Parker Blog

Many Happy Returns…

September 9, 2023

The first week at Parker has flown by in a flurry of joyful reunions, warm new welcomes, and plenty of thoughtful foundation building for the year to come. Typically, our first week at Parker is spent building relationships and helping children to establish their identities, both individually and as a community. Parker students are engaged,…

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Grow With Us!

August 12, 2023

We are excited to announce that registration is now live for the 2023-24 Toddler & Parent Forest Program! The program will run in 5 or 4 week sessions on Tuesdays or Thursdays from 10:30 – 12:00 pm for 18 month to 3 year olds and a care giver. It will be facilitated by our science educator extraordinaire, Leiana…

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Showing What We Know

June 14, 2023

It is an integral part of Parker’s philosophy that children learn best when they create meaningful work for an authentic audience. Whether it is a 4-year-old, eager to share their year-long development of self-portrait skills, or an 8th grader defending their carefully researched and formulated position on a social issue of consequence for their thesis…

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Parker in the News! What is Progressive Education?

May 23, 2023

This approach is child-centered and emphasizes active learning. By Linda Lee Baird US News & World Report May 15, 2023, at 4:45 p.m. Parker staff were interviewed for this national publication to help describe the philosophy of progressive education.

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Join Us For Our Benefit at June Farms!

May 10, 2023

Dear Parker Families and Friends, Our Spring Benefit is two weeks away!!! We are so looking forward to gather together on Friday, May 19th at June Farms in celebration of our joyful, unique, and accomplished school. We hope you all will join us!!! Shared below is the menu for our evening event. You can also…

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Thriving Without Grades

April 20, 2023

One of the first questions prospective parents new to our progressive education model ask us is why do we not do grades at Parker? It’s a question we welcome. Proponents of grades often argue that they are prime motivators for students, that they are reliable measures of knowledge and success, and that they can determine…

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Rensselaer Repair Cafe- May 6th, 2023 10am-2pm

April 19, 2023
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Emerging Learners

March 31, 2023

Anyone who is lucky enough to walk down our lower school hallway and peek into our preschool classrooms knows what a magical experience our youngest students are having. At the beginning of the year, these classrooms start off deliberately neutral, with the idea being that the classroom environment should evolve organically to reflect the community…

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Personal Project Day

March 24, 2023

The last few weeks we have turned our lens inward to focus on the importance of project work here at Parker. From professional development to classroom examples both large and small, we have analyzed and illustrated how project work exemplifies our mission and values as a progressive school. This past Monday, we set aside a day…

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Cinderella the Musical!

March 17, 2023

Cinderella the Musical! Project work at Parker is integral to our model of learning and woven into the fabric of our community. Last week, we examined the hallmarks of successful project work at Parker and how it facilitates our mission of engaging each student in a thoughtful and challenging learning process that inspires curiosity and…

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