Educational Approach
It’s caring and nurturing like Village School, but it’s also challenging and expansive like Middle School — sixth grade at Chadwick is a unique experience all to itself! The Sixers’ experience is all about learning to stay organized, think across subjects, lead with confidence and build lasting relationships.
Sixers are introduced to the rotating block schedule, which is the model we use in Middle and Upper School. It includes two 80-minute periods and one 45-minute session each week for the core subjects, allowing for a deeper dive and stronger connections across subjects. This schedule also creates space for hands-on project work, including the Mission to Mars project. Mission to Mars brings together sixth-grade engineering teams, who tap into their research, STEM and interpersonal skills to work on a yearlong quest to establish life on Mars.
For the first time, Sixers make course decisions and choosing activities, including which global language they want to learn — Chinese, French or Spanish — which musical instrument to pursue and whether or not they want to try competitive team sports.
It’s a completely intentional approach that helps students move from their early years through adolescence with confidence, comfort and all the skills they’ll need to succeed.
