Academic Growth That Lasts: Building Skills for Life

Academic Growth Through Meaningful Learning: How Skills Thrive at Santa Lucia School

At Santa Lucia School, we believe that children learn best when learning is connected to real life, rooted in purpose, and adapted to each child’s unique pace and strengths. While our holistic approach honors creativity, nature, and emotional growth, it also supports strong academic development—just in a way that feels joyful, grounded, and deeply meaningful.

Real Learning Through Real Work

When children engage in service learning and project-based learning, academic skills aren’t just practiced—they're needed. Writing letters to local leaders about watershed conservation? That’s persuasive writing, spelling, and punctuation. Weighing and measuring food for the food bank drive? That’s math with real consequences. These kinds of authentic experiences build academic capacity because the learning is useful, relevant, and interesting.

At Santa Lucia, students might:

Create a local plant guide for younger students, building vocabulary, research, and editing skills.
Design and budget a compost system, using measurement, multi-step problem-solving, and written communication.
Put on a theater production, reading scripts fluently, memorizing lines, and working as a team.

In these projects, learning has purpose, and every child can find an entry point to shine.

When Direct Instruction Matters

While projects and service offer rich, interdisciplinary experiences, we also believe in direct skill-building, especially for foundational literacy and math development. That’s where small group academic rotations come in.

In all classrooms, students engage in focused small-group instruction with teachers—practicing reading strategies, learning number sense, building vocabulary, and strengthening writing. The groups are flexible and responsive. A student working on decoding one week might be writing their own story the next. A child who finishes early might be given an extension that deepens their understanding or introduces more advanced concepts.

We don’t give tests or grades—and we don’t rush children through standardized benchmarks. Instead, we meet them where they are and move forward when they’re ready. With less pressure, children are more willing to take academic risks and actually enjoy the learning process.

And yes—we believe that games beat worksheets every time! Math facts can be practiced through movement, puzzles, and cooperative challenges. Spelling can be learned through word-building games, scavenger hunts, and storytelling. Play makes practice engaging and helps students internalize skills without boredom or burnout.

What Does This Look Like in Practice?

Here’s a peek into what differentiated, skill-focused academic learning looks like across the grades:

Grades 1-2 (Primary Classroom)

Language Arts Small Group:

One group practices phonics by building words with magnetic tiles.
Another group reads short books with a teacher, discussing characters and predicting plot.
A third group works independently, writing letters to pen pals in invented or emerging spelling, with personal voice.

Math Small Group:

One group plays a card game practicing place value.
Another group builds an extra large multiplication chart from self-made cards
A third group works one-on-one with a teacher on number bonds or skip counting.

Grades 3-5 (Upper Elementary Classroom)

Language Arts Small Group:

One group is analyzing a poem for figurative language.
Another is practicing paragraph writing in response to a shared novel.
A third group works on editing their nature essays, applying spelling and grammar rules learned in a mini-lesson.

Math Small Group:

One group is solving multi-step word problems with manipulatives.
Another is playing a multiplication board game.
A third group explores geometry through drawing and designing garden layouts to scale.

Grades 6-8 (Middle School Classroom)

Language Arts Small Group:

One group is reading a nonfiction article about microplastics, annotating for key ideas and vocabulary.
Another is revising persuasive essays tied to an environmental action project.
A third group works independently, using a digital tool to develop a creative writing portfolio.

Math Small Group:

One group uses ratios and percentages to analyze real-world data from a class survey.
Another works with the teacher on pre-algebra concepts.
A third uses interactive notebooks to explore graphing equations.

These are just examples, but they reflect the spirit of how we approach skill-building at every level: with flexibility, creativity, and care.

Extensions for the Ready Learners

When students show readiness for more advanced skills—whether it’s long division, algebraic thinking, or writing literary analysis—they’re given the tools and time to dive deeper. There’s no ceiling on learning here. Whether it's offering independent study, introducing higher-level texts, or mentoring younger students, we support each child to grow at their own pace, with gentle guidance and plenty of encouragement.

Support for Learners Who Need More Time

At Santa Lucia School, we know that every child learns in their own way and on their own timeline. Some students take longer to master foundational skills—and that’s not only okay, it’s expected and respected here. Development isn’t linear, and growth often comes in bursts after long stretches of quiet building.

In our small group rotations, students who need extra practice get just that—without stigma, stress, or comparison. Teachers offer gentle guidance, scaffolded instruction, and hands-on learning tools to help each child find success. If a student needs to spend more time on early reading strategies or building number sense, they are given that time with encouragement, patience, and belief in their capacity.

Because we don’t use tests or grades to define progress, students aren’t labeled or left behind. Instead, we focus on growth, celebrating the small steps and recognizing that confidence and joy are just as important as content.

We also integrate multisensory, movement-based, and playful approaches that help all kinds of learners stay engaged—especially those who benefit from repetition, physical interaction with materials, or a different kind of pacing.

Families of children who learn more slowly often share that they feel relieved here. Instead of worrying about their child “falling behind,” they see them feeling safe, interested, and increasingly capable. That shift in mindset opens the door for real, lasting learning.

Academic Growth That Lasts

Academic success isn’t just about memorizing facts—it’s about building confidence, curiosity, and the ability to think critically and solve problems. That’s what students at Santa Lucia do every day.

By weaving together meaningful projects, service, and direct skill-building in thoughtful, developmentally appropriate ways, we ensure that our students are not only learning well—they're loving to learn.

And that, we believe, is the foundation for a lifetime of success.

Santa Lucia School

Teaching Peace for a Brighter World Since 1985