Finding the right NYC private school is challenging, especially on the Upper West Side. With a myriad of options, it is no wonder parents seek guidance. To help you find the perfectManhattan elementary school for your child, we have created a comprehensive checklist.
As a top independent school in Manhattan, we offer a challenging and enriching curriculum led by expert educators.
Our approach to lower school education equally emphasizessocial-emotional learning, including critical thinking and problem-solving skills.
Our convenient UWS location provides a unique and supportive learning environment for families.
Review this checklist to see how BASIS Independent Manhattan checks all the boxes!
Teachers: Passion and Expertise
We believe in the power of expert-led instruction. Our students in grades 1-4 benefit from 50-minute classes in core subjects like math, science, English, and Social Studies/History, taught by passionate Subject Expert Teachers (SETs). These experts bring their deep knowledge to the classroom, igniting a love of learning. Complementing the SETs is our Learning Expert Teacher (LET), a dedicated educator who is the guiding force for students, providing personalized support and ensuring each child thrives. This unique model allows for both expert instruction and individualized attention, a hallmark of our world-acclaimed primary program.
An Advanced Curriculum with Essential Enrichment
Beyond the core subjects, our curriculum includes essential classes: engineering, Mandarin, visual arts, drama, and music, fostering well-rounded development. Our commitment to comprehensive liberal arts-focused education with STEM offerings ensures that students are challenged and engaged.
Social-Emotional Learning: Nurturing the Whole Child
We believe academic excellence goes hand-in-hand with social-emotional growth. Our PurposeFull People curriculum, powered by Character Strong, develops essential soft skills, executive functioning, and emotional regulation for students in PreK-Grade 5. Our dedicated Student Affairs team delivers these lessons, supports students, and guides parents throughout their child’s academic journey.
Active Learning and Play
We cater to the age and stage of children while providing them with what they need — physical activity and outdoor play. They have periods of study and focus, which are broken up by three 20-minute recesses during the school day. Our daily schedule also includes P.E., ensuring students have ample opportunities for play and movement. After-school clubs, ranging from soccer and tennis to arts and STEM, further promote active engagement.
Transparency and Community: A Different Approach
At BASIS Independent Manhattan, transparency and community are at our core. Unlike many NYC private schools, we do not engage in traditional fundraising. We believe in providing an exceptional education without the added pressure of constant requests. This empowers families to invest in our vibrant community in ways that are meaningful and aligned with their commitments, fostering a collaborative and supportive environment.
Get Parent Reviews
Nowadays, more and more families scour the internet for school recommendations to find the perfect fit. Sites like Niche.com use anonymous reviews and rankings to provide “the good, the bad, and the honest.”
Here are a few excerpts from recent BASIS Independent Manhattan reviews written by our current families:
“A great school which balances out an academic focus with play and creative time for the kids.”
“A hidden gem in NYC, that’s for sure.”
“A great choice for families seeking a rigorous academic program with amazing support.”
“Academics are second-to-none, teachers are caring and helpful, kids are challenged and happy.”
“I would recommend attending an info session. If it doesn’t seem right for your kid, you will know it. If it does, apply, you won’t regret it!”
Visit Our School
Experience BASIS Independent Manhattan firsthand. Meet our passionate teachers, interact with current students and parents, and learn more about our unique approach. Discover why we are among the best schools in Manhattan for grades PreK-5 and a leading choice for UWS families seeking exceptional education.
BASIS Independent Manhattan, a private school offering PreK through Grade 12, is based in Manhattan, New York. Students thrive alongside Subject Expert Teachers as they engage in a liberal arts program with STEM offerings.
This school year, we are thrilled to have added 12 teachers to our growing community. One such new addition, Ms. Garza, stands out amongst her peers for her enthusiasm and impressive professional background. She joins us as a Humanities Subject Expert Teacher for grades 2 and 3 and works with our Learning Expert Teachers to help students develop their literacy skills to their highest potential.
Ms. Garza attended the University of Texas at Brownsville where she received a partial scholarship to play golf! She now has over ten years of experience in education and has taught Kindergarten all the way through grade 5. She recently moved from Texas to Washington state in July 2024 and joined our team this summer. Since then, she has demonstrated exceptional competency in the classroom and is a supportive presence for our primary students. We sat down with Ms. Garza for an interview to highlight her experience and get her perspective on being a BASIS Independent Bellevue educator.
Professional Background and Experience
Tell us a bit about your journey in education? What inspired you to become a teacher?
“I began my career as a teacher’s assistant for grades 3 – 5. I did this for two years before being hired as a full-time 2nd grade teacher. I remained in that role for another two years before I moved on to teaching Kindergarten. I was a Kindergarten teacher for three years. During my role as a Kindergarten teacher, I was asked to observe and help manage a cohort of my peers to provide them with meaningful feedback about their instruction. It was through this that I was later asked to apply to be the Assistant Principal for the school!
