Adelson Upper School (Middle School/6th-8th Grade)

The next level of academic and community engagement for your pre-teen.

Now, as your child enters the pre-teen or early teenage years, you have a renewed sense of urgency about their academic achievement. College suddenly seems just around the corner.

Adelson’s Upper School environment nurtures pre-teens as they negotiate the challenges of adolescence and provides the stimulation they need to stay focused and engaged.

Seamless Transitions

Within the same physical learning environment as high schoolers, Adelson middle schoolers are prepped to transition seamlessly into high school from day one. They are provided opportunities for independence, self-direction and responsibility as they build the skills necessary for high school, college and future careers.

Selective Class Sizes

Pre-teens naturally become hyper-aware of their social environment at this stage. Smaller class sizes help them feel more comfortable, engaged with their work and less preoccupied with how they are perceived by their peers.

Talented Instructors

Middle school and high school faculty are combined in the Upper School, offering middle school students more than a familiar face as they progress. If your child is advanced in certain subject areas, her or his teachers are prepared to offer advanced coursework, up to and including Honors or AP-level courses.

Technology and Maker Tools

All Adelson students have access to one-to-world Apple devices as well as creative tools in our Startup Incubator, a makerspace where they begin to learn coding and apply design thinking to bring their ideas to life. These experiences prepare them for advanced coding and their capstone ACE project at the high school level.

Core and Focus Area Courses

As at the high school level, core courses involve deep reading, critical analysis and discussion-based learning. Learning is hands-on, focusing on the application of skills and concepts, not just the memorization of facts and theory.

In addition, we begin to introduce Focus Area Courses to students at this level. Exposure to these electives in 6th grade provides an opportunity for students to explore their interests. They begin to select courses in 7th and 8th grade as precursors to a greater focus in high school.

• Tech Biz
• Media, Arts & Communications (MAC)
• Pre-Law
• Pre-Med
• Jewish Studies

Path to High School

Adelson helps middle schoolers prepare cognitively, emotionally, socially and physically for high school and teenage years through a variety of programs.

Reflective Dialogue

In this homeroom experience, teachers engage students in reflective dialogue each day to discuss what’s going on in their lives, their highs and lows, in a safe, intimate environment.

Life Skills

Counselors meet with students to discuss a variety of life skills to help them transition from being members of a family to members of society. 

Digital Citizenship

In partnership with our EdTech Coordinator, middle school faculty help students view their online activity as part of the digital community, consider the benefits and risks of digital engagement, and take proper precautions.

Health

Instruction progresses throughout 6th, 7th and 8th grades from discussions around changes to the body and related knowledge vital to entering young adulthood.

Enrichment Opportunities

Your child’s enthusiasm for special interests - such as performing arts - is growing, as is their desire to connect with groups around those interests. Adelson provides the opportunities she or he craves through clubs during the school day, athletics, and academic competitions that give your child the opportunity to achieve and build confidence.

Adelson also organizes trips for middle schoolers to engage with nature and each other. 

Athletics

Athletic opportunities at Adelson include:

• Soccer
• Volleyball 
• Swimming
• Basketball
• Baseball
• Tennis
• Cross Country 

Respect and Empowerment

Mutual respect (kavod) is offered equally to everyone at Adelson. Your child will have a voice here, and we will encourage them to use it for the benefit of all. This builds confidence. It empowers our students to feel less afraid to challenge themselves to grow academically and personally.

Leadership

At Adelson, we provide opportunities for pre-teens to exercise their leadership skills, from participation on the student council, to welcoming new students as ambassadors, and simply being heard when they share ideas they believe will strengthen our community.