Grade 9 Makes Winter Trek to Vermont's Mountain School
Each year, Shore's ninth grade class and faculty advisors depart in early January on a trek to The Mountain School in remote Vershire, Vermont, for a week of experiential learning in a work-based community.
The Mountain School is a special semester-based program of Milton Academy, during which 45 motivated high school juniors from all over the country come together to live and work on the school’s farm in rural Vermont. Students and faculty build an experience based on trust and an appreciation of difference, creating a community in which every voice matters. While living with teachers in small houses, students help to make important decisions concerning how they live together. Courses provide a demanding, integrated learning experience that takes advantage of the school's small size and mountain campus. Balancing intellectual inquiry and experiential learning, the curriculum challenges students to think flexibly, speak their minds, and return to their schools equipped for continued academic success. Engagement with the farm and forest sparks an appreciation for their food, their fuel, and their labor.
Shore's ninth graders - invited to spend a week on campus between the school's regular semesters - departed Sunday, January 3, with great hope that when they reached the small mountain destination they'd find the hills covered with enough snow for sledding. Their hopes were realized: there was more snow than expected, and sledding conditions were ideal.
Having settled into the dorms and established a routine for kitchen chores, students and faculty enjoyed tea and hot chocolate before dinner while playing ping pong, Twister, and card games, as well as building with Lego. Homemade pizza, Mountain School greenhouse lettuce, and brownies with ice cream were devoured before the nightly kitchen clean-up.
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The Mountain School is a special semester-based program of Milton Academy, during which 45 motivated high school juniors from all over the country come together to live and work on the school’s farm in rural Vermont. Students and faculty build an experience based on trust and an appreciation of difference, creating a community in which every voice matters. While living with teachers in small houses, students help to make important decisions concerning how they live together. Courses provide a demanding, integrated learning experience that takes advantage of the school's small size and mountain campus. Balancing intellectual inquiry and experiential learning, the curriculum challenges students to think flexibly, speak their minds, and return to their schools equipped for continued academic success. Engagement with the farm and forest sparks an appreciation for their food, their fuel, and their labor.
Shore's ninth graders - invited to spend a week on campus between the school's regular semesters - departed Sunday, January 3, with great hope that when they reached the small mountain destination they'd find the hills covered with enough snow for sledding. Their hopes were realized: there was more snow than expected, and sledding conditions were ideal.
Having settled into the dorms and established a routine for kitchen chores, students and faculty enjoyed tea and hot chocolate before dinner while playing ping pong, Twister, and card games, as well as building with Lego. Homemade pizza, Mountain School greenhouse lettuce, and brownies with ice cream were devoured before the nightly kitchen clean-up.
The first class began Sunday night under the leadership of Innovation Lab manager Cam McNall, who helped students begin work in the wood shop constructing the Marble Run that Grade 9 will share with Kindergarten students when they return to Beverly.
[Stay tuned for more updates from Vermont.]
Monday was extremely cold but sunny, keeping spirits high for new adventures. Students continued with woodworking in the morning, and then headed outdoors for cross-country skiing through the Vermont countryside.
Many were new to cross-country, and it was a rewarding challenge for most. The lesson of never giving up was taken to heart by all.
After hot chocolate or tea and time in the classroom tuning our compass-reading skills, students and faculty ventured out again in the falling temperatures to use compasses to find a hidden stash of fire-making supplies.
The plan was to make a fire and roast marsh mallows for s'mores, but the cold put those plans on hold.
Warmer indoor entertainment was provided by the Emmy Award-winning storyteller and author Willem Lange, who brought lots of laughter to close out the evening.
[Stay tuned for more updates from Vermont.]
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Cross-country skiing
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Ninth graders with renowned storyteller Willem Lange
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The Mountain School in Vershire, Vermont
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Shore Country Day School’s mission is to provide an education that inspires a love of learning and encourages children to embrace academic challenge. We seek to build character, cultivate creativity, and value diversity as we help our children become healthy, compassionate citizens of the world.
The School admits qualified students of any race, color, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law, and extends to them all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, ancestry, sex, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law in the administration of its admissions, scholarships, and loans, and its educational, athletic, and other programs.