Your Student's Year | Live2Create Leadership Academy

Enrolled Family Guide · 2026–2027

Your Student'sYear.

Everything you need to understand what your student is learning, why they're learning it, and what to expect at every stage of the studio year.

School Year

Aug 2026 – May 2027

Grades

6th, 7th & 8th

Cohort Size

12–15 Students

Location

Metro Atlanta, GA

Live2Create Leadership Academy

01 — A Note to Our Families

Welcome

You Made a Real Decision.

You didn't enroll your student in a school that looked the same as the last one. This guide is our commitment to keep you informed — clearly, honestly, and without jargon — about what your student is doing every day and why.

This is not a traditional school. You already knew that. But now that your student is here, you deserve a clear picture of what "not traditional" actually means in practice — what they're learning, how they're being assessed, what a typical week looks like, and what they'll have built by May.

This guide walks through all of it. Read it once now. Keep it nearby. Pull it out when your student comes home talking about a project you've never heard of, or when someone asks why there are no report cards.

The short answer to almost every question families ask: your student is getting a rigorous academic education and a formation experience that most schools don't offer at all. Both are happening simultaneously. Neither is being sacrificed for the other.

Middle school is one of the most important seasons in a young person's life — and one of the most underserved by traditional school models. We built Live2Create for exactly this age. These years matter, and we are not wasting them.

We are honored to be in this with you.

— Amy P. McIntosh, Founder & Head of School
Live2Create Leadership Academy

What This Guide Covers

The year at a glance · What your student learns in each subject · The six units and their projects · Leadership Tracks · How faith is woven in · How your student is assessed · What you'll see and when · Questions families ask most

Live2Create Leadership Academy

02 — The Year at a Glance

Studio Year Structure

Six Units. One Arc.

The year is organized into six thematic units — each with a driving question, a major project, and a clear connection to who your student is becoming. Every unit builds on the last. All students work from the same driving questions; coaches differentiate depth based on where each student is.

Launch

Identity & Culture Build

Aug 17–28

Who are you before anyone tells you who to be?

The first two weeks aren't about academics — they're about culture. Students build community norms together, complete a strengths inventory, and begin their Personalized Learning Plan. No syllabi. No tests. Just honest self-observation and the beginning of trust in each other and their coaches.

PLP LaunchedStrength InventoryTrack Exploration

Unit 1

Who Am I, and What Do I Build?

Aug 31 – Oct 9

"Who am I, what was I made to create, and how does my story become something the world needs?"

Students produce their Origin Story Project — a multi-modal self-portrait of identity, gifts, and vision. Younger middle schoolers create an illustrated Story Map with a personal narrative and short cohort presentation. Older middle schoolers build a fuller Origin Story portfolio with a leadership track proposal and extended presentation with Q&A.

Project: Origin StoryPersonal NarrativeShowcase: Oct 9

Unit 2

How Does the World Work — and Where Do I Fit?

Oct 12 – Nov 20

"What systems shape the world I live in — and what is my role in changing or building within them?"

Students identify a real community problem, research it, interview someone affected by it, and present their findings as a visual map and written report. Older students connect their problem directly to their leadership track and push into analysis of root causes and systems. Closes with a public Showcase Night — families are invited.

Project: Community Problem MapResearch WritingShowcase Night: Mid-Nov

Unit 3

What Breaks, and How Do You Fix It?

Nov 23 – Dec 18

"When something doesn't work — what does it take to diagnose the problem and build something better?"

Students apply design thinking to the problem they mapped in Unit 2, moving from observation to solution. Every student builds a prototype — a product, campaign, program, or tool. Older students present their prototype to at least one adult outside the school and revise based on real feedback. Closes with the Winter Studio Exhibition.

Project: Design PrototypeArgument WritingWinter Exhibition: Dec 17

Unit 4

Who Came Before Me, and What Can I Learn?

Jan 5 – Feb 12

"Whose shoulders am I standing on — and what did it cost them to build what I now walk into?"

Students research a historical figure connected to their leadership track and conduct a real mentorship conversation with a working adult in their field. Younger students write a biography and a reflection letter. Older students write a comparative analysis and a formal mentorship report. One of the most personally meaningful units of the year.

Project: Legacy + MentorshipBiographyMid-Year Retreat: Feb

Unit 5

What Can I Create That Matters?

Feb 23 – Apr 2

"Now that I know who I am and what the world needs — what will I actually make?"

The Signature Project. Students create something real inside their leadership track — a business pitch, an original art portfolio, a completed technical project, or a community campaign. The most student-directed work of the year. Older students must gather real feedback from outside the studio and revise before submission.

