At Park, we intentionally call Grades 5 through 8 the “Upper Division.” Unlike at schools where the spotlight shines mainly on the efforts of high school students, students in Park’s Grades 5-8 are the leaders of the school – growing in confidence and accomplishment, finding joy in challenge.
It takes a special kind of educator to channel all that energy from adolescents’ rapid social, emotional, and intellectual development toward constructive growth. Park is the best place to experience early adolescence because Park’s teachers, led by Upper Division Head Jimmy Manyuru and Assistant Upper Division Head Elaine Hamilton, are educators who are experts in and deeply enjoy this age group. As Jimmy Manyuru observes, “The Upper Division team knows what’s right for fifth through eighth graders. We celebrate who they are now, and who they are becoming.”
Central to the team’s expertise with the age group is the understanding that at this age, a sense of belonging is deeply important, and stems from the emotional connection not only to a place, but to the people within it that makes you feel seen, valued, and able to be yourself. With the foundation a deep sense of belonging provides, students gain the resilience and empowerment that shape who they are today and prepare them to succeed in high school and beyond.
Jimmy has observed students’ unselfconscious enthusiasm and pride in what they do, whether it’s the fifth grader explaining the challenge they solved in After School Robotics, the sixth grader explaining yesterday’s print-making class, or the seventh grader reliving the previous day’s athletics contest. “It grows, I think, from the history they are continually building as they grow up at Park,” Jimmy notes, “ and the safety that comes from the company of caring, supportive friends.”
The Morning Meeting tradition is one of Elaine Hamilton’s favorite Park experiences. Twice a week, Upper Division students and teachers begin their day in community, and every
session begins with opportunities for praise. “Teachers recognize and
celebrate students or groups for a wide range of accomplishments — from
winning a soccer game to trying a new leadership role to cleaning up
after the entire Upper Division in the dining room.” Students are
invited to perform or present on topics important to them — and their
contributions, creativity, and engagement are highlighted and
acknowledged. The power of that community recognition — the feeling of
being fully seen, known and appreciated — in building and strengthening a
sense of belonging for all is immeasurable.
Elaine
says, “They know they are safe, even as they push outside their comfort
zone… they are proud of who they are, what their passions and interests
are, and how strong their sense of self is becoming.”
Elaine points out that the way in which teachers support and challenge students recognizes that adolescents grow and
develop at different times, with countless interests and curiosities.
The structure of Park’s Upper Division provides students opportunity to
explore, from electives to Affinity and Alliance groups, team sports,
performing arts, robotics, and clubs
focused on a wide range of student-generated interests. The exploration
these choices provide help students gain a better sense of themselves
and others as they are empowered while they build empathy and curiosity.
The Upper Division Advisory program also supports their growth and skill building,
and provides opportunities for students to have fun together. That
element of fun is also crucial to the strength of the Upper Division
experience. Park’s Head of School, Scott Young, is aligned on the belief
that Park’s culture intentionally seeks to
“protect childhood” while also promoting a lifelong joy of learning. It
seems increasingly clear these days, with the pressures induced by
social media that our children experience every day, that childhood
does, in fact, need protection. Park students get to grow, naturally,
into adolescence and young adulthood, finding their voice and asserting
themselves, while also embracing the unabashed joy of being kids.
Jimmy
and Elaine are excited by all the possibilities ahead. In particular,
their work on restorative practices puts relationships at the center.
Elaine notes, “We want them to be empowered through all this work.
Students will make mistakes, and mistakes help them learn to better
advocate for themselves and others.
The
community offers both high expectations and support.” High
accountability, yes, but also high support, creating a safe environment
where, if they make a mistake, they can look at it and learn, rather
than burying it and feeling shame.
At
Park, curiosity, academic achievement, and leadership are cool and
making one’s best effort is appreciated. Investing themselves
unreservedly in the experience, Park students build the skill set that
readies them to carry that motivation and engagement forward to
secondary school and beyond.
All
of this speaks to the sense of belonging students feel, which makes
everything else possible. So often in schools, the focus is squarely on
academic achievement. Jimmy, Elaine and Upper Division faculty know that
sense of belonging is what makes that achievement possible. In order to
move forward, students need to feel seen, safe and supported. Park
students gain the confidence to push themselves, try new things and take
risks, and master developmentally appropriate challenges. From that
position of emotional strength, they can know that countless different
types of success are achievable.
The
outcomes speak for themselves. Next schools and former parents report
that Park kids thrive at future schools that are highly academically
competitive, even as they are also appreciated as “the nice kids,” the
ones who build friendship and strengthen community. It’s not
“either/or.” They do their best work in all they pursue because, as
strong community members, they look to grow as they contribute with
their whole selves.