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Habits of Mind

At Schechter Boston, we foster:

ambitious growth mindset (habits of self-challenge and personal excellence)
upstander mindset (habits of kindness and contribution)
partnership mindset (habits of collaboration and community building)
scholar mindset (habits of study, sophisticated, flexible thinking and eager, productive engagement with complexity)
lifelong thirst for learning (habits of curiosity, self-education and learning for its own sake)
strong sense of self (habits of self-reflection, perspective taking and moral decision-making)

Mindset

It’s never been our goal to educate some narrow, predetermined kind of graduate, thinker or Jew. After all, our students are as unique as their fingerprints! We do, however, intentionally foster certain common traits in our students, namely qualities we believe are essential to the full realization of individual promise and to the construction of meaningful, happy lives of connection and contribution. We foster “habits of mind”––a mindset––that are distinctly Jewish ways of seeing, engaging with, and acting in the world, and we start teaching them on day one. By the time our students graduate, we hope they not only embody these qualities, but come to see them as one more way their Jewish identity shapes their daily lives.

Purpose

Being a Jewish day school gives us a unique clarity of purpose. Schechter Boston exists:

to believe in, value and foster each child’s distinct potential
to nurture all the essential aspects of a Jewish child’s development
to embody and model our core Jewish values and to instill them in our students
to cultivate in our students a strong and personally meaningful understanding of their Jewish identity
to foster in our students a positive and deep understanding of Judaism’s richness, breadth and significance
to prepare our students fully, setting the trajectory
- for continued intellectual pursuit and academic accomplishment
- for meaningful participation in Jewish community life
- for lives characterized by kindness, connection and contribution

Meaning

Whether they’re studying the Boston Tea Party, Torah or geometric tessellations, our students do more than just master academic content. At Schechter, we design lessons that encourage kids to dig more deeply into the “whats” of each subject, to find the personally relevant “so whats?” and “now whats?” that make learning truly sticky.

I’ve been really impressed with students’ interactions with caring teachers and how engaged they are in their learning. The lessons are thoughtfully planned, creative, interesting, and meaningful— never “make work.”
—Schechter parent

Be Inspired

From day one, our students are treated and respected as sophisticated, capable citizens of their classroom, the school community and the world. By harnessing children’s natural empathy and curiosity, alongside curriculum and programming designed to broaden their perspective and awareness of real world issues, they quickly develop a fire in their hearts and minds to take on responsibility and figure out what they want to do and how they will take action. We want our students to wrestle with the question, “What does this mean to me and why?” then be able to answer it with an inspired and profound sense of personal involvement and hope.

Be Prepared

We set our students up to be successful navigating life’s twists and turns, joys and hurdles, relationships and logistics, choices and transitions. We know that the best way to do this is to give students the opportunity to practice the portable skills they will use throughout their lives. By focusing on partnership-style hevruta (learning in partnership), our students learn to lean into complexity, to listen deeply to another person and consider others’ perspectives and to disagree respectfully. Students develop a reservoir of overarching skills they use every day at school and which will serve them through high school, college and their careers. Having an organized locker, being a self-advocate or moving from one classroom to another, prepares students for today and beyond.

Mastery

Mastery of a subject comes from more than knowing the content; it comes from knowing how to apply learned material to one’s life and using it to make the world a better place.

I was blown away with the level of Hebrew my child spoke even after first grade! She was able to speak to an Israeli cousin all in Hebrew. I was so proud!
—Schechter parent

Be Known

Our teachers know our kids…really know them. When all 430 students walk through the door every morning or through the halls during the day, they are greeted by name. As basic as this might seem, it’s actually not. In order to thrive, students must feel the deep security that comes when everyone around them—teachers and fellow classmates—recognizes and embraces what makes them who they are and knows them as people and learners. We know which student likes baseball and also needs some extra help around transitions at school. We know which student loves to paint and really gets pre-Algebra and needs extensions. We know who lost a pet over the weekend and needs extra TLC on Monday morning.

Teachers know each other, too, not just as colleagues who work together, but as thought partners, mentors and first-rate brainstormers. Our faculty and staff are able to deliver their best and enhance their craft because the atmosphere at school is one of respect and collaboration.

Be Engaged

School is often seen as preparation for high school and adult life. That’s true, of course, but we believe school is not only a building block for the future, but for real life. Right now. “What do I care about as a student? What am I trying to solve? How do I address things I care about?” “How do I do this?” We foster an environment that is interdisciplinary and hands-on in which students are present and future thinkers, doers, problem-solvers, philosophers, changemakers, partners and debaters. Persevering and puzzling through dilemmas and big questions, rather than just following a set of procedures, reinforces engagement and ownership.

Belong

We promote and nourish a culture in which each individual feels a deep, tight interconnectedness. Every person belongs not only to the larger community, but to many smaller communities from band to havurah, Shabbat Shira to basketball, a specific grade to the LGBTQ club, the Parent Association to the alumni network. Belonging means that the people around you know what is important to you and why. It means doing life together. Our families share milestones, volunteer work, celebrations, playdates, a morning walk and coffee. It means having people who swell up around you when you need help or have experienced loss. It means feeling that sense of togetherness that can be hard to put into words, but clearly and palpably feels like the warmth of being at home.

Mission

Together, we create a Jewish educational experience in which each student will be known, belong, be engaged, be inspired and be prepared.

Welcome to

Boston’s

Engaging

Dynamic

Happy

Inspiring

Thoughtful

Elevating

Jewish

Day School

Toddler through Grade 8

Our Mission

Early Childhood

Elementary School

Middle School

Indivisible

What We Teach

Learning Priorities

Why

We Exist

Learning

Culture