A Better Way To Learn
At Leelanau, our mission is to help students maintain or rediscover their passion for learning and discovery – by respecting their individual strengths.
We can do all this because the Leelanau School is a different kind of school – a private, non-profit organization. While our colleagues in public school environments must contend with larger class sizes and high-stakes standardized testing that forces instructors to teach to the test, our unique position allows us to do things differently.
Here is how The Leelanau School offers a better way to learn.
We get to know each student. Every student is different and each brings their own learning style, strengths and weaknesses. That is why small class sizes are so important. Our teachers have a chance to know each student as an individual and find lessons that will resonate with them.
We empower our teachers to practice the art of teaching. There are many ways to teach or learn a lesson. Great things happen when teachers get to know a student and are empowered to adapt lessons to individual strengths, weaknesses, and interests.
We make learning a joyful process of discovery. That is why we leave the classroom. We go outside. We explore our wooded campus and beyond, make things, and get our hands dirty. We shoot slingshots to learn about parabolic motion. Wade into the river to learn about aquatic life cycles. We don’t do these things because they’re fun – even though they are a lot of fun – we do them because we know, from our own experience as well as from a growing body of educational research, that most students learn best when they are active, hands-on, and totally immersed in a lesson.