Life at ELC
What a typical day at ELC, arrival to departure, looks like.
Arrival
The caretakers at the school welcome children at the entrance every morning, followed by the teachers. This often begins with a friendly question, at other times simply listening. The day begins when a child is ready.
Morning Work — Pre-Primary
In the 3–6 environment, there is a beautiful silence — not imposed by adults but created by children who are deeply engaged. The hands are doing the talking.
Morning Work — Primary
In the elementary classrooms, movement is a part of learning and children are free to use the entire space. Discussions are active, and most of the decision-making about the day’s learning is led by the children.
Monday Morning
On Mondays, children arrive after a weekend and share what they noticed — an observation, a question, something from the world outside school that stayed with them. The teacher listens closely.
Snack Corner
Children eat when they are hungry and a snack corner is open at all times to facilitate this. Independence is a way of life and so the snack table is a reflection of independence at the work shelf.
Circle Time
Once a day, the class gathers for conversation. Class concerns, questions, things the children noticed. We learn together and from each other.
Afternoon Rhythm
Story, art, language, science — the afternoon varies by class and by week. On some afternoons, children build instruments. On others, they write. No two Thursdays are the same.
Departure
Children leave calmly. Teachers are at the gate. There is no performance, no lineup. Just a goodbye.
Reflections from a teacher at ELC
“While discussing how plants are unique because they make their own food, a child said: ‘No, mammals can too — they make milk for their babies.’ It was an aha moment for me. I had never thought about it that way. In our classrooms, we learn new perspectives from each other.”