Story and photos by Sana Raza ’30
Winter Break has ended, and Winter Term is officially in session! While students are having fun with friends, and teachers get to teach exciting new courses, MICDS staff working behind the scenes to ensure everyone has a picture-perfect Winter Term. Come explore how Winter Term was created, its impact, and everyone’s perspective on this fun two-week adventure!
The original idea came from our amazing Jay Rainey, Head of School. Winter Term was initially going to take place before COVID, but it was pushed back until we were all at school together. “Each division has a committee of teachers and administrators. We also have a cross-divisional steering committee of administrators. We all review feedback from parent, student, and faculty surveys so we can take many perspectives into account as we make plans and decisions,” says Dr. Sally Maxwell, Assistant Head of School for Teaching and Learning, about the process of making Winter Term. Winter Term was created in order to give students new opportunities to participate in unique activities with people. It is also a way to create a balance between the two semesters, and finally, to give students and teachers a peaceful way to ease back into the new semester.
Students of all grades love Winter Term. Jade Sanders ’33 loves how “we get to be with sixth graders a lot, and we get to interact with other grades.” And who wouldn’t love Winter Term? There are so many fun and exciting electives and courses for everyone to enjoy, such as the musical! This year’s musical is based on the hit musical, The Lion King Jr, and eighth-grade students are loving it. Kaetlyn Smith ’30 says, “My favorite part is the Lion King Jr. musical!” Another fun course to take is Rams Can Swim!, where all grades get to use our on-campus pool. Seventh and eighth-graders can also take Be Your Best Babysitter, where they get to learn all about the ins and outs of babysitting. Create with Clay is also an exciting course where students get to make fun objects out of clay, ceramics, and modeling clay. These are just some of the great courses Winter Term has to offer, but there’s so much more to these exciting two weeks.
Not only do students love Winter Term, but teachers do as well. Kevin Frankenberger, Middle School Math Teacher, says his favorite part of Winter Term is, “Getting to see students that I don’t normally have in class, as well as some that I do have in class, and working with them in a completely different setting and getting to know them more on a personal level.” It seems teachers love getting to see new faces in new settings! “My favorite part of Winter Term is experiencing new topics like sustainable architecture and reading history with Legos with new groups of kids that I may not have ever had a chance to interact with,” says Dustin Delfin, Middle School Math Teacher.
Winter Term has improved a lot over the years, and we have all loved to see it change for the better. Some of the improvements have included better class choices, more classes to choose from, having opportunities for all grades, and so much more. And while we all enjoy Winter Term so much, there are still some things we would like to see in the future. Harper Naughton ’30 suggests, “Letting someone who really, really wants to be in a class or letting them be with a friend if someone wants to switch classes. Don’t let everyone, but if they give a good petition, they could switch classes.” Winter Term is a time for fun and hanging out with friends, so ensuring students are with people they feel comfortable with is important. “Maybe add one more elective, because the classes are like an hour and a half sometimes, so maybe add a thirty-minute-long elective,” suggests Annabel Cunningham ’30. Sitting down for 90 minutes can get tiring and repetitive, so adding one more course or elective may help with ensuring kids don’t get bored.
Everyone here at MICDS loves Winter Term, and we can’t wait for next year’s fun two-week adventure!