Middle School (6-8)
Westchester's Middle School is a safe haven in which students are encouraged to explore academic, artistic, and athletic interests.
With an energetic teaching staff, students enthusiastically develop learning and study habits as they continue to solidify the foundation imperative for lifelong education. Teachers model practices that encourage students to consistently strive for their best in every endeavor.
Building Responsibility and Independence
Students in grades 6-8 transition from the self-contained classroom setup of the Lower School to a rotating class schedule with different teachers for every subject. This allows the students to take greater responsibility for their learning. Self-discovery through reading, writing, science experiments, solving math problems, and mastering a foreign language becomes an important part of their daily lives.
In the Middle School curriculum, all classes are taught at the honors level, which pushes students to think critically and analytically, not simply memorizing facts and statistics, but developing skills that will last a lifetime. Middle School students study literature, grammar, mathematics, science, social studies, and either Mandarin or Spanish. Instruction in art, music, technology, public speaking, and physical education rounds out their schedules.
Personal Development
By viewing the school experience as more than just the academic coursework, our Middle School program offers opportunities for character development through service-learning activities, leadership positions, as well as a personal advisory program.
Advisory Program
The Advisory Program in Middle School is designed to enrich the entire student experience and facilitate communication and teamwork among students, teachers, and parents. The focus is on each student's academic and personal development as advisors offer guidance in a one-to-one relationship with advisees. Group and individual discussions and instruction occur on such matters as learning styles, goal setting, conflict resolution, time management, and leadership skills. The goal of this program is to promote a student's experience in a setting in which concerns are heard, access to resources to address these concerns is available, and assistance is given for each student to become a capable, independent learner.
Electives and Clubs
Middle School students have the opportunity to choose from a variety of elective options each year which are held during the school day twice a week. These courses are designed to be exploratory and exciting and are not graded. Options include:
- Art Club
- Battle of the Books
- Board Games
- Cartoon Creations
- Chess Club
- Classic Films
- Cooking Club
- Craft Lab
- Creative Writing
- Gardening for Good
- Gym Time
- Homemade Spa
- Karaoke
- Mah Jongg Mania
- Minecraft
- My Drama Club
- Ping Pong
- Puzzle Peace
- Science Club
- Wildcat Service Learning
Middle School students may also apply to serve as a Middle School Ambassador or run for a Student Government office.
Physical Education/Athletics
Our Middle School Physical Education program provides the opportunity for students to select a team sport or fitness class of their choosing. Each sports season (fall, winter, spring) new selections are available. Students love the flexibility of choosing their preference and having the team choices integrated into the PE program.