Curriculum at Sovereign Locality School

I strongly believe that local communities need to have a direct influence on the curricula their schools follow. At Sovereign Locality School, materials reflect the cultural values of the community. Subjects taught include mathematics and music, language arts and communications, science and nature, art and geometry and sensory awareness, physical education, health, and spirituality (study of world religious practices and philosophies), and social studies and community awareness. 

All subjects are taught in application. If a student learns a simple mathematic process, the student is expected to applying it in a project as part of the learning process. Applying inductive and deductive reasoning is introduced when the cognitive development for such reasoning manifests in the student. Learning scientific and mathematic vocabulary would not be confined to math and science study but would be included in language arts subjects. Emotional maturity would be introduced through storytelling, literature, and teacher mediated day to day situations. Outdoor activities would be integrated into the curriculum through the focus on application. 

Community would be fostered through the sharing of resources from class to class for particular areas of application. Cooking science would require a fully functional kitchen shared by multiple levels of classes, developing skills and interests which would feed into a science lab for the later grades. Older students would be combined with younger students frequently to foster a mixed age learning environment. 

Field trips to community members' workplaces are encouraged at every opportunity. The School garden functions as an arena for learning as well. 

An example of assessment might be a student group building a physical structure meeting specific requirements such as a small shack that can withstand five teachers' pushing on each side, or creating a chemical product that meets specific requirements that can be tested. If the products of such products fail to meet the end requirements, then the group must re-assess. All required standards of the projects would reflect the mandated standards. Along with the product, students would submit their calculations, thoughts, ideas, and their general portfolio of the project. So, it would be necessary to get the "desk work" correct, but then the students would need to follow through with a physical product using that "desk work."