I was fortunate enough to be offered the position and then worked as the Assistant Principal for the subsequent three years. I loved my time in the administrative role because it allowed me to get a behind the scenes look at how a school runs, but ultimately, I missed being in the classroom and seeing students grow day by day. I love to see that “Aha!” look from students and I missed out on that as the Assistant Principal. That feeling led me to begin looking for teaching positions again, which brought me to BASIS Independent Bellevue. I feel like I have really come full circle because it was my second-grade teacher that helped me fall in love with learning and now, I’m back in the classroom as a second-grade teacher myself!”
What’s been the most rewarding thing from your journey so far?
“In 2018 – 2029 I was named Teacher of the Year at my school, which was a huge honor for me. I was a member of the founding cohort of educators as the school opened and worked to help improve and grow the school community. It was great to see those efforts recognized”
How do you continue to grow as an educator?
“I really love feedback, and I thrive off being observed by my mentors. Of course, I still get a little jittery when admin comes in my room for an observation, but I truly do feel like it has been the most valuable tool in helping me grow as an educator. It is one of the things I love about BASIS Independent Bellevue. There are so many built in observations from mentors that all want to push you to be better.”
Impact
What do you hope your students take away from their time in your class?
“First and foremost, I want to be a role model for my students. I want to demonstrate a love of reading in my own life and hope that translates to their lives. But of course, I also want to impart valuable skills like reading comprehension and writing. I hope they learn applicable skills for the real world while having fun doing it!”
How do you build strong relationships with your students and their families?
“I think it is very important to get to know your students on a personal level. I make sure to take time during our Morning Meetings to ask about their hobbies and interests outside of school. I want them to know I care about them beyond the classroom.
To extend those relationships with my students’ families, I make sure I have regular communication with them. I love to send home positive notes regularly, so the parents don’t just hear from me when their child needs improvement. This is why our Communication Journal is a helpful tool because it allows me to send home regular feedback that I know parents will see. Most importantly, I try to keep the lines of communication open with families so they know we are working in partnership to support the best outcomes for their child.”
If you could give one piece of advice to students joining our school, what would it be?
“I believe if I had a program like our phonics program, Logic of English, when I was younger, I would have fallen in love with reading much sooner. It is important to know that this program may be difficult at first and will take effort to get used to it. We really do challenge our students and expect a lot from them academically, but it’s so rewarding to see them thrive when they master these concepts. I want students to not get discouraged if things don’t immediately make sense to them because we are all here to help them on their journey.”
Teaching Philosophy
What is your teaching philosophy and how do you implement it in the classroom?
“I make sure I have regular collaboration time with my Learning Expert Teachers because it’s important that we are on the same page when we conduct our coteaching lessons. We always focus on making our lessons engaging and fun so it doesn’t feel like we are just reading from a script. We want our students to be up and using the classroom space, so we often utilize things like stations and centers. I love to see students genuinely excited to learn.”
How do you create an inclusive and engaging learning environment for all students?
“Because of our coteaching model, we can utilize small groups in our classrooms very frequently. We often have two or three groups of students working at a time and this allows those students to have closer connections with the teachers and gives them the confidence to be able to share more within the safety of a small group. It allows us the flexibility to differentiate and meet the needs of students more carefully.
I also observe the different personalities and learning styles of my students in the classroom and try to meet those needs. For example, sometimes we have students that are very bright and sometimes take the opportunity to shout out answers and or be a little bit chatty during class time. For those students, I might assign them a teacher helper task so that they can be empowered to use their outgoing personality for leadership in the classroom.”
Can you share how your experience with BASIS Independent Bellevue has been so far?
“My experience with BASIS Independent Bellevue has been nothing but positive. Our students are so driven and bright and they’re always a joy to work with. But what I really appreciate the most has been the culture of support and positivity that is created by the Administration. Our Head of School and Student Affairs Department are always pushing us to be better educators, and they provide so many resources to help us get there. They truly want to see us grow, and this positive support is unlike any other school I have worked at.”
Personal Life
What do you enjoy doing in your free time when you’re not teaching?
“I love to watch my friends do karaoke – but not do it myself, ha! I also really like activities that get me out and moving. Paddleboarding is a hobby of mine that has grown since I moved to Washington because there are so many beautiful spots for it! I also enjoy traveling when I can. My favorite place I have traveled recently was Costa Rica, because I love to be by the beach”
What’s one personal goal you hope to achieve in the next year?
“I picked up running as a hobby and usually participate in a 5k or 10k every month. My goal for this next year is to successfully complete my first half marathon!”
