STEPHANIE HERZOG

One of the most basic and fundamental aspects of childhood is a solid education. Every parent wants to see their child start school somewhere that prepares their child for the academic and social challenges they will face later on in life. Although this goal should be foremost in any early learning facility, it’s all too common that kids don’t get the socialization or the personal interaction they need for a great start in school.

The Willow School opened in Vero Beach in 2004 as a new, fully accredited alternative for local pre-K through eighth grade children hoping to avoid the drudge of typical classes. For the last ten years, The Willow School has dedicated itself to going above and beyond any traditional curriculum and focusing on engaging students in an experiential curriculum. Willow also offers an interactive preschool program for ages 3 – 4 which combines child care with socialization and early education to prepare tiny tikes to start school.

Through the use of activities such as plays, projects, presentations, videos and story boards to name a few, students are able to learn subject material through experience, rather than memorization, as is the encouraged method of study in most schools. While many students spend their adolescence cramming for exams only to forget everything when the next test rolls around, the pupils at Willow thrive on a combination of one on one instruction and experientially based activities, which helps them to enjoy and retain what they are taught.

The school is situated on seven sprawling acres with a large outdoor playing field, swings and a pond so there is ample space to run and play. Willow also has five classrooms where children of varying ages and learning levels all interact in small classes of about fifteen. One room is designated for preschoolers, one is for kindergarten, another is for second and third graders, a fourth is for the fourth and fifth graders, and the last room is for the older sixth, seventh and eighth graders. Each class has a teacher and a teachers aide so that each student gets individual education and is challenged according to their unique learning ability.

Some of the students at Willow have learning issues or are academically gifted, but all are taught at a level that suits their specific needs, and in such a way that the kids have fun together too. By integrating different ages and making each lesson an engaging undertaking, the teachers and staff at the Willow School have found a way to subvert the usual test focused curriculum and teach children how to turn their projects into experience and understanding.

Lately, the students at The Willow School have been making headlines and big bucks- last year the kids won a contest sponsored by Vatland Honda by competing with other Florida schools to name the Vatland whale. Many different schools participated in the contest, and the top five who guessed the whale correctly (including Willow) all had to compete for first place by getting the most Facebook likes. Up against several much larger institutions, the small Willow School banded together friends and family, gained the most Facebook likes and won the contest, and the $10,000 grand prize! The school put the money to good use, immediately building an outdoor canopy area for the children to enjoy.

If anyone is curious about The Willow School, whether they have a child starting school or are studying education or simply want to observe Willow’s innovative approach to learning, the school offers monthly “Willow Walks”. On the first Friday of every month at noon, the school hosts guided tours of their classrooms and grounds to offer insight on how the school works and what the kids do there, then guests are given lunch. These Willow Walks allow parents to truly interact with the school and see the students in their element, engaged and having fun while they are learning.

If you ask the average kid about their thoughts on school, they will almost always say they hate it or find it boring. However, the students at The Willow all say the same thing, that they like their school because they “get to do stuff”. Whether they’re acting out a historical event in a play or making a presentation of what they learned in front of their friends, the students at Willow have the advantage of hands on experience to aide in their learning process. Instead of training young pupils to memorize collections of data, the Willow School continually strives to teach its students through interaction and experience in order to create free thinking young adults.