Curriculum
Acton Academy Curriculum
Core Skills
Core Skills are the essential abilities learners need in order to continue learning throughout their lives. These include math, reading, writing, and, optionally, Romanian. Each day, they spend between 2 and 3 hours developing these skills, working on online platforms or in notebooks.
Learners are encouraged to first try to find a solution on their own when they get stuck. If they need support, the Guide helps them through questions, and sometimes an older learner helps them understand a new concept. In this way, learning becomes an active process built on autonomy, perseverance, and collaboration.
Math
At Acton, learners develop their foundational math skills through interactive educational platforms such as Khan Academy, Beast Academy, Zearn, and ALEKS.
These tools adapt to each child’s pace and level, giving them the opportunity to learn at their own rhythm with greater clarity and confidence. At the same time, parents and the Guide can track each learner’s progress in order to better understand their growth and identify the areas where they may need extra support.
Reading
We aim to nurture young people who read with pleasure and from genuine initiative. Learners can choose both books for pleasure reading, based on their own interests, and books that contribute toward earning badges, depending on their goals.
After finishing a book, they write reviews on Goodreads and create presentations, strengthening their thinking, expression, and ability to share ideas with others.
To support this authentic relationship with reading, we purchase any book a learner truly wants to read. In this way, each child has access to titles that inspire, challenge, and help them grow.
Communication
Learners develop their English communication skills through educational platforms such as Night Zookeeper, for storytelling and creative writing, and NoRedInk, for grammar. Younger learners also work in writing notebooks to build the foundations of handwriting and clear expression.
Along the way, they take part in a variety of creative writing challenges—from stories, journals, cook books, greek myths, letters of intention, restaurant reviews and poems to imaginative or persuasive pieces. Many of these creations are also shared with parents during Exhibition night, where learners present their work and progress.
Each piece of writing goes through a process of feedback and revision, helping learners express their ideas with growing clarity, creativity, and confidence.
In addition to the core skills we develop
Essential Skills and Competences
Socratic discussions
At Acton Academy Timișoara, we believe that clear thinking is the foundation of good choices, and that good choices, repeated over time, shape habits, character, and ultimately the direction of one’s life.
That is why each day begins and ends with a Socratic Discussion in a circle, with the whole community taking part. During these conversations, learners are challenged by the Guide to think deeply, analyze, ask questions, and express their ideas clearly.
Through these discussions, they develop critical thinking, reflection, and the courage to engage with difficult questions. At the same time, they learn to build their own set of values, healthy beliefs, and inner compass.
Civilization
Civilization includes history, geography, and economics. It is structured as a four-year cycle, spanning from prehistoric times to the present day. One of the guiding questions in Civilization, for example, is: “Why do some civilizations rise while others fall?” Learners use Mann’s “sources of social power” (military, economic, political, and ideological) to explore the reasons behind major turning points in history and to study heroes who made difficult decisions.
Whenever possible, learners step into the shoes of historical figures, debating different situations and trying to make difficult decisions from their perspective.
Depending on the weekly schedule, learners study Civilization twice a week in 45-minute sessions. Important historical themes from the period being studied often also become part of Quest Projects.
Quests
Quests are learning experiences through which learners put what they study into practice. Over the course of 5–6 weeks, they work together to explore a theme, solve challenges, and create a concrete outcome, actively using the knowledge and skills they have developed in the studio.
Projects may focus on a single subject or be interdisciplinary, combining multiple areas of learning in a relevant and applied way. In this process, learners build connections between ideas, collaborate, think creatively, and turn theory into something useful and meaningful.
At the end of each project, there is an Exhibition — a special evening with parents, where learners present what they have learned, what they have created, and the process they went through. Sometimes, they do more than simply showcase the results; they create an experience for parents, inviting them to engage directly with their work and ideas.
Art
Learners explore different artistic movements and techniques, with plenty of freedom for expression and creativity. They learn to observe, appreciate beauty, and develop their own sense of aesthetics.
Art is woven into all Quest projects, whether they are creating mock-ups, posters, models, or other creative materials.
Physical Education
Once a week, learners take part in a variety of sports activities, which may include training sessions, team games, and activities such as archery, badminton, volleyball, and more. These experiences give them the opportunity to discover their abilities, build perseverance, and enjoy movement in an active and engaging way.
Sport thus becomes an important part of the Hero’s Journey, contributing not only to physical development but also to character formation. In addition, learners enjoy 2–3 outdoor breaks each day, which support balance, energy, and overall well-being.
Apprenticeships
At Acton Academy Timișoara, learning is not limited to the school building. We believe in a “porous walls” environment, where learning experiences continue both inside and outside the studio, in direct connection with the real world.
Starting in middle school, learners take part in job shadowing experiences, during which they spend dozens of hours alongside professionals in different fields. They closely observe what a profession looks like in practice, ask questions, interview experts, and learn directly from real work environments.
In high school, these experiences evolve to a new level, as learners begin taking on part-time jobs through which they gain responsibility, practical experience, and a deeper understanding of the fields that interest them.
Unlike traditional programs, where adults find and organize internship placements, at Acton Academy Timișoara learners manage the entire process themselves. They research opportunities, make connections, organize the experience, carry it through, and then reflect on what they have learned.
A typical
School Day at Acton Academy
Our main goal as a school is to ensure that our students are equipped to know and understand the world
and to live the life they want.
Quest Examples
Game Design Quest
The students design computer games and board games, to be played by the general public at an exhibition.
Anatomy Quest
Students learn how to read medical test results, MRI, CT scans and they practice giving a diagnosis to patients.
Detectives Quest
Through all kinds of challenges, students dig deep into forensic science.
Chemistry Quest
Architecture Quest
The learners develop practical skills such as scaling, creating and understanding floor plans, and designing both the plan and a mock-up of their dream school.
Entrepreneurship Quest
This projects challenges students to put their business ideas in practice, learn about business concepts in a practical way and prove their skills in an annual international event (Acton Children’s Business Fair).
Electricity Quest
Students explore simulated and hands-on electricity challenges to earn the right to build miniature neighborhood with a functioning electrical grid.
Astronomy Quest
Beginning in our own solar system, we’ll learn about the planets, their properties and our relation to the galaxy. As we move forward, we’ll learn about the moon, the sun, stars, comets, meteors, and asteroids. We’ll not only learn about our own galaxy but how our space in time is a part of the vast universe that knows no end.
Gardening Quest
Through hands-on experiences, the learners will further their understanding of landscape architecture, gardening, ecology, native plants and species, climate & weather, the human impact on the environment and how to contribute to the world around us.