What’s something that people might be surprised to learn about you?
“I love playing golf! It was something I got into during my junior year of high school because it brought me close to my dad. I used to drive the golf cart around for him while he played until he finally convinced me to give it a try. I ended up being pretty good and was able to use it to get a partial scholarship to college!”
A Warm Welcome!
Ms. Garza has shown her dedication to building literacy and reading skills with our primary students. She goes above and beyond to make her classes engaging and fun, inspiring our students to think critically about the world around them and to become participants, not just spectators. Her energy and enthusiasm for her lessons nurtures a love of learning in each of them and it is clear that students feel supported and cared for in her classroom. We are thrilled to welcome Ms. Garza to our faculty this year and we look forward to her continued contributions to our Mountaineer community!
Autumn days are here again! Hints of fall are starting to peek out from around the corner here in Brooklyn. I grew up in New Hampshire, and fall has always been my favorite time of year – cool breezes, apple picking, Halloween decorations, and auburn leaves all appearing once again.
The other special part of the fall is that school admissions events are in full swing. This means one thing for BASIS Independent Brooklyn – our Fall Open Houses! Fall Open Houses are considered the greatest way for your family to get to know our BASIS Independent Brooklyn community, making them some of the best events of our year.
Please join us in-person at one of our Open Houses on Saturday, October 19 (PreK-Grade 2) or Saturday, October 26 (Grades 3-12).Click here to register!
General Open House Structure: For both Open Houses, doors will open at 9:40 AM, and the event will last approximately until 12:00 PM. We welcome you to register and attend even if you are not able to participate in the entire event. Students are encouraged to join us, as well.
Open Houses begin with an Introduction and an Open House Overview. They include a Parent Panel where you will be able to hear from current BASIS Independent Brooklyn families. Families will also be able to tour the campus while visiting classrooms.
Please review the details below for additional information regarding the structure of each Open House:
PREK–Grade 2: Saturday, October 19 at 10:00 AM
PreK & Kindergarten Saturday, October 19 Learn about our Early Learning Program, where our youngest students grow. Hear from teachers, administrators, and parents about how BASIS Independent Brooklyn Lower School fosters curiosity, exploration, and creativity. Our passionate Subject Expert Teachers will show you what a day in the life looks like as they lead mini-lessons in their vibrant rooms.
Grades 1-2: Saturday, October 19 Visit with our Learning Expert and Subject Expect Teachers to learn about our unique two-teacher model. From math and science to humanities, Mandarin, music and more, find out how we support students in developing study skills and spark a lifelong love of learning. Our Subject Expert Teachers will lead mini-lessons to help you get a feel for the engaging activities that take place in the classrooms. These sessions will also help you understand the transition to our Upper School campus in Grade 3.
Parent and Student Panel
Our Lower School Open House will conclude with a Q&A panel that consists of BASIS Independent Brooklyn parents and school leadership.
Activities and Refreshments
A Fun Zone will be hosted in one of our classrooms. You are welcome to bring your student(s) and have them play with our team and their peers while you explore our school. We will have light refreshments for the whole family at the Open House. After the Open House, we invite you to enjoy our Back to School Bash alongside our whole school community. There will be food trucks, face painting, a magician, games, and other treats!
GRADES 3-12: Saturday, October 26 at 10:00 AM
The Primary Program: Grades 3-5 Saturday, October 26 Visit with our Learning Expert and Subject Expect Teachers to learn about our unique two-teacher model (for grades 3 & 4). From math and science to humanities, Mandarin, music and more, find out how we support students in developing study skills and spark a lifelong love of learning. You will also have the chance to learn about how these bridge years encourage autonomy, creativity, and confidence to help prepare your student for Middle School.
The Middle School Program: Grades 6-8 Saturday, October 26 In the Middle School Program, we focus on developing the academic, executive functioning, and self-advocacy skills needed for success in the high school years. Hear from our Subject Expert Teachers about how they inspire excellence inside and outside of the classroom. Plus, learn about our many athletic and academic competition teams, clubs, international trips, and more.
The High School Program: Grades 9-12 Saturday, October 26 Educating tomorrow’s great innovators, pioneers, and leaders requires a well-rounded curriculum – one with breadth and depth across academic disciplines. Meet students, faculty, and administrators as you and your child learn about high school at BASIS Independent Brooklyn, including our unique Senior Year program.
Parent and Student Panel
Our Upper School Open House will conclude with a Q&A panel that consists of BASIS Independent Brooklyn parents, students, and school leadership.
Refreshments
We will have light refreshments for the whole family at the Open House. After the Open House, we invite you to stop by our Primary School Fall Harvest Festival alongside our Grades 3-5 students and families.
