Mission

The River School’s inclusive program challenges each child to work collaboratively, to think critically, and to develop the confidence to take risks, embrace their curiosity, and find their voice.

Pillars

Innovative Teaching
From Mouth Time to Mindfulness, The River School creates new programs and develops evidence-based teaching strategies that draw from the best current research in education.

Co-Teaching & Personalized Education
Our co-teaching model pairs a master’s level educator with a speech-language pathologist in each classroom, a unique and effective combination for cementing strong language, literacy and social skills. Our low teacher-student ratios and small class sizes promote strong, personal relationships between teachers and students and allow educators to tailor teaching to each child.

Passionate & Highly Engaged Educators
Our teachers are energetic, creative, curious and committed. They model the qualities we hope children will develop: mindfulness, empathy, persistence, resilience, honesty and integrity.

Progressive Education
By expanding children’s opportunities for social, physical and creative development we enhance their personal and academic success. Our faculty includes specialists in the visual arts, music, science, physical education, drama and yoga.

Thematic Curriculum
Themes provide a play-based, child-centered and cohesive context for learning, and inspire vocabulary development, experimentation, problem solving and the ability to make connections between different academic areas.

Inclusive & Diverse Classrooms
For all students, diverse and inclusive classrooms provide the environment in which to develop enriched perspectives and a greater understanding of their world. At The River School children with hearing loss learn alongside their hearing peers and provide an important source of diversity.

Active Learning
Children at The River School engage in active learning; they work collaboratively in groups, solve problems, make mistakes and learn from them, and develop the confidence to take risks, share ideas and speak up.

Social-Emotional Learning
Our Social-Emotional Learning Program begins with teaching our youngest children to identify their own emotions and culminates in a social justice focus. Children learn to recognize and express their own emotions and to develop positive and empathetic relationships with others.

A Commitment to Financial Aid
Because we value a dynamic and socioeconomically diverse school community, we make a significant commitment to financial aid to ensure that all students can benefit from a River School education.

A Community of Learners
Relationships between children and faculty are strengthened by collaboration among faculty, administrators and families. Professional development for faculty, graduate student training, parent-education programs and family engagement all add richness and depth to the educational program.