One Child At A Time

“Willow” – in nature and in martial arts – connotes both flexibility and strength. It’s a balance that many seek in life; and it’s a balance with which the founders, students, teachers and parents at the Willow School in Vero Beach fiercely align. “We want to teach our students to be open and flexible and yet to be self-disciplined and strong at the same time,” says Executive Director Govinda Reinhalter, who along with his wife Shakti Sutriasa, established the school in 2004.

To accomplish these goals, the fully accredited, private kindergarten through eighth grade elementary school embraces the teaching model of project-based learning, as well as the features of other proven teaching methods that produce the best results. Reinhalter and Sutriasa, both with many years of traditional and alternative teaching experience, spent two years delving into educational research before adopting the specific Willow School model. Some aspects of the school are unusual, such as multi-age classrooms. For the students who are thriving in the environment and their parents, most of whom have to sacrifice to afford the $6,900 annual tuition, the results are well worth it.

“We looked at hundreds and hundreds of studies – from how students learn, to what brain research and psychological studies show,” Reinhalter explains. “And it all boils down to one concept, which almost sounds too simple. And that is, the more you engage students on a multi-sensory level, the faster they learn, the more completely they are able to absorb information. And by the way, it’s a lot more fun!”