—–
Don’t miss this interactive experience! Click here to register for our Fall Open Houses. As you get ready for the fall season, we hope you choose to spend some of your time with us, getting to know our wonderful community.
I look forward to meeting you soon!
Warmly, Ms. Thea LaCrosse Director of Admissions | BASIS Independent Brooklyn thea.lacrosse@basisindependent.com
At BASIS Independent Manhattan, we believe that strong parent-teacher partnerships are essential to student success. Our dedicated teachers are passionate about providing a nurturing and supportive learning environment and are committed to open communication and collaboration with parents.
In this blog post, our teachers offer experiential advice on how to start the school year off right. Building lasting relationships is possible with these top three tips for parents of students at any age:
Attend events
Reach out
Meet in person
Tips for Parents: Start Strong with Effective Communication from Day One
Attend back-to-school events to establish initial connections with teachers.
At the start of the year, we emphasize relationship-building within our Wildcat community! In addition to Meet the Teacher nights, we also have welcome-back carnivals at both the Upper and Lower Schools for socializing in a relaxed atmosphere.
Attending parent events has been a game-changer for me. It’s great to get to know parents and build a personal connection. This has really strengthened my relationships with families and helped me better support their children.
Mr. Smith Visual Arts SET, Upper School
0
Proactively reach out to teachers with questions or concerns, especially at the beginning of the year. You can share your child’s strengths, interests, and any challenges they may be facing, but be prepared to work in partnership with the teacher. Math Subject Expert Teacher, Ms. Perez remembers when a parent reached out to share that their upper school student struggles with math even though they put in a lot of effort. Establishing that connection early opened up so many options for support.
This insight helped me better prepare for supporting the student, ensuring I worked with the parent to address difficulties before they became overwhelming. It also allowed me to be more understanding and patient with the challenges the student faced.
Ms. Perez Math SET, Upper School
0
Our Learning and Subject Expert Teachers subscribe to this trust-building type of collaboration that requires impactful two-way communication. In our experience, a strong teacher-parent partnership addresses specific student needs, increases learning, and benefits the child’s well-being.
BASIS Independent Manhattan has a unique system that replaces traditional parent-teacher conferences, typically hosted twice for only 15-20 minutes, with weekly parent hours. Teachers are accessible to parents to discuss their child’s progress, set goals, and identify a support plan if needed.
Our teachers have found that it is best when parents come prepared to ask specific questions and follow up on any action items discussed during these meetings. Mr. Smith also notes, “Parents play a huge role in keeping students accountable outside the classroom, which ensures that when they are at school, we are able to be as productive as possible.”
By fostering a team sensibility, we create a supportive and collaborative learning environment that benefits our students. Remember, open communication, mutual respect, and a shared commitment to your child’s success are key to building lasting relationships.
Thank you to our amazing teachers for their dedication and passion. We are grateful for your commitment to our students and our school community.
If you are interested in this kind of parent-teacher relationship or would like to meet our incredible teachers, please attend one of our Fall Open Houses.
We are excited to meet the many wonderful families considering a BASIS Independent Brooklyn experience for their family!
During each admissions season we field a wide range of questions about our curriculum and various programs, student life, electives, extracurriculars, and so much more. We have observed topics that are commonly brought up and want to provide you with answers to frequently asked questions raised each year.
What is the difference between your two Brooklyn campuses?
BASIS Independent Brooklyn was established in 2014. We are one school with two campuses. The Lower School in Downtown Brooklyn supports approximately 150 students in PreK–Grade 2 while the Upper School in Red Hook supports about 530 students in Grades 3–12.
What is the teacher model at your school?
Beginning in grade 1, our students have one Subject Expert Teacher (SET) for each discipline. SETs either hold advanced degrees or are experts in their discipline. SETs use their subject-area passion to inspire students while teaching them at a higher level than what is typically expected of students in their age group.
Learning Expert Teachers (LETs) work in tandem with SETs to co-teach in all grade 1–4 classrooms. LETs accompany their students all day, from class-to-class, and are masters of the learning process and social-emotional growth in children. They are instrumental in ensuring that students are appropriately supported and challenged in each subject. In grade 4, the LET shifts their focus to promoting independence, autonomy, and teaching students how to use their resources. This shift prepares students for grade 5 and beyond where students have just one teacher, their SET, for each subject.
Unlike the Primary, Middle, and High School programs, the Early Learning Program is primarily self-enclosed. Students remain in their vibrant classroom for most of the day, rotating classes only for their daily special (Art, Music, Drama, Engineering, Mandarin, or PE/Movement). Early Learning Teachers lead our PreK and Kindergarten classrooms and are responsible for delivering most of the content to students by bringing their own pedagogical expertise to the classroom, with the consistent support from an Early Learning Teaching Fellow.
