Salmon Bay Curriculum and Philosophy

Philosophy

Salmon Bay emphasizes education of the whole child.  To us, this means balancing the academic, physical, and social/emotional development needs of our students. We welcome all students at Salmon Bay.  We celebrate the way a diversity of student abilities and backgrounds enrich our school and improve outcomes for everyone.
We want all students at Salmon Bay to:

• Develop meaningful friendships
• Appreciate and respect individual differences
• Prepare for life in a diverse society

Curriculum

Salmon Bay School offers “hands-on” curriculum.  Our classrooms are designed with learning centers that make them lively, exciting places to explore and develop inquiry and critical thinking skills. We integrate curriculum across subject matters and weave literacy into all activities.

As a public school, Salmon Bay embraces the Common Core Standards which are intended to be robust and relevant standards that provide a consistent, clear understanding of what students are expected to learn. 

As an alternative school, Salmon Bay embraces opportunities to extend and enrich the curriculum beyond the Common Core Standards. We look for opportunities to supplement classroom learning with outdoor and environmental education, field trips, art, and cultural explorations.

Project-Based and Service Learning

At Salmon Bay, we emphasize project-based learning and seek opportunities to explore curriculum with hands-on, authentic, inquiry-based projects.  Project-based learning provides students many benefits, including:

• Improved content retention and understanding
• Opportunities for multi-sensory instruction
• Enhanced cooperation and collaboration
• Skill building
• Increased engagement

In addition to project-based learning, Salmon Bay incorporates service learning opportunities for our students whenever possible.  Service learning provides students opportunities to:

• Connect with the larger community
• Build compassion and empathy
• Increase awareness of diverse cultures and communities
• Learn from professionals

Camp and Enrichment Activities

Camp : Every grade enjoys a camp experience. Elementary students attend camp in spring. For Kindergarteners, this is generally a day camp. Grades 1–8 participate in overnight camp experiences of various lengths.

Enrichment activities : Elementary students pay an Enrichment Fee each year. The fee varies by grade level and covers field trips, artists in residence, camp, and other activities selected by the classroom teacher. Middle school students take part in a Winter Enrichment Program (WEP) that offers a choice of activities that generally occur during the school day on six consecutive Fridays in the winter (e.g. skiing/snowboarding, Tour of Seattle, jewelry making, rowing, theater arts). WEP fees vary depending on the program selected.