Skills that are essential for students to be successful and competitive in the real world, sometomes called the 4 C's: critical thinking, collaboration, communication, and creativity.

An approach that provides students with experiences, resources, and tools that help them develop the knowledge, awareness, understanding and skills necessary to be active, effective citizens prepared to address important issues in their community and the world at large.

A process that highlights students actively collaborating together in small teams and with members of the community with the goal of solving stated.

Keeping an ongoing record of student work throughout a project and at the end, to determine progress, identify challenges, and demonstrate what is being learned.

An open-ended question that a student team crafts (with help from an adult facilitator) and sets out to answer through an organized, project-based learning experience.

The end result of a project (a video, written report, advertising campaign, community action event, etc.) that students use to represent their work in the project’s culminating activity.

A type of evaluation performed for the purpose of improving the performance of a person or program (see also: summative evaluation).

Learning through active exploration, problem solving and manipulation of materials rather than through the more traditional methods of content delivery, such as lectures and textbooks.

A guided instructional approach in which learners ask questions, conduct investigations, make discoveries and apply their new understandings

Hours outside of the regular school day, and they are often used for student enrichment activities that augment regular school-time instruction. Out-of-school time can occur before or after school, or in the summer.

Ability to suggest or design solutions to problems for which there may be no one right answer.

A student-directed learning strategy by which young learners explore topics of high interest to them through in-depth learning experiences lasting more than three (3) days.

Students take an active role in their learning process and developing the project, while staff plays the role of facilitator.

Students are invited to express opinions and make choices about planning and implementing their own learning experiences.