First things first. We works towards the same curriculum goals the government has set up as every other school. Only the way we do it is different.

We truly believe children learn when they are interested. The teacher observes what the students are talking about, interested in, playing with, ... That’s how a project is born.

 

Project

What is a project? A project is what we call a collection of activities and experiences within a theme. Together with the children, the teacher explores what the children already know about the subject and what there still is to learn. The teacher and students set out activities and experiences.

​

Learning by doing

 

I hear and I forget

I see and I remember

I do and I understand

 

In The Tandem we let the children experience the subjects through their senses. The children have to be able to make mistakes, to learn. They need to have experience to be able to come up with creative solutions when they come across a problem. To achieve this we will provide the children with real-life, meaningful activities. You can be sure children understand the theory when they can apply it in different practical situations.

 

Freedom of choice

The teacher lays out some activities of which the children can choose freely or the children can propose their own idea, within the project. Some activities will be optional, others are obligatory.

​

Does that mean the children can do whatever they want?

The children can decide what the project will be about and have freedom of choice in their activities. Does that mean the children can do whatever they want?

No. It’s the teacher's responsibility to track where the children stand in their development and adjust the planning/activities when necessary.

 

Differentiation  

Not all the children learn the same way, at the same speed and are ready at the same time. The teacher provides activities for every level. This way, all the children get to follow their own learning path and grow at their own speed.

 

At home

We want the children to feel at home in The Tandem and create an environment where they feel safe to grow, explore and discover. The rooms are child-friendly, which means that all the materials are reachable for the children and on eye-height for them. We also include home-like activities in our daily routine.

​

Focus on values

We focus on culture experience. Which means that we find morals and values important. So the children grow up to be open-minded, respectful and empathic.

Examples of values: respect, empathy, honesty, tolerance, curiosity, independence, responsibility, ...

​

Mix-aged groups

Having mix-aged groups is a conscious choice. We believe teaching doesn´t only happen from the teacher to the student. Children can learn a lot from each other. The teacher will have the children in her classroom for two years, which means she gets to know them through and through.

 

Focus on skills

Rather than focusing on content, we put the children, values and skills first. By offering the children subjects they are interested in, embed values in their daily lives and teach them life-skills, we are convinced the ´content´will follow.

Examples of skills: learn to research, critical thinking, working together, summarize, problem solving, ...

 

Equality 

We believe that children are, to some extent, equal to adults. The children (and parents) can call the teachers by their first name (which helps to create a home-like atmosphere). The happiness, concerns, worries of the children will be handled with the respect it deserves and won´t be neglected.

 

World citizen - community

We would like the children to grow up as ‘world citizen’. We look into the differences and similarities between people, countries and cultures. We realise our actions have an impact on the world. Everyday we make little decisions to make earth a better place.  

We’ll engage with the neighbourhood and see our classroom as a community.

 

Parents

Parents play a vital role in the learning process of their child. We include them in our class activities. When a parent knows about a subject we are researching, we invite the parent to give a presentation and share his/her knowledge.