Project: Signature ProjectTrack-SpecificStudent-Led Conf: Mar 1–5

Unit 6

Who Am I Becoming — and What's Next?

Apr 6 – May 14

"Looking at everything I've built this year — who am I becoming, and what am I ready for?"

Students curate their full year's portfolio, write a capstone reflection, and present publicly at the Spring Capstone Showcase — the most important day of the studio year. Every student presents to an audience of coaches, families, and community partners. Every student speaks for themselves about what they built and who they're becoming.

Project: Capstone PortfolioFull PresentationCapstone Showcase: May 14

Special Weeks

Oct 5–9

Fall Leadership Intensive

3-day leadership lab + 1 community service day. Cross-cohort team challenges, guest mentors, and an evening reflection session open to families.

Mar 1–5

Spring Reset Week

Student-Led Conferences replace a traditional parent-teacher meeting. Your student runs the meeting — they present their own PLP progress to you. Coaches facilitate. Plan to attend.

Live2Create Leadership Academy

03 — Academic Subjects

Core Academics

Four Subjects. One Integrated Year.

Your student covers Math, ELA, Science, and Social Studies every week — aligned to Georgia standards, taught at their actual level, and connected to real-world context wherever possible. Here is what each subject looks like across the year.

✍🏽

English Language Arts

ELA is the spine of the curriculum. Every unit produces a major piece of writing and the mode changes each unit to build a full range of skills. Your student will write personal narratives, research reports, argumentative briefs, biographical analyses, professional documents, and a capstone reflection essay. Writing is never just an exercise — it's always toward a real audience and a real purpose. Reading is tied to what students are building, not to a disconnected text list.

Year Arc → Narrative · Research · Argument · Biography · Professional · Reflective

Reading is also tracked with a placement system — students are assessed in Week 1 and read texts matched to their actual level, with progress checked quarterly.

Tools: The Writing Revolution · CommonLit · NoRedInk · Really Great Reading

📐

Mathematics

Math runs on a mastery pathway — your student is placed at their actual skill level after a diagnostic in Week 1, not at their grade label. They advance when they demonstrate real understanding. There are no letter grades in math — only mastery checks (short skill assessments) that confirm genuine learning. All three pathways are supported in the same room simultaneously. Every student's progress is documented in their PLP and updated quarterly. No student is moving through content they haven't actually mastered.

Three Pathways → Pre-Algebra · Algebra I · Geometry/Advanced

Tools: Illustrative Mathematics · Khan Academy · Desmos

🔬

Science

Science builds from observation and inquiry outward. Early units focus on environmental systems, life science, and scientific thinking. Later units introduce engineering design, research methodology, and the history of who built the scientific knowledge we use today — and who has been left out of that story. Year-end, every student designs and runs a small investigation on a question they chose themselves. Science connects naturally to track work — especially for students in Trades and Social Impact.

Year Arc → Observation · Systems · Design · Discovery History · Student Investigation

Tools: OpenSciEd · PhET Simulations · CK-12

🌍

Social Studies

Social Studies asks one question all year: how does history explain the world your student is standing in? The year moves from early African civilizations through world geography, civics, economics, American history, and contemporary change-makers. The African diaspora is a central lens throughout — not a February add-on. Every unit connects to the driving question students are working on. Middle schoolers are developmentally ready to take history personally. We let them.

Year Arc → African Civilizations · Civics · Change-Makers · Modern Era · Civic Identity

Tools: Facing History · NMAAHC North Star · iCivics · Zinn Ed Project · 1619 Project Edu Network

What "Mastery-Based" Means for Your Family

No report card grades. Your student's academic progress is documented through mastery checks, portfolio artifacts, and the Learner Narrative — a written coach assessment delivered four times per year. Specific, honest, written to you as partners. Never a letter that summarizes a human being into a grade.

Placed at their real level. If your student enters with gaps from previous years, we address those directly — starting where they actually are and building forward. This is not a criticism of their previous school. It's the most respectful thing we can do.

Advancement when ready. A student who masters a concept ahead of schedule moves forward. One who needs more time gets it. Pacing is determined by understanding, not the calendar. Both directions are treated as normal.

Georgia-aligned. All academic work is aligned to Georgia state standards for private schools. A student leaving Live2Create can re-enter a traditional school with documentation of their mastery levels and a portfolio of real work produced across the year.

Live2Create Leadership Academy

04 — Leadership Tracks & Faith Formation

Leadership Tracks

The Lens Everything Else Runs Through.

