Educating Learners to Leaders

January 24, 2025
Middle school is an exciting period of growth marked by huge changes in intellectual, social, and physical development. Middle school minds are increasingly capable of abstract thought and reasoning. They can hold conflicting ideas, weigh multiple perspectives, and formulate insight. Middle schoolers are intensely focused on peer relationships and acceptance. At the same time, they are also trying to form their own opinions and adult identity, forever on the quest to answer their own burning question of “Who Am I?” Meanwhile, their bodies are physically growing in every possible way, with changes in height, voice, hormones, and metabolism. At no other point in human development is an individual likely to encounter so much diversity in relation to oneself and others as they do during these formative middle school years. 
Here at Parker, we understand this phase of development intimately. That is why we do everything we can to nurture confidence, individuality, and community while also mitigating the uncertainty of these middle grade years. Research supports that K-8 schools specifically are uniquely positioned to help students in middle grades to thrive. Instead of being the youngest students in the building at such an influential stage of development, our middle schoolers get to be big fish in our Parker pond:) As the oldest kids on campus, Parker students feel connected to their community and safer in their learning environment. They can be leaders and role models for younger children, and they feel more confident taking on intellectual challenges.
Middle school is one of the formative times in a child’s life, and our program is carefully tailored to celebrate and nurture adolescents through their delicate, early teenage years. Our middle school curriculum is designed to tap into students’ interests and help them discover and explore their passions in ways that are purposeful and meaningful. Middle school inspires future leaders by challenging them to inquire, to think, to reason, and to act. Creative problem-solving, respect for each individual, and collaborative learning are hallmarks of our middle school culture. Our talented and supportive faculty understands and responds to the unique needs of adolescents, fostering in each student a sense of confidence, ethics, responsibility, and respect for themselves and others.
Parker is unique in that we keep hands-on learning at the center of our middle school experiences. At an age when most students are expected to sit still for longer and memorize more, our students are able to engage in experiential, tactile learning that occupies both their bodies and their minds. Hands on challenges allow students to explore and recognize that there isn’t always one answer. Furthermore, they can experience failing in a way that is healthy, a natural part of the learning process. When they do fail, our students have the opportunity to troubleshoot and fix their own problems. This allows for that all-important sense of accomplishment and confidence that lights up so many faces here at Parker.

Every middle school day begins with a morning advisory. Parker’s advisory tradition was established to respond to the emotional challenges of adolescence. Participation in advisory gives each student an opportunity to connect with their classmates and advisor on a range of social and emotional issues before launching into their academic work. This provides a mechanism for each student to be truly known and valued by both their teachers and peers, laying the foundation for confidence and participation in other areas of the student’s day.
Following advisory, middle school students take a break to move outdoors before transitioning to a long block of time in a core academic subject like social studies, math, science, or language arts. Spending 90-minutes in a primary subject area gives our students the opportunity to dive deeply into enriching project work that brings their learning to life. In this block of time, students may build and test structures for earthquake readiness, mummify apples while learning about ancient Egypt, experiment with geometry principles using strings to measure angles, or engage in a mock debate over whether the principal character in their novel study qualifies as a hero. 
After this long academic block, our middle school students typically move to a special to complete their morning. Specials at Parker include Spanish, PE, art, or music. Midday, our middle school breaks to enjoy lunch together, followed by RECESS! One unique hallmark of our middle school experience is the opportunity for all students to spend time outdoors. Our middle school students take advantage of breaks in their day and our flexible curriculum to maximize time spent outside. Here at Parker, we believe that the benefits of recess (freedom to experiment, freedom to try on identities, freedom to fail) don’t magically disappear after 4th grade. In fact, research suggests that even during the teenage years, recess produces higher levels of creative thinking, problem solving, independence, and perseverance. 
Afternoons in the Parker middle school follow an inverse to the morning’s schedule. Following lunch, students again move to a special, followed by a final, 90-minute academic block. Middle schoolers go outdoors again midway through this second academic block, giving their brains an opportunity to relax and reset for a final intense focus before concluding their afternoon. 
Finally, no summary of a Parker middle schooler’s day would be complete without mentioning the intentional additions to our curriculum designed to promote individual growth and community building. All middle school students participate in Current Events, a once-weekly class aimed at providing direct instruction and facilitating open dialogue about events happening regionally, nationally, and globally. This coursework is designed to promote active, engaged, and informed citizenship, a virtue we hope our students carry with them long after graduation. Middle school students also receive weekly instruction in SWELL (Social-Emotional Wellness) where they develop self-awareness and management, social awareness, responsible decision making, and relationship building. Through these practices, we hope our students will act in meaningful and impactful ways in the world.
Here at Parker, our middle school students form close connections with dedicated teachers who believe in them and are invested in their future success. The results? Our middle school students say it best: “I love that our connections with teachers and friends are so strong!” “We have plenty of time, space, and freedom.” “We get to choose what types of projects we do, or how we want to present a topic. Because of this, I almost never feel stressed when it comes to big assignments in class.” “We get to go outside everyday, and in our classes everything is very interactive.” These are such important factors in the lives of our 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th graders. Coming out of middle school as a confident, passionate learner and a nice person may seem like an impossible goal. However, here at Parker it is not only possible, it’s the norm.