Learning Beyond the Classroom

Live Oak students are regularly leaving the classroom to learn from the world around them. Kindergartners experience an array of San Francisco's parks, sights, and neighborhoods on weekly Friday field trips. We make it a point to help expose our students to experiences that deepen their understanding of academic concepts while collecting valuable insights into how these skills make meaning in their everyday life. Field trips like the sixth grade "Our Changing City" exploration of San Francisco's evolving neighborhoods allow our students to experience the richness of the city they live in. In the spring of 2025, eight graders embarked on a new experiential learning opportunity with a week-long tour through the South that brought them closer to their learning about the Civil Rights Movement. 

Overnight outdoor trips present opportunities for our students to pursue learning goals beyond the walls of our school. The trips allow our students to deepen their learning and expand their connections with peers. The administrative and faculty teams work in partnership with outside organizations to provide our students in grades 4-8 with opportunities ranging from recreating a Russian settlement in Ft. Ross to a backpacking trip in Pinnacles National Forest. Some new overnight experiences in recent years have included a fourth grade visit to Westminster Woods, a sixth grade outing to Big Sur, and a seventh grade trip to Yosemite.

Every Live Oak student and staff member is a member of a mixed grade Grove. Groves encourage a sense of belonging, connectedness, and responsibility. Middle school students take on leadership roles in these groups, acting as models for social interaction and supporting younger students in Grove activities and community projects. One of Live Oak's long-standing traditions is the annual Sunflower Assembly where new kindergartners in each Grove are formally introduced by their eighth grade buddies to the broader school community at the beginning of the school year as an expression of welcoming and inclusion. 

Camp Live Oak是今年最令人期待的活動！在教職員工、營地工作人員和家長的支援下，學生們接受了新的挑戰，從與同學一起睡在小屋裡、攀岩和“北極熊游泳”到安靜的日記時間，以及在才藝表演中表演。 

Twice a year, Live Oak middle school students stage a full play geared for the enjoyment of San Francisco families. The productions give seventh and eighth graders the opportunity to sharpen their acting skills or participate in the stage crew to help bring the production to life. These performances are open to the public and sell out every year. Live Oak students put on two full scale productions each year. In recent years, productions have included, James and the Giant Peach (fall 2025), The Princess and the Pea (spring 2025), and At the Hop (fall 2024). 

After school sports for students in fifth through eighth grades include cross-country, volleyball, basketball, and futsal. Coaching focuses on skill development, good sportsmanship, and leadership, while providing a positive opportunity for social and group interaction. Lower school students have the opportunity to participate in soccer and Taekwondo as part of our Roots & Branches enrichment programs. 

Live Oak offers a robust and engaging slate of afterschool activities through its Extended Day Programs. From the popular taekwondo courses to foreign language, art, and robotics, there are so many ways for Live Oak students to continue learning and growing beyond the school day. Extended Day offerings are available to all students across grades K-8 and are built around providing students even more opportunities to pursue their interests and challenge themselves in diverse ways.