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Technology & Innovation

Maker Program

Our Maker program is designed to deliver moments of impact where students engage in real-world problem solving.

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Computer Science

Our K-8 Computer Science program emphasizes the importance of thinking, both logically and critically.

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Hamlin classrooms weave a variety of technological tools to support the teaching and learning cycle. We approach the use of technology with a pedagogical lens where we act with intention and use a rigorous decision-making process to select the tools that we incorporate into our program. We believe that technology cultivates curiosity, independent exploration, analysis, and unique creativity, while rooting the educational experience and shaping the lives of today’s digital citizens.

 

Innovation with technology is core to the Hamlin program. We offer K-8 programming while supporting a growing robotics program, ensuring that our students are not only savvy consumers of technology, but more importantly, are creators. As a community, we are moving beyond simply using substitution technology (i.e., digital textbooks) and are working towards redefining teaching and learning with the aid of technology (i.e., student-driven learning).

 

 

Apple Distinguished School

 

Throughout Grades K-8, the iPad is used to reinforce the basic, formative skills already taught through direct instruction. The girls work individually, with partners, and in small groups to explore educational apps. They regularly create multimedia content using apps such as Photos, iMovie, GarageBand, Pages, Keynote, and iBooks Author in order to communicate what they have learned. Students also enjoy publishing their work. The iPad not only increases engagement in the classroom, but also generates a learning environment that is expanded, individualized, and inherently collaborative. During regularly scheduled iPad classes, Lower School and Middle School students explore the meaning of the Hamlin Creed through a digital lens.

 

In 2017, Hamlin was selected as an Apple Distinguished School. You can download our Multitouch Book (iBook) to learn more about our program.

 

 

Apple Distinguished Schools are centers of leadership and educational excellence ​that demonstrate Apple’s vision for learning with technology — and we believe they are some of the most innovative schools in the world.​
Apple Distinguished School leaders, faculty, and the extended community have a clear vision for how their technology-rich environments support learning goals. School leaders have established elements for continuous innovation that include culture, team, capacity, community, finance, and measurement. Supporting their school’s vision is an ongoing process that requires thoughtful planning, practice, and improvement along the way. They use iPad and Mac products to inspire student creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking. And they cultivate environments in which students are excited and curious about learning.

 

 

Digital Citizenship

 

At Hamlin, we are committed to helping students become courageous, compassionate, respectful, honest, and responsible digital citizens. Our digital citizenship curriculum is grounded in real-life relevance and developmentally appropriate guidance, supporting students as they learn to navigate today’s connected world with confidence and care.

 

To support this work, we integrate The Social Institute (TSI) into our K–8 program. As a national leader in equipping students, families, and educators with modern life skills, TSI enhances learning, well-being, and students’ long-term success. Their program features peer-to-peer learning, integrated professional development for teachers, family resources, and valuable student voice insights — creating a unified and intentional approach across the entire school community.

 

Through interactive, student-led lessons, Hamlin students engage with topics such as:

  • Online boundaries and personal privacy
  • Digital well-being and screen-life balance
  • Respectful communication and empathy online
  • Media literacy and critical thinking

 

We also incorporate content from Common Sense Media, a trusted organization in digital literacy. Their research-backed resources help students build healthy media habits, understand digital footprints, and make thoughtful, ethical choices online.

 

Together, The Social Institute and Common Sense Media support our mission to nurture students who use technology with integrity, thoughtfulness, and a sense of responsibility — both online and in life.

 

Tech Advisory Council

 

The goal of the Technology Advisory Council is to provide the Head of School, the Director of Program Innovation, and the Director of Technology with a panel of industry experts to advise and support the school’s technology programs. This group will leverage its experience and expertise to help the school understand current trends in technology; advise school administrators on efficient and cost-effective methods to maintain our technology infrastructure; enlist the help of corporate partners, entrepreneurs, and industry leaders to enhance the educational technology programs; and work enthusiastically to advocate for gender equity in the STEM fields. Cultivating relationships with Bay Area and Silicon Valley technology professionals as well as leading strategic conversations on the future of technology at Hamlin will be essential tasks for the Technology Advisory Council.

