Academics
SEED, Service & Support
SEED
Social, Emotional, and Ethical Development
Shipley is committed to ensuring that all students develop the skills and ability to make good decisions at every point in their career at Shipley. We offer an integrated and thorough “core values” curriculum devoted to Social, Emotional, and Ethical Development (SEED). The SEED curriculum is under the direction of the office of Student Support, which provides assistance that is individual and developmental in nature and designed to connect health (physical, social, and emotional) with academic skill development. At Shipley we know that it is the combination of rigor and support that leads to deeply rooted learning and success. Our SEED curriculum is a critical component of Shipley’s unique approach to education.
As with other parts of the Shipley curriculum, the SEED curriculum is:
As with other parts of the Shipley curriculum, the SEED curriculum is:
- Integrated PreK through Grade 12 and addresses a wide variety of topics (see below)
- Integrated with other curricular elements (e.g. service learning, advisory program)
- Supported by parent education programming
- Age and developmentally appropriate in instruction/experiences
- Built to spiral and scaffold through the years, repeating and reinforcing key concepts over time
- Built from Shipley's Framework for Flourishing
- Designed to equip students at every age to acquire the knowledge and develop the skills to make good decisions.
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Making Sense of Emotions by Making Music
It’s common to associate colors with emotions, as Kathryn Otoshi does in her book, One. Dr. Harley Givler asked his third grade students to imagine what the book's characters and their emotions would sound like as a musical composition. The third graders performed the composition for their PreK Book Buddies, sharing lessons in emotions, tolerance, and being an upstander, as well as inspiring a love of music.Read More -
Guiding Students on the Path to Success: Shipley’s Sixth Grade SEED
Helping students identify their strengths and weaknesses is an essential goal for any educator guiding them on the path to success. This is especially important in sixth grade, as students make the transition from elementary to middle school. One cornerstone of the sixth grade SEED curriculum is having students explore their own learning styles and apply this knowledge to forming relationships.Read More -
3-2-1 Care to Share? A Quiet Lesson in Diversity
Middle School is a time of physical and emotional growth and transformation, but the process that each child goes through is uniquely beautiful, messy, and complex. Through conversations in sixth grade SEED, teacher and Middle School counselor Lindsay Fick hopes that her students learn to acknowledge that for themselves and build the skills to accept it when it comes to others—a powerful lesson in viewpoint diversity.Read More -
Learning to Set Healthy Boundaries in Upper School SEED
On Valentine's Day, 10th graders participated in a “speed dating” activity in class using a deck of cards with “what would you do” boundary-setting scenarios exploring healthy boundaries in relationships. "The goal is for students to identify and practice healthy behaviors, boundary-setting skills, and consent in their relationships with themselves and others," said Jamie O'Leary, a SEED (Shipley's social emotional learning program) teacher.Read More -
Think, Care, Act: Planting Seeds of Kindness in Shipley’s Fifth Grade Social Emotional Learning Classes
In the fifth grade’s social emotional learning SEED class at Shipley, teacher Betsy Leschinsky reads her students Emmanuel’s Dream: The True Story of Emmanuel Ofosu. Mrs. L uses it as a springboard to inspire her fifth graders to think about how they might raise awareness about issues and topics that mean something to them for their capstone Think Care Act projects.Read More -
Spotlight on Lower School SEED: “Behind My Mask” Lesson Teaches Students about Emotions
For Lower School SEED teacher Betsy Leschinsky, helping young students learn how to recognize and manage emotions is a key part of what she teaches. This can be particularly challenging in the time of COVID-19. Her “Behind My Mask” unit was designed to help students uncover the feelings that people might not see when we wear masks, as well as some of the characteristics and interests that define us.Read More -
Q&A with Sharron Russell, Director of Positive Education and Student Support
In 1995, Dr. Sharron Russell was hired to write and teach Shipley’s social-emotional curriculum. Dr. Russell, who holds a certificate and doctoral degree in school psychology from Immaculata University and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, respectively, has been directing student support since 2011 and positive education at Shipley since 2016. She is largely responsible for helping to make Shipley the first-ever positive education school in the country.Read More -
