Green Acres School

Expectations of Increasing Maturity and Academic Sophistication

The Green Acres Middle School program, like everything we do, is designed intentionally for children to learn best. That means understanding the ways in which children’s brains grow and how children learn, creating a curriculum that fosters curiosity and engagement, and continually assessing the quality of learning. We know these things about children’s learning from decades of scientific research and from observation by skilled professionals:

• Children are naturally curious about their world.
• Children learn best when their brains are ready to acquire a specific skill or idea.
• Children learn best when they are engaged in rich and varied learning experiences.

The Middle School program challenges students in ways appropriate to their increasing cognitive sophistication, their growing emphasis on peer interactions and friendships, their soaring interest in questions of ethics and morality, and even their rapid physical development. Students engage in classes that ask more challenging questions, participate in more demanding outdoor education opportunities, join interscholastic athletic teams, design their own community service projects, and take part in more varied and exciting challenges, such as film photography, the annual seventh and eighth grade musical, and the Green Acres Olympics.

High academic expectations form the core of the Middle School program. Students grapple with expectations of broader responsibilities, greater self-reliance, and increased independence. They are engaged in the exciting process of becoming self-directed learners with a passion for knowledge, a growing awareness of our diverse and complex world, and a sense of responsibility for the larger community.

Green Acres students leave eighth grade with a strong sense of who they are, both as learners and as members of our society. They are characterized by resiliance, self-reliance, social aptitude, and a love of learning for its own sake.