Designed
- curriculum architecture
- programme content
- implementation framework
- a five-dimension learning structure
- seasonal curriculum planning
- quest and project frameworks
- formative-assessment and documentation tools
- the operational OS Binder
Selected work – case study
Forest Studio Comporta, from vision to implementation.
A multi-age, bilingual, nature-connected and project-based learning environment. As Pedagogical Leader and Coordinator I designed its curriculum, programme content and implementation framework and coordinate its ongoing pedagogical development.
Context
A small environment with big design questions.
Forest Studio developed as a small learning environment for children to learn through meaningful projects, focused academic practice, relationships, nature and community participation. The programme required a coherent curriculum, clear daily structures, shared adult tools, ways of noticing learning and ongoing development processes.
Educational intention
Connecting many dimensions of learning.
The programme was designed to connect:
- academic knowledge and skills
- project-based inquiry
- creativity and making
- emotional awareness
- movement and wellbeing
- community participation
- autonomy and shared responsibility
Children’s interests provide meaningful starting points; adults intentionally connect them with explicit learning goals and developmental priorities.
My role
Designed, coordinated and co-designed.
Coordinated
- pedagogical planning on the live site
- curriculum implementation
- guide onboarding and professional learning
- assessment and portfolio processes
- programme reviews
- learning documentation
- family-facing pedagogical communication
Co-designed
- aspects of the wider educational model
- daily and weekly rhythms
- family and mentor participation
- programme refinements
- implementation decisions with founder, guide and family perspectives
The wider team contributed organisational leadership and governance, site logistics, daily facilitation, family knowledge, mentor expertise, implementation feedback, and the children’s questions, ideas and work.
Central questions
The questions the design had to answer.
- How can children’s interests connect with explicit learning intentions?
- How can a multi-age programme balance projects with focused academic practice?
- What structures help adults observe, plan and adapt together?
- How can assessment make learning visible without becoming a conventional report-card system?
- How can families and mentors participate while roles stay clear?
- What documentation helps an evolving programme stay coherent?
Work developed
From five dimensions to daily practice.
Five Dimensions
Voice
Body
Mind
Heart
Tribe
A shared structure for academic, personal, relational, creative and community development.
Seasonal curriculum
Each cycle provides:
- an overarching theme
- questions and concepts
- learning priorities
- project possibilities
- focused practice
- documentation
- a visible shared outcome
Project-based quests
Quest structures connect children’s questions, curriculum goals, research, making and testing, collaboration, reflection and public sharing.
Focused practice
Projects are complemented by intentional practice in literacy, mathematics, languages and research skills.
Guide development
Planning templates, observation tools, coaching conversations, meeting structures and onboarding materials support guide interpretation and implementation.
Assessment and visible learning
- learning trackers
- observations
- portfolios
- child self-assessment
- project evidence
- guide feedback
- family conferences
- visible documentation
Family and community participation
Families and mentors contribute knowledge, skills, workshops, reflection and community experiences through clearly defined formats.
Operating systems
The Forest Studio OS Binder brings essential routines, protocols, roles and pedagogical tools into one accessible physical system for the site.
Implementation
Developed through iterative cycles.
- define the educational intention
- design the relevant structures
- support guides using them
- observe implementation
- gather evidence and feedback
- refine tools, responsibilities and expectations
Implementation is treated as a source of information rather than a final test of a fixed design.
Evidence
What the work has produced so far.
curriculum and seasonal planning documents
project and quest frameworks
daily and weekly schedules
guide-planning tools
onboarding materials
observation and assessment templates
student trackers and portfolio structures
workshop and family-participation plans
operational protocols
OS Binder documents
photographs of projects and environments
examples of children’s work
meeting and programme-review records
Still developing
Honest about what is still in progress.
- longer-term curriculum progression
- a more consolidated assessment framework
- systematic evidence collection
- expanded guide development
- clearer longitudinal documentation
- scaling the model to additional groups and sites
- licensing or certification questions (subject to legal and strategic review)
An honest note
What this case study does not claim.
Forest Studio is an evolving learning environment. This documentation shows what was designed, implemented and reviewed. It should not be used to claim guaranteed educational outcomes, superiority over other school models, long-term developmental effects, independently validated impact, or formal accreditation of a methodology.
Related work
Developing something with similar questions?
Share what you are building, refining or trying to bring into practice, and we can consider whether my experience is relevant.