Since 2012
98+ Themes
2 Campuses
Pear Tree started with a question: what if school actually worked the way kids learn? That question became a method, then camps, then a school — and more than a decade of proving it works.
How It Started
In 2012, Paul Romani, M.Ed., and Alexis Birner, Ed.D. candidate (four UBC degrees), launched Pear Tree Education with $60,000 in savings and a clear mission: show schools a better way to teach. They built the method first — a theme-based approach where subjects connect through real-world learning instead of worksheets. Then they ran camps and enrichment programs in Kitsilano to prove it worked.
Their first summer? 48 camp registrations. To pay rent, they ran birthday parties and tutoring — neither of which fit their vision. But they kept going. By the following summer, registrations hit 271. Then 358. Then over 1,000 across four locations.
The method was working. But schools weren’t interested in changing. Parents, on the other hand, kept asking the same question: “Why does my child love your camps but hate going to school?” Then: “Have you ever thought about starting a school?”
So that’s what they did. Not on a whim — but because the method deserved more than a week of summer camp, and no one else was going to build what these families were asking for. In September 2016, Pear Tree School opened in Kitsilano with 10 students. Demand grew so fast they’ve expanded three times since — adding double classes at every level, new grade levels, and a second campus.
Most schools start with a building and a schedule. Pear Tree started with a curriculum design problem.
Paul Romani spent years studying education research — analysing over 30 scholarly articles and works by thinkers from Dewey to Sir Ken Robinson. That research shaped the method. But the real proof came from a decade of running it — refining every theme, every system, and every outcome with real students in real classrooms. The method works because it’s been tested, adjusted, and improved every year since 2012.
Every grade level at Pear Tree delivers the BC curriculum — but through connected themes instead of isolated subjects. For our high school program, each theme is rigorously mapped to specific Ministry learning standards. Across all grades, the approach adds real-world context and cross-subject connections that a traditional timetable doesn’t easily accommodate.
Students work through two or three real-world themes at the same time — rotating between them throughout the week. Science, math, writing, social studies, and art all connect through each theme. We’ve developed 74 themes for K–9 and 24 themes for Grades 10–12, with more being added as the school grows.
Alexis’s last name — Birner — means “pear” in German. “Tree” is a metaphor for growth, development, and nurturing. Put them together, and you get a name that’s personal, rooted, and means exactly what it says: a place where minds grow.
Our Journey
Camps and enrichment programs launch in Kitsilano. First summer: 48 registrations.
Paul becomes the chef himself — tired of kids arriving with pizza and hot dogs for lunch. 271 summer camp registrations.
BC Ministry-certified independent school opens in Kitsilano. Barely enough students to qualify.
School reaches capacity in two years. Need to expand facilities. Red Seal chef takes over hot lunch.
Commercial kitchen, expanded classrooms, rebranded from Pear Tree Elementary to Pear Tree School. Entirely self-funded through camps revenue.
9 classrooms, capacity for 144 students.
Second campus for K/1. Camps now run across two Vancouver locations.
Grade 8–9 program launches. Full K–12 planning underway.
Leadership
Co-Founder & Director | M.Ed.
Paul is the architect of The Pear Tree Method™. He designed all 98+ themes across K–12, drawing on decades of experience across education, entrepreneurship, and technology in the UK, Europe, Japan, and Canada. His scholarly research — over 30 journal articles analysed — confirmed a natural alignment with Constructivism (Dewey, Montessori, Piaget, Vygotsky). But the method itself was forged through practice: 14 years of building, testing, and refining with real students. Paul also leads operations, admissions, and long-term school strategy.
Co-Founder & Principal | B.Ed., Four UBC Degrees, Ed.D. Candidate
Alexis brought The Pear Tree Method™ to life inside the classroom. As the elementary educator, she made the method operational at the K–7 level — translating Paul’s curriculum designs into daily teaching practice. She also gave Paul critical insight into how Vancouver’s public and private schools actually work. Alexis holds four UBC degrees and is currently completing her Doctorate of Education. She’s in the school every day — teaching, mentoring teachers, and ensuring the method runs the way it was designed to.
Meet the full team → Every classroom teacher holds a Masters of Education minimum, supported by specialist faculty in PE, Music, French, and more.
We don’t have a long list of values on the wall. We have three things we actually do, every day.
In the real world, nothing exists in a silo. Neither should school. Every theme at Pear Tree integrates multiple subjects because that’s how knowledge actually works.
Classes are capped at 16. Your child isn’t a number. Their teacher knows how they think, what motivates them, and where they need support.
We don’t just tell you your child is learning. You see it — in their projects, their presentations, their growth. Every term, families come in and see the work for themselves.
Pear Tree School is certified by the BC Ministry of Education and Child Care as a Group 3 Independent School (Certificate No. 3996918).
As a Group 3 school, Pear Tree is inspected by the Ministry, but our curriculum is not. That independence is what allows us to deliver learning differently — integrating subjects through themes and adding real-world context that a traditional timetable doesn’t easily accommodate.
All classroom teachers hold BC teaching certification. The Pear Tree Method™ doesn’t replace the curriculum. It delivers it through connected, theme-based learning that gives students more context, more practice, and more proof of what they’ve learned.
We’re also members of the Federation of Independent School Associations (FISA).
School Certificate No. 3996918.
Numbers and photos only tell part of the story.
Walk through the school. Watch a class. Talk to the teachers. See what your child could be part of.
Main Campus (West Broadway)
Suite 215 (and Suite 201)
2678 West Broadway
Vancouver, B.C. V6K 2G3
Yaletown Campus
1035 Cambie St
Vancouver, B.C. V6B 2E2
