Setting and Context
Culture and Community Context
Polaris is a K-12 expeditionary learning school in Poudre school district of Fort Collins. Polaris is the only expeditionary learning school in Fort Collins and is a choice school so that students outside of the near neighborhood have a chance of being accepted. In expeditionary learning schools, students learn through real-world experiences outside of textbooks to build mastery of knowledge and skills, character and high-quality products and performances that represent real work. At Polaris, students participate in what are called "intensives." Intensives are week-long experiences that have to do with specific subjects that students explore to gain a deep understanding rather than just covering several subjects to gain surface-level knowledge. Teachers at this school use a variety of tools to assess student learning such as self-assessments, portfolios, exams, and presentations of learning.
Overall, Polaris has an atmosphere that encourages students to express themselves and become their own individual person. This environment is created with the help of teacher-student relationships, student interest explorations, and community involvement.
Support Structure
At Polaris, parents are highly encouraged to be involved in their child's learning. Parents are invited to participate in intensives and fieldwork by providing transportation and chaperoning on trips. They also mentor students about their own experiences and careers. Sometimes parents are invited as guest speakers to inform students about their real-world jobs. There are also adventure trips outside of Fort Collins that parents are encouraged to attend.
Polaris also offers many resources in regards to student health. On their website, there are links that provide information about common health concerns in schools. Polaris also has a full-time Health Technician and a Nurse who visits the school weekly.
Demographic Characteristics
2018 CMAS TEST SCORES
Third Grade Fourth Grade Fifth Grade
English Language Arts 22.2% Proficient 55.6% Proficient 72.2% Proficient
Math 44.4% Proficient N/A 44.4% Proficient
Science N/A N/A 66.7% Proficient
The information below shows the demographics at Polaris. This information was gathered from www.schooldigger.com and was updated in August 2018.
There are 386 students enrolled at Polaris Expeditionary Learning School
Student/teacher ratio: 15.4
Racial breakdown:
White: 87%
Hispanic: 6.2%
Two or more races: 3.9%
Free/discounted lunch recipients: 36%
School Ranking (2018):
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312th of 917 Colorado public elementary schools
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Better than 66% of elementary schools in Colorado
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61.99 average standardized test score
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Poudre School District R-1 13th of 124 Colorado school districts
Classroom Environment and Students
At Polaris, Sami and I work with Julie's first-grade class. In this class, there are 17 students: 8 girls and 9 boys. Julie creates a welcoming classroom where the main rules are for students to take care of themselves and take care of their classmates. Since these rules are set, there aren't too many issues between students, everyone usually gets along. Julie has also created a controlled environment with routines so that her students know exactly what to do every day. For example, at the beginning of class, students flip their attendance cards and sit on the purple carpet in the corner of the classroom. Then everyone answers the daily question in his or her sketchbook. After that, they all sing "have a happy day," to everyone on the carpet which creates an inclusive environment where every student is recognized. Every student gets a chance to be heard by getting to share something about them. We heard a lot of students share stories about losing teeth. This creates a safe environment that encourages students to share their artistic creations.
The layout of the classroom is very organized to allow students to have a lot of space. There are four meeting areas with carpets and books and in the middle of the room, there are five tables with four chairs each. There are no assigned seats but some students aren't allowed to sit together because of distraction. The smart board is located right by the main meeting area in the corner and the sink is located by the meeting area by the playhouse.
Below shows a diagram of the classroom.
Classroom Environment and Students
At Polaris, Sami and I work with Julie's first-grade class. In this class, there are 17 students: 8 girls and 9 boys. Julie creates a welcoming classroom where the main rules are for students to take care of themselves and take care of their classmates. Since these rules are set, there aren't too many issues between students, everyone usually gets along. Julie has also created a controlled environment with routines so that her students know exactly what to do every day. For example, at the beginning of class, students flip their attendance cards and sit on the purple carpet in the corner of the classroom. Then everyone answers the daily question in his or her sketchbook. After that, they all sing "have a happy day," to everyone on the carpet which creates an inclusive environment where every student is recognized. Every student gets a chance to be heard by getting to share something about them. We heard a lot of students share stories about losing teeth. This creates a safe environment that encourages students to share their artistic creations.
The layout of the classroom is very organized to allow students to have a lot of space. There are four meeting areas with carpets and books and in the middle of the room, there are five tables with four chairs each. There are no assigned seats but some students aren't allowed to sit together because of distraction. The smart board is located right by the main meeting area in the corner and the sink is located by the meeting area by the playhouse.
Below shows a diagram of the classroom.
School-wide Policies for Management, Safe Schools, Conflict Resolution and Students with Special Needs.
Management: In Julie's classroom, she holds students accountable by setting up rules and expectations. If a student is acting out, she will separate them from the rest of the class and she also sets them up for success by making sure certain students don't sit together to minimize distractions.
Conflict Resolution and Safe Schools: Polaris has student codes of conducts as well as campus security officers and resource officers to help maintain a safe environment where students can learn.