High Peaks

High Peaks is a K-5 Boulder Valley District Elementary focus school using the nationally recognized Core Knowledge curriculum. We are 100% Open Enrollment with students from all over the District . We are an ethnically diverse school with students from more than 29 countries represented. We enjoy a strong foundation of parental involvement and thrive on a dynamic partnership between parents and staff. We are located at 3995 Aurora Avenue in Boulder and share the Aurora 7 building with the Boulder Community School of Integrated Studies (BCSIS).

High Peaks is in its 14th year of providing the Core Knowledge curriculum in conjunction with the BVSD curriculum to provide a rich, well-balanced and challenging school experience. The teachers at High Peaks were selected for their outstanding teaching skills and commitment to the High Peaks philosophy. They bring the curriculum to life using active, creative, and interdisciplinary approaches.

The school consistently receives “Excellent” Ratings from the Colorado Report Cards. High Peaks is a multiple-year recipient of the John Irwin School of Excellence Award which is awarded to the top 8% schools in the state based on overall academic performance.

Mission Statement

High Peaks integrates essential skills and substantive content within the framework of the Core Knowledge Sequence to foster academic excellence and high achievement. Through challenge and accomplishment - and in an atmosphere of respect and collaboration among all members of the High Peaks community - students build self-esteem and a lasting love of learning.

Founding Principles

» High Peaks has a strong academic orientation, where high achievement by students is valued, encouraged, and rewarded.
» We believe that content is at least as important as process and the cohesive framework that provides a content for further exploration, analysis, and understanding is essential.
» We believe that all children deserve to be challenged, and we organize our instructional efforts to ensure that our children use their abilities to the fullest.
» We use the Core Knowledge sequence to provide a content-rich, sequential program that will engender a love of learning and that will prepare our children well for future success.
» We do not try to teach self-esteem directly, but instead believe that self-esteem comes from true achievement. We want our children to know and value hard work, persistence, and the joy, pleasure, and true self-esteem that comes from achieving a challenging and meaningful goal.
» We value reading and encourage each student to read at home every day.
» Language arts classes explicitly and sequentially teach phonics, language mechanics, grammar, and spelling, combined with an abundance of excellent literature and thoughtful writing assignments.
» We are committed to homework because practice and review are essential components of learning.
» We seek to attract and retain highly qualified, talented, and successful teachers who are strongly committed to implementing the program and principles outlined here. We work hard to ensure that they have the resources necessary to get the job done well.
» Our parent community is meaningfully and actively involved in all aspects of the school, including management and decision-making, reflecting the parent-initiated effort that created this school.