Advantages

The BASIS Curriculum is a unique blend of liberal arts and STEM that introduces students to advanced content and rigor not traditionally found in U.S. schools. Our teachers are experts in their disciplines and use their passion to inspire and engage students.

Rather than a sole focus on memorization, we emphasize the application of knowledge through critical thinking and problem solving. From the Connections course in the Primary Program to Senior Projects in high school, students learn to question, analyze, and seek their own answers in a variety of different settings.

Middle school begins in grade 5 and in these critical years, students lay the foundations for creativity, critical thinking, and proactive problem solving. In grades 6-8, students take three sciences—biology, chemistry, and physics—simultaneously each year, giving them a stronger, interdisciplinary foundation for their high school science and differentiated math classes and a more connected view of the world.

Because our High School Program* is focused on college preparation, we require all students take Advanced Placement^® courses and exams, which are critical in evaluating and commending student performance on a national and international scale.

*While we do not offer a High School Program at this time, we are actively working with the city of Bellevue to offer it in the future.

Our Subject Expert Teachers are true masters in their chosen field, and they use this real-life expertise to inspire students to embrace challenges and understand the application of their learned concepts. We provide our teachers the flexibility to give instruction and assess learning in the ways that fit their passions and their students’ needs. This allows them to foster creativity and support within their classroom to ensure students thrive.

Our Subject Expert Teachers are lifelong learners themselves, allowing them to truly connect with their students, with whom they share a mutual intellectual curiosity. They care about education, learning, and helping students master their subjects while building essential connections between their disciplines. Because of this, our teachers can more effectively challenge students in a supportive environment where they are not afraid to fail, experiment, test, and innovate, leading to great success.

In our Primary Program, we have fashioned a unique teaching model that encourages students to take risks academically while having consistent, individualized support. Learning Expert Teachers (LETs) provide regular individual support based on a student’s social, emotional, and academic needs, while Subject Expert Teachers (SETs) bring classrooms to life through their deep expertise. Read more about our Symbiotic Classroom dynamic.

Student support is the hallmark of a BASIS Independent education. The Student Affairs team, which includes grade-level focused deans, support students to ensure that they thrive, in successes and challenges alike, throughout their entire learning experience. The Student Affairs team provides a critical framework for students to be successful both inside and outside the classroom. This team observes how a student is learning, interacting with their peers, and most importantly, teaches students to advocate for themselves.

It is our goal to inspire students to find their interests and give them opportunities to hone those passions as they grow confidence, become effective leaders, and learn new skills. We seek out interscholastic competition opportunities for our students and we are excited to soon be home to some of the best teams and academic competition groups in our region, state, and nation! As our school grows, we will build a variety of club and athletic offerings—from the basketball court to the debate podium—where students will bring their interests and passions to life

Over the past five years, BASIS Independent Schools has grown coast to coast. Our campuses—from New York City to the Bay Area—have seen consistent success as they’ve grown into their own unique learning communities. While opening a new school is nothing new to us, building a founding school community is a unique and exciting experience for students, faculty and staff, and parents—one where they can create lasting bonds and memories. The first year provides one-of-a-kind opportunities to create the school culture, traditions, celebrate milestones, participate in teacher selection, and enable students to define extracurricular offerings.

In our program, students grow to become participants, not spectators, in their education, in their school, and in the larger community. We provide the tools necessary for them to take charge of their learning and demonstrate leadership in and out of the classroom.

BASIS Independent Schools students are regularly admitted into some of the most competitive and highly ranked colleges and universities in the world. With students who are outscoring schools across the globe in math, reading, and science according to the OECD Test for Schools (based on PISA), as well as top SAT scores and National AP Scholars results, colleges take notice. We know, though, that college admissions is not just about test scores. We help students learn how to be good citizens and remain true to themselves.