What are your elective offerings?
In the Early Learning and Primary programs, students will take Art, Music, Drama, Engineering, and PE/Movement. In the Middle and High School programs, students can continue to take those courses or elect to take Band/Orchestra, Computer Science, Choir, Creative Writing, Introduction to Philosophy, Digital Photography, Introduction to Film Production, Sustainable Fashion, Topics in Economics, or a number of Advanced Placement (AP) courses.
What are your athletic offerings?
We have competitive and league sports for students to play. Offerings for our Middle and High School students include basketball, tennis, flag football, track (cross country, indoor and outdoor), soccer, volleyball, baseball, ultimate frisbee, and competitive cheer and dance. Next year we are planning on adding a squash and fencing team. Every year our club and athletic offerings grow in number and vary based on student interest.
What are your club offerings?
We offer over 60 clubs at our Lower School and Upper School campuses! Our students can participate in AI for Kids, Chess Team, Leadership Club, Math Team, Science Bowl, Student Newspaper, Black Student Union, LatinX Affinity, and more.
Do you offer early or late care for students?
At both campuses, we offer supervised early and late care. Early care, called Early Bird, is offered beginning at 7:00 AM at our Lower School and 7:15 AM at our Upper School. We offer two types of late care. The first is called Late Bird, which runs until around 4:00 PM. The second is called Cub Care (PreK-Grade 2)/Bear Care (Grades 3-8), and these begin following dismissal. Cub Care/Bear Care is more structured and involves a range of activities from sciences to sports to arts. After-school programs for High School students take place in the form of athletics and clubs.
Why do you teach your students Mandarin?
The co-founders of the BASIS Curriculum intentionally designed our Early Learning and Primary programs to include Mandarin. Mandarin is a global language, and researchers found that learning the language develops new pathways in the brain and uses both the left and right temporal lobes simultaneously. Studies also show that Mandarin helps students grow their mathematical abilities due to the emphasis on ordering, grouping, and distinguishing between similarities and differences in character writing and intonation. While Mandarin is required in PreK-Grade 4, Latin is required in grades 5 and 6. Beginning in grade 7, students will select a world language from French, Latin, Mandarin and Spanish, which they will continue throughout High School.
Do your campuses have any outdoor spaces?
Our Lower School has direct access to a new, beautiful, big park and playground right across our street! Our Upper School has three outdoor spaces. This includes one fully covered space, one partially covered space, and an uncovered playground.
What is your student-to-teacher ratio?
From PreK to grade 4, there are two teachers in each classroom. Beginning in grade 1, students will have one teacher for each subject as they rotate from classroom-to-classroom and teacher-to-teacher during the school day. Generally, our PreK classrooms average around 15 students with two teachers in the classroom and Kindergarten averages around 12 students per classroom with two teachers in the classroom. Grades 1-12 average around 21 students in each classroom.
What is the diversity of your student population?
Brooklyn is wonderfully diverse, and our student population reflects this. 53% of students identify as a person of color and 41 languages are spoken throughout our community.
Do you offer financial aid?
At this time, financial aid is not available. We offer families three types of tuition payment plans: one payment, two payments, or ten monthly payments. We award scholarships based on academic merit to a highly selective group of current BASIS Independent Brooklyn students in grade 8 who are planning to stay for high school.
Do you offer transportation?
We encourage families at both campuses to make use of nearby public transportation options. We offer free or reduced fare MetroCards for students who plan to use public subways or buses. The Lower School is located centrally in Downtown Brooklyn near stops for the 2, 3, 4, 5, A, C, D, F, G, N, Q, and R trains; the LIRR at Atlantic Terminal; and the B25, B26, B38, B52, B54, B57, B61, B62, and B67 MTA bus lines. The Upper School campus in Red Hook is conveniently located near stops for the B61 and B57 buses, and accessible from the F and G trains at Smith & 9th Street Station. Families are welcome to use bikes, strollers, skateboards, and scooters. We have storage at both campuses for these modes of transportation.
Our fee-based transportation program at the Red Hook campus includes morning and afternoon bus services throughout Brooklyn and Lower Manhattan. We carefully plan our bus routes each school year to try to accommodate student demand and the requested stops. However, bus stops are not guaranteed and are subject to change. For families with students at both our Upper and Lower School campuses, BASIS Independent Brooklyn offers a free “Connector” bus. Please inquire directly for more details on our current routes.
What is parent involvement like at your school?
Parents have many opportunities to get involved! The first way is through BIB Committees. These committees include the Teacher Appreciation Committee, Social Committee, World Fest Committee, and Community Outreach Committee. We also have a wonderful group called our Parent Ambassadors. These leaders work closely with our Admissions Team on events and connecting with new families.
