability, socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity, culture and family structure.

We seek to strengthen the commonalities that bind us as a community and view diversity as a way to provide us the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary to navigate in a complex society of human differences.

We believe that children who learn and grow together in a diversified community develop an openness and appreciation for others. Each day in chapel, the children reaffirm our school’s ethos – “Make this a better world, and let it begin with me.” Community, family, identity, and social justice each play an important part in our program. Our program is designed to examine moral, social, and ethical concepts within the context of the existing curriculum.

We offer a variety of cultural experiences to reflect the diversity of students enrolled and the multicultural nature of the region, country, and world.

O U R SC H O O L A T- A - G L A N C E CAMPUS. • Located in the historic East Rock section of New Haven • Nearby renowned cultural and recreation facilities support our experiential program • Adjacent Edgerton Park used for PE and yearlong studies • Main building houses grades one through six, science and language labs, library and gymnasium.

• Robbins Hall houses Kindergarten and the art studio • Creative outdoor learning spaces.

S T U D E N T S A N D F A C U LT Y. • Approximately 120 students, maximum 20 students per class • 40% ethnic diversity • Students come from New Haven and over 20 surrounding communities • 30 full-time and part-time faculty and staff members • Over 70% of faculty have advanced degrees • Secondary school placement includes Hopkins, Hamden Hall, Foote, Cheshire Academy, and other public, parochial and independent schools.

• College matriculation includes Yale University, Wellesley, UCONN, and George Washington University.

ACC R E D I TAT I O N .

• Accredited by Connecticut Association of Independent Schools (CAIS) • Member of National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) • Member of National Association of Episcopal Schools (NAES)

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ONE OF THE THINGS THAT MAKES ST. THOMAS’S SPECIAL IS THE UNIQUE SENSE OF COMMUNITY. STUDENTS LEARN AN INNATE RESPECT, NOT JUST FOR THEMSELVES, BUT FOR THEIR PEERS, TEACHERS, AND ADULTS. THIS FOSTERS CONFIDENCE IN EACH CHILD – INITIALLY FEELING THAT THEY BELONG AND ARE SOMEONE SPECIAL, LATER KNOWING THERE ARE YOUNGER STUDENTS WHO LOOK UP TO THEM AS ROLE MODELS.

S M A L L I N S I Z E, L A RG E I N S P I R I T The vitality of our community plays an integral role in nurturing the spiritual, intellectual, emotional, and physical development of our children. Our size allows teachers to get to know students as individuals and provides the ideal setting for differentiation and small group instruction.

C E L E B R AT I N G A N D P R E S E RV I N G C H I L D H O O D St. Thomas’s celebrates, nurtures and protects the special qualities of childhood - exuberance, a sense of wonder, imagination, creativity, and innovation. It is a place where children are allowed to move, play and nurture their natural curiosity.

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– PARENT ’16, ’17

SO C I A L R E S P O N S I B I L I T Y St. Thomas’s Day School is committed to enriching the moral lives of our students. Positive traits such as respect, trustworthiness, responsibility, fairness, integrity, and kindness are modeled, taught and expected.

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THE MOST REWARDING PART OF BEING A ST. T’S PARENT IS WATCHING MY CHILDREN GROW AND DEVELOP INTO RESPECTFUL, RESPONSIBLE, CONFIDENT INDIVIDUALS WHO BELIEVE THAT THEY CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD. AS A RESULT OF ATTENDING ST. THOMAS’S DAY SCHOOL, MY CHILDREN BELIEVE WITH ALL OF THEIR HEARTS THAT THEY CAN AND SHOULD FIND WAYS TO BE KIND, SUPPORTIVE, AND GIVING TOWARDS

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OTHER PEOPLE.

- PARENT ’18,’20

• We develop students who are good neighbors and responsive to their world.

• We provide multiple perspectives on the past.

• We promote attitudes and skills necessary to engage and act on important social issues.

S P I R I T UA L AWA R E N E S S : I N D E P E N D E N T. I N T E R FA I T H .

I N T E L L I G E N T. Our religious literacy program provides a safe place for students to discover the richness of their own beliefs and develop an openness and appreciation for others.

Students are exposed to and learn about the following major world religions: • Christianity • Judaism • Islam • Hinduism • Buddhism

E M P OW E R I N G YO U N G L E A D E R S Our goal is to provide each child with the means to face the future, with self-confidence, enthusiasm, and an understanding for our global environment. We focus daily on creating leadership opportunities and foster the development of student leadership and teamwork skills. The program provides opportunities for cooperation and collaboration through a variety of different experiences.

Our community is affirmed every day through our daily Chapel service under the direction of the School Chaplain.

Children sing, celebrate birthdays, and listen to a homily, usually ethnic in nature.

