Best practices for girls guide our mathematics program at Baldwin. Girls thrive from working with others, like to see practical results and tend to be more concerned about failure than boys. We encourage girls to experiment, solve problems and learn from their mistakes. Since girls tend to spend less time than boys engaged in play with blocks, puzzles, and mechanical toys, our classroom activities are designed to specifically foster girls' development of spatial relationship skills. Teachers incorporate math throughout the day in practical ways, ask questions that are open-ended, and encourage creativity and "outside of the box" thinking. Using a spiral approach to the introduction, development, and review of content within and across grade levels, our math program provides appropriate transitions from concrete experiences to abstract understandings. Strong computational competency is taught and reinforced at every grade level.

At all grade levels, systematic reading instruction using a variety of materials meets a range of developmental needs. The goal is to stimulate a love of reading from the very earliest grades as girls have time to share and enjoy books, listen to stories and poems, participate in small skits and plays, and develop an appreciation for the importance of literature. All of Baldwin's early childhood educators are trained in Wilson Language Basics – Fundations. This program provides a systematic, explicit approach to reading and spelling through phonics instruction. It is used in the early grades along with a literature based reading and writing program. As students enter fourth and fifth grade the emphasis shifts to comprehension within a variety of genres of literature, applying reading skills for research, and diversifying recreational reading material. Trade books correlated with specific areas of study introduce the girls to historical and scientific literature.

Writing workshop is the time set aside for instruction in the writing process. This includes the steps of: brainstorming for ideas, pre-writing, drafting, revising, editing, and publishing. Instruction emphasizes stimulation of creative thought, organization of ideas, correct sentence structure, spelling, punctuation, grammar and handwriting. Research projects connect to content areas such as social studies and science. They focus attention on research and note-taking skills. Many opportunities are provided for the girls to learn and practice speaking and listening techniques, acknowledging that these are vital pieces in the development of literacy and communication skills. Oral presentations, including poetry and story reading, dramatics, reports and whole class discussions reinforce these skills.

From the earliest years students are guided to discover a sense of their own identity in the context of their environment – place, time and culture. In the older grades girls examine a wider view of the world at different times in history. They explore the roles, connections and evolution of communities. By studying a variety of cultures the girls learn about the influence of environment on lifestyle and come to appreciate cultural diversity. Studies come alive through field trips to places of historical and cultural interest as well as participation in age-appropriate research projects.

The main emphasis in physical education is to help our girls develop movement concepts, including body and spatial awareness. Introductory sports are covered in drills and small games that are fun for the girls. Positive social interactions and appropriate physical fitness levels, necessary for an active healthy lifestyle throughout the girls' lifetimes, are supported. Water comfort and safety are stressed in swim classes at every grade.

In art classes, students in pre-kindergarten through fifth grade learn to appreciate art in a historical and cultural context through observation and hands-on experience. Confidence, independence and creativity are fostered with individual, as well as group projects. A goal in lower school music classes is to give students a love and appreciation for music of all kinds along with the freedom to express themselves through music. Both the art and music programs support a global perspective through study of artists and music from many cultures and eras.

Baldwin families bring diverse ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds to the school community. We encourage all girls to share attributes of their cultures and traditions with classmates. In the lower school girls learn about world cultures through multidisciplinary projects. During the early childhood grades girls receive exposure to other languages through integrated units in social studies, music and art. An example of this is when kindergarten girls study Japan and learn some Japanese words, phrases and songs.

Beginning in third grade, students are introduced to Latin, French and Spanish as cultural courses. The girls participate in activities such as cooking, singing, and dramatics to help them become acquainted with the languages and to develop an appreciation for the cultures of the countries that use those languages.

The lower school years are a time when children are open to exploring, learning, and stretching their intellectual boundaries. In our all-girls environment, we see this natural learning process flourish even more as inhibitions are cast aside, the thirst for knowledge is quenched, and the foundations for life-long learning and responsible citizenship are established. Our mission is to foster a sense of community within which educators and families work closely together to support and encourage each girl to reach her full potential. We watch them grow from thinking girls to accomplished young women!