Mixed-age Classes
Bands at Brightworks
A band is the Brightworks word for “class.”
We group students based on their individual, developmentally-appropriate emotional and academic levels, looking to join students who can create the most productive and loving support system for each other in their journey through the school year.
It is only in schools that we separate people by age. Birth dates shouldn’t define a learner’s journey…
Learners at Brightworks are placed in groups that prioritize potential for growth individually, with their peers, as bands, and as a community. These mixed-age groupings are designed by our programmatic team (collaborators, learning specialist and leadership) who are in conversation throughout each year and take into account social, developmental and academic/intellectual right fit. Feedback from parents, school experiences and observations from the Brightworks support team are also considered.
At Brightworks, “bands” are the main working groups of Brightworks students – these are their homeroom classes. Each band is composed of 10-15 students, assisted by a staff collaborator. Band members work closely together to expand their understanding of a topic and build the skills they will need for their projects. Social-emotional learning is also at its strongest within these small communities.
Each band maintains a home bandspace or classroom within Brightworks that they build together and fill with evidence of their explorations, ideas, and projects.
Of course, the design of our campus ensures that there are times we are all working next to each other, overlapping in an emergent and spontaneous manner - regardless of what band we were in. Students have frequent interactions with other bands in many ways (literacy groups, upper school creative studios, park time, community Friday, etc), but their home band and collaborator are their anchors within the school community.
FAQ’s:
How do you decide on band placement?
Bands and collaborators are grouped with intention and thought around each student at the school, their needs and the social life of each group. We make a deliberate effort to group students to expand their:
social skills,
academic/intellectual right fit,
potential for growth with their peers, individually, as bands, and as a community.
Where did the idea of multi-age classrooms come from?
Inspired by the realization that, early conceptions of Brightworks imagined collaborators, students, and parents in a rich broth of engaging experiences with the school as a framework for fostering the development of that curiosity and creativity.
Multiage classrooms were actually standard in American schools until the mid-19th century, when they began to be replaced by a curriculum-centered, grade-level system. While it is less efficient by many measures, and requires fewer students per class, research shows that multiage classrooms are a more child-centered and developmentally appropriate approach.
Studies have shown multiage classrooms to be a powerful tool for supporting learning – specifically, they are “as effective as single-grade schooling in terms of academic achievement and better in terms of social learning,” according to a 2015 article in the Journal of Educational and Social Research. That may be because students learn from each other.
In the article, Dr. Sandra Stone notes, “children are learning how to work and play with others of mixed ages, how to negotiate, to support, to compromise, to learn and build diverse friendships with children of different ages.” We see this nuanced learning in action at Brightworks daily.
How wide is the age range in a class?
Multi-age classrooms typically span two or three years (except our Micro High School program, which currently spans 4 years). In a lower elementary classroom, for instance, students from ages 7 to 9 may be in a single class together, but break up into different small groups by ability in different subjects.
What skills do students develop in a multi age environment?
Learning from children who are both novices and experts.
Encouraging the use of more sophisticated skills in order to engage experts.
Mastering skills through modeling for diverse learners.
Internalizing new understandings through “cognitive conflict” experiences with mixed ages.
Developing intellectual and communication skills because of broader differences in the learning community.
Acquiring social skills in meaningful contexts with mixed ages.
Providing a natural environment for prosocial behaviors to thrive such as helping, sharing, and taking turns.
Encouraging cooperative learning in the absence of competition.
Providing contexts for the development of leadership skills for all ages.