Q&A with Upper School Counselor Kira White
Get to know Shipley's new Upper School counselor, Kira White. A graduate of Swarthmore College and the University of Pennsylvania, Kira says they chose to pursue a career in counseling because, "I wanted to help students figure out some of the other [non-academic] parts of growing up. I think the presence of a supportive school counselor is something that adults either remember from their time in school or wish they had had at that time in life." They appreciate Shipley's focus on the development of students as whole people including emotional well-being and awareness, "skills fundamental to navigating the world." Learn more about Kira in our New Colleague Q&A.Read More -
Q&A with Nick Holton, Associate Director of Positive Education
Get to know Shipley's new Associate Director of Positive Education, Dr. Nick Holton, who says, "I firmly believe that human potential is the world's greatest resource and that systems of education can amplify that potential or squander it. I believe Positive Education does the former." Learn more about Nick and why he's dedicated his life to Positive Education.Read More -
Shipley Community Shows Compassion in Action
Compassionate participation in the world is a pillar of Shipley's mission and something Shipley strives to instill in every member of the community. Read more about how Shipley's students, families, colleagues, and alumni are living the mission and displaying compassion in action, especially during the global pandemic.Read More -
Junior Josh Harycki Founds Social Distancing Pledge
When Shipley junior Josh Harycki noticed a lack of awareness around the COVID-19 precautions in his peers, he and a few friends created the Social Distancing Pledge to educate and encourage others to practice responsible social distancing amid the COVID-19 pandemic.Read More -
Gyasi Miller ’24: A Perfect Blend of Love and Basketball
Two years ago, when Gyasi Miller ’24 was in fifth grade, it was no surprise his love of basketball inspired his Think, Care, Act project to clean up a park near his home. He presented a proposal to a local councilman, secured funding, and recently cut the ribbon to officially open the renovated park in October.Read More -
Psychologist Lea Waters, Ph.D. Visits Shipley to Speak About Strength-Based Parenting
World-renowned psychologist Lea Waters, Ph.D. visited Shipley on Thursday, September 6 to speak to colleagues and families about strength-based parenting.Read More -
Meeting of the Minds: Positive Education
Shipley is the first school in the country to adopt a school-wide approach to Positive Education, which aims to strengthen academic and personal achievement through wellbeing using evidence-based techniques. What is wellbeing? Can you teach it? How do you incorporate a successful Positive Education practice in schools? Should you? Our panel explores these questions and more.Read More -
Meeting of the Minds: Gender & Sexuality Diversity
It’s an important topic that’s sparked legal battles, political debates, and philosophical divides in communities across the country. Our roundtable explores the role of schools in navigating this complex subject. How are Shipley and other schools responding to the issues surrounding gender identity and sexuality diversity? Shipley’s Head of School and a national expert weigh in.Read More -
From The Blog: Why Practice Mindfulness? A Student’s Perspective
Read MoreWhile mindfulness is something I’ve been interested in for a while, I only began seriously looking into it about a year ago. I started making regular practice a part of my life in the beginning of March, and already I can see a difference. -
Meeting of the Minds: Educating for an Unknown Future
In our rapidly-changing world, there is a lot of uncertainty about the future. What skills, knowledge, and experiences will our students need in order to thrive professionally and personally? How can Shipley and other schools ensure that students are future ready? Shipley administrators and alumni weigh in on the topic.Read More -
Dr. Ken Ginsburg Speaks to Eleventh Graders and Families
As part of their Social, Emotional, and Ethical Development (SEED) curriculum, eleventh graders and their families hear from Dr. Ken Ginsburg, author of Raising Kids to Thrive: Balancing Love with Expectations and Protection with Trust.Read More -
Age of Opportunity, Lessons from the new science of Adolescence
Dr. Laurence Steinberg, an expert on the science behind adolescent brain development presented a program for 9th and 10th grade students and parents. Dr. Steinberg’s research has focused on a range of topics in the study of contemporary adolescence, including adolescent brain development, risk-taking and decision-making, parent-adolescent relationships, adolescent employment, high school reform, and juvenile justice.Read More
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Meet the Team
List of 9 members.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.
