Middle School

The Rhoades School offers a unique and challenging Middle School program for students in 6th-8th grade. Our new Middle School campus opened in 2019 and features 5,300 square feet of classrooms, STEM learning spaces, sustainable garden and greenhouse, numerous athletic spaces and more.

Our Middle School curriculum is rigorous and comprehensive and prepares students for high school and beyond. Core course offerings provide students with a strong foundation in English, math, science and social studies and are enhanced by elective courses that focus on broadening educational experiences.

Our Middle School learning outcomes were developed to ensure each student is working to their greatest potential.  Our dedicated teachers enrich the curriculum by seeking opportunities to incorporate technology tools in all aspects of classroom teaching and learning. As we foster leadership in our middle school students, we challenge them to work together to learn about issues and problems that face our world and propose potential solutions to these problems. Our goal is to create authentic learning opportunities designed to foster students’ abilities to become well-rounded individuals in school, at home and in their community.

Advisory Program

As part of our social-emotional learning curriculum, all Middle School students participate in our advisory program.  The program makes the transition from Lower School to Middle School more seamless, as students move from having a homeroom teacher to an advisor. The program fosters connectedness among students and open communication among peers and faculty. Advisors oversee the academic and social emotional well-being of their students, supporting our commitment to giving students individualized attention and a personalized learning experience.

Advisories meet daily: Monday through Thursday for 18 minutes and Fridays for one hour. Friday advisory sessions include discussions on social issues, guest speakers, participation in service learning projects, and working with Lower School buddies. Through our advisory program, students learn conflict resolution skills, how to build positive peer relationships, and the roles and responsibilities as members of a community.

Electives and Clubs

Every Middle School student chooses an elective for the academic year, designed around the themes of design and innovation. Students participate in engaging learning activities, such as recording their own original music for a commercial, building and coding LEGO® robotics, exploring a passion project, developing technical skills that incorporate functions of elements of art and principles of design, and producing their own short film.

Students also participate in a club for the academic year, such as Math Club, Stock Market Club, Girl Rising, Spanish Games, Poetry Cafe, Sustainable Gardening, and Strength & Conditioning.

World Language & Accelerated Online Courses

The Rhoades School has a partnership with Laurel Springs School, a K-12 online private school with a Gifted & Talented Academy. Rhoades School students may take courses at Laurel Springs at a discounted price. In addition to world languages such as Mandarin, French and Latin, students may take courses in mathematics, English, science and history. Students who take high school courses at Laurel Springs will be given a Laurel Springs transcript for their coursework. Laurel Springs is an accredited UC-approved school.