 

 

STEM the Gender Gap

 

Although Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) careers are one of the fastest growing and highest paid fields, a significant “STEM gender gap” persists worldwide: only 28% of STEM jobs are filled by women, with only 5% filled by women of color. At Hamlin we are passionate about closing the gender gap, and in 2014 we established an annual STEM The Gender Gap Day. Like so many things in the 2020-21 school year, we re-envisioned STEM the Gender Gap Day as a virtual event in combination with Women’s History month; we were excited to welcome an amazing lineup of speakers via Zoom.This year, we will have a blend of in-person and virtual experiences in March. We believe that introducing our girls to STEM companies/organizations and the women who work there early opens their minds to broader career paths to consider, thereby starting to close the gender gap in STEM fields. This event would not happen without an incredible partnership with the Tech Advisory Council. We are deeply grateful for the flexibility of teachers, administrators, students, and the entire community.

 

Read more on our STEM the Gender Gap page.

 

Tech Team

 

Lastly, Hamlin has a passionate and responsive technology team that serves our student, faculty, staff, and parent community.

Meet Our Technology Team

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Rachel Davis

Educational Technologist

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Lawrence Fung

Information Technology Manager

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Nicholas Lam

Tech and Theater Support Specialist

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Jim Lengel

Director of Technology

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Caroline Windell

K-8 Computer Science & Robotics Instructor

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Dear Hamlin Community,

 

As we open the doors to a brand new school year, I’m filled with both gratitude and excitement.

As the proud mother of Olivia (Class of 2027) and Juliette (Class of 2028), I’m honored to be entering my second year as Chair of Hamlin’s Board of Trustees and my seventh year of board service.

As I reflect on the year behind us and look ahead, I’m drawn to a tribute I recently shared with our board, honoring a remarkable cohort of departing trustees—leaders whose courage, wisdom, and deep commitment to Hamlin helped guide us through one of the most defining chapters in our school’s history.

These trustees—my peers, colleagues, and friends—joined the board in 2019. By the end of their first year, they were navigating the early onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and faced a pivotal decision: whether to move forward with our bold and transformative campus construction project amid profound global uncertainty.

With discernment and unwavering belief in Hamlin’s mission, they chose to proceed. It was a courageous, values-driven decision that continues to shape how I think about leadership and stewardship today. Their legacy reminds us that even in times of uncertainty, we must lead with both courage and care, always guided by the long view.

That spirit continues to inform our board’s work. As trustees, our charge is to lead with both imagination and accountability, always with our mission and CREED at the center. This year, our work focuses on ensuring Hamlin’s financial strength, with continued attention to our compensation strategy and long-term sustainability. We’ll also continue partnering with the school’s leadership team on key areas that shape daily life—from community well-being to the evolving role of technology in education.

At the same time, we’re beginning to shape the next chapter of Hamlin’s story by asking bold, forward-looking questions: How can we bring our strategic plan more fully to life so that it becomes a lasting bedrock for what’s ahead? How do we continue to care for and support every member of our community, ensuring that what we build is as vibrant and enduring as the legacy we inherit?

Last year, inspired by our “Tree Song” haiku, we grounded our work in intention and strengthened our canopy with conviction and vision. We swung together, supported by a foundation of care, trust, and shared commitment. This year, my hope is to deepen the roots of connection and nurture a future our girls so urgently need.

To all the parents, caregivers, faculty, staff, and alumni who make our work possible: thank you. Your partnership, engagement, and belief in Hamlin sustain and inspire us. On behalf of the Board of Trustees, we’re grateful for your trust and proud to walk this path with you.

We are only as strong as the community we build. And at Hamlin, that strength runs deep. It lives in our generosity of spirit, our shared sense of purpose, and our collective love for this school. Together, we’re shaping a future worthy of our girls.

Hamlin, and the mission that guides us, is as vital and relevant as ever. To our current and future extraordinary thinkers, courageous leaders, and individuals of integrity: let’s meet this moment with the grace, compassion, grit, and responsibility it demands.

We’ve seen what it looks like to lead with integrity and heart. Let’s take full advantage of the soil that has been cultivated, grow the roots that ground us and stretch the branches of what’s possible. In doing so, we will build a Hamlin that reflects the very best of who we are and who we hope to become.