What community opportunities will my student have if they join your program?
We have very active National Junior Honor Society and National Honor Society chapters at our school leading regular service initiatives. Moreover, our student leadership society, Leadership Club, has prioritized building both a culture of service and sustainability at the school. The students lead annual drives and regularly promote ways to volunteer with Red Hook and Downtown Brooklyn organizations throughout the school year. Our High School students participate in an Annual Day of Service before Thanksgiving Break.
Our school community has worked to develop partnerships with impactful non-profits making a difference in the community. One great example is the Red Hook Art Project (RHAP), which provides tutoring and mentoring for under-served children and youth. The organization offers free classes and tutoring in visual art, music, and homework help. Our students have volunteered for the homework help program and are teaching guitar classes. They also work to ensure our leftover school lunches are transported to RHAP and given to students and their families.
How can I visit your school?
This admissions season, we are hosting a variety of events including Information Sessions, Campus Tours, Open Houses, and Shadow Days. Please click here to register for an upcoming event!
One of the defining features of a high-quality private school education is the advantage of small class sizes. At BASIS Independent Fremont, we understand that the number of students in a classroom significantly impacts the learning experience. Smaller class sizes allow for a more personalized approach to education, enabling teachers to meet the unique needs of each student and foster an environment where academic excellence can thrive.
Individualized Attention for Every Student
In smaller classrooms, teachers can get to know each student personally. This close teacher-student relationship allows for a deeper understanding of each child’s strengths, challenges, and learning styles. Teachers can tailor their instruction to meet the needs of individual students, offering extra support where needed or providing advanced materials to challenge those who are excelling. This level of personalized attention is often difficult to achieve in larger classes, where teachers may struggle to address the varied needs of many students simultaneously.
Enhanced Classroom Engagement and Participation
Smaller class sizes also encourage greater student engagement and participation. With fewer students in the room, each child has more opportunities to contribute to discussions, ask questions, and interact with both the teacher and their peers. This active participation reinforces learning and builds confidence and communication skills. Students in smaller classes are less likely to feel overlooked, and teachers can facilitate a more inclusive and dynamic classroom environment where every voice is heard.
Stronger Academic Outcomes
Research consistently shows that students in smaller classes perform better academically. The combination of personalized attention, increased participation, and a supportive learning environment leads to stronger academic outcomes. At BIF, our commitment to maintaining small class sizes ensures that each student receives the guidance and resources they need to succeed. Whether it’s mastering foundational skills or exploring more advanced concepts, students benefit from an educational setting that prioritizes their individual growth and development.
In conclusion, the benefits of small class sizes extend far beyond the classroom. At BASIS Independent Fremont, we believe that a more personalized and engaged learning experience is key to fostering academic excellence. By maintaining small class sizes, we create an environment where every student can thrive, ensuring that they are not just meeting academic standards but exceeding them.
Helping students manage their time and schoolwork effectively is core to the BASIS Curriculum. One of our most important tools in developing students with life-long habits of self-direction and disciplined, critical enquiry is the Communication Journal (CJ).
At first glance, it’s an analog daily planner. In practice, it’s the epicenter of our students’ educational experience, a record of their wins, their losses, and most importantly, their areas for improvement. During the school day, we focus on building the student-teacher relationship. The CJ is critical in helping families feel involved in their child’s education at the end of the day. It is the first daily touch-point between teachers and parents and acts as a discussion started at home between students and their families.
The CJ is central to our curricular philosophy not to post homework or grades online, or remove students from conversations about their own education. It is the tool that makes this philosophy a powerful growth opportunity for students to own their own academic and intellectual progress.
Over time, after successful usage of the CJ has been proven, students can expect to have more independent ownership of their CJ, and less and less oversight by their teachers and parents. Our goal is to start strong and while they are building their habits, have consistent daily checks. But as the years move on, we train students to become more independent, and less dependent on others for their own academic responsibilities.
Kindergarten Communication Journal
Even our youngest students have their own CJs to record their work and have their parents sign each evening. Kindergarten students are expected to record their own CJ notes each morning.
Students in Kindergarten recording their CJ notes for the day
Grades 1 – 3 Communication Journal
Unlike students in Kindergarten who primarily stay in their classroom throughout the day, students beginning in Grade 1 travel from classroom to classroom for each subject. The expectation of a CJ note from each Subject Expert Teacher (SET) begins in Grade 1 and continues on through high school. Students in Grades 1 – 3 receive assistance recording their CJ notes from their Learning Expert Teachers (LET) who will often give out stamps or stickers for a job well done!
