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Signature Experiences

Outdoor Learning

It’s the experience of learning from our place.

We learn where we are—on our park-like campus, in our neighborhood and our city, in communities near and far. We learn from the landscape, the natural history of a place, the people who have inhabited it, the layers of culture within it.

Of course, there’s research behind our methods: studies support the benefits of outdoor time like boosted attention spans, improved academics, more fully developed senses and a fascination with the natural world. Unstructured play outdoors also develops problem-solving and executive function skills and encourages creative and collaborative play.

Off-campus, our students explore the abundant natural and cultural resources in the area: testing water quality in New Haven’s West River, exploring New Haven’s outdoor public sculptures, investigating Milford salt marshes for invasive species, and much more.

Program Highlight

9th grade biology

Eye on Ecology

For more than 25 years, Foote ninth graders have studied the health of New Haven’s West River, analyzing water samples and aquatic life and reporting findings to officials at the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. 

 

Experience the World

We travel to discover the differences and the similarities between our own cultures and the culture of others. We travel to make memories that can last a lifetime.

Graham, Ninth Grade

Travel at Foote

More than just tradition, travel is an essential and intentional part of the Foote experience. We continue to expand our international and national travel opportunities because we believe in the experience of learning from the landscape, the natural history of a place, the people who have inhabited it, and the layers of culture within it.

While our travel programs are tied to the curriculum, their reach extends far beyond, as students engage in hands-on environmental activism, make cultural connections, and engage in service work to help others in need. Travel is one of the many opportunities we provide for our students to gain confidence, challenge limitations, and define leadership on their own terms. 

Ninth graders travel internationally each spring for service work, language immersion, and curricular connections. Each year eighth graders look forward to a trip to Washington, D.C. each year, bringing their year-long humanities studies to life. Other grades travel to facilities near and far as they delve deeper into their studies and form deep bonds through community-building activities.

 

Sustainability

Actions and Impact

Building sustainability and environmental responsibility into our curriculum at Foote teaches students about the ways they fit into the world around them. 

We rely on and interact with our environment in so many ways, so it is important that we teach our students to think about how their actions impact the environment, and how changes in the environment can impact them. By teaching them to think critically about these connections, we are preparing our students to lead the way in making changes and finding solutions to global problems like climate change, pollution, and resource waste. 

Curriculum incorporating environmental responsibility also helps center learning on our local environment and builds a sense of respect and value for the natural resources around us.

Learning about sustainability fits into our mission and vision, as it helps students gain the background knowledge and critical thinking skills to become leaders in solving relevant problems facing our world today. It also lends itself to opportunities for authentic, experiential learning and supports our shared values of community, discovery, and authenticity by encouraging students to explore, investigate, and connect with the environments and communities they live in. 

Some of the major concepts we want students to learn from our work in sustainability are to use resources responsibly, to be thoughtful about their impact on the environment, and to take an active role in addressing issues they care about.

Boy holding chicken at Foote School

Caring for Chickens

In 2022 we welcomed six hens to campus as part of a learning model spanning both divisions. The fence-enclosed structure includes a coop for the hens to sleep, lay eggs, and of course feel safe. Outside their home is a ramp and other perching features, and areas to feed, and run around. 

Fun Fowl Facts

  • The Foote School has six hens that are cared for by our Lower School Students. 

  • Corn grown in our Community Garden is used as chicken feed! 

  • A Middle School club, guided by Foote staff and parents, built our current chicken pen; since then, we have added many features to give our hens a little more legroom, and other enrichment features to keep them safe, active, and happy.

  • Third graders collect the eggs every day, and all other grades take turns feeding and watering the hens. 

  • Each year, Lower School students collect over 300 eggs. 

  • 36 half-dozen cartons were sold to the Foote community

  • With the egg money raised (over $500!) the school purchased enrichment features for the chickens, along with a solar-powered electric gate and mobile fencing unit.

  • Many faculty, staff, and parents are involved in the care of our chickens!