How We Learn
Our Approach: Learning With Balance, Health, And Joy
At Collage Day School, we believe children thrive when their learning environment nurtures the whole child—mind, body, and spirit—while welcoming families as essential partners in the journey.
Our approach blends academic rigor with health, wellness, and meaningful family connection, ensuring that learning feels purposeful, balanced, and joyful.
A Place Where Learning Feels Like Living Well
At Collage, academics are just one piece of a larger picture: raising children who are balanced, curious, compassionate, and healthy.
We see learning as a partnership between school and home, and we know that when families and educators walk together, children flourish. Our educational philosophy combines rigorous academics with a whole-child wellness.
We believe children learn best when intellectual curiosity and challenges are paired with emotional, physical, and creative growth. Through hands-on experiences, strong foundations in core subjects, and culture of health and balance, we prepare children not only for academic excellence but a lifetime of exploration, resilience, and joy in learning.
Standards with a Personal Touch
- We align with Florida’s B.E.S.T. Standards but go beyond them by focusing on how children learn and grow as individuals
- Students receive regular, strengths-based feedback, encouraging resilience and confidence rather than competition
- Families are invited into the process—celebrating progress together, not just outcomes
Meaningful Experiences, Deeper Understanding
- Project-based learning connects classroom goals to real-life experiences that often extend into home and community
- Whether it’s preparing a healthy garden harvest, exploring nature trails, or showcasing creative projects, learning is designed to strengthen curiosity and build lasting family conversations beyond the school day
Growing the Whole Child Through Health & Wellness
- Our curriculum is built on five pillars: Health, Safety, Engagement, Support, and Challenge
- Daily routines include movement, mindful eating, and outdoor exploration—because learning doesn’t happen in isolation from wellbeing
- Teachers, specialists, and families work together to ensure children feel secure, supported, and capable of meeting new challenges
Learning in Nature's Classroom
- Our eight-acre campus, with ponds, gardens, and trails, is an extension of the classroom
- Outdoor learning isn’t just play—it’s an essential part of social, emotional, and cognitive growth
- Families are welcomed into this natural setting through regular events, wellness walks, and farm-to-table tastings, reinforcing the belief that health and learning go hand-in-hand
Support Systems that Include Families
- Learning specialists, counselors, and health professionals collaborate with families to create plans that truly support each child
- We emphasize partnership and communication so parents feel informed, empowered, and supported every step of the way
- Additional services—guidance, speech, OT, ABA, and mental health—are integrated with family involvement, so no child or parent navigates challenges alone
Community, Connection, and Belonging
- Our days begin and end with community—through shared wellness circles, celebrations, and moments of gratitude
- Weekly family-focused events invite parents and caregivers to be present, whether through cooking lessons, wellness Fridays, or creative showcases
- By weaving families into the rhythm of school life, children feel a deep sense of belonging and see learning as a shared family value
Learning Support at Collage Day School
At Collage Day School, our Learning Specialists are dedicated partners in supporting the success of every child. Through positive, confidential communication, they build strong and trusting relationships with students, empowering them to celebrate accomplishments, pursue their dreams, and seek guidance when facing challenges.
Our Learning Specialists are available across both preschool and elementary programs, ensuring that students at every stage have the tools and support they need to thrive.
They provide individualized and small-group assistance in areas such as:
- Educational planning and goal setting
- Time management and organizational strategies
- Testing accommodations and learning supports
- Skill development for academic success
Learning Specialists also serve as a resource for families, answering questions, addressing concerns, and partnering with parents to create a holistic support plan. In collaboration with faculty and administration, they help guide best practices in teaching and learning, ensuring that every student has the opportunity to grow in a supportive, nurturing environment.
At Collage Day School, our commitment to the whole child means no student walks their journey alone—our Learning Specialists are here to guide, encourage, and champion their success.
Project-Based Learning
We offer project-based learning to develop thinking skills by using mixed media to improve learning and build community.
Collage recognizes that each student has his or her own unique methods of learning and varying levels of skill and curiosity. This is why project-based learning, an approach that allows students to delve deeply into material and merge it with their own interests, is the center of Collage education. Through projects, students connect new knowledge with what they already know. They develop higher-order thinking skills—the ability to analyze, evaluate, and synthesize.
Why Project-Based Learning?
Engaged Student Learning
Students are encouraged to engage in active learning; project-based learning engages hearts and minds, and provides real-world relevance for learning.
Improved Learning and Retention
After completing a project, students understand content more deeply, remembering what they learn and retain it longer than is often the case with traditional instruction
Project-Based Learning Teaches Mixed Media
Projects utilize a wide variety of media, from spoken word and poetry to presentations and school-wide performances. Students are familiar with and enjoy utilizing a variety of technology as well as the wealth of experience of the many art and art-inclined faculty at Collage.
Project-Based Learning Encourages Teacher and Student Creativity
Projects allow teachers to work more closely with active, engaged students, allowing both students and teachers to produce high-quality, meaningful work, and discover and re-discover the joys of learning and working with children.
Project-Based Learning Helps to Build a Community
Within the classroom and between the classroom and the real world. Projects provide students with empowering opportunities to make a difference through solving real problems and addressing real issues. Students learn how to interact with their peers and adults and other organizations. Collage’s curriculum encourages parent involvement where possible, and parents can often be seen getting involved in the classrooms.
