Why Grade 8?

Grade 8 is often considered one of the most challenging years. We like to call it “the renovation year”. If you have ever lived through a kitchen renovation where you are still living in your home, you know that it’s not an easy time for anyone in the family. While you know it will be worth it in the end, it’s a major inconvenience. You feel out of place, routines go out the window, and it’s incredibly hard to stay organized. It can even be stressful, exhausting and emotional. This is similar to what students in Grade 8 can feel like as their brains change, their bodies change, and their social lives begin to change. No longer a child but not quite a mature teen or young adult, anyone who has been through the early teen years knows that, even for the most easy going children, it’s typically not an easy time for students, parents, or teachers alike!

However, it really doesn’t have to be so hard! Typical junior high programs often fight against the natural transformation that occurs around this age. Whether  it’s hormones and physical awkwardness, the sometimes overwhelming emphasis on social drama, or the increasing desire for more independence, risk-taking, and creative expression, we work with the student just as they are.

In the right environment (and if they are motivated and willing students), Grade 8s can surprise us with their relentless passion for making a difference, with their impressive and enthusiastic leadership skills, and their vast capacity for entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity. Above all else, when you learn to embrace the “mess” rather than fighting against it, everyone can have a lot of fun!

Our program prepares Grade 8 students for high school and beyond with plenty of authentic leadership opportunities out in the community and with the Changemaker School’s K-6 students. We provide challenging yet supportive classes in test-writing, studying and organizational skills. We dig deep into health, wellness and social-emotional learning using their own questions as a jumping off point. Students and teachers co-create projects, assignments and learning activities that are engaging and meaningful from a 13-year old’s perspective. And we spend A LOT of time out in the world learning through off-campus trips, travel and outdoor adventures.