Part of our curriculum is traditional. If you are teaching phonics, typing, or basic math, sometimes the old fashioned way is the way to go. The thing is, most traditional schools are locked into content levels that are determined either by the state or the homeschooling industry, and the individual learner is not really taken into account in any serious way. No here! We have core baseline levels for subjects, and once those levels are reached, we can customize the rest of the way. 

     Part of our curriculum is creative. A student may become engrossed in a specific project or a certain topic, and if we see that that activity contains elements of traditional subjects, we let the student focus on it and count the work as traditional work. For example, a student may develop a math game that involves teams and a playoff system. They develop logos for the team and write and design the rulebook. Then they convince some of their fellow students to play, train them, and keep the records. Finally, all of this may end up with the student developing a web site to share the game with the world. All this activity involves math, writing, graphic design, interpersonal communication, leadership, organization, and computer skills. So the work counts towards time spent in these traditional areas.

     As much as possible, the majority of a student's work is customized to their interests and learning styles. Some students are visual leaners, some textual, some aural, some relational, and some manual. And when it comes to demonstrating mastery, some prefer written evaluations while others do better through demonstration or discussion. As much as possible, we seek to understand each student and tailor the majority of the learning experience accordingly.

     Looking ahead to the jobscape of a highly digitalized era, we feel that relational skills will be in high demand, Computers and AI will be able to do amazing things, but we will want people for jobs involving communication, counsel, storytelling, and leadership. So here at Studio1248, besides the regular subjects, we spend time working on public verbal skills, empathetic connection, and awareness of self and others.

     Finally, we think wholistically. We want to help the student live a good life. This means so much more than academic excellence. Is a student anxious? Why, and how can we redesign the work load in a wat that is calming yet still conducive to growth? Is a student apathic? How can we find new material that may interest them more than the default material? Is a student losing sight of the big picture to pursue a short-term goal (like trying to get all As)? How can we teach them to widen their vision? These things are hard to quantify, and thus hard to evaluate, but they cannot be left out of a genuine education.