The Chicken Coop School

At The Farm School

The Chicken Coop at the Farm School is a full-time school for local children in 7th and 8th grades. It offers students the opportunity for an excellent education in North Orange, MA. Graduates of the Chicken Coop have excelled at Athol, Mahar, Monty Tech, Franklin County Tech, Northfield Mt. Hermon, Cushing Academy, Winchendon Academy, Pioneer Valley Performing Arts, and Four Rivers Charter School. The total class has 10-14 students. There are often two teachers in the room, so children have some classes in groups of 6. Teachers strive to meet students where they are as learners and then challenge and extend their thinking by engaging them in projects that lead to a deep understanding of the topics. Most importantly, the teachers know their students and have the time to be joyful with them. The students leave the Chicken Coop more than prepared for any high school. 

The Chicken Coop curriculum covers a full range of subjects including Social Studies, Literature Studies, Writing, Math, Science, Physical Education and Art. In addition, students have Farm Life, where they get to work with farmers on seasonal projects right at school.  The curriculum is organized around a number of core principles. These principles include:

  • Interacting with the world from a place of kindness and generosity
  • Practicing joy
  • Considering any idea or situation from multiple perspectives
  • Being able to function in a democracy, and having the necessary reading, writing, and speaking skills to do so well

Curriculum

We convene during typical school hours with activities based at the Chicken Coop, which is a part of The Farm School. We are organized in the form of a home school cooperative: we provide parents with our curriculum, which fits within the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks, and the parents then submit the curriculum to their school district for approval for their child. 

The Chicken Coop curriculum covers a full range of subjects including Social Studies, Literature Studies and Writing, Math, Science, Physical Education and Art while also getting to experience real farm work on a working farm. To learn more about our curriculum click here.

Evaluation

Children get a written evaluation of their academic progress twice each year. The students are not graded against each other, but are instead evaluated on their own personal learning.