Sister Ann Caire
RSCJ, Head of the Middle School

Joanie Teague 
Dean of Students

Carol Baez   
Assistant to the Head of Middle School 

Grades 5-8

These are years in the students' lives when they are changing at a very rapid rate.  They are growing and maturing physically, so their bodies are new to them.

Their minds are developing, and whole new worlds of learning are opening up to them.  They are able to grasp complex ideas and reach deep insights they never imagined before.  Emotionally, they have a depth and intensity of feeling which is new and which they must learn to express in appropriate ways.  They are taken by surprise at their reactions to people and events around them.  And, since each one has different growth spurts at different times in the course of these years, old friendships end and new ones form.  This phenomenon makes them go through a whole new learning experience of relating to other people: to their peers, to adults, and, in time, to peers of the opposite sex. 

In all of this, each one is discovering a great deal about who she is and what she is made of with a view to the person she might some day become.  The school is dedicated to helping the students in these efforts and to providing the opportunities they need for growth in all of these dimensions.

Programs and scheduling in the Middle School are designed to give the students the opportunity to develop intellectually, physically, socially, and emotionally in grades five through eight and to help them make the transition from the basic studies of the elementary years to more challenging learning in the High School.  The instructional materials enhance the variety of teaching and learning styles in content subjects as well as in basic skills courses.

Organizational skills, listening skills, reading comprehension skills, silent reading skills, and literacy skills are taught. In addition, note taking, outlining, map reading and test-taking skills are developed.  These skills are taught in all classes.

Human sexuality is a component of religion class at all grade levels.  Parents are always welcome to view the materials used or to discuss the curriculum with the teachers.  Parents are also welcome to teach the content of the curriculum to their child in place of the school.  The student will, of course, be responsible for an equivalent amount of material in order to get credit for the class.  If interested, please call the Middle School Office to arrange this alternative.