Campus Voices
Lower School
When I was a child, getting to sleep on the night before school started took some doing. I would get my clothes all set to put on in the morning, set my cereal bowl on the table along with my spoon and banana, and carefully plan my schedule for the morning – what time to set the alarm, eat my breakfast, and walk out the front door – all leading up to my arrival at school. Even with all that planning, I barely slept a wink!
Well, in many ways, this year my preparation for school was very similar, except that instead of planning my arrival to school, I was planning for the arrival of the sixth graders and the new structure of the sixth grade program. I felt all the excitement and anticipation of when I was a child – even a sleepless night before the first day!
Following careful review and consideration over the past few years and a lot of planning this summer, we have designed a program for the sixth grade that reflects this model:
• Regular block schedule;
• Each homeroom teacher teaches one subject (Language Arts, Social Studies and Math) in which he/she specializes;
• Specialists will continue to teach Science, Math, French and Spanish, Music, Art, PE and Information Science;
• Grades will be given along with comments during the second term.
There are many benefits to our new structure:
• It will significantly aid 6th graders’ eventual transition to the Middle School. In addition, we’re confident that 6th graders who have been at the Lower School campus for one-to-seven years will welcome this new program as an appealing “step up.”
• Pedagogically and developmentally, it is beneficial for 6th graders to have exposure to several teachers during the course of the day.
• Students will be learning every subject in the Grade 6 curriculum under the tutelage of a teacher who is a subject area specialist.
• It provides the School more options for grouping students within math classes.
• And it’s not just the students who will benefit. The new program also will enhance the ability for teachers in BB&N’s 6th and 7th grades to build stronger bridges—curricular and otherwise—between the two grades.
This new model will enhance the changes we have made to our sixth grade program, which include the addition of Spanish as a second language option, the Camp Hulbert leadership experience, the Puberty Program, Peer Lunches, Intramural Athletics Program, and a regular Community Time.
And my sleepless night before the first of day of school was for naught, since our sixth graders and the sixth grade teachers seem truly to be enjoying their school days. With the program enhancements, in addition to our established core components, our sixth grade experience will be one of exceptional quality and scope. So, we are off on an exciting sixth grade year!
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