Watch for Amazing Experiences

Opportunities abound for experiential learning both inside and outside the classroom. Finding new interests, revealing new talents, developing new abilities—Upper School students discover and re-discover the wonder of learning through hands-on experiences, excursions, and trips.

Whether it’s singing in a regional music festival, rafting down the Missouri River with the entire student body, exploring the world of Mark Twain’s writings in Hannibal, Missouri, celebrating “Mole Day” in chemistry, or volunteering at a homeless shelter on Prin Giving Day, Upper School students get out from behind their desks to experience learning firsthand.

Educational trips provide even more time for out-of-the-classroom learning adventures. For example, students can find inspiration during a week of drawing, writing, and quiet reflection at the Teton Science School in Wyoming. Or immerse themselves in the cultural and natural beauty of Belize on an interdisciplinary 12-day trip. Budding thespians can experience Broadway during a one-of-a-kind theater excursion to New York City. In each situation, students are challenged to not only learn about the topic, but actively participate.

Individual exploration takes on new meaning every May when seniors spend several weeks working full-time on an independent learning project of their own design. Some take a hobby or skill to a higher level, while others use the time to explore a potential college major or future career. Recent projects include building a computer, writing an original screenplay, constructing an outdoor deck, interning at The Christian Science Monitor, designing and building a boat, and learning to tango. During the final week of school, students deliver their project presentations to the school community.