The school day begins at 7:40 when the students meet with their advisory teachers. As the National Middle School Association states “the primary goal of an advisory program is to enhance a climate of caring and community between teacher and students and in the school generally.” Our advisory time is used to develop relationships within the group and between each student and their advisory teacher. This is also a time when announcements are read, community and service projects are reviewed, and a discussion takes place focused upon our quote of the day. The daily quotes are part of a program called Project Wisdom which provides thought-provoking quotes to spur conversations revolving around our IB Leaner Profile characteristics.
The students attend six classes a day evenly divided by a 25 minute lunch period. In addition, there is a five minute passing time between each class. The Middle School runs an eight day cycle, in which the days are numbered 1- 8. Classes are fifty-five minutes in duration. Each day after lunch, the fourth period is extended by ten minutes in order to allow for DEAR (Drop Everything And Read). All Middle School students and teachers read every day in order to foster a culture of literacy and a love a reading.
All Middle School students are members of a House. The Middle School has three Houses; the Jaguars, the Cheetahs and the Leopards. There are six advisory groups in each grade level and two belong to each house. The House system was implemented in order to encourage all students to participate in organized sports activities, Accelerated Reader, quiz competitions and other organized activities. The students earn House points for their involvement in activities. The students can purchase House shirts and wear these for special events and for Sports Day. Each month, there is a Spirit Assembly to celebrate the success of each House.
House events occur on a daily basis. There is a set intramural program run at lunch time. Students can earn House points by completing Accelerated Reader quizzes. Student may also earn House points by being “caught” doing something good. Specifically, if a teacher catches a student being particularly Principled, Caring or Risk-Taking (IB Learner Profile characteristic), the student is give a “paw” which they redeem in the Middle School office for House points. The aims of the House system are intrinsically associated with our Middle School practices.
Overarching all of these structures is the Grade Level Team. Each teacher in the Middle School is a member of one of the grade level teams. Each Grade Level team teaches all the students within that grade level and work collaboratively to provide pastoral and academic support. The Grade Level Leader is a member of the Middle School Management Team; therefore, discussions within teams lead directly to the overall administrative decision-making with the Middle School.