Upper School Newsletter - November 3, 2021

I like to think of the education process as slowly tipping a “campus vs. off-campus” scale. As young children (like my 7 year old), the vast majority of learning and instruction takes place on campus. He does bits of homework practice in our house, but the vast majority of the purposeful education takes place on campus. As the children get older, more of the education process starts to take place off campus. My daughter, an eighth grader, does more independent reading and math practice at home. Even still, the scale of on-campus learning vs. off-campus learning still tilts toward the campus.

This trend will continue for both of them. As they reach the Upper School, they will take on more ownership of their education in off-campus settings. In college the scales will shift even further away from the campus, as much of the learning takes place in the dorm room or the campus library but not the classroom. Sometimes when a student finishes college (or graduate school) we like to say they are “done with school.” I prefer to say that students are done with the on-campus part of learning and are now prepared to continue learning completely on their own. In other words, the education process as designed is meant to slowly move the learning process from being completely on campus to being completely off campus — to shift us from being a student to an autodidact.

Without using percentages, I think the Upper School step in the educational progression holds the greatest balance between the work done in the classroom as opposed to work that a student does on their own. This is why the parent conferences are so integral to the overall growth of the student. The parent conferences provide an opportunity for the teacher to pair their observations about what they see in the classroom with the observations of what the parents see at home (the “off campus” part of the learning process). It is this more holistic approach that allows teachers to create the best recommendations to enhance student growth.

The epiphany of this connection came to me when I worked as a dorm head during my time at boarding school. I was the guardian for 21 different students, and I served as the parent in most of their parent conferences. I knew what times they fell asleep, how they used their homework time and what was going on in their relative lives that could impact their learning. As luck would have it, one of those 21 students was also in my Modern China History class. It was the only time in my career where I had the full knowledge of the student’s on-campus and off-campus learning experience. It is no accident that I also felt it was the one student in my career that I was most equipped to help, because I knew them so well both on and off campus.

So over the next couple of days in your conferences, let’s continue to pair the observations in the classroom with the observations outside of the classroom. It is with this full understanding of each student’s educational habits and personal situation that we can yield the best outcomes possible.

Don Paige
Director of the Upper School

First Quarter Grades Published

You now have access to your child’s First Quarter Grade Report, which may be helpful in guiding the discussion during your conferences. As always, our open gradebook provides more detailed information than just the letter grade. Though it will now default to the Second Quarter, you can toggle back to a view of the First Quarter using the dropdown menu as shown below.

Stay Up To Date: Review This Year’s COVID-19 Protocols and Procedures

The COVID-19 Health Information tile on the Resource Board has this year’s protocols and procedures.

Flint Hill strongly encourages everyone who is eligible to be vaccinated. 

The COVID-19 Case Dashboard has been updated.

Homecoming Pop-up Shop Items Available

Click here to shop items from the Pop-up Shop. We have some great hoodies, outerwear, long-sleeve shirts and more!

How Do I Make an Exchange or Return?

Please email Adrienne Robinson within 30 days of your original purchase. Include your order number, the item(s) that didn’t work, and if you would like to return your items or exchange them. Exchanges may be made for the same item in a different size or for an item of equal value. We are happy to issue a refund for items that did not work for you.