P RO M OT I N G AC A D E M I C E XC E L L E N C E Our challenging and structured curriculum is designed to provide continuity and balance while enhancing the development of foundational skills and concepts. Small group instruction ensures attentiveness to each child’s developmental level of maturity and achievement.

Our experienced and dedicated faculty attends to the abilities, talents, and learning style of each child.

Creative projects, hands-on experiences, and collaborative learning opportunities foster problem solving and critical thinking skills; the building blocks necessary for living and thriving in a 21st century world.

The educational program, under the direction of the Head Teacher, is sequential and includes the study of reading, language arts, mathematics, and social studies. The program is further enriched through musical and dramatic performances, multi-media presentations, field trips, our annual Science Festival, service learning projects, community building activities, and mentoring between older and younger students. Intrinsic to our program are the seven essential skills and capabilities identified by the Commission on Accreditation for the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS): • Analytical and creative thinking and problem solving • Effective communication - oral, written, and visual • Leadership and teamwork • Digital and quantitative literacy • Global perspective, adaptability, initiative, and risk taking • Integrity and ethical decision-making

EXPERIENTIAL LEARNING Our school is a lively place where children are actively involved in learning. We believe in exposing students to a broad range of experiences that extend well beyond the classroom walls. Our experiential learning program includes extensive field trips and hands-on learning opportunities that are integral to the curriculum.

SPECIALS Special curriculum areas complete the program, providing children with multiple ways of expressing themselves, learning, and opportunities for success. The following curriculum offerings are integrated into the core program: • • • • • • • •

Library/Digital Citizenship Technology/Computer Science Physical Education Religious Studies Science Spanish Music Art

WE OFFER THE FOLLOWING OPTIONAL PROGRAMS: • Lunch Program • Extended Day Program • Vacation Program

WE BELIEVE CHILDREN’S PLAY IS THEIR WORK. CHILDREN ARE ACTIVE LEARNERS, DOERS, THINKERS, TINKERERS, EXPLORERS, EXPERIMENTERS AND ARTISTS. CHILDREN LEARN THROUGH EXPERIENCES OF TOUCHING, MOVING, LISTENING, SEEING AND HEARING.

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CHILDHOOD IS A JOURNEY, NOT A RACE.

WE VALUE AND ENCOURAGE CREATIVITY, FREEDOM AND A STRONG HOME-SCHOOL CONNECTION.

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K I N D E RG A RT E N Our child centered, full day Kindergarten program encourages a love of learning in a warm and nurturing atmosphere. Our gifted and dedicated faculty facilitate learning through a combination of formal (teacher-initiated) and informal (child-initiated) investigations and projects, and our low student to teacher ratio allows for teachers to meet children where they are developmentally and adapt the curriculum to meet their individual needs and interests. Our program provides the opportunity for children to learn about their world, to organize and synthesize information, to take risks and to solve problems. Experiential, hands-on activities allow the children to make connections, to collaborate with one another and to build relationships.

The Kindergarten experience includes art, music, drama and storytelling, technology, science, math, yoga, Spanish, physical education, library, as well as reading, writing, and math. Yearlong studies include a tree unit in Edgerton Park and raising and releasing trout with Trout Unlimited.

P O RT R A I T O F A G R A DUAT E HAPPY MIND Exhibits academic growth and embraces lifelong learning.

Understands one’s own strengths and their place in the world.

Communicates and collaborates effectively.

OPEN HEART Displays respect for others by exercising inclusivity, empathy, respect, and compassion.

Acknowledges and understands diverse perspectives and cultures.

Recognizes the responsibility of being a citizen of the world.

B R AV E I D E A S Pursues understanding with an adventurous spirit.

Demonstrates innovative and progressive thinking.

Displays a growth mindset by engaging in courageous exploration and problem solving.

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THE MISSION IS CLEAR AND THE FOCUS NEVER WAVERS: IT IS ALWAYS ON THE CHILDREN, HELPING THEM TO DEVELOP A STRONG MORAL CODE AND LIFELONG LOVE OF LEARNING. THE INCLUSIVE SPIRITUAL LIFE GROUNDS THE SCHOOL IN A FAST-PACED EVER-CHANGING WORLD. THE COMMUNITY IS WARM AND WELCOMING. IF YOU HAD TO PUT ALL THE INGREDIENTS FOR A FIRST-RATE EDUCATION INTO ONE SCHOOL, THE RESULT WOULD BE

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CLEAR: ST. THOMAS’S DAY SCHOOL.

– PARENTS ‘07, ‘12

HAPPY MINDS. OPEN HEARTS. BRAVE IDEAS.

HAPPY MINDS.

OPEN HEARTS.

BRAVE IDEAS.

St.D Thomas’s AY SCHOOL

stthomasday.org 203.776.2123 | 830 Whitney Avenue, New Haven, CT 06511

HAPPY MINDS. OPEN HEARTS. BRAVE IDEAS.