The Overview of Powerful Learning:

Excited, empowered, and eager to learn. Golden Hills aims to foster confident, creative, and compassionate learners who make a difference in the world. This is what inspires teachers to create the best possible learning experiences for their students. Powerful Learning is the design and implementation of learning experiences that foster Deep Understanding while developing core competencies designed to prepare students for future challenges. It incorporates lesson design, implementation, and assessment using strategic instruction. The ultimate goal of Powerful Learning is for students to achieve Deep Understanding through learning experiences that help them to grow, discover and change- change their thinking, change themselves and perhaps change the world.

Implementation of Powerful Learning occurs throughout all schools in Golden Hills  to achieve Deep Understanding of curriculum essentials, and is clustered around three drivers.  These elements are foundational to the learning experiences in Golden Hills.

1. The first driver, Strategic Instruction, incorporates high yield, evidence based strategies and practices designed to improve student learning. This driver includes Assessment for Learning strategies, as well as strategies designed to foster thinking.
2. The second driver, Authentic Engagement, explains how to set up the culture and environment to foster Powerful Learning. It includes how to create a sense of belonging and well-being, the role of a growth mindset and how to build a culture of thinking in our classrooms.
3. The third driver, Connecting and Contributing, describes the connections with oneself between students and teachers, students and students, students and their parents, local and global communities. Relationships are the foundation of these connections as students extend their learning beyond the classroom.

The core competencies are woven throughout these areas and successful demonstration of these competencies are observed when students achieve deep understanding.