Nido Changemakers
All Nido students participate in some form of service learning, both curricular and co-curricular, and we are proud that Nido is an Ashoka Changemaker School. In keeping with the School's mission and values, we help our students develop the skills and agency they need to be empathetic and collaborative leaders who make a positive and significant difference in the world.
Early Childhood Center/Elementary School
Community Building Bridges - Nido Values in Action
In this program, Nido students work on projects benefiting nonprofit institutions that provide a better quality of life for families in our community. One of our primary goals in this project is nurturing the development of empathy in our youngest students. Our Early Childhood Center and elementary school students use their division values (respect, responsibility, and kindness) to create authentic bonds with the organizations participating in the program. Students, parents, and teachers are part of the process in selecting the organizations, building relationships with them, and developing plans for the service learning projects.
Through this project, our students have had the amazing opportunity to partner with the following institutions:
As our students continue to work with the community through service learning projects, the goal is that they will learn the following skills:
Service: To encourage students to leave the comfort area of their school with innovative and supportive proposals that focus on social justice.
Skills: To aggregate student skills in the creation of projects that unite their learning through engaging social experiences.
Reflection: To learn how to reflect students’ thoughts and actions towards a better community by engaging in projects.
Communication: To strengthen students’ presentation skills and their abilities to communicate ideas, content, thoughts, and feelings.
Audacity: To empower students with the desire to be motivated by universal values such as empathy, respect, responsibility, and kindness.
Diversity: To embrace multiple perspectives for a common purpose and to encourage students to create change toward a higher quality of living.
Evaluation: To determine that individual ideas can be unique and meaningful.
Community: To recognize the impact that homes, schools, and communities can have on society.
Integrity: To believe in the sincerity, honesty, and power of our actions.
Colegio Cree Library Project
Our Elementary School Gifted and Talented Program works on the leading edge of design thinking, outreach, and project-based learning in an ongoing partnership with Colegio Cree. As Colegio Cree was starting, students from Nido worked with their directors to re-vision what classroom libraries could look like. Through visits, discussions, interviews, and modeling, our students created a prototype idea. Through ideation, the kids looked at the guiding question, "What is needed to make a classroom library space in order to develop a love of learning in students?" After the students presented, the directors at Colegio Cree approved the prototype proposal. The implementation is ongoing throughout 2017, and we are excited to see the outcome of this forward-thinking project.
Middle School
The Middle School House Program divides the school into four multi-grade level teams, comprised of Advisory Groups from different grade levels. These teams meet in both large and small groups to work out problems, discuss challenges, and engage in projects. In the course of this work, students form tighter bonds, enhance their problem-solving and teamwork skills, and become more aware of outside communities. The program produces a more harmonious school culture in which students feel supported by their classmates.
The House Program has two major components:
- A quarter-long community service cycle
- Periodic full-division House meetings to embrace relationships, have fun, and work on short design challenges.
The House Community Service Cycle
Throughout the school year, each Advisory Group spends one quarter applying the design process. Each student works cooperatively to:
- Understand the needs of the organization
- Make a plan to gather necessary information and materials
- Ideate possible solutions
- Visit the partnering institution and implement the solution
- Reflect on the community service project
House Skill Set By Grade Level
- Grade 6: Team participation, positive participation, effective communication
- Grade 7: Negotiating skills, fostering team behaviors
- Grade 8: Effective leadership skills, event planning, and implementation
High School
Nido high school students serve the community through multiple co-curricular student activities and organizations involved in charity work and fundraising, several of our Week Without Walls trips, and IB CAS (Creativity, Action, & Service) projects.
The HS Student Ambassador Program is an excellent example of service learning in action within the Nido community. Our Student Ambassadors are in charge of planning and organizing orientation for new students. They also have a full program dedicated to farewell activities. A very important aspect to this program is that it is a school-wide collaboration. The high school students are in charge of training and supporting the Ambassadors in the Middle and Elementary Schools. This link between divisions and leading by example aid in nurturing the development of Nido values, which is an integral part of our curriculum and the Nido experience.