Every student selects a Leadership Track — the pathway that shapes how they apply their learning, what real-world experiences they pursue, and what they build in their Signature Project. Tracks are explored during the first two weeks and committed to by Week 3. They can evolve year to year as students grow.

💡

Entrepreneurship

Students learn to see a problem, imagine a solution, and build something real. They study how businesses work, interview customers and founders, learn basic financial literacy, and spend the second half of the year developing and pitching an original business concept. Age-appropriate for middle school — focused on ideas, not capital.

Observe businessesResearch marketsBuild a pitchPresent to real adults

🎨

Creative Arts

Students develop a real creative voice in a primary medium — visual art, design, photography, filmmaking, music, spoken word, or illustration. They study working artists, receive structured critique, and build a portfolio of original work across the year. The standard is not talent — it's intentional making and the discipline to finish.

Explore mediumsDevelop voiceBuild portfolioArtist statement

🔧

Trades & Technical Mastery

Students select a discipline — construction, culinary arts, coding, audio/video production, or another technical field — and develop genuine entry-level competence in it. They work with real tools, follow real safety protocols, and complete a finished applied project. Middle school is the right time to discover a trade before being tracked away from one.

Safety + toolsFundamentalsApplied projectSkill documentation

✊🏾

Social Impact

For students who can't stop noticing what's wrong — and refuse to stop there. This track develops community organizing, campaign design, advocacy, and service leadership skills. Students learn how change actually happens and launch a real initiative or campaign. Middle schoolers have more power to change their world than anyone tells them. This track shows them how.

See clearlyUnderstand systemsDesign + launchAssess impact

Faith & Character Formation

Not a Class. A Culture.

Faith at Live2Create is not a separate period. It is the spiritual layer of everything that happens — woven into how the day starts, how difficulty is processed, and what questions the community takes seriously together.

Morning Grounding (Daily, 8:00–8:30). Every day begins with a 30-minute grounding session — scripture or reflection, a real question, silent journal time, and an intention for the day. Middle schoolers are not asked to perform faith. They are invited to engage honestly with the question in front of them.

Leadership Circle (Thursday afternoons). The weekly space where faith intersects directly with what students are experiencing — in their projects, their relationships, and their questions about who they're becoming. These conversations are some of the most important of the week.

The year's spiritual arc. Fall: Who did God make me to be? Winter: Where is God when things break? Spring: What does it mean to live on purpose? Each season connects directly to the unit work happening at the same time — faith is not adjacent to the curriculum, it runs through it.

The Grounding Journal. Every student keeps a personal journal all year. It is never read without permission. Twice per year, students select entries to include in their portfolio with a reflection on what they were thinking then and what they see now. It becomes one of the most valued artifacts of the year.

Live2Create Leadership Academy

05 — How We Assess Growth

Assessment

No Report Cards. Real Evidence.

Your student is assessed continuously — through the work they produce, the mastery they demonstrate, and what their coach observes every day. Four times a year, that assessment is formalized and delivered to you.

Replaces the Report Card

Learner Narrative

A 400–700 word written assessment authored by your student's coach — delivered four times per year. It covers academic progress by subject, project quality, leadership track development, and a specific observation about who your student is becoming. It is never generic. Specific to your student. Honest about both strengths and gaps. Written to you as partners, not as evaluators.

Replaces the Grade Book

Personalized Learning Plan

The PLP is the living document that tracks your student's academic mastery levels, project goals, track progress, and personal formation intentions. Co-created with your student at the start of the year and updated every quarter. Your student owns it — learning to track and take responsibility for their own progress is one of the most important skills middle school can develop.

Replaces Tests

Portfolio of Work

A growing collection of real artifacts — drafts and final versions, research notes, project documentation, journal entries, and finished work. By May, your student has six major project artifacts plus academic work across all four subjects. The portfolio is displayed at the Winter Exhibition and presented at the Capstone Showcase. It is the most honest record of a student's year that exists.

Replaces Parent-Teacher Conference

PLP Family Review

Four times per year you sit down with your student and their coach to review the PLP together. Your student leads the conversation — they explain where they are, what they've done, and what they're working toward. Coaches add context and honest assessment. These meetings are designed to leave your family with clarity and direction, not anxiety or surprises.

Your Assessment Calendar — Put These on Your Calendar Now

October

Q1 Learner Narrative + PLP Review

Mid-Nov

Project Showcase Night

Dec 15–17

Q2 Narrative + PLP Review

Dec 17

Winter Studio Exhibition

Mar 1–5

Student-Led Conference

May 14

Spring Capstone Showcase

By May 27

Year-End Narrative Delivered

The Capstone Showcase — What to Expect on May 14

May 14 is the most important day of the year. Your student will stand in front of an audience — coaches, families, community partners, and mentors — and present their full body of work. Not a summary of it. The actual work, with their voice explaining what it means and what it cost them.

