BCD | Private IB Middle School in Boulder CO

BCD to host Day of Affinity for BIPOC students

On April 4, 2023, BCD will host the first Day of Affinity for BIPOC students. Fifth through 8th grade students from various Boulder-area and Denver-area independent schools will join together for a day designed to help BIPOC students to feel loved, empowered, and celebrated. We are grateful to our faculty and staff who serve on our DEI committee for their hard work on this project. Special thanks and congratulations to the 8th grade student pictured here who used his Capstone project to initiate and coordinate this event. He is holding the bottle he designed for students to take home. Well done!

Don't Muddle in the Middle

The middle school years are arguably the most important years in a child’s education. The combination of changing bodies, developing minds, and complex social dynamics create a vortex of possibilities where children – if not led, supported, challenged, and inspired – can quickly become invisible, their growth held back due to missed opportunities or misplaced intention.

In the most ideal circumstances middle schools aren’t in the middle at all. Rather, middle school students are “top dogs,” the oldest and most respected members of their student community. One of the reasons I believe so strongly in BCD’s PS – 8th grade model is that our oldest students become the natural leaders of our school. They are athletes, members of student council, leaders in their Bulldog Families (comprising one student from each grade, PS – 8th), and mentors. They develop a sense of responsibility for our school culture, uninfluenced by the high school milieu, which creates more reflective, thoughtful, and grounded human beings.

To be sure there are times when the not fully developed frontal lobe of a middle school student’s brain gets in the way of what we would think of as a reasoned decision. That’s OK. They make mistakes just like we do. In the hands of a highly competent faculty and staff, middle schoolers who make mistakes emerge stronger and more fortified for later years when the stakes are higher and the consequences greater.

The International Baccalaureate Middle Years Programme (MYP) bolsters student academic and social-emotional growth. Its focus on international mindedness helps our students understand the world is bigger than the “Boulder Bubble” and more complex than it might first appear. The best example of the impact of the MYP that I know is to ask the following question: How much time do teens spend online every day? Often folks respond with 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours. Maybe…if you are only thinking about U.S. teenagers. The real answer is approximately 60% of teens across the world don’t have any access at all. Opening the perspective of our pre-teens and teens is frequently enough for them to know they are part of a much larger global picture, part of something much larger than themselves.

Schools like BCD with small class sizes, caring and committed faculty, and focus on self advocacy help create high schoolers who are eager to excel. They sit at the front of the class, they ask questions, and, having learned how to learn, they produce outstanding educational outcomes. Among our recent graduates, 80% made their high school’s honor roll, over 90% participated in high school athletics, and 60% participated in meaningful community service above and beyond what their schools require. Colleges and universities often claim their incoming classes lack proficiency in writing and BCD is bucking that trend. Our middle schoolers outperform their peers in suburban public school districts and other independent schools on the WrAP, one of the most competitive writing assessments in the nation.

Ultimately, middle school students are best served at schools where nurture (love), structure (limits), and latitude (the ability to roam within those limits) carry the day, where middle school students shine as the top dogs, and where they are known and valued for exactly who they are. Whatever you choose for them, avoid the “muddle in the middle” at all costs. It’s sure to be worth the investment.

Author – John Suitor, Head of School

Learn more about BCD’s Middle School

Register your student for a Middle School Visit Day

Livi Gray’s Capstone featured in Boulder Lifestyle magazine

Livi Gray's (Class of 2020) powerful Capstone project, Faces of America, was featured in the August issue of Boulder Lifestyle magazine. We are very proud of the work she did both in her artistry and in using her voice. Great job, Livi!

Click here to see the full article.

BCD Students Featured in Inspiring Project on Change Makers

We are so proud of the 4 BCD alumni featured in this video project by the Wunder Collective (headed by BCD alumna Kristian Moley) about inspiring, young change makers. Sydney, Ruthie, Reese, and Elizabeth share their 8th grade Capstone projects and their passions. Well done, Bulldogs!

Good citizenship is the most important lesson Boulder Country Day teaches because good citizens become great leaders. This year, I had the chance to interview four graduating 8th Graders, all of whom will wow us one day. They will end their BCD careers this week presenting their capstone projects which focus on community service. In the midst of a pandemic, when self-management becomes mandatory and expectations become lax, these four students maintained their commitment. They have taken the opportunity to do good despite having several doors close in their face including the one that connects them with the world.

I hope you watch and consider their stories. I hope you’re inspired. I hope you know the future is bright. And I hope you make a choice to do more good, if for no other reason than because it is such an easy one to make.

- Kristian Moley
https://www.wunder.film/capstone

Artificial Biceps in 7th Grade Science

Some fabulous work is being done in Ms. Fellows 7th grade science class. Student are working on a unit about human body systems and were assigned a lab specifically on the skeletal and muscular system. Students were learning about flexor and extensor muscles. They read an article about a robot called a human skeleton that is used in companies to help humans to prevent muscle fatigue. They had to design their own contraption to help the bicep muscle heal if it had a sports injury (hence artificial bicep).

Click here for the for lab template provided to students.

Click here for the article on the exoskeleton designed by Lockheed Martin.

