What Are Flying Trees?
There's a saying that there are two lasting bequests parents can give their children: roots and wings. Roots to ensure that they always know where they came from, and wings to enable them to fly off and practice what they've been taught when they're ready. (Author unknown but appreciated.)
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Flying Trees Academy offers an innovative academic approach that supports students in their educational, personal, and socioemotional journeys by helping them develop strong roots and wings (i.e., we help them grow into healthy trees with strong roots that can fly with their wings). We support students in learning how to learn, as opposed to sitting them in a desk and expecting everyone to learn at the same pace. We do all of this in ways that are consistent with historical and cutting edge research on child development and educational psychology. We love watching our students learn to soar!
What grade levels and how many students do you serve?
At this time, Flying Trees Academy is a great fit for students in Kindergarten through 8th grade. (Note: Our plan is to continue growing with our oldest students so that we cover the entire K-12 range in the near future. We already have some exciting evidence-based plans in mind for high school!)
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​Flying Trees Academy uses a "microschool" model so that we can devote ample attention to each student. We expect to serve 15-25 students in the 2025-2026 school year, and intend to expand to 50-60 students once we serve the full K-12 grade range. The actual number of students enrolled in the 2025-2026 school year will be posted on this website by October 31, 2025. We will retain our multi-age classroom model even as we grow, since research supports the effectiveness of that approach, but we will have stations in different classrooms to divide students by subject, abilities, age, and/or grade level throughout each day to ensure optimal learning and socialization.
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All applicants go through a screening process intended to determine academic achievement levels and grade placement, and to ensure that the students we accept are well suited for our unique and innovative program. Our current students learn at a fast pace, so we've found that our academy is especially well suited for academically advanced or gifted students. In addition, the students who are best suited for our educational method are those whose parents values and attitudes toward education align with ours. More information about admissions can be found on the "Apply Now" page.
Aren't all schools - and all educational models - based on the science of child development?
Absolutely not! The educational system used in public schools throughout the United States is similar to an industrial model, and most public school curricula are not based in developmental science. Even some of the most progressive educational programs around are often based on old science. For example, Maria Montessori was brilliant and way ahead of her time in developing a child-directed academic approach, but her approach is more than 100 years old and most Montessori schools use her original work rather than keeping pace with advances in developmental science. Flying Trees Academy's unique, innovative, evidence-based, "fusion" approach cannot be found at any other school!
What does Flying Trees Academy offer that local public and private schools don't offer?
At Flying Trees Academy our primary goal is to help children grow to their fullest potential. We firmly believe - based on the science of child development - that when children's personal, social, emotional, and psychological needs are met, their brains are best equipped to learn. Developmental science tells us that children don't really need to be taught at. Think about it... did you need to teach your toddler to ask "Why?" Nope. And older kids, especially academically gifted kids, are just as naturally equipped to want to learn about the world around them. They simply need to be supported in a prepared environment that allows their natural curiosity and talents to flourish. Flying Trees Academy provides an adaptive environment in which each child's human needs are met, where they can learn at their own pace, where they will never be made to feel bad about themselves or their abilities, where their academic progress soars, and where parents are supported as partners in their children's learning process. You can't find this transformational approach in any other school!
What curriculum do you use?
Flying Trees Academy places a very strong emphasis on math and reading achievement, and offers a well-rounded approach to all subjects, but we do not use a single pre-packaged curriculum. We utilize iReady for math and ELA diagnostics and personalized instruction, but beyond that we offer a learning environment that combines direct instruction and constructivist education. In this way, all students receive comparable instruction that ensures their attainment of grade-based learning standards, and students get to play a key role in creating their own learning experience that allows them to excel. We accomplish this by preparing the environment with grade- and developmentally-appropriate learning materials and facilitating students' use of those materials. Students receive ongoing mentorship and scaffolding so they achieve Ohio's Learning Standards (see http://education.ohio.gov/Topics/Learning-in-Ohio/OLS-Graphic-Sections/Learning-Standards for details on the learning standards). Flying Trees Academy's approach is both universal and individualized in a way that emphasizes critical thinking, creativity, problem solving, and passion for learning rather than memorization or rote learning tasks. We ensure that our students are learning to their fullest potential by conducting ongoing formal and informal assessments in the classroom as well as standardized testing and report cards three times per year. Our data show that our students are making significantly greater academic progress as compared to students in traditional schools.
What are your values?
Thanks for asking! Here at Flying Trees Academy, kindness to self and others matters. We respect all people and celebrate the differences that make each of us unique. We teach students about these differences because we want them to understand how to promote social justice by advocating for themselves and others throughout their lifespan. We value diversity, equity, and inclusion of all people. We believe in science. We want children to be curious and practice critical thinking rather than just memorizing facts or accepting someone's answer at face value. We emphasize the importance of self regulation and social competence. We value individual differences and do not compare students to each other based on their test scores or accomplishments. We respect each student as a valuable individual, meet them where they're at, and scaffold them to their highest potential as human beings and learners through personalized mentoring.
What benefits can I expect to see if I send my child to Flying Trees Academy?
Isn't this really what we all want to know? Our flying trees are well adjusted human beings, the best versions of themselves, able to achieve their full potential, good leaders, critical thinkers, learners who know how to learn and enjoy the process, and happy human beings who are well prepared for future academic, career, and personal success.
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In addition to long-term success, there are also many benefits in the short term. Most notably, our students love being at school! Our parents love starting each morning with children who get ready quickly and easily because they can't wait to get to school. In addition, our multi-age classroom provides our younger students with good role models who they aspire to emulate, and gives our older students opportunities to deepen their understanding by supporting the younger students' learning journeys. After just one visit to our classroom, parents make comments such as, "I never thought of this approach to education, but now I wish it was the way that all students are taught."
Do you serve children with special needs?
Although we would love to support children with special needs, we do not have the resources to do so at this time. We hope to add this capacity in the future. In the meantime, there are some really great schools in our community that are already doing this. For example, parents of children with special needs may want to look into the Rich Center for Autism at YSU or the ACLD School & Learning Center in Youngstown.
Are you a religious program?
Flying Trees Academy is a religious neutral program. Although we are not a faith-based program, we respect and celebrate all religions and we have frequent, open discussions with our students about religion, values, and respect for their own and others' beliefs and practices.
Do you accept EdChoice scholarships?
Flying Trees Academy has received approval from the Ohio Department of Education to operate as a private school. 🥳 We are working through paperwork and will soon be included on ODE's list of EdChoice providers, which means that all enrolled students who reside in Ohio will be eligible to receive an EdChoice scholarship at FTA.
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We have some other scholarship opportunities and financial incentives (e.g., sibling discounts, annual tuition payment discounts) available too. Contact us for more information.
I love what you're doing, but I live too far away to enroll my kids. Are you going to open a Flying Trees Academy near me?
Right now we're so busy with scaling up our current location that we don't have the capacity to start new "branches" in other locations. We wish that every K-12 student had the opportunity to be educated using our transformative method, so we're making two options available: (1) Our Founder, Dr. Jaelyn Farris, is available for speaking, training, and/or consulting initiatives that can help existing schools implement The Farris Method. Contact her team at info@TheFarrisMethod.com for more information. (2) We can offer comprehensive support for ambitious school founders who want to open a branch of Flying Trees Academy in their community. For more information, contact us at FlyingTreesAcademy@gmail.com and use "I want to open a branch of Flying Trees Academy" in the subject line. Whether or not one of these opportunities is right for you, we applaud you for your interest in transforming education for the 21st century!