December 3, 2021
Dear Middle School Families,
Your children have settled in well since their return from Thanksgiving break. Each year – at this time, as we approach the close of the calendar year and the corresponding school events – a different and palpable energy arises in our Middle School. Both faculty and students shift focus to the longer upcoming winter break and, more importantly, finishing this portion of the academic year with intention. As you may know, seventh- and eighth-graders will begin exams during the week of December 13. Discussions about those exams and the early stages of preparation have begun.
For seventh-graders, this is most likely their first experience with exams, and their teachers do understand the emotions that accompany that realization. From the school’s perspective, exams provide opportunities for students to learn how to integrate content within a course on a broader scale than when preparing for mid-quarter quizzes and unit tests. We view it as a valuable exercise for students to learn how to organize a variety of resources, review and re-evaluate prior learning goals, and demonstrate an understanding of how concepts connect to one another within each course. The process of preparing for and experiencing the emotions that come with the practice of exams is both a healthy and necessary part of adolescent development. Having our students take comprehensive assessments informs us further about their learning within the context of our academic program. It is also another step taken to prepare them for success in our Upper School.
Below is the final week’s (prior to break) schedule for our middle-schoolers in December. The school day will continue as normal from 8:05 a.m. until 3:20 p.m.
