The Middle School electives period is an exciting addition to FWM’s new schedule. This 55-minutes is dedicated to enriching students in different areas outside of what is normally offered. To get a better idea of what types of electives the 6th through 8th years would be interested in, we had a brainstorming session where students gave ideas, and the teachers responded with their personal strengths and interests as well. There was an entire board of ideas!

Based on popularity and types of interest, the following electives were offered to students for the first trimester: a nature elective focusing on dendrology, ichthyology, and ornithology; a fantasy football elective where managing teams, analyzing statistics, and comparing data are the focus; and, a cooking class that teaches techniques and recipes with a little competition mixed in.

It was a fun first day! I think all would agree that 55 minutes went by too quickly. Both teachers and students will certainly look forward to this day in the rotation when we can indulge in our personal interests that are not usually seen in school.

 

Another fabulous week has commenced for Middle School!

In Science, the 6th and 7th year students completed their chapter projects. The 6th years made model representations of the science room, and the 7th years constructed cardboard chairs supporting a weight in excess of 100 pounds. Every student worked hard to fulfill the requirements each project presented. Additionally, 8th years continued studying ecosystems and the food web.

In Math, students were hands-on, learning concepts in unconventional ways. 8th years were introduced to equations this week. They put their knowledge to the test with the game, Equate, a Scrabble-like board game. 6th years worked on Geometric Nets, 2-dimensional shapes that fold to form a 3-dimensional shape. 7th years continue to work on their algebraic foundation.

Humanities classes had some stand-out classes this week. They had their first day of current events presentations that brought about a spectrum of topics including the hurricanes battering the Caribbean and US, the new facial identification technology for the Apple iPhone 8, and the political influence on public school lunches. Classes even had discussions surrounding the recent NFL controversy involving the National Anthem. Students read both the lyrics to “The Star Spangled Banner” and words to the Pledge of Allegiance, discussing why people may not feel comfortable saying either of them and others vehemently supporting the language, giving some context to the recent protests. Students respectfully spoke on both sides, giving each other varying viewpoints to consider.

All in all, an enriching week for students. More to come next week!

Reminder:
On Thursday, October 19th (from 1pm to 9pm) and Friday, October 20th (from 7:30am-11:30am), FWM will be holding Parent & Teacher Conferences.

This is an important time to meet with your child’s teacher about how your child is progressing at the school. Scheduling for Parent & Teacher Conferences will be done on MyFWM.org in the Parent Module. The sign up will be open Tuesday October 3rd.

Please note, the first ten minutes of this conference is student led. You and your child will meet with your child’s adviser. Conferences are typically 20 minutes long; however, each slot is 30 minutes in order for teachers to take notes and prepare for the next parent conference.

Thank you in advance for being punctual to your Parent & Teacher Conference and for adhering to the 20 minute limit.

 

We had another great week in Middle School!

Science, Math, and Humanities classes continued with hands-on activities, new material, captivating literature, and profound discussion. Advisory brought inspiration and relaxation this week with a motivational speech and techniques in breathing to calm the mind.

While engrossing classes spanned the days, the highlight of our week had to be the start of Community Service. This is a period built into the Middle School schedule once every six days. It allows 6th through 8th years to go into the younger classrooms for just under an hour and assist students in their normal classroom activities. Whether it was Ring Around the Rosie with toddlers, creating with paper, working on counting, or tending to class pets, the Middle School students were game for anything! This is just another example of how FWM promotes community, companionship, and empathy.

Middle School students traveled to Sharpe Reservation in Fishkill, NY for a day of team building and challenging themselves on low and high ropes courses. Impressed by the effective collaboration and amount of adventurous students in the group, one Sharpe Reservation staff member said, “I love days like this!” I think most of the Middle School would agree!

Middle School had a fabulous start to the year this week! The students came in energized and ready to go. They met teachers, new and old, with warm welcomes.

While the academic classes spent time going over units for the year and assessing skills, advisory groups came together for a gratitude circle and to form goals for themselves. Each student was asked to think of a personal goal for the school year both having to do with school as well as outside of school in their personal lives. Each goal was represented by a knot in a ribbon. In the end, they tied their ribbons together as a promise that they would hold each other accountable for their goals and help friends achieve theirs.

It has been a wonderful, short week full of smiles, discussion, writing, and creativity. If this is any indication for the year to come, we are all in for a spectacular school year.