It requires a special place to foster a culture that creates scientific minds in students who choose to apply their craft across multiple disciplines. The traditional classrooms, outdoor classroom, garden, the arts, and field work sites are riddled with curious minds that are making connections to prior knowledge, to self, and to the world. West Bath School students do not limit themselves to understanding concepts and systems within a content silo. They have adopted a line of thinking that helps them connect math and science with PE, biology with invention, and weather with sculpture. Our students see patterns and reason in how they learn and begin to understand that those patterns and reason can be transferred to new concepts as the first steps in executing a variety of tasks and formats.
State Assessment Data
The data set below demonstrates that West Bath students strongly outperform the state average in the annual state assessment data. As only 5th grade students are assessed on an annual basis, the scores represent a students' K-5 experience at the West Bath School. Because the school's expeditions are aligned with the Next Gen Science Standards, but our students are assessed with older state standards, the assessment data also shows that West Bath students have the ability to see an assessment, question, or task, think it through, and respond effectively, even with the content being assessed differing slightly from the instruction they have received. The data set below also shows that West Bath students outperform the schools that were part of West Bath's prior school district before the town withdrew.
"West Bath School's science proficiency reflects EL Education, as students are learning in ways they are enthused about, and they are exposed to a large number of learning experiences as a result of EL. They have opportunities to build a boat, discuss why it floats, for example." - Robert McDaniel, School Board of Directors, West Bath School Administrative Unit
Scientific Transfer of Knowledge
The evidence below is composed of students products that display a transfer of scientific content to other disciplines, such as poetry, narrative writing, and to mathematics. The evidence set contains archived work that has been identified through high quality work protocols from multiple grade levels.
First Grade Biomicry Narrative Writing
Second Grade Animal Riddle Book
Third Grade Salinity Measurements Communicated through Graphing
Fourth Grade Blueberry Poetry Anthology
Scientific Transfer of Knowledge in the Arts
The evidence set below is composed of student products that display a transfer of scientific content to the arts. The samples selected contain science content that is shown through drama, art, and boat building. The evidence set shows archived work identified through the high quality work protocols from multiple grade levels.
Kindergarten Squirrel Habitats
Kindergarten Squirrel Habitats
First Grade Shadow Theater Play Bill
First Grade Shadow Theater Performance
First Grade Biomimicry Thank You Cards
Kindergarten Worm Anchor Chart
Fifth Grade Boat Building