Middle School Faculty Dawn Carleton - Fifth Grade homeroom, English, and Math Toni Sanburn - Fifth Grade homeroom and 5th Grade Physical Education Timothy Hardy - Sixth Grade homeroom, Athletic Director, Physical Education 6th-8th Grade Brendan Gummerson - Sixth Grade homeroom, Science 5th-7th Grade, and Algebra 8th Grade Julie McMillan - Seventh Grade homeroom, Social Studies 5th & 6th Grade, Language Arts 6th Grade, and Student Services Ellison Yufenyuy - Seventh Grade homeroom and Spanish Elizabeth Irvin - Eighth Grade homeroom, 7th and 8th Grade Language Arts Scot Sinclair – Eight Grade homeroom, 6th Grade math, Pre Algebra 7th Grade, and Accelerated Algebra 8th Grade Didy Erkelens – Eighth Grade Science Chaplain Stacy – Religion and Service Learning Paul Ellison – Music, beginning in Second Grade Betsy White – Drama Robin Long – Art

Middle School - Where We Find Our Voices

GRADES 5 - 8

Core Curriculum

Language Arts
Mathematics
Science
Social Studies
Foreign Language (Spanish)

Extended Curriculum

Library
Physical Education/Athletics
Religion
Digital Media Skills
Art
Music
Drama

The middle school years are a unique time of transition, filled with absolute joy and confusion. St. Matthew's Middle School is a place where this time of adolescent transition is carefully nurtured and a caring, experienced faculty helps students deal with the daily challenges they face. Teachers serve as advisors and offer a challenging academic program, along with guidance in how to learn.

Learning in the middle school years is marked by rapid and uneven intellectual, social, emotional and physical changes. To address these differences, the curriculum is designed to be interdisciplinary (topics are presented from the perspectives of several disciplines) and integrate a variety of teaching methods and strategies. Students expand academic skills, gain greater understanding of themselves as learners, become more independent and enter into more complex social relationships.

Special attention is given to students in fifth and sixth grade, as they encounter the new experiences of middle school. Each grade has two homeroom teachers, and students in grades six through eight change classrooms for each subject; fifth grade is semi-contained. Class periods range between forty and sixty minutes in length, with extra time devoted to math and language arts. The school counselor and academic support teacher provide additional services for students and serve as a resource for faculty.

At the end of each trimester, parents and students receive formal assessments that reflect the student's progress and effort. Midway through each trimester, interim reports are sent home as progress updates. In addition to regular parent-teacher conferences, teachers are readily available to meet with parents and students to communicate successes and challenges to be met.

A broad range of extracurricular activities enhance the middle school academic experience, with specific opportunities for leadership through Student Council, class meetings, assemblies, Chapel, Big and Little Student Buddies, service learning, the middle school newspaper and athletic coaching.