Middle school students begin the school day by meeting in their advi­sory groups. In advi­sory, students build rela­tion­ships with their peers and teach­ers outside of the acad­e­mic curricu­lum. Students learn to support, and to be supported socially, emotion­ally, and acad­e­m­i­cally. In addi­tion, students meet weekly for a longer block to partic­i­pate in activ­i­ties that develop essen­tial middle school skills. Topics include health and well­ness, main­tain­ing healthy rela­tion­ships, cyber-citi­zen­ship, conflict reso­lu­tion, study skills and time manage­ment, current events, and commu­nity aware­ness and service learning.

Each fall, students are selected by peers in their advi­sory groups to repre­sent their advi­sory and share back infor­ma­tion to the advi­sory. The Student Advi­sory Lead­er­ship Team offers ideas for enrich­ing the school expe­ri­ence, plans events, and selects commu­nity service projects. 

Middle school students have also created various commit­tees and clubs to address more specific school activ­i­ties, includ­ing a social group for plan­ning dances, and many kinds of clubs for gath­er­ing like-minded students (past clubs have focused on poli­tics, popular novels, and the study of ninjas). Teach­ers support students in these efforts, but they do not tell students what to do, setting the stage for true student leadership.

Our phys­i­cal educa­tion program aims to equip students with the skills and enthu­si­asm to main­tain a healthy lifestyle into adult­hood. Activ­i­ties are designed to promote phys­i­cal fitness, to develop motor skills, to instill knowl­edge and under­stand­ing of rules, concepts, and strate­gies, and to teach students to work as part of a team or as indi­vid­u­als. Students use the play­ground at the elemen­tary school campus, the open space at the Waverly organic farm, and grassy areas at nearby parks for active games.

One of the primary acad­e­mic goals at Waverly is that each student works to his or her highest poten­tial. This is also true in sports, which enrich student life and the school commu­nity. We believe that partic­i­pa­tion in sports can contribute signif­i­cantly to the phys­i­cal, social, and emotional well-being of our students. Athletes are encour­aged to develop their skills and ability to work as a team. As a result, our coaches focus on maxi­miz­ing the partic­i­pa­tion of all team members. Success is measured in terms of personal devel­op­ment and the team’s overall progress.

The athlet­ics program allows students to compete at the middle school level in fall, winter, and spring sports in the Foothill League. Sports include flag foot­ball, volley­ball, basket­ball, soccer, and tennis. Read more about athletics.

Middle school outdoor educa­tion takes form in annual two-night trips to one of two expe­ri­ences: Astro­camp in Idyll­wild and Cali­for­nia Island Marine Insti­tute at Toyon Bay. Students learn key science topics, team­work, and collab­o­ra­tion skills, while enjoy­ing the beau­ti­ful natural envi­ron­ment. Usually taking place in the fall, these trips bring students and faculty together away from the pres­sures of school. 

Day-long field trips include visit­ing the Cali­for­nia Science Center, watch­ing dramatic perfor­mances at A Noise Within, and seeing local cultural exhibits or perfor­mances that fit in with the curriculum.

Our Human Devel­op­ment program is based on the Body Trust modal­ity (body image, body diver­sity aware­ness, what it means to occupy and care for your body), the Our Whole Lives curricu­lum (knowl­edge, life prin­ci­ples, and skills neces­sary to express sexu­al­ity in life-affirm­ing ways), and greatly influ­enced by social and racial justice, inter­sec­tional femi­nism, shame resilience theory, self-compas­sion, rela­tional cultural theory, and mind­ful­ness-based approaches. Our spaces are inten­tion­ally gender spec­trum affirm­ing. Names, pronouns, and expres­sions of iden­tity can be fluid at all ages and stages and as such, we pay atten­tion and check in often.

The three most impor­tant tenets of our trauma-informed Human Devel­op­ment program are Body, Iden­tity, and Rela­tion­ships, which sepa­rately and together affect every­thing we are and do as ever-devel­op­ing humans. Sexual and gender iden­tity, sexual health and repro­duc­tion, inti­macy and consent, sensu­al­ity, and sexu­al­iza­tion are woven through­out our discus­sions, as is the idea of values: our own and those of family, friends, and culture.