A Grade 2 student’s CJ notes for the week
Grades 4 – 5 Communication Journal
For students in Grades 4 and 5, the use of the CJ is now a daily habit. Though our Grade 4 students still have their LET to help them, in Grade 5 the responsibility rests solely on the student. Students who have been with us throughout their elementary years know its power in keeping them accountable for their education, and even new students can appreciate this tool for helping them keep their upcoming assignments and assessments organized on a daily basis.
A student in Grade 4 sits right down to record their CJ note for Science even before class begins
Grades 6 – 8 Communication Journal
In middle school, we start to see more and more students not needing their parent signature every night. There are fewer CJ checks happening in the classroom and at home depending on the student. But, at the first sign of disorganization, the first step expressed by their Dean of Students, one of their SETs, or their parents is always the same, “Let’s look at your CJ.”
A Grade 8 student shows off their well-organized CJ with their friend
Grades 9 – 12 Communication Journal
In high school, the CJ is perfected. Not only are students rarely needing their parents to sign their CJ, but they are now using it as their own tool to organize their after-school activities. Many high school students will write reminders for things to print at home, office hours to attend, and even their clubs in their CJ. The goal of being organized, thinking ahead, and ready for each day has been achieved.
Grade 9 students CJ showing its use for not only their classes, but also their after-school enrichment activities
Unsurprisingly, our Alumni often cite the use of the CJ as one of the most helpful habits learned from our program. Many use their own tools of organization with their electronic devices now, but every year we have a few seniors who ask us for an extra CJ before they leave us.
Our educational philosophy is centered around student autonomy and self-advocacy and the Communication Journal is just one tool that helps us achieve that.
When families begin learning about our Early Learning and Primary programs, they often ask us the same question: “Why do you teach Mandarin to all your students?”
Mandarin is a required part of our curriculum from Transitional Kindergarten to Grade 4 because Mandarin provides our early learners with the opportunity to engage both sides of their brains, provides students with visual and artistic stimulation, and promotes the development of interdisciplinary thought and analysis.
Mandarin is a tonal language. This means that the same word can have multiple different meanings depending on the tone. Students of the language must attend to both the basic sound as well as the tone in order to understand a word.
The difference in brain activity between Mandarin and English speakers is well documented in scientific research. Most recently, The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America published a study that outlined the specific differences in brain activity between speakers of tonal and non-tonal languages.
The results demonstrated that while speech processing is largely carried out in the “common left hemisphere,” Mandarin speakers activate an additional sector of their brain called the “right anterior temporal cortex,” which is crucial in recognizing differences in tone. Learning to speak a tonal language means that one must exercise this connection between the left and right hemispheres of the brain in order to improve their tonal comprehension abilities.
Additionally, Mandarin’s use of written characters for each word rather than an alphabet provides students with visual and artistic stimulation. Introducing Mandarin at an early age promotes the development of interdisciplinary thought and analysis, enabling the students to draw connections between their lessons from different subjects.
We have two tracts for our Mandarin program: heritage and non-heritage. This is the only subject in which the class is split into two. The heritage class is for students who may speak Mandarin at home and is taught entirely in Mandarin. The non-heritage class is for students who have had little to no exposure to Mandarin and begins each year with beginner Mandarin, slowly becoming more advanced over the course of the year.
Mandarin instruction at BASIS Curriculum Schools employs a variety of teaching techniques for accessing different styles of learning. For example, because tone is so important when speaking Mandarin, students often use music and song to practice their speaking skills. Through a variety of teaching methods and instructional media, students rapidly improve their conversational Mandarin abilities.
Though Mandarin is the required World Language from TK – Grade 4, a student’s exposure to another language doesn’t end there. Beginning in Grade 5, students will study Latin as their World Language. Then, from Grade 7 and onwards, students will choose between French, Latin, Mandarin, or Spanish as their World Language.
BASIS Independent Fremont is a TK – Grade 12 private school, providing students with an internationally benchmarked liberal arts and sciences curriculum, with advanced STEM offerings. Considering joining the BASIS Independent Fremont community? To join our interest list for the next school year and receive admissions updates and more, please click here.
One of the defining elements of our Primary Program is our Symbiotic Classroom, a teaching model that pairs a Subject Expert Teacher with a Learning Expert Teacher for every core discipline.
Imagine that you are back at school, sitting in class. Maybe it’s a class you excel at, and sometimes you feel distracted or bored because you’ve read ahead and you already know the material. Or maybe you’re in a class you don’t like very much because you struggle with the material. Why is the teacher going so fast? You barely understood the last lesson!
Now imagine there was a second teacher in that classroom, one who knew your strengths and areas for improvement, who could work with you to make sure you were achieving your potential in the best way for you. This is the approach that best describes the SET/LET model at BASIS Independent Schools.
