About Us

Big Picture Brochure
Graduating with Proficiency Based Graduation Requirements (PBGRs)
Big Picture Staff

Big Picture South Burlington is an innovative school-within-a-school, currently serving 24 students who have chosen BPSB because they were looking for more meaning in their high school education. Students work with faculty to design their own individualized curriculum based on their passions, skills, and goals. Students learn through internships, independent projects, workshops, travel, and group experiences such as our yearly camping and service learning trips. Students intern at organizations ranging from farms to fashion-design firms. They have done projects ranging from organizing a theater performance for pre-schoolers to producing educational programming at the local television station. BPSB is a democratic learning community, in which students have voice on key decisions such as our weekly schedule, rules and expectations, and curriculum choices. We have been recognized as being at the cutting edge of education, and regularly host visitors or present about BPSB. Because we are a student-centered school, students do much of that hosting and presenting, and their pride and excitement for their school is inspirational. BPSB is an exciting, dynamic, and challenging learning community.

At Big Picture Schools we believe that education is everyone’s business. Learning opportunities are everywhere, not just inside classrooms. Research tells us that we learn best when we’re personally motivated. When we have a passion for what we are doing, knowledge unfolds and evolves naturally.

Check out our new Exceptional Senior Program for motivated, independent, passionate students who want to do something innovative for Senior year.

Pursuing Passions
We believe that students learn best when they are doing something that they are passionate about in the real world. At Big Picture schools, students are encouraged to explore their interests.

Learning Through Internship (LTI)
One of the basic structures of Big Picture schools is that students spend two days a week out at an internship site. By Learning Through Internship (LTI), a student will learn math, science, reading, writing and many more skills more effectively than he or she could learn them in a classroom.  LTIs are not meant to help students pick out a particular career. At their LTIs, students will learn the skills needed to go on to college and beyond.

 

Personalized Learning
Each student has an individual Learning Plan. The Learning Plan team (the student, parent, mentor and advisor) work together to create a challenging and exciting plan.  Learning Plan meetings for each student are held four times a year.

Exhibitions
Students present their work and learning at the end of each quarter. The students, parents, mentor, advisor, peers, and others come to reflect on and evaluate his or her process and products. The student creates visuals, an agenda, and  notecards to create a professional presentation.

Assessment
Students are expected to work toward the goals they’ve set, and reflect on their work and learning. Through this process of planning, doing and reflecting, students discover how to take responsibility for their own learning. Also, each quarter, advisors write a narrative assessing student work and learning. Students from Big Picture graduate with Proficiency Based Graduation Requirements (PBGRs) rather than Carnegie units.

Advisory
Each student is part of a small 12-15 person advisory group. Their advisor knows them well and helps them build a strong community while working on the goals in their individual Learning Plans. Mentors stay in close communication with the advisor. The advisory will stay together for 2-4 years. Advisories go on trips together, debate issues, do community service, critique each other’s work, plan school activities, and more.

Enrolling Families
Families play an important role in a student’s education. From helping the student plan his or her Learning Plan to participating in events, parents are an integral part of our community.

Journal Writing
Each student writes in a learning journal three times per week. This is a way for the student to refl ect on life and learning as well as communicate with the advisor.  Advisors read and respond to these journal entries each week.

Organization, Self-Motivation & Time Management
These are probably three of the most important keys to success.  At Big Picture schools, students must learn to organize themselves, motivate themselves and follow the project timelines they’ve created. The Supercalendar is a planner that students use to plan their day and project work.