Younger middle schoolers present for 8–10 minutes with a brief Q&A. Older middle schoolers present for 12–15 minutes with a more extended Q&A. Every student is prepared. No one is thrown onto a stage cold — Unit 6 is entirely dedicated to readying them for this moment.

What your student will demonstrate. Who they were in August. Three specific things they built and what those things reveal about them. One honest challenge and what it required. Where they're headed in Year 2. This is not a performance — it's a middle schooler standing behind what they've made.

Within five days of the Showcase, every student receives a personal written letter from their coach — specific to them, not a template — about what stood out in their presentation and what the coach sees in them going forward. Students keep this letter.

Live2Create Leadership Academy

06 — Questions Families Ask

Real Questions

We'd Rather Answer These Here.

These are the questions families ask most once their student has been enrolled for a few weeks. We're not waiting for you to wonder.

My student says they're not doing "real school." Should I be worried?

This is one of the most common things we hear in October. What your student means is: it doesn't feel like school used to feel. That's accurate — and intentional. They are covering Math, ELA, Science, and Social Studies every week, aligned to Georgia standards. They're also building real projects and being asked real questions about who they are. That's not less rigorous. It's more demanding in ways that take time to get used to — especially for middle schoolers who've been trained to comply rather than create.

What if my student falls behind in math?

We catch it immediately. The Week 1 math placement inventory exists precisely to prevent students from sitting in content they're not ready for. If your student has gaps from previous years, we address them from their actual level. You'll see exactly where they are in their PLP, updated quarterly. A student working at the right level makes more real progress than one sitting through content that's too advanced or too easy — even if the right level is temporarily below their grade label.

My student isn't talking much about what they're doing. How do I know what's happening?

That's a middle school problem as much as a school problem. The Learner Narrative gives you a specific, coach-authored picture four times a year. Your quarterly PLP review is a 30–45 minute conversation with your student and their coach — you'll hear more there than in weeks of "how was school?" The Student-Led Conference in March is especially powerful: your student runs that meeting themselves. Between those touchpoints, your coach is reachable via Newton within 48 hours.

What does my student do during field experience days?

Field experiences are off-site visits aligned to their leadership track — visiting a business, shadowing a professional, attending a community event, or working with a partner organization. Students go with a prepared purpose and come back with something documented. These aren't tours. Live2Create provides all transportation. You never need to coordinate field day logistics. Community partners are vetted before students visit.

How do I support my student at home without recreating traditional school?

Ask about the project, not the homework. "What are you building right now? What's the hardest part? What did your coach say about it?" These questions open more than "did you finish your work?" Middle schoolers respond to being taken seriously. Knowing your student's current PLP goals — which you'll have after every quarterly review — lets you reinforce them naturally at home.

My student chose a Leadership Track. Can they change it?

At the end of each year, every student evaluates their track: does this still fit? Mid-year changes are rare and handled case-by-case with the coach. A middle schooler who discovers in Unit 3 that they love problem-solving and wants to shift from Creative Arts to Social Impact is doing exactly what this model is designed for. That's growth, not indecision. Track identity is expected to evolve across the middle school years.

My student mentions a "Grounding Journal." What is that?

Every day begins with a 30-minute Morning Grounding session — scripture or reflection, a journal prompt, and quiet writing time. The journal is personal and never read without permission. Twice per year students select entries to include in their portfolio with a short reflection. Middle schoolers rarely get uninterrupted space to think and write about what actually matters to them. The Grounding Journal is that space every day.

What does my student walk away with at year's end?

A curated portfolio of six major projects. A mastery transcript documenting academic skill levels across all four subjects. A year-end Learner Narrative. Leadership track development with documented field experiences. A Capstone presentation they gave in front of a real audience. And a personal letter from their coach. That is a complete picture of a year of real learning — and most middle schools cannot offer anything like it.

Your coach is your primary contact.

Questions about your student's progress, projects, or wellbeing go directly to their coach via Newton. Response within 48 hours is the standard. If something is urgent, reach out the same day. We are a small school by design — you are never a ticket in a queue.

We're Glad
You're Here.

Your student didn't just enroll in a school. They entered a community that believes middle school is one of the most important seasons of a young person's life — and that it deserves more than worksheets and compliance. We're here to prove it.

Website

live2create.org

Primary Contact

Newton App

Capstone Showcase

May 14, 2027