Teaching and Learning

Our teachers challenge students to master the fundamentals and reach beyond their existing knowledge to raise their capacity for inquiry, take ownership of their learning and explore their full potential. Foundational skills of critical thinking, communication, collaboration and empathy, to name a few, don’t just complement and enhance our strong academics, they are also the key ingredients of a life well-lived.

In 2017, Friends School of Baltimore became one of the first group of private, public, and charter schools in the world to enter into a three-year Science of Teaching and School Leadership Academy partnership with the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning. As the only Baltimore-area partner school, Friends now commits itself to making research-informed teaching and learning the central focus of faculty professional development, curriculum, and program design. Each summer, Friends School teachers and leaders attend a five-day Academy that features leading university researchers in Mind, Brain, and Education (MBE) science on topics such as memory, emotion and cognition, mindsets, and neuroanatomy as it relates to learning.

As a partner school for the Academy, Friends School teachers and school leaders participate in a research study designed by the Science of Learning Institute at Johns Hopkins University and become members of the Neuroteach Network; educators from around the world who are seeking to enhance how they design their classes and work with each individual student using research-informed strategies in the field of Mind, Brain, and Education Science.

Knowledge

The indispensable foundation of a world-class education is a powerful vehicle for nurturing skills and habits of mind.

Skills

Friends School cultivates the skills students will need to lead meaningful and productive lives.

Habits of Mind

We teach students to embrace challenge to reflect meaningfully upon their own learning.

Knowledge

Knowledge of content and concepts is the indispensable foundation of a world-class education and a powerful vehicle for nurturing skills and habits of mind.

Content

Our students develop mastery of important terminology, facility with pertinent algorithms, and awareness of essential facts, gaining understanding of the relevance of their knowledge and how they can use it in their lives.

Concepts

Studying topics within rich intellectual frameworks, and making meaning of knowledge through application to novel situations, Friends students become adept at creating connections.

Skills

Friends School cultivates in its students, the skills they will need to lead meaningful and productive lives.

Communication

Friends students develop effective written expression as well as public speaking and presentation skills, learning to convey their ideas with power and passion while actively listening to others.

Collaboration

Teamwork and cooperation are fundamental elements of the learning experience at Friends. We hold adults and students alike accountable for both their individual work and the contributions they make to their various groups and teams.

Critical Thinking

We view learning as a process of investigation. Students approach situations analytically, applying their knowledge to new situations. We nurture students' problem-solving skills and their inclination to take intellectual risks, challenge conventional thinking and develop unique ideas.

Information Literacy

At Friends, students become discerning consumers and producers of information, gaining research skills, honing their ability to access and evaluate information and learning to use technology ethically.

Habits of Mind

At Friends, we nurture habits of mind that promote awareness of both individual strengths and the need for contributions to the greater whole.

Creativity

Through the creative process, students draw upon their imaginations and develop the adaptability that is increasingly needed in our world.

Curiosity

Curiosity is the motivating inquisitiveness that propels one to seize initiative and strive. Friends students challenge and discover and invent every day.

Empathy

In today's world, the cultural competency needed to understand and honor other people and cultures is critical. We nurture in students compassion toward others and humility about their place in the world.

Reflection

Regular reflection develops self-knowledge and inspires questioning. Through contemplation, we deepen understanding and foster an inclination to learn from mistakes, making every experience an opportunity for growth.

Resilience

Having developed confidence and composure, students learn to persevere, demonstrating the willingness to embrace challenge and work through frustration.