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Middle School

TIS Middle School - At a Glance

The middle school program at TIS places students in active group learning environments that support the development of Learning skills including collaboration, communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving. 

Middle School has always been a time of growth and discovery for young people. Not only are Middle School students expanding their learning in the classroom, but they begin to try new things, meet new people, and forge the path that will lead them into adulthood. Throughout the three years students spend in Middle School, they are given the opportunities to expand their thinking and sharpen their skills all in a safe environment that promotes internal growth and experimentation. Students at TIS Middle School should walk out of these doors not only ready for High School, but with an idea of who they are, who they want to become, and a fundamental knowledge of how to get there. At TIS MS we are helping build 21st century adults and the future of TIS MS will continue to adapt to an ever-changing world so our students will be ready.

Jeffrey Tempel
Director of Instruction

A primary component of our middle school program are 21st century skills. Developing these skills helps our student to prepare for a rapidly changing future. Through project-based learning, our students are engaged in authentic, real-world learning situations.

The academic environment is focused on kids growth, with customized learning plans when necessary and tailored opportunities for kids to ensure academic challenge. We also love that TIS is part of the CEESA network, allowing for enriching opportunities to  exchange with other schools in the region, engage with other kids and their families, and appreciate diversity and cultural difference.

TIS Parent

Middle School & Secondary Classroom Peaks

MS/SEC: Class with Mr. Shehu

Over the past few weeks, Middle School IE students have completed their novel study and literary analysis unit. They read the book Wonder and analyzed key elements such as character changes and themes. Students also wrote literary analysis essays to demonstrate their understanding. Another group focused on developing various language skills, including speaking, writing, reading, and listening. Way to go!

Read More about MS/SEC: Class with Mr. Shehu
SEC: SEC 2 Biology students

In the last two weeks, biology students have presented their research on human interactions and impact on the environment. Students have talked about a wide array of topics including building greenways in Paris to cultivating urban forests in Singapore to clearing the skies of Linfen, China, once known as one of the most polluted cities on the Earth. Topics also included the impact of urban nighttime lights on migratory birds along the Mississippi flyway in the central US and of resort lights on the beaches of Florida on the nesting of loggerhead turtles and the nighttime navigation of their young towards the ocean. Students were able to draw on previous units to explain top-down control of an ecosystem by sharks and the role of grazing sheep in promoting meadow wildflower diversity. Students also shared their research on the sometimes intentional and disastrous introduction of invasive species such as the Burmese python in the Everglades of Florida, the cane toad to Australia, and the small Indian mongoose to tropical islands around the world and how these animals disrupted the native ecosystems. In their research, they focused on identifying possible solutions and challenges to problems created by humans in a complex, interconnected world.

Read More about SEC: SEC 2 Biology students
MS: Comic Book Creation

The 11- and 13-year-old students have been creating small comic books using different apps. In doing so, they have developed a range of skills including digital creativity, storytelling, and basic graphic design. They have demonstrated great imagination and technical ability in using the apps to combine images and text effectively. Their work shows strong attention to detail and an impressive understanding of how to engage an audience through visual narratives. Overall, they have done a fantastic job expressing their ideas and sharpening their digital literacy.

Read More about MS: Comic Book Creation
MS: Pythagorean Theorem in Action

Students in the Foundations of Algebra class have been exploring real-world investigation problems using the Pythagorean Theorem. They were given a specific problem to assess and solve, worked hard on creating digital or poster presentations, and enthusiastically presented their findings and sketches to the class. Great work, kids!

Read More about MS: Pythagorean Theorem in Action
MS: 13-year-old Writing

As part of the 13-year-old essentials of writing unit, students practice a variety of grammar and punctuation marks throughout the year. This knowledge is to then be incorporated in their future written works. The students pictured are working together to complete exercises on how to properly use hyphens and dashes in writing.

Students in the 13-year-old class are currently studying media literacy and media creation. These courses focus on helping students to identify bias in various media and to develop skill in effectively presenting stories and/ or factual information in a variety of media formats. Students research best practices for using visual imagery and sound to create a compelling media presentation.

Read More about MS: 13-year-old Writing
SEC: Parabolic Shapes in the Real World

Students explored how parabolic shapes appear in the real world—from basketball arcs to bridges and fountains. They identified key features of these curves and used digital tools to create quadratic regressions, expressing the equations in both vertex and standard form. To showcase their work, students created informative posters and took part in peer discussions to evaluate and reflect on each other’s findings. 

Read More about SEC: Parabolic Shapes in the Real World