We always go back to our son's feedback after his first few weeks at Pear Tree Elementary - 'This school is definitely my kind of place". This sentiment hasn't changed in the two years that he has attended the school. We feel that our son is able to allow his curiosity to lead his learning whilst being encouraged, challenged and supported not only by his teachers but also by his peers. The diversity in daily activities doesn't leave room for boredom which is definitely suitable for an energetic child like ours. For a pre-teen, one of the current and most favoured activities would be the use of technology in the everyday learning environment. Whether it's coding or using a tablet to create a presentation, or an app to learn a new math concept, Pear Tree has very purposefully integrated technology in a way that is beneficial for all students. It would be unfair for us to not share that one of our son's best parts of his school day is the snack and lunchtimes!
Our energetic 8 year-old son loves Pear Tree because of the active learning activities, centered around engaging projects. For example, last term, his class did a project on Pioneers, and he got to make his own pioneer wagon and use math and other skills to calculate what he would need to pack in the wagon to see our family through the many-months journey across the continent. The project culminated in a field trip to Fort Langley, where the kids got to see pioneer life in action, while dressing up as pioneers themselves. Our son also really enjoys the hour-long PE classes that he does everyday, including going to an actual gymnastics school and learning martial arts with a sensei at a nearby dojo. He also really likes the other kids and loves his teacher. At his old school, he would be sad on Sundays about going back to school, but those days are over thanks to Pear Tree.
