As a pioneer school in project-based learning, we believe that families are integral partners in a successful learning process. Because we embrace a unique learning model, Project-Based Learning (PBL), we want our families to understand the why, what, and how of PBL. We encourage our families to become active participants alongside their children and their school community.

Each month we offer Parent University Workshops to have deep conversations and guide our families through the process. We join experts in the field and members of our team who guide our families through the process and answer pertinent questions.

Please email office@scvi-k12.org to find out when the next Parent University is offered.

Intro to PBL
At the Intro to PBL Workshop, we will focus on some core questions such as the following: What is project-based learning? What does project-based learning, planning, and implementing entail? What makes project-based learning different from any other approach to education, teaching, learning and assessment? Join us for this workshop and learn about the PBL process as an organic and holistic approach to education.

Engagement Through PBL Part I
During this workshops, parents assume the learner role and go through project-based learning experience from “Entry Points” (planning a project), Entry Event (gauging learners’ interest), meaningful engagement (ongoing inquiry, teaming, and rigor in PBL) to project relevance, authenticity, and application.

7 Habits Through PBL
Project-based learning is more than just teaching and learning. PBL involves a multi-scaffolded structure of holistic education. That is why PBL at iLEAD (international, Leadership, Entrepreneurialism, Arts, and Design) incorporates academic rigor and social-emotional learning (7 Habits, Character Lab, and Learning Outcomes). During this session, parents become familiar with the relationship between iLEAD PBL and the 7 Habits of Effective Children. The 7 Habits help us build meaningful home-school-community relationships and systems for supporting our children’s education.

Culture and Discipline in PBL
What does it mean to “learn from failure”? What does it mean to work on developing a “growth mind-set”? How do we navigate through the fear of failure and teaming? This workshop explains how iLEAD capitalizes on diversity, culture, beliefs, and other systems as a vehicle for building a strong PBL community where every learner succeeds. During this session we talk about the experience of “meeting every learner where they are” and “honoring passion, diversity, and individualization” to foster our vision: “Free to Think. Inspired to Lead.”

Assessments and Rubrics in PBL
Join us in one of the most important and difficult PBL endeavors: (1) an assessment for measuring learners’ growth through the PBL process; (2) how rubrics measure the authentic PBL process; and (3) the holistic approach to PBL assessment through iLEAD rubrics for academic rigor and social-emotional learning.

Engagement Through PBL Part II
This workshop focuses on PBL aspects for engagement, such as the following: Interdisciplinary Facilitator Teams, Learner-Driven Teams, Creativity, Innovation, Flexibility, and Authenticity. Together we explore the backstory of PBL that led to lasting, meaningful learning. We use authentic project-based learning (PBL) experiences to engage learners, families, and the community. Often parents get to see only glimpses of projects — typically, when learners are presenting their final work. Here’s a chance to hear how a project unfolds.

PBL for Families
Project-based learning (PBL) is a fantastic way to increase family and community involvement in our schools in a truly authentic way. Instead of creating unappealing strategies to engage families, PBL provides an opportunity for families to become an integral part of our school identity, the curriculum and instruction, and daily activities. Come to this workshop to learn how families become part of PBL as partners and audience in the process of education, transparency of projects, culturally responsive projects, and other important aspects.

PBL Next Steps
Let’s learn together how PBL embraces a collaborative, design-for-change philosophy to incorporate lessons learned to further improve outcomes during the PBL process. Together we will explore these key features:

  • Making PBL the central approach, or spine, of iLEAD to provide a meaningful context for learning and applying critical knowledge, concepts, and skills.
  • Using PBL and design cycles for learners to revisit key concepts and questions in each successive project, applying their knowledge again and again — cyclically — in new circumstances, so they might achieve greater depths of understanding and be able to transfer that understanding to authentic contexts and scenarios.