Showing What We Know!

May 29, 2026


Parker believes in empowering children to take charge of their education. In so doing, our children become passionate experts about their learning, eager to take ownership of their work and share their learning forward with others. These past two weeks at Parker showcased the brilliant arc of our program as we celebrated both 8th Grade Thesis Night and our lower school Shows of Work.



To be a parent at Parker in these last weeks of school means to learn from our students. Whether it was a Kindergartener educating about how to make maple syrup or an 8th grader advocating for their carefully researched position on “Facism in American Politics and Why It Needs to Stop”, Parker students wasted no time in schooling their grown-ups. Student work exhibited choice, autonomy, and yet a powerful sense of being part of the collective whole that defines our community.



Whether you consider our youngest or our eldest students, these final shows of work demonstrate important principles of a Parker education. First, the project tasks are broad and don’t lead to one right answer. When our 1-2s write and perform their own Reader’s Theatre as a capstone to their gardening unit, they are engaging in collaborative work that requires multi-directional thinking and the ability to make connections between knowing and doing. By digging into the task, they show us what they think is important about their learning and therefore themselves. Similarly, when an 8th grader chooses a current event to research and ultimately take a stand on, we get a glimpse into their process of self-discovery en route to adulthood.



The arc from PreK to middle school in these shows of work also demonstrates how powerful learning can be when a student has the ability to exercise choice. Personal meaning connects new learning to previous experiences and makes it more memorable. These final shows also demonstrate how Parker prepares students to learn on their own. We don’t want students to just recite facts because we know that memorizing is not the same as understanding. Here at Parker, each student “translates” their initial learning into final meaningful project work that requires analysis, synthesis, and creation to complete.
At all levels and across all grades at Parker, our students are engaged in projects that leverage their interests and passions to scaffold their skills towards this final, signature 8th grade experience. The 8th Grade Thesis is the culminating project that Parker students spend their entire academic careers preparing for. The Thesis Project builds upon our students’ years of experience cultivating curiosity-inspired hypotheses, interest-based research, and evidence-based critical thinking skills.



Parker’s 8th grade Thesis Project is a culminating opportunity for our students to delve deeply into a topic of their choice, and present this topic to a wider audience. Parker students spend years developing their research and writing skills, propelled by choice-oriented project work that piques their interests. By 8th grade, they are more than ready to take on this challenge. 8th graders choose a topic that is personally meaningful to them, and often has great significance in the world. This creates a sense of agency and engagement that bolsters them throughout the challenging process. Presenting their findings and sharing them with the Parker community on Thesis Night gives our students an enormous sense of pride and confidence that they undoubtedly take with them into their lives beyond Parker. Parker students learn to see themselves as researchers, writers, speakers, and activists. It’s a wonderful first step in using their voice to affect change.



Whether it is showing your parents your outdoor classroom or educating a wider audience of community members about your position on a cause, the true value of sharing knowledge is always evident on the radiantly proud faces of our students. Shows of work build confidence in speaking and belonging. Sharing their knowledge and work gives students the opportunity to realize how much they know and have accomplished. Doing so in the presence of other families and administrators builds an intimate sense of community and support. The whole experience is a testament to a school culture that values belonging, independence, and growth. It is beautiful to experience.