AMHERST — Using project-based learning in the classroom, building a supportive and welcoming place and treating all students fairly and equitably are how culture is built intentionally at Wildwood School.

During a recent School Committee meeting, Principal Allison Estes presented “Building Culture and Behavioral Support Systems,” an overview of how the K-6 school maintains a positive atmosphere for those learning and working in the building, and the families that are part of the community.

One aspect is having teachers trained in project based learning.

“Project based learning is way to help students to feel agency in the curriculum,” Estes said. “We are very dedicated to making sure that children have two to three experiences in project based learning every year that reflects who they are, who they want to be” as they develop their identity.

Estes, who came to Wildwood as a fifth-grade teacher in 2017 and succeeded Principal Nick Yaffe in fall 2023, said the school acknowledges children in positive ways, ensures that it is not overly using disciplinary procedures and focuses on disproportionality by making sure students of color are being treated fairly.

“We are very committed to using systems in an equitable manner, to guide our work from week to week, even,” Estes said.

The school uses the district’s educator handbook, the reporting platform where staff can file information regarding student behaviors, as a way to have consistent consequences. The school is also transparent in addressing and preventing bias-based bullying, doing check-ins with children and families and getting students to restorative space, Estes said. “It’s very central in helping our communities heal,” Estes said.

Surveys shared with students indicate there is a sense of belonging.

“In my humble opinion, I think we’ve created a culture that really supports children,” Estes said. “I think that Wildwood is known for that. It’s really, I feel, something that’s part of our reputation, not just for students, but for the staff as well.”

Dessert Crawl

Dessert samples from various restaurants will be offered during the Amherst Business Improvement District’s Dessert Crawl Saturday from 3 to 6 p.m.

The event will feature dessert tastings and an accompanying scavenger hunt to win prizes donated by local businesses.

Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 at the door, with wristbands to be picked up at the Visitors Information Center, 35 South Pleasant St., that afternoon.

New soccer shed

A 160-square-foot storage shed for the Amherst Youth Soccer Association can be placed on a gravel pad at the Plum Brook soccer fields on Potwine Lane.

Following recommendations from the Design Review Board that the shed should be gray, the Planning Board recently gave the OK for the prefabricated building, to be accessed by a gravel walkway from the parking lot.

Megan Rhodes, president of the association, said soccer services are provided to more than 430 children from the four Amherst-Pelham Regional towns. The shed will centralize operations and make it easier for volunteers to line the fields, set up the nets and corner flags, Rhodes said.

Civic Summit

The Center for Education Policy at the University of Massachusetts’ Amherst College of Education is holding its second annual Civic Summit at the Carney Family Auditorium in Furcolo Hall Tuesday from 5 to 7 p.m.

The free event aims to promote conversation and generate new ideas about socially important issues, and will explore the question, “how should Massachusetts public schools prepare the next generation for civic engagement and responsibility?”

“We’re living in deeply polarized times, and we’ve never been more in need of civic skills and dispositions,” Jack Schenider, director of the Center for Education Policy and a professor at the College of Education, said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to seeing how this year’s audience engages with both our experts and our youth leaders in forming their conclusions on how we increase civic engagement for future generations.”

To register go to https://formurl.com/to/summit

Mobile Marketconversation

The Amherst League of Women Voters is sponsoring a conversation with representatives of the Amherst Mobile Market, Rossana Salazar, Rani Parker, Isabel Ramirez Balderas and Elizabeth Castro Sanchez, Thursday at 7 p.m.

The discussion will center on how the mobile market fills a gap by providing access to fresh produce while also building community and promoting local economic development.

Register at lwvamherst.org to join the program, which is part of the Judy Brooks Conversation Series.

Staff Writer Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.