Writing &
Research Center

FPO

Welcome to the San Mateo Campus Writing & Research Center

As the name suggests, this Upper School learning hub emphasizes the practices of writing and research, as well as providing thoughtfully curated fiction, nonfiction, and reference collections. We empower students to be strong, discerning researchers in any post-secondary context, and we help every student develop a clear, confident writing voice. More broadly, the WRC nourishes our community’s culture of curiosity. Our friendly, two-story space welcomes students with comfortable places to read, study, or collaborate with their classmates.

Research Skills and Resources

The world of research opens up to our students as they embark on their interdisciplinary studies at the Upper School. Our research librarian works closely with faculty to build our collections of digital and print resources, ensuring our students have both broad and deep access to the information they need. While creating a library for our students and faculty, our staff selects resources focused on the division’s specific curricula and special projects. These options include:

  • Nonfiction and reference materials, including specialized encyclopedias, primary and secondary sources, magazines, and newspapers

  • On- and off-campus access to 20 academic databases, offering thousands of articles from scholarly journals, as well as court cases, historical documents, and more

  • Access to e-books and audiobooks via OverDrive

Our librarian joins classes to coach students in research skills and also works extensively with students in one-on-one meetings during their course projects, guiding them in research strategies, source evaluation, and citation.

Writing & Research Center Team

Jennifer Paull - WRC Director
Jennifer Perry - Middle School and Upper School Writing Teacher and Advisor

Writing Support

Individualized coaching is a signature of the WRC’s writing program. Students can meet one-on-one with a writing specialist at any stage of their writing to review their ideas and drafts for any academic or creative project.

Whether reviewing a research paper, a piece of fiction, or a college application essay, students consider both the work at hand and their overall writing process. With their coaches, students strengthen their writing’s clarity, argument, and structure; refine their tone and voice; and learn new techniques to match their writing needs. Our writing specialists also offer in-classroom student workshops and consultations to faculty.

Peer Tutoring

The WRC hosts the Upper School’s peer-tutoring program, an initiative that exemplifies Nueva’s culture of collaborative learning.

Students apply to train as peer tutors; then selected applicants spend several weeks discussing and practicing their coaching skills before offering one-on-one appointments with their fellow students. The program began with student support in math and writing, and now also offers help in Mandarin and computer science. Students from any Upper School grade can book a session with a peer tutor.

This type of academic support supplements the work a student may do with their teachers and the WRC staff — students may feel more comfortable talking with a fellow student. Peer tutors, meanwhile, pick up new coaching techniques, which often dovetail with their SEL skills, and gain experience with different learning styles. Throughout the academic year, peer tutors have regular check-ins to discuss their practice.

 

Special Programs and Events

We regularly participate in local and national events that promote our culture of reading. Examples of past programs include:

  • Wikipedia Edit-a-thon
  • Poetry readings
  • Creative writing during National Novel Writing Month in connection with NaNoWriMo
  • Banned Books Week in cooperation with the American Library Association
  • Author visits
  • Summer reading 

Nueva News

Top Moments from the Upper School Grade-level Retreats

At the start of every school year, each Upper School class takes part in an overnight camping trip. These trips allow students to bond together and kick the year off, and is a great chance to for them connect or reconnect with their grade and advisory groups. We asked students to reflect on their top moment from the retreat. 

Snapshots: Lower School

The halls were abuzz on this week as Lower School students could be heard singing, playing, reading, and calculating! We invite you to learn more about a variety of class activities below.

Photo Walk Series: A Day in the Lower School

This Wednesday, lower school students could be seen seeking mittens in the woods, creatively imitating animals in the ballroom, measuring their teachers on the lawn, and soldering wires in the I-Lab. We invite you to learn more about a variety of lower school class activities.

Our Photo Walk Series aims to provide the community with a snapshot in time—a celebration of work being done across grade levels, content areas, and divisions.

Stop-motion Animation Project Brings Mali Empire Study to Life

In a project that combines art, movement, and theater, third grade students are telling stories of the Mali Empire through stop-motion animation, a sophisticated art form that challenges students to plan out their thoughts, work collaboratively, and use new-to-them technological tools.

Upper School Art Explores Temporality and Permanence

This spring, Nueva Upper School art classes have been exploring the themes of permanence and temporality, and what this means materially, conceptually and visually. Students worked in 2D and 3D formats to investigate the full range of possibilities related to their unique experience and voice. They came to the conclusion that nothing is permanent, and many sought to challenge the human myth of control and static definition related to the industrialized and colonized world.

Illustrated Graph Project Merges Science and Art to Raise Awareness

A multidisciplinary 5th grade lesson is teaching students to interpret and communicate climate change data through art.

“The Illustrated Graph project encourages student wonder,” Teacher Cristina Veresan said. “It’s a beautiful example of making art in the service of science communication.