Curricular Learning Journeys

September 25, 2026


On Thursday, we had the great pleasure of welcoming families into our classrooms for our annual Curriculum Night. This annual event is our first true “Show of Work”, and our teachers pour their heart and soul into preparing their classrooms and student work with the goal of sharing the joy that we experience every day with our families. It is our hope that parents came away with a deep sense of appreciation for the thoughtfulness of the curriculum and our commitment to our students’ learning and growth.

Curriculum Night is just a small window into the purposeful effort we put into learning experiences at Parker. As part of our upcoming NYSAIS accreditation, Parker recently had the opportunity to examine our curriculum with intention and articulate what makes our program unique. Specifically, we identified that Parker’s mission-driven educational program emphasizes the importance of joyful, experiential, project-based learning with children at the center of their own learning. These are at the core of our teaching practices, as well as curricular planning and implementation.




Jennifer Gresens, Parker’s Head of School, explains, “Parker is a school that honors and treasures childhood. We believe in the magic of play and exploration and encourage kids to find and follow their passions. Curriculum night gives families the opportunity to see exactly how our program and environment encourages wonder, inquiry, independence, and discovery. Through everything our teachers do, we seek to create confident, life-long learners who will move out into the wider world with strong academic and social skills. We believe in the power of giving kids agency over their learning and alongside a planned curriculum, allowing them to take the lead in how and what they are learning.”



As a progressive school, Parker is mindful to keep our curriculum relevant and responsive. During the 2023-2025 school years, Parker faculty engaged in a structured curriculum review and revision process with the support of educational consultant Michelle Hughes. We worked towards a shared objective of strengthening our PreK-8th grade continuum of learning so that curriculum follows a coherent and intentional progression from year to year, with each grade building naturally on what came before whilst also preparing students for what comes next. Our faculty and administration outlined criteria for this work that was centered on mission-driven goals:

Grounding student work in an emphasis on diverse stories and inclusivity to reflect the diverse backgrounds and experiences of our student population and the communities we live in; Devising studies that involve project-based learning; Emphasizing social problem-solving experiences; Focusing on the natural world to maximize the offerings of our 77 acre campus and the urgency of environmental concerns; Gathering and utilizing quality literature to teach.



We concluded our two-year curricular journey in June, 2025. Ultimately, all Parker teachers and specialists successfully documented and refined their curricular approaches, topics, and experiences at each grade level. They also composed storyboards portraying a year’s work in their classrooms in order to provide teachers, parents, and students with a visual of the goals and themes in their disciplines. Our faculty’s dedication to this extensive review process brought us together in pursuit of providing the highest possible quality education at Parker. The work has built connections across the grades and disciplines, fostering an open and creative-minded review process and a renewed culture of collaboration.



Through an emergent and project-based curriculum, paired with intentional, predetermined units of study, Parker students are given the opportunity to steer their learning, and develop the important skills of asking relevant questions, conducting research, and sharing their learning with their community of peers. By sharing their ideas, asking questions, engaging in hands-on experiences, interacting with experts, and fully participating in class activities, our students engage meaningfully with their world.