What is Caraway?

Since 1973

Caraway began in 1973 as a grassroots private charter school. In 1975, a non-profit parent group asked Edmonton Public Schools to make Caraway an alternative education program within the public system. Twenty-five children were enrolled then. Caraway has grown a great deal since and has proven to be a successful school.

Caraway is a K–9 alternative learning environment. We are committed to being an open and honest community that supports our children's education by actively connecting family, school and society. Through willing participation in the community, we nurture an environment where students can take risks, be responsible and build meaningful relationships.

The program offers project-based, child-centred learning. It helps every student make meaningful connections and gives them opportunities for rich conceptual development.

Learning together

Caraway uses the well-researched benefits of mixing ages across grade levels. Older students are encouraged to lead and to help younger students learn, and younger students thrive on that attention. Students may also benefit from having the same teacher for two or three years in a row.

Alongside academic skills, the program helps students develop emotionally and socially. Emotional intelligence helps children take responsibility for their own behaviour, feel empathy for others and their problems, and dare to care for others.

Students and staff work together democratically, and every individual is considered and respected. Decisions are made as a group, and students and teachers solve problems together as they come up. Because students help set classroom agreements, they feel personally responsible for keeping them.

Our classrooms

Bright spaces to grow

Our classrooms are full of natural light and give children everything they need to grow and learn. Play and exploration with materials are vital to learning, so a wide variety of materials is always available. Children move freely around the room as needed and are not tied to desks. We encourage them to investigate and follow their interests in the spaces available to them.

The classrooms have many plants, and some are home to much-loved animals. Caraway has two basic rules: don't disturb others while they are learning, and don't destroy materials. Each group may agree on other rules democratically as needed.

Teachers use a modified team-teaching approach. They share their strengths and abilities and connect with students from every classroom.