Middle School Schedules & Homework

Each student in the Middle School begins the day in Gibush for our Advisory program. Beginning the day in Gibush gives students an opportunity to check in with their advisors, get organized for the day of learning, and have meaningful conversations in a supportive group.

During the week, each student takes Humanities (History, Literature and Writing), a Humanities enrichment course (such as "Big Ideas"), Science, Math, Hebrew, Jewish Studies, Performing Arts, Visual Arts and Physical Education. Humanities and Science classes are heterogeneously grouped, while students are carefully placed in the Math and Hebrew/Jewish Studies levels that best suit their learning needs and style.

Also built into the week of learning are two consultancy periods – one on Tuesday afternoons, when students can meet with any teacher for extra help, and one on Thursday mornings, during which time students meet individually with their advisor to set goals, learn organizational skills and assess progress. For students with special learning support needs, time is scheduled weekly either with the learning specialists or with the social worker. This scheduling is done on an individualized basis.

In addition, each day has a recess period, at which time students are outside on our field or play games inside in our lunchroom area. Socializing and play are important components to a middle school program that educates the whole child.

 

HOMEWORK

Each teacher in the Middle School assigns homework for students. Sometimes that involves a long-term assignment, project, or paper that assesses what students have learned in a unit of study; sometimes it is practice using a skill learned in class that day; other times homework is for the purpose of enrichment – extending a topic discussed in class.

We believe there is no one-size-fits-all homework load. What takes some students an hour to complete, takes others twice as long. We encourage students to e-mail teachers if they are struggling with an assignment. Teachers make appointments for extra help, or modify the assignment to help the student manage the homework load.

On any given day, there are multiple assignments for students to complete at home. We believe that time management and self-advocacy are two important skills to learn in the middle school years. We begin to teach those skills in 5th grade, and deliberately build them, and increase the capacity to accomplish the management of multiple homework assignments.

We are proud that our students attend the best high schools in the city and have the study skills in place to be successful in those competitive environments.