we do school differently
You want to write a novel? Ok! You want to start a small business to raise money for the animal shelter? Let’s do it! You want to build a sail car and go on a journey down an abandoned railway? Let’s figure it out together! Brightworks is the school that says YES!
When Students Lead, Learning Follows
Students Drive Their Own Learning
What if education could communicate to each child:
I see you,
you are important,
your ideas matter:
Let’s find something to do with them.
That’s why we’re here: to build a school community that starts with the belief that kids are capable.
Kids come to us already bubbling with interests and curiosities, questions and ideas. Our job is to support them in bringing their ideas to the world.
Brightworks helps students build the skills they need to follow their interest as far as their curiosity and every-growing capacity can possibly take them. When their work is meaningful to them, they are motivated to learn the skills they need to help them pursue it.
That’s why we call our teachers “collaborators:” they partner with students to co-create a learning experience fueled by what makes them spark.
When students are in the driver’s seat of their learning, they learn who they are and what they’re truly capable of.
They build the confidence, self-knowledge and real life experience they need to drive their own future.
The mind is not a vessel to be filled but a fire to be kindled.
Projects are the Vehicle
“Education is not preparation for life, education is life itself.” -John Dewey
Collaborators support student-driven learning through projects. We call our project-based framework the arc.
Through project-based learning and design thinking, our students explore their passions, tackle real-world challenges, and develop skills like collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking.
Why wait until you’re an adult to make meaningful contributions to the world?
From save the axolotl fundraisers to building Mars Rovers, our students tackle authentic work that impacts our actual world from the moment they walk through our doors.
We equip students with the tools they need for the future by enabling them to do real work that makes an actual impact right now.
Community Grounds the Journey
Learning like this is only possible in community.
Our small classes, mixed-age groups, and antiracist inclusive environment let’s us truly see and connect with each child and all that they bring.
When kids are seen and trusted, they feel safe to take risks, fall down, try again—that’s when the real learning happens.
Learning here happens through collaboration on real, authentic work. Kids get daily practice in active listening, problem solving, collaboration, design thinking, conflict resolution, and restorative justice.
Social emotional learning isn’t a tack-on, it is the very heart of what makes our approach possible.
We’re intentionally building a kind, antiracist, inclusive community where everyone is accepted and welcomed as their full selves and takes responsibility for their role as a community member in shaping a better world.
A Place-Based School
Our fertile learning environment roots us to place.
At Brightworks, school is a 3-walled classroom, where the world beyond our walls is an active participant in the learning process.
Our place-based approach to learning comes to life here in the Presidio, where the redwoods, creeks and streams naturally extend our indoor environment outdoors, providing a natural playground for discovery and possibility.
Collaborators plan frequent adventures within our vibrant city of San Francisco and the wider bay area: from marine study in the bay, to community-building in the neighborhoods, to museums and local businesses, our city offers endless opportunities for exploration and engagement. The community outside our doors is as much a part of our curriculum as work we create within our space.
Both indoors and out, collaborators design an environment full of interesting things to delve into, explore and get curious about that spark curiosity and wonder. We use provocations—real-world challenges and prompts—to fuel curiosity and guide meaningful exploration.
The Best Place for Childhood
From climbing trees in the redwood grove to creating elaborate games using found objects, at Brightworks kids get plenty of unhurried time to stay kids.
We deeply honor play as the central work of childhood.
Here, kids get into deep play in the woods, building forts and mud shops, cities and ecosystems. They imagine, create, dress up, explore--from kindergarten to graduation.
At Brightworks, there’s no PE class. Climbing a redwood tree to the top, playing “banana tag,” hiking to the Crissy Field or Golden Gate Park is our physical education.
We don’t have a cookie cutter playground: the kids design and build their own: an ever-evolving, bespoke playspace designed by and for them.
This is a place where play meets purpose.
At Brightworks, we know that play isn’t just for fun—it’s central to learning, no matter what age. Here, kids learn that approaching meaty problems through play is actually what sparks curiosity and deepens understanding.
Building a playful approach to hard problems is the best way to equip students for a world filled with complex, constantly evolving problems that need solving.
By combining hands-on exploration with real-world projects, our students develop skills like creativity, adaptability, and problem-solving in an environment that’s both playful and purposeful.
There’s no better place for childhood.
" Brightworks has given my daughter, who just joined as a middle schooler, a sense of what it’s like to be in a place that is truly kind. She comes home with happy highlights every day, and misses school on the weekends . "
-Middle School Parent
Our Programs
Early Elementary
ages 5-8
Upper Elementary
ages 7-11
Middle School
ages 10-14
High School
ages 13-18
Why Reimagine Education?
Why Reimagine Education?
The world is changing--faster than we can fathom.
Traditional models not only underestimate children, they simply don’t equip kids with the skills they need to thrive in a changing world.
Here, kids collaborate, ask questions, create, make, reflect, try again, think for themselves, and get to imagine possibilities that don’t yet exist.
We equip them with the tools to be the scrappy visionaries of our future by allowing them to be scrappy visionaries today.
The Tools to Thrive
Parents often ask: Will my child be ready for what comes next?
Brightworks graduates leave with a deep sense of themselves and their passions, the capacity to drive meaningful work, and the skills to adapt, innovate, and lead in a rapidly changing world.
Yes, your students will learn the literacy and numeracy skills they need. But they’ll leave here with so much more. By driving their own learning, students learn who they are, what they’re capable of, and what gives them joy and purpose.
They practice iteration, time management and collaboration on a daily basis at Brightworks — so they’re ready to put these skills to use when they leave our school.
Traits of a Brightworks Graduate
Know who they are, what they’re capable of, and the type of work they love
Approach challenges with creativity and resilience, finding solutions even in the face of uncertainty
Advocate for themselves and others, articulating their ideas clearly and confidently
Collaborate across diverse teams, listening thoughtfully and contributing meaningfully.
Engage with the world with curiosity and an understanding of how to get the information they need.
Whether a student transitions out in 8th grade to a traditional high school like Urban, Bay, Drew, Lick or SOTA, heads off after High School to specialized programs like the Culinary Institute, or graduates at 12th grade and moves on to a 4-year University, Brightworks students thrive because they know themselves deeply, and how to navigate the world with independence and confidence.
Follow along on our social media channels
Brightworks: Educating for the Future through real work now
Brightworks was recently featured in this documentary about the future of work. It was filmed in our previous space. Though our space has changed, our ethic remains. You can read more about how we are contributing to the conversation about shifting the educational paradigm on our press page.