In the News: Helios New School Appoints Nationally Recognized Head of School
Qualitative Assessment: Recognizing Giftedness Beyond IQ Scores
- Dr. Linda Silverman
Who is the Helios Student?
Imagine asking your child to describe his dream house. Would he delight in the task?
Would her eyes light up and her ideas stream endlessly?
When we asked our Lower Elementary kids to build their dream houses, they created a community of homes that would make Mies van der Rohe, Willy Wonka (one house incorporated huge containers of cotton candy!) and Dr. Seuss proud.
But this was no exercise in folly. From their initial journal sketches, the students transformed their ideas into working scaled floor plans on graph paper, from which they constructed scaled 3-D model buildings with carefully measured boards and recycled materials.
Who is the Helios student? She is the person who embraces the task of creativity. He is the child who can see the outside of a building one way, flip it on its side and then draw its floor plan. They are the kids who like building things with their hands and actualizing their ideas. Oh, and enjoy learning math (measurement, estimation, and geometry: perimeter, area, 2-D and 3-D scale), writing, sketching and group participation skills along the way.
Most importantly, a Helios student is hungry to learn from teachers or peers new ways to problem solve until he or she is successful at whatever task is at hand.
Helios At a Glance:
- Private, progressive secular school based on a constructivist model of education
- K - 5 curriculum designed specifically for gifted students
- Second language program for French and Chinese
- Rigorous academic curriculum in project-based, collaborative environment
- Multi-dimensional learning, including social and emotional development
- Low student-to-teacher ratio of 8:1
- Full school day 8:15 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
- Aftercare available until 5:30 p.m.
MESSAGE FROM THE
HEAD OF SCHOOL:
Welcome to Helios New School!
We believe it is our job, as educators and parents, to ensure that every child is given the opportunity to meet her full academic, social, emotional and physical potential. At Helios New School we recognize that the gifted child presents unique challenges as he learns and grows. It is often difficult to accommodate the needs of the gifted child in a traditional elementary school setting.
At Helios New School, we understand and support each individual student’s singular drive, pace and desire to learn, explore, collaborate and create community. Our constructivist environment offers your gifted child the daily joy that comes from being with other children who are “like” them and wish to “go deep” into topics. Here, your child will be embraced and nurtured; his passions will be encouraged and extended. Our extraordinary students make HNS a dynamic, exciting and inspiring place to be. We look forward to learning more about your child.
Barbara Mitchell Hutton