Children are seen as active learners that learn through the exploration of their interests. In the project approach, students study a topic in-depth to gain a deeper understanding as well as learn through hands-on experiences about the chosen topic. Projects are voted on or decided by gauging student’s interests – giving our students ownership of what they learn. During each project, children are encouraged to observe, ask questions, formulate answers and reflect on their thoughts and findings.
The Arts Expands Self-Expression, Deepens And Extends Learning For Our Infant, Preschool, Elementary, and Middle Communities
It was not long ago that art education in schools was thought to be a luxury, and art classes were cut from the curriculum to make room for more time to prepare for standardized tests. Currently, there is more and more information available that shows how crucial the arts are to creating well-rounded, well-prepared learners and leaders. At Collage, the arts (fine arts, drama, music, and movement) will always be an integrated prominent feature of our curriculum. We weave the arts into our core classroom curricula as well as teach specific artistic skills and abilities.
From infants touching and manipulating clay for the first time to elementary students performing on stage, Collage students experience art on a daily basis. Artistic encounters are valued as a means of creativity and self-expression, and representation of understanding. They are also valued as a vehicle for deepening and extending learning and thinking. Art, in its various forms, provides opportunities to construct knowledge and to engage students of all ages. Our commitment to the arts is evident in each learning community.
Florida Students With Unique Abilities
The Family Empowerment Scholarship for Students with Unique Abilities (FES-UA) gives families of PK3-12 students a choice of financial assistance toward private school tuition and fees, tutoring, and additional costs. Children with one of 23 diagnoses including, but not limited to emotional, behavioral or intellectual disabilities are eligible to apply.
Notice to parents enrolling students under the FES-UA scholarship: Please note that our school accommodates students with disabilities in accordance with federal and local law. However, your child may not receive the types of accommodations or related services that your child may be entitled to receive at a public school as public schools have different obligations under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The IDEA does not apply to private schools. We are happy to have a conversation with you about the accommodations that your child may need and receive at our school.
Infant and Preschool Communities
Art is encountered in every area of the Infants and Preschools studios.
With materials like clay, paints, and textiles, the communities are alive with creativity.
Experiences in the Atelier, or art studio, complement classroom investigations, introduce new materials, create social encounters, and motivate children to represent and communicate their thoughts, feelings, and understandings of the world around them.
Elementary Community
The art program in Elementary School balances a study of techniques, styles of artists, and creative representation of ideas and understanding. Each week students attend art classes in the art studio as well as in their respective classrooms. During the art class time some of the materials used are clay, paint, wire, pastels, collage, and mark-making mediums.
Students also have daily access to quality artistic materials in their regular classroom encouraging representation and further development of their knowledge in language arts, math, social studies, and science. The observation skills, editing, and creativity encouraged through artistic expression supports our hands on, minds on approach to learning.
The Sciences:
Green STEAM hands-on science activities and virtual labs increase student learning, engagement, and motivation.
The letters stand for science, technology, engineering, the arts, and mathematics, but what does a STEAM education really mean?
For example, daily science instruction incorporates hands-on activities and virtual labs. Mathematics is integrated into all science instruction as well as taught as a separate subject. Technology enhances instruction in all curriculum areas. Inquiry and problem-based learning frame instruction and foster environmental responsibility.
Arts integration connects elements of curriculum across content fields and increases student learning, engagement, and motivation.
Arts integration at Collage includes using the arts as a resource for other disciplines such as investigating big ideas through the study of the arts; using the arts to interpret ideas or themes in other subjects; and understanding life-centered issues through a combination of the arts and other subjects.
By focusing on local landscape, history, culture and context, learning takes on specificity and moves from the abstract to the concrete, engaging students with their surroundings. The sustainability and conservation principles embraced by Collage provide opportunities for hands-on, project based learning about nature, health, and citizenship.
Cultivating the skills and awareness to live and learn with balance, health, and joy
At Collage Day School, we believe a child’s sense of self and wellbeing forms the foundation for how they learn, think, and connect with others.
We empower students with the skills and tools to grow into emotionally aware, resilient, and physically healthy individuals. Our partnership with families is central—we work hand-in-hand with parents and guardians to help children carry balance and wellness into both their school and home lives.
Growing Minds, Nurturing Wellness
Designed for a Healthy Child
Collage Day School’s educators and administrators intentionally design each student’s experience to reflect a healthy blend of academics, the arts, and enrichment activities. Our programs encourage curiosity, creativity, and balance, with thoughtful attention to wellness practices at every age level.
We continually review and refine requirements that affect students’ quality of life—including the relationship between learning expectations, stress, rest, nutrition, and play. Campus-wide Health and Wellness initiatives are regularly launched and assessed using feedback from families, students, and staff.
A Caring Partner
Our school nurse plays a vital role in this work. She not only provides daily medical care and safety oversight but also partners with teachers and families to educate students about healthy habits, nutrition, hygiene, and self-care.
The nurse is a key member of our wellness team, helping students understand their bodies, manage challenges, and build lifelong habits that support both physical and emotional health.
Our Commitment
Together, our team of classroom teachers, learning specialists, counselors, enrichment leaders, health educators, and our dedicated school nurse all provide ongoing support to guide children in making positive, responsible choices.
At Collage Day School, Health and Wellness is not just a program—it is a community commitment. We believe balance, health, and joy are essential to every child’s growth, learning, and lifelong success.
