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The Four Building Blocks of Education
[3] Excellence In All Things
 Education is a continuous and creative process that brings out the vast potential inherent in each child. It facilitates the evolution of cultures and traditions and provides opportunities to expand upon achievements of earlier generations. By developing the capacity for lucid individual expression of thoughts and feelings, a child increases his or her ability to contribute to collective knowledge and understanding. Appreciation of order and beauty as expressed in the arts and sciences is also a key to academic growth and insight.
GEM considers academic excellence a natural consequence of a student's lifelong commitment to excellence in all things. In daily morning gatherings of the students, all children take the school pledge in which they commit themselves to developing 100% knowledge of all their subjects and to strive for excellence in all things. Beyond mere knowledge, they strive to gain a fuller understanding of their subjects, and beyond the "how" to address the "why" as well.
Because crucial patterns of learning are basically established by age five, the GEM early childhood education system emphasizes structured activities and organized play designed to have a positive effect on the pre-schooler's development. Skills introduced at this age include expression and comprehension of symbols, recognition of relationships, measuring, sorting and classification, problem solving, exploring, creativity, memory development, communication, teamwork, reflection, and self-evaluation.
The focus upon multifaceted, interdisciplinary learning with active classroom participation is carried on through all academic levels. Involvement nurtures enthusiasm, a prerequisite for joy in learning. Recognition of academic excellence and individual encouragement stimulate positive learning patterns and result in individuals who have a self-disciplined approach to their studies. The schools teach "eloquence of speech" as a trait of excellence in education and children receive extra attention to develop clarity of expression and eloquence.
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