Bell Schedule

Next year, the Upper School is switching to a modified block schedule. The periods will rotate from Monday to Friday, which allows afternoon classes to meet periodically in the morning and vice versa. The motivation behind this change is to give every class the chance to meet during a time of day when the students and teacher are most alert. There will also be a longer period (75 minutes) for each class one day each week to allow a lengthier period for activities such as labs, writers’ workshops, Harkness discussions, and creative projects. Built into this block schedule are daily meetings for students to seek tutoring and extra help from teachers, giving students increased access to their teachers. By modifying our traditional schedule, we want to increase the amount of time students have for student-based learning and teacher mentoring. More class time will be available to develop key concepts, incorporate creativity, and implement a variety of classroom activities that address different learning styles. Recent studies at the University of Michigan and Brown University find that student achievement is higher within a block schedule than within a traditional schedule due to the possibility for increased student-directed learning.

Please visit this link to preview the bell schedule for 2013-2014.