Here are some examples of what students submitted.

The Compliment Wall

We love this! In 8^th grade health class student did something called The Compliment Project. Students take turns sitting with their backs to the whiteboard while their classmates write compliments about them. The students are studying social-emotional health and learning how we thrive when we feel a sense of love and belonging. This is the third year this activity has been done in this class and the kids LOVE it. They love to write as much as receive the compliments. They are often overwhelmed with emotions when they read what their classmates say.

More on BCD's Middle School program.

The Benefits of BCD's Middle Years IB Program (MYP)

Boulder Country Day's Middle School is an authorized International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program (MYP).

Climbing walls at Outdoor Ed...and beyond

When I was walking through the woods during our Outdoor Ed trip, I could hear the indistinct shouts that Middle Schoolers make when they are outside and allowed to use "outside voices". I was heading towards the climbing wall, a triangular pyramid 25 feet in the air. This climbing wall was one of the many activities available for our Middle School students at Outdoor Education at the foot of the Rocky Mountain National forest. Students also had the opportunity to do other activities, including archery, mountain formation, and team building activities.

Why Choose a PS - 8th Grade School

Boulder Country Day has intentionally chosen to focus on preschool through eighth grade and we believe it is among our greatest assets. We firmly believe that a PS-8 school environment offers distinct advantages during the most critical years of a child’s intellectual, social, and emotional development.

The Aspen Institute Executive Seminar

Thanks to the generosity of Christy and Jay Orris and their commitment to faculty professional development, I recently had the opportunity to attend the Aspen Institute Executive Seminar in Aspen, CO.

Boulder Country Day School teams with I Have a Dream Foundation to compete in First Lego League competition on November 18th

Through an anonymous Diversity, Equity & Inclusivity grant by a BCD parent, Boulder Country Day School and I Have a Dream Foundation of Boulder County (IHAD) have partnered to form a combined First Lego League® (FLL) team. The grant funds transportation and course expenses for participating IHAD students and brings together students, technology, and BCD’s goal of inspiring students to reach their full potential.

Alumnus' artwork draws financial aid donation

This year's Gala was a huge success. Thank you to all who participated!

BCD Students Attend LEAD Conference in Chicago

Students from the middle school student council joined thousands of other student leaders at a Leadership Experience and Development (LEAD) Conference in Chicago, IL on February 10th – 12th.

Middle School to livestream CU Conference of World Affairs

BCD middle school students will be live streaming several sessions from this year’s CU annual Conference on World Affairs.

Middle School Magic

If our Preschool and Elementary school divisions have been described by some as “magical”, then I can only imagine our middle school can be described as transformational.

8th Grade Capstone Celebration

As part of BCD’s Middle School curriculum, 8th grade students complete a Capstone Project. Capstone Projects are a yearlong experience that encourages students to dive deeply into a subject of personal passion. This experience develops in-depth learning in the presence of an experienced mentor. 8th grade Capstone projects are a culmination of students' BCD experience bringing together the key elements of passion, innovation, and service. It is always exciting to see the range of interests and directions the students take. Student projects this year range from building ovens in Nicaragua, to designing head bands for a cure, to piloting a plane, to stage fighting. On April 22nd, our 8th grade students finished the hard work they have put into their Capstone projects as they presented their work to their families and mentors. Well done, Bulldogs.

To see a complete list of this year's projects, click here.

More on BCD's Middle School curriculum.

BCD's homepage.

Call of the Wild

In 7th grade we have introduced our novel study of The Call of the Wild by Jack London. Students are looking at narrative perspective as we read. By looking at point of view, students gain a greater understanding of plot details that are in (and out) of the story. By examining a certain scene from a different character’s perspective, students see characters in a new light, perhaps gaining empathy or a better understanding a character’s motives. Finally, by analyzing why the story is told from a dog’s point of view, students learn about the Klondike Gold Rush and human behavior from a unique perspective. How different the story would be if told from the perspective of one of the humans!

Exploring Biomedical Engineering in STEM

We are finalizing our unit on Biomedical Engineering with a review of why 3D printing is such an important development in the world of medicine. They are using recent events in medical technologies and our classroom experience with 3D printing to communicate where the impact of 3D printing on the accessibility of prosthetics, surgical operations, and other areas related to health. As they communicate the current state of medicine, they are also catching a glimpse of where medical technologies will be taking us in the future.

Thank you to Bob Radocy, owner of TRS Prosthetics, for coming and speaking to our students.

Model UN broadens world perspective for Middle School students, teaches current events

Middle School students participated today in the annual Model UN exercise. Having done their research and prepared resolutions they came ready to serve as delegates for their assigned countries. As emerging global citizens, students connect current events to the study of delicate international relations and how conflicts are addressed through the United Nations. Gaining an understanding of the domestic and international concerns of a nation, as well as its relationship to its allies and other nations, gives students a greater sense of the complexity of foreign relations and the challenges we all face in the 21^st century.

BCD Spotlight Singers sing National Anthem at CU game

So proud of our Spotlight Singers and Mr. Parker. They did a fabulous job singing the National Anthem at the CU vs. Utah game on January 8th. Well done Bulldogs.