Middle School

Size

The Middle School, which includes grades 3 through 5, is a magical place where students grow from concrete thinkers to abstract visionaries. In our highly interactive and stimulating classrooms, students develop into independent problem-solvers.

Each grade level consists of three classes which range from 18 to 19 students, with approximately 150 students in the entire Middle School.

Program

Teachers develop an exciting and rigorous curriculum that uses a mixture of progressive and traditional teaching techniques and encourages both individual as well as group projects. In collaboration with our Technology Department, teachers utilize the latest technology to enhance academics.

Teachers foster a love of learning and challenge students in a variety of developmentally appropriate ways.

In addition to the classroom academics, in third and fourth grades, students take Spanish twice a week. In fifth grade, they enjoy Spanish three periods a week. All students have music and art for two periods a week and attend library once a week. Every Middle School student takes physical education four periods a week.

Integrated into the academic program is a thriving service-learning program. In third grade, to complement the study of Africa, our students write and design picture books for The Memory Project, an international organization that sends books to orphans in Uganda.

Also, after investigating worms in science, our third graders help compost on campus through worm bins they have established. They then share their knowledge with their families and our kindergartners.

In fourth grade, students study non-native plants as a part of the science and social studies program. Then they work to preserve the Open Space on Ring Mountain by removing the invasive plants that grow on Ring Mountain.

Service Learning

Additionally, as part of their Native Californian study, students learn about what agriculture thrives in this area. Students pick olives at a local grove and then produce and bottle olive oil. Then they sell the olive oil; all the proceeds go to a not-for-profit of their choice.

As a continuation of the work started in 4th grade, fifth graders also work to remove the non-native plants from Ring Mountain. In addition, as part of their science curriculum, students study conservation and help our school become more “green.”

Through oral presentations, they educate the school community about ways that we can become more environmentally-friendly.

Teachers

Middle School teachers model for their students what it means to be life-long learners as they actively pursue professional development opportunities.

They work as teams within grade levels to develop curriculum and to plan activities. Our teachers dedicate themselves to finding ways to inspire the whole child and make academics come to life for our students.