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Middle School

Curriculum

Recognizing that teachers as well as students need to practice reflection and embrace growth, the Middle School faculty and administration review course offerings annually to assess what classes are most helpful and what teaching methods are most effective in preparing students for future success. We strive to foster academic performance in conjunction with lifelong skills like self-advocacy, executive functioning, reflection, service to others, and critical thinking.

The Middle School includes grades 5–8 because we believe that students benefit from an extra year to transition to the changes that middle school brings. We scaffold student support to prepare them for adolescence and gradually introduce student agency, independence, and responsibility. Student confidence grows as they learn how to be a Middle School student—changing classes, using an agenda, and developing self-advocacy skills are a few examples of opportunities that help develop the whole child.

Our related arts semester-long rotations allow students to sample and explore many different options and introduce them to various disciplines. Our content-area, grade-level specific teachers are experts in the coursework they teach and in addressing the unique needs of the children they teach.

Middle School Pathways to Upper School Credit
Math and World Language at the Middle School level allows for students to advance at a faster pace by earning Upper School credits early. Students take an Upper School level World Language (Spanish, Latin, or French) over the course of their 7th and 8th grade years as a core class, providing them with a language credit upon entry to the Upper School and a faster track to pursue language learning into the Advanced Placement level. Students who complete Algebra I or Geometry in their 8th Grade year also earn an Upper School math credit.

Key Commitments
  • Using daily advisory to develop relationships with students and set goals.
  • Creating tranquil spaces for learning to allow introspection and reflection.
  • Instilling confidence by creating a positive digital footprint and self-regulation with social media through our partnership with The Social Institute.
  • Encouraging professional development for teachers, specific to the needs of teaching Middle School students.
  • Offering parenting resources and strategies for navigating adolescence.
  • Consistently communicating with parents, students, and teachers through Plus Portals, student agendas, Google tools, and division and school-wide resources.
Our Goals
  • Creating Middle School experiences that balance the intensity of adolescent students with their natural energy and need for peaceful growth.
  • Helping students further develop empathy skills through service-learning opportunities.
  • Inspiring Middle School students to embody greater awareness of themselves and those around them.
  • Exposing students to experiences that uncover their skills and passions to create mentally nimble individuals.
  • Providing weekly instruction and mindfulness strategies focusing on posture, breath, and body awareness.
  • Preparing students for learning by teaching executive functioning strategies, time management, time estimation, organizational, and study skills.
 

 

Our Signature Programming 

Mindful in the Hall is a one-of-a-kind signature program for middle schoolers at Heathwood Hall, crafted to help them pause, reflect, and grow amidst the dynamic challenges of adolescence. Rooted in research and daily observations, the program fosters calm, self-regulation, awareness, and resilience at a time when students are balancing academics, social pressures, burgeoning independence, and the digital world.

Experiential learning Through Exploration
Students at Heathwood Hall engage in hands-on, real-world experiences that deepen understanding and spark curiosity. From field trips to museums and South Carolina landmarks to journeys to our nation’s capital, they actively explore their environment and connect classroom lessons to the wider world. This immersive approach nurtures critical thinking, creativity, and a lifelong love of learning, while equipping students with the skills needed to thrive in a complex, ever-changing world. Annual grade-level overnight trips anywhere from the mountains to the coast, are a highlight of the program, offering students the chance to learn, grow, and build meaningful connections with classmates and teachers in a new and exciting setting.

School Life
Middle School students enjoy a wide variety of experiences that challenge them academically and socially:

  • Outdoor Education & PE: Adventure-based programs through PEAK that build leadership and resilience.
  • Service Learning: Hands-on projects that connect students to the community.

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Technology
The Middle School has been a 1:1 iPad school and a Google Workspace for Education school since 2011. Since that time, students and teachers have developed their skills, their curriculum, and their confidence in ways that have allowed the iPad to become a difference-maker for both teaching and learning. We have built the infrastructure and invested in the accompanying tools that maximize the iPad’s effectiveness in our classrooms. We have covered the technical details, like building reliable wireless networking and giving students and teachers the ability to project their iPads wirelessly in the classroom. We have identified and encouraged the use of "evergreen" apps—apps we can use across all grade levels and classes—so that the students become highly capable with the tools used for note-taking, content creation, student and teacher collaboration, and classroom management. We have provided ongoing professional development for our faculty to integrate the iPad into their classrooms meaningfully. We have adopted the Google ecosystem to enable ease of access for content creation and data storage while providing the best platform for collaboration between our students and cooperation between our students and their teachers. We also provide each student with the Logitech Crayon, an advanced stylus that enables high-quality handwriting to increase student note-taking and content creation possibilities. This ongoing effort to invest in our students and faculty while providing ongoing professional development has allowed our program to mature to a point where we cannot imagine our classrooms without these powerful devices.

Student Services & Support
Middle School students navigate a critical stage of growth with a strong support system:

  • Academic Advising & Support: Guidance for coursework, study skills, and early high school credit options.
  • Counseling & Mentorship (Mindful in The Hall): Support for social-emotional challenges, peer dynamics, and leadership development.
  • Library & Technology Integration: Resources for research, collaboration, and digital learning.

Leadership Opportunities

In Heathwood’s Middle School, leadership is nurtured through meaningful opportunities for students to take initiative, build confidence, and serve their community. Whether through student council, peer mentoring, service projects, or leading in the classroom, students learn that leadership is rooted in responsibility, collaboration, and respect for others. Middle Schoolers are encouraged to discover their voice, develop problem-solving skills, and model the values of integrity and empathy—laying the foundation for continued growth as leaders in Upper School and beyond.

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