Environmental stewardship and respect for nature are essential components of the Poughkeepsie Day School curriculum, and have been for over 90 years. As outlined in our mission statement, we believe that education is a pathway to a more just society…
Our teachers are what make us Poughkeepsie Day School. Since our founding in 1934, PDS faculty have distinguished themselves as uniquely committed to innovative pedagogy, progressive education, and, most of all, their students. So, it’s no surprise that those young…
For over a decade, Poughkeepsie Day School’s annual Food Bowl project (formerly known as Canstruction® Jr. Hudson Valley) has been both a service to the local community and a valuable opportunity for teachers to discuss topics surrounding philanthropy, food insecurity,…
What can studying bees teach students about themselves? A lot, as it turns out. Often simply thought of as pests, or scary bugs that sting and hurt you, the remarkable beauty and intelligence of these insects are totally unknown to…
Since September, Kimberly Williams Brown, Ph.D., and Robin Alpern have been engaging PDS faculty and staff in an anti-oppressive, co-facilitated dialogue program called Intergroup Dialogue (IGD). Intergroup Dialogue is a strategic way to engage in dialogue across differences with…
Reader’s Workshop, Writer’s Workshop, Exploring with shapes, Free Choice collaborations and celebrating the 100th Day of school!
We have started Reader’s workshop! We decorated our book bags and the Kindergarteners chose 5 books from baskets that they can read on…
Written by Spiro Gouras, Head of School
PDS has long been recognized for its commitment to investing in professional development, a tradition reflected in all of our GROW initiatives. After all, how can we claim to produce “lifelong learners” if…
Too often, different curricular disciplines are treated as if they exist in complete isolation. Patterns, numbers, and sequences? Those are for math class. Hypothesis, experiment, analysis, and conclusion? That’s for science class. Narrative structure? That’s for English class. Of course,…
Nobody likes a liar. Stephen Haff’s middle school humanities students, as they compare the societies of Indigenous communities and European colonies with modern-day America, have been investigating perhaps some of the biggest liars in the world: large corporations. In analyzing…
It goes without saying that Poughkeepsie Day School deeply values service learning. But why? What impacts does it have, both on ourselves and others? Is community service an act of justice, or just charity? In this year’s Grade 12 Central…
