Page 10 - 2019 MS Admissions Brochure

UPPER SCHOOL
The culture that students love in the Middle School continues into the Upper School. Most of our students stay beyond 8th grade, and they are joined by new classmates as our class size doubles in 9th grade.
The Upper School academic experience is challenging and engaging.
It’s about developing habits of mind, broadening one’s exposure, and discerning lifelong personal passions. Classes meet three times a week for 60-90 minutes so that students can engage deeply in conversations, group work, and labs. Teachers focus on skills that we call our Learning Competencies – Critical Thinking, Collaboration, Communication, Creativity, and Resilience – so that students are prepared to navigate and participate in an ever-changing world as lifelong learners and stewards.
Our Upper School community is known for keeping the kind and supportive feeling that allows students to be comfortable being themselves. Students are encouraged to try new things and take creative risks. All students are required to take one year of Performing Arts and
one year of Visual Arts, and as in the Middle School, our sports teams don’t cut. Whether it’s one of our four years of college-level math beyond AP Calculus, an English elective like Discourse of Dining: Food and Literature, or a five-person Ecological Design & Sustainability course, our students feel engaged, inspired, and well prepared for their next challenges.