WNS is committed to creating a deeply caring community of lifelong learners that nurtures students from diverse backgrounds to reach their full potential, develop cultural competency, and inspire the world with their curiosity, innovation, compassion, and stewardship.
The school’s program is built on four pillars:
- Academic Excellence
- Character
- Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice
- and Community
Faculty members model what they teach: respect and responsibility, love of teaching and joy of learning, sense of humor, open communication, and teamwork. Students are encouraged to be creative, independent, and self-disciplined. Westside Neighborhood School believes in the importance of fostering resilience in its students and value perseverance, effort, and learning from its mistakes. WNS students understand the importance of community while respecting individual differences. The goal is to instill in its students a love of learning, cultural sensitivity, and a deep understanding of the world both in and outside the classroom.
WNS embraces a positive, child-centered approach to education that strives to fully develop the potential of each student intellectually, socially, emotionally, and physically. Its high academic and ethical standards encourage students to take responsibility for their learning and their behavior. Propelled by curiosity, WNS students are learners, doers, and makers. Students are provided with a platform to become entrepreneurs by nurturing their intrinsic ability to innovate. The program is designed to engage students in a project-based, active-learning curriculum that challenges all students to grow. The environment is steeped in a growth mindset where each child is able to experience success, embrace mistakes as a part of the journey, is confident in taking intellectual risks, and where individuals feel valued in their differences and value the differences in others.
Westside Neighborhood School
5401 Beethoven Street Los Angeles , CA 90066
United States
The Westside Neighborhood School community is truly something special! The faculty and staff are attentive, purposeful and highly trained and educated to lead children in becoming independent thinkers, problem solvers and compassionate citizens. They truly embrace diversity, as evidenced by all the differences you see amongst the student, faculty and staff as well as the cultural celebrations and workshops that are put on. Not only does WNS educate the students but provide educational forums, trainings, various support/affinity groups for caregivers as well. My favorite tool as a parent that I have adopted from being at WNS is the "Growth Mindset" it has changed my perspective on parenting and how to raise confident children. Enrolling my two preschoolers in WNS has been nothing short of life changing, I highly recommend considering WNS for your child's pk-8th journey, I wouldn't want to be a part of any other community for the next decade of our lives.
WNS is the world as it should be. It is a place where everyone is seen and valued. The diversity is unmatched. Children and grown ups are respected alike. Their approach creates free thinkers, courageous leaders, and kind humans. The students value is based on showing up as their authentic self, and not simply on what they can produce. There is a strong academic rigor that integrates learning themes in both in and out of class learning. One of the best parts of WNS is its strong commitment to community. This school takes the village approach and it makes parenting just a little easier knowing you can count on the people around you to support you and your children. I have had the privilege of being a parent there for the last 5 years. My children have thrived but there is also this common thread of kindness that you see amongst all WNS children that is so beautiful to see. If you are searching for a school that values the whole child….. you have found it….. Welcome to WNS!!!
Finding a great school in a big city can be difficult and overwhelming. I must have applied to a dozen elementary schools of all different types – public, charter, magnet, dual language, SAS. Private had not even been on my radar, since I went to public school and had always assumed that my children would as well. I had heard about WNS from a few families in my neighborhood, and once I saw it and started learning more about it, it really stood out to me as a place that would be worth sending my daughter to.
We’re now in our second year – my daughter is in 1st grade and my son just joined the preschool – and I am completely WOWed by the school, the staff, the program, the community, etc. I love the diversity of the school (both the student body and the staff), the low student-to-teacher ratios, the work around growth mindset, and the focus on social-emotional learning and character development. I’m frequently amazed by the kinds of phrases my kids come home with and the skills they are developing at such a young age – they even work on “conflict resolution” in preschool! I also can’t say enough good things about the after-school program – not only is a spot always guaranteed for your child, but the enrichment classes offered right at the school are unbelievably convenient for busy parents. My kids have gotten to experience yoga, tennis, soccer, ceramics, science, music, performing arts, cooking, and more.
Beyond the school, the efforts to build a strong community right from the start – both within a class and across grades – makes you feel like you are part of a family. It was a really big decision to send my kids to WNS, but I feel so good every day knowing that they’re there in such a warm, nurturing, and safe environment.
I am a parent of two kids who are currently attending WNS, and we absolutely love the school. The school's focus on teaching our children to be socially and emotionally good people is something we really appreciate. The teachers are amazing, they meet my children's needs, and they are always available to answer any questions or concerns we might have. We also appreciate the diversity and strong sense of community that the school fosters. The support and resources that are given to the parents are amazing as well. Not to mention, my children come home from school happy and can't wait to go back to school after a long weekend. We are truly grateful for this wonderful school.
We have been at WNS since 2019. We arrived from Asia and were welcomed into the community with open arms. Our girls have had to move schools a few times and the move to WNS was the smoothest transition of all. WNS’s focus on social-emotional learning has created a student body that is kind, compassionate and supportive of each other and both our girls have had a wonderful and enriching few years at the school. We also love the DK-8 model where the graduating students get more responsibility around the school and have an opportunity to be leaders before moving on to high school. We can’t speak highly enough of the school and are thankful for the strong academic and social- emotional foundation it has provided our girls.
We couldn't be happier at WNS. This is our 6th year with kids in 2nd and 4th grade. Our kids love school and they have a deep love of learning. Specialist classes are really great, the kids get 2 specialist classes a day which include art, spanish, design/code/make, PE and music. Reading and math are taught in small groups according to the student's individual level. Social emotional learning is an important part of WNS, and the adademics get more rigorous as grade levels progress. In 4th grade, they have homework each night and the expectation to keep track of their workload in a daily planner with parent signoff each night. The teachers are wonderful, they really know our kids as individuals. We plan to stay through 8th grade, it's a great place to be!