Wishing you all a wonderful school year ahead.

 

With Gratitude,

Kelsey Lamond
Chair, Board of Trustees

 

 

 

As a culminating class project, Grade 8 students collaborate creatively on a scripted or devised performing arts production to perform for the Hamlin community in June before their graduation. This musical production offers students an opportunity to develop and share their skills in music, dance, acting, and visual design (with set, props, costumes, and lighting) while bonding together as a class. Students work on their performing arts project over the course of the spring semester. These annual Grade 8 musical productions are based on meaningful content aligned with Hamlin’s mission and Creed and have been a favorite school tradition, and are now even better on the stage in our new performing arts center!

 

Rise to the Challenge (RTC) is our Grade 7 capstone project that encourages students to think deeply about and explore solutions to the challenges of their time. As part of this project, they take service learning field trips throughout the year to volunteer and learn more about the issues facing our local community and our world, and work in small teams to identify, research, and propose solutions to a specific challenge that they are passionate about.

 

Grade 6 ends the school year with an interdisciplinary project focused on presentation skills, team building, and self-reflection, where students create a range of pieces to share their learnings and educate the community on social issues through research, presentations, and art. The project, typically called the Symposium, shifts its format and focus from year to year, but it will remain a multi-disciplinary research and performance project that builds on and extends the skills learned throughout the year, concluding with various performances on historical and current topics to deepen students’ understanding of the challenges in the world and encourage them to be agents of change, as they take action to improve their community.

 

Our reimagined 5th grade capstone program directly addresses the critical need for financial literacy and entrepreneurial education among young women. By integrating these topics into the core curriculum, we empower students with essential knowledge in financial planning, investing, and business leadership—areas where many women express a desire for deeper understanding. Drawing inspiration and expertise from our dynamic Hamlin alumni and parent community, the capstone cultivates financial confidence and entrepreneurial thinking, laying the groundwork for future independence, expanded opportunity, and a stronger voice in the economic sphere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Jan Micha Influential Women in History Program is a way for Grade 4 students to learn about women who have made significant, positive, and often overlooked contributions that have changed the course of American herstory. Research, public speaking skills, and learning about different experiences through influential women’s stories are core principles of this project. Originally called the Famous American Women Program, it was renamed in 2015 to honor one of the program’s founders and beloved member of Hamlin’s faculty for over 30 years, Jan Micha.

In Social Studies, Grade 3 students spend the year focused on California: its people, its geography, and the events that have shaped it. Students study the state’s geography by looking at different regions and resources, as well as the often untold stories of California’s Indigenous People both past and present. They end the year by analyzing the movement of people throughout California and reading books about immigration.

 

Grade 2 students see a mini golf course through from ideation to completion. As part of this project, students work in teams to design a golf hole - they name it, make it challenging using angles, ramps, and obstacles, and even pick its par before creating a presentation for classmates using photos and videos about their design. They also visit local mini golf courses to practice their putting and learn more about the craft. Finally, students bring their visions to life and then invite parents and other grades to come try out their mini golf course! Through this project, students are able to get active while developing skills in math, robotics, creating and delivering presentations, and teamwork!

 

Grade 1 spends the year studying community and neighborhoods. Students ask themselves essential questions such as: What is my role as a community member? How can I help my community or neighborhood? What are my responsibilities as an individual and group member? What does safety within a community look, feel, and sound like? The study culminates with a hands-on project in which students build a model of the surrounding neighborhood, interview community members that contribute to the greater whole (i.e. librarians, mail person), and integrate the interviews directly onto the model using QR codes. Through this project, students learn about the physical aspects of neighborhoods, cardinal directions, community jobs, and developing interview skills.

 

Every spring, our Kindergarten classes begin their Emergent Units. The themes of these units are completely student driven, different between the classes, and vary every year. Themes are based on class discussions around interests and curiosities. Once the theme is determined, homeroom teachers get to work connecting with outside specialists and our in-house specialist teachers to integrate local and diverse activities and guest leaders to heighten the learning experience. The culminating project is then shared with the larger community through performances, public speaking, and interactive, hands on opportunities.

 

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