High-performing schools with middle grades are sensitive to the unique
developmental challenges of early adolescence.
- The school creates
a personalized environment that supports each student's intellectual,
ethical, social, and physical development. The school groups adults
and students in small learning communities characterized by stable,
close, and mutually respectful relationships.
- The school provides
access to comprehensive services to foster healthy physical, social,
emotional, and intellectual development.
- Teachers use a
wide variety of instructional strategies to foster curiosity, exploration,
creativity, and the development of social skills.
- The curriculum
is both socially significant and relevant to the personal interests
of young adolescents.
- Teachers make
connections across disciplines to help reinforce important concepts
and address real-world problems.
- The school provides
multiple opportunities for students to explore a rich variety of topics
and interests in order to develop their identity, discover and demonstrate
their own competence, and plan for their future.
- Students have
opportunities for voice—posing questions, reflecting on experiences,
developing rubrics, and participating in decisions.
- The school develops
alliances with families to enhance and support the well-being of their
children. It involves families as partners in their children's education,
keeping them informed, involving them in their children's learning,
and assuring participation in decision-making.
- The school provides
students with opportunities to develop citizenship skills, uses the
community as a classroom, and engages the community in providing resources
and support.
- The school provides age-appropriate co-curricular activities.
