Four Rivers Charter Public School

Consider a donation to Four Rivers Charter Public School in Greenfield, a small Expeditionary Learning school where all students learn important skills and knowledge, develop strong character, and create high quality work.

At Four Rivers, here's what learning looks like: seniors go to the Cape to interview experts and stakeholders and to get film footage as part of creating a documentary about the Cape Wind project;  7th graders follow waste streams from the school to the compost pile at Martin's Farm, to the recycling center in Springfield, and to the Greenfield waste water treatment plant; 10th graders go to Washington, DC and perform vignettes about experiences with war on the National Mall; 8th graders design and build wind turbine prototypes to compete in the Kid Wind design competition; 9th graders learn about the science of food systems and interview local farmers to better understand the way food is produced and distributed; 11th graders perform a reader’s theater about human rights defenders, taking on the voices of victims and activists fighting human rights violations around the world, with the proceeds of their performance benefitting a local human rights organization.  

At Four Rivers, students connect what they learn in the classroom to what is happening in the world around them. They are asked to apply their knowledge, not to simply accumulate it.  Students grapple with big ideas and essential questions; they revise to achieve high quality work and they reflect on the process of learning.  These are learning EXPEDITIONS, units of study built around real world issues, leading toward some kind of product that’s valuable beyond the classroom walls, and through which students develop important knowledge and skills. They allow students to experience real world contexts through fieldwork, learning from experts, and having to actually make or do something. 

Twice a year we stop classes completely so students can participate in what we call INTENSIVES -- short, focused learning experiences that also take students outside the classroom walls -- and outside their comfort zones. Students have explored the tidal flats on the Cape, cooked for the Community Meals program, hiked through snow in the White Mountains, practiced their language skills in Spanish Harlem, dug in the dirt planting trees, built things, composed music, made life-sized drawings, and much more. Intensives stretch students to take on challenges often not part of the regular school program. They also tap into and spark their personal interests and passions.  

These experiences build character, as well.  At Four Rivers, community is as important as academics, and everyone at the school – teachers, staff, students and administrators – embrace the work of creating an ethical, principled school community where we all strive to try hard, be kind, courteous and responsible, and to show courage in the face of difficulties. Who we are is as important as what we know, and Four Rivers students are asked to be outstanding citizens as well as outstanding students.

Our students build independence, confidence, engagement, and character through experiences that Expeditions and Intensives provide.  For more information on these programs and our school, click for OUR WEBSITE or for OUR SCHOOL PORTFOLIO.  Thanks for your interest and support.