Middle School

Because Charleston Day School ends in the eighth grade, students here areprovided with a few special opportunities and advantages. Our Middle School students serve as role models for the younger children, and that realization imbues them with a sense of purpose and responsibility. Our students are sometimes described as less "worldly" than their counterparts in schools which include high school students. In some ways, Charleston Day School protects children from confronting reality before they have the intellectual and emotional resources that equip them to deal with it. In a world that has forced children to grow up all too quickly, Charleston Day School offers an astounding haven

Within this protective milieu, students are pushed to achieve on a very demanding level. While the Intermediate School effectively provides a smooth transition for our students progressing to the seventh grade, our Middle School (grades 7-8) centers on preparing students for the rigorous demands of high school and beyond.

Charleston Day School teachers are nurturing and optimistic people who believe that if challenged, children will meet high standards. The Middle School offers an intriguing academic program, and the faculty places tremendous emphasis on the development of fluid, articulate writing skills, solid analytical thinking. Studies in life and physical sciences and in the humanities, such as British, world, and U.S. history, and Shakespeare, drama, poetry, and the novel, help to develop the latter skills. In math and foreign language, most students graduate with high school credits in Algebra I, French I or Spanish I. Finally, there is an emphasis on the continued development of public speaking skills through celebrated Charleston Day traditions such as the Dramatic Reading of Julius Caesar and the eighth grade speeches at assembly.

These demands and responsibilities also offer the rewards of companionship and fun. In addition to participation in a variety of athletic and extracurricular activities, Middle School students are fortunate to have some special opportunities. Seventh graders face deadlines, write and edit copy, and confront legitimate challenges to publishing the school newspaper to be on the Web site. By the eighth grade, they are well versed in the skills necessary to produce an award winning yearbook. These are endeavors usually available only on the high school level, yet Charleston Day School students systematically produce outstanding work.

Additionally, seventh and eighth graders attend the Kanuga Mountain Trail Outdoor School in the fall to learn about teamwork, community, and leadership. They sponsor a car wash at the beginning the year to help fund the three-day trip, and the ownership and responsibility they experience sets the tone for an exciting year.

Andy Willits
Middle School Director