SETs, or Subject Expert Teachers, lead classes in the subjects they are the most passionate about. Their area of expertise is their sole focus, allowing them to concentrate on creating interesting, in-depth lessons for all the grade levels they teach. Students in Grade 1 and above have one SET for each discipline rather than one generalist teacher who teaches multiple subjects.
LETs, or Learning Expert Teachers, are responsible for a class of students who are all in the same grade. An LET for a Grade 2 class, for example, will stay with that Grade 2 class all day and be with them in all their subject classes led by SETs. Because LETs are with their students all day, they know how they are doing in each subject, and can provide extra, customized support in class as needed when an SET is teaching. They are able to build trust and understanding with their students to better guide them through their academic challenges.
Together, these experts focus on building a classroom culture of social-emotional support and academic excellence and work to craft lessons that are both advanced and accessible to all students. They help students feel safe, supported, and ready to learn at an advanced pace and determine the best ways to deliver material and promote student engagement. The symbiosis between these two expert teachers in the classroom lends itself to providing the flexibility necessary to do one-on-one work with students, small group work, and optimize classroom learning in real-time.
This two-teacher model minimizes distractions and maximizes learning. Students receive the benefit of teachers who love their subjects and can pass that passion on, and a teacher who can keep a close eye on their progress and happiness. At BASIS Independent Schools, this SET/LET relationship is at the heart of our goal to instill a lifelong passion for learning in our students.
In addition to co-teaching with SETs, our LETs lead a weekly class called Connections. Connections is an interdisciplinary course designed to challenge students to utilize their knowledge creatively. This class presents students with project-based scenarios that require the use of mental agility, creativity, and problem-solving skills as they establish links across subjects, showing how each subject relates to the other and gaining a deeper understanding of the material they are learning.
One of our most exciting Connections projects happens in Grade 3, when students are tasked with creating their very own culture. Students spend several weeks creating different components of their fictional culture, including designing a flag, creating currency, and developing an alphabet. The culminating project was to create a poster (some examples below) to display all of the components they had created for their culture.
At BASIS Independent Bellevue, we seek applicants who have an interest in learning at an international level, a desire to make a contribution, a willingness to work hard, and an ambition to join a collaborative, supportive, and joyful community of peers, Learning Expert Teachers, and Subject Expert Teachers. Be ready to participate in a culture where academics are encouraged, learning is celebrated, and students have fun!
We are excited to know you are considering BASIS Independent Bellevue, a Grades 3 – 9 (expanding through Grade 12 over the next several years) private school. In order to both ensure student success and manage the popularity of our program, admissions is a selective process.
When applying, each family will work with members of the Admissions Team whose role is to welcome new families to our program and educate them on the benefits of a BASIS Independent Schools education. They are the guides through the application and admissions process.
Read below to learn more about the admissions process.
Step 1: Attend an Admissions Event (Optional)
Though not required, we strongly recommend you attend one of our Admissions Events to learn about our program before applying.
To view our upcoming Admissions Events, click here.
Step 2: Submit an Online Application
You will submit an application on our website with general student information. This will officially start the application process! After your application is processed, you will be able to access the Teacher Recommendation Forms, and Transcript Request Form, and schedule your student’s Entrance Exam and Family Meeting.
Please note: Steps 3, 4, 5, and 6 can be done in any order, but must be completed after the application is submitted and before a family is issued an admissions decision.
Step 3: Teacher Recommendations*
You will be able to provide the recommendations directly to your child’s current teacher. We do not accept recommendations from past teachers, only current ones. As listed in the instructions of the recommendations, we do not accept documents from parents. All recommendations must be sent from the teacher to the Admissions Office directly.
*We understand some schools do not allow their teachers to write recommendations for students that are leaving their program. In these circumstances, the requirement can be waived.
Step 4: Transcripts
You will be able to download a Transcript Request Form after submitting your application. This form requests your child’s current school send us a current-year report, along with the last two years. As listed in the instructions of the request form, we do not accept documents from parents. All transcripts must be sent from the school to the Admissions Office directly.
Step 5: Student Evaluation
Students will register for a BASIS Independent Schools In-Person Entrance Exam. This evaluation allows us to meet and interact with your child and determine if they are ready – academically, socially, and emotionally – to join our program in the grade for which they are applying.
Step 6: Virtual Family Meeting
At least one parent or guardian is required to attend this 20-30 minute Virtual Family Meeting. Students are required to attend. This meeting is a chance for us to meet your family, and your student, and learn a bit more about them in a one-on-one setting.
Once all supplementary materials are received and required meetings are attended, your application is complete!
Teachers: Passion and Expertise
