W. L. Chenery Middle School: Philosophy of Education
The mission of Chenery Middle School is to inspire and support the intellectual, social and emotional growth and well-being of all students in the CMS community. With the support of families, we provide opportunities for students to think, create, reason and problem solve so that they can be positive and productive young adults who are of service to others.
At Chenery Middle School we share a set of beliefs and values that inform and guide our words and actions. Throughout the year we will discuss these and explore how we can continue to foster them in our school. These core values are represented by our school’s motto:
Respectful, Responsible, and Ready to Learn: Everybody. Every Day.
By making these values central to our time together, we will be successful in ensuring the academic, social, and emotional growth of all children.
The Chenery Middle School serves approximately 1,435 students in grades five through eight. The fifth and sixth grades constitute the Lower School and the seventh and eighth grades form the Upper School. There are 214 total staff at the middle school.
The Chenery Middle School opened in 1997 in a new, three-levels, state-of-the-art facility arranged around a courtyard and include a 700-seat auditorium, 450-seat cafeteria, integrated media center, two computer labs, band and chorus rooms, several community rooms, and fully networked technology equipped classrooms. Outside are basketball courts, tennis courts, a baseball field, and other grassy playing fields maintained by the Belmont Recreation Department.
Fifth grade students learn in 2 - teacher teams. One teacher for English and Social Studies, and one teacher for Science and Math. Fifth graders also take art, World Music, Physical Education. Instruction in Instrumental and Choral Music is an optional program.
Sixth grade students are organized in a team of four teacher core teams with each teacher responsible for one learning area: English Language Arts, Social Studies, Math and Science. There are approximately 100-125 students on each team. At the end of fifth grade, students choose Spanish, French, Chinese or Latin to study for the next three years. Sixth grade students study Foreign Language for one semester, alternating with a nonfiction studies course. Art, Physical Education, Technology Education, and Health complete the program of studies in grade six.
Seventh and eighth grade students are organized in five-teacher team structure with approximately 100-125 students per team. Separate instructors teach Math, Science, English Language Arts, Social Studies, and Foreign Language (Spanish, Chinese Mandarin, French or Latin). Seventh and eighth graders also take Art, Physical Education, Technology Education and Health.
All sixth, seventh and eighth grade students have the opportunity to participate in a music performing group (band, orchestra, or chorus) as part of their class offerings.
School Configuration: Students move from 2-teacher teams in fifth grade to a full-teacher rotation by the seventh and eight grade. Classrooms and teams are heterogeneously grouped.
In addition to the regularly scheduled classes, the curriculum includes these highlights:
- Community service projects integrated into our Social Studies Curriculum;
- A Science and English project for seventh graders on observing and recording natural history and the physical environment;
- A "Capstone" trip to Washington DC for students in Grade 8th.
Parents may elect to have their middle school-aged child attend a structured after-school program for a fee. This program allows time for students to do their homework and participate in other activities.
Students may participate in a variety of extracurricular activities and clubs, including theater arts, school newspaper, yearbook, math team, after-school sports, computer club, Science Olympiad, ecology club, chess club, and numerous instrumental and choral ensembles. The school also has an organized student government with elected positions.
The Chenery Middle School sponsors interscholastic teams for seventh and eight grade boys and girls in cross-country in the fall and basketball in the winter.
School Improvement Plan
Section 59C of chapter 71 of the General Laws: "The principal of each school, in consultation with the school council established pursuant to this section, shall on an annual basis…develop and submit for approval by the district superintendent and school committee a plan for improving student performance. Plans shall be prepared in a manner and form prescribed by the department of elementary and secondary education and shall conform to any policies and practices of the district consistent therewith."
The SIP is posted when available here: School Improvement Plan