Middle School: February 2 - 6, 2026

​Hello, Middle School Families,

Thank you for joining us for curriculum morning and the All School Meeting this past Saturday. I appreciate everyone who made food to contribute - it was delicious! It was wonderful to gather and talk about the second semester and activities coming up, and then hear from our Board, and both Sara and Ashley, our new Head of School in the All School Meeting! 

The Middle School class started last week with the Short Story block test. While many were apprehensive about the test, they all did incredibly well and demonstrated their knowledge of Short Story elements! 

On Tuesday, the class started a new block, Geography of Africa. Starting with a review of world geography, the class moved on to the physical continent of Africa. As the second-largest continent in the world, Africa encompasses 8 distinct physical regions, all vastly different. On the whole, the students in the Middle School class love trivia facts and learning about the tallest peaks of Mt. Kilimanjaro and the deep waters of Africa’s Great Lakes. As we will be drawing multiple maps of Africa (physical and political maps, as well as one for their chosen country of study), the class first created a template of the continent of Africa. Using the gridding technique, they then filled in the major landforms and waterways. Students shaded their maps to reflect the distinct regions of the continent.

As we move into the second semester, more of the responsibility of capturing notes from lectures is shifting to the students. In the fall, all notes were listed on the board, and now students will be practicing note-taking on their own. Students used their own notes to write a Main Lesson page about the physical aspects of the continent of Africa. During correction, missing or confused points from their notes can be caught and pointed out. 

On Wednesday, along with the Fourth and Fifth Grade class, Middle School visited the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra for a music field trip. We listened to several pieces under the theme Southern Landscapes: A Musical Journey Through the American South. It was a wonderful experience and our students were great representatives of The Garden School. 

The class is also hard at work practicing for the Lunar New Year Performance! The dance looks fantastic so far!  Please remember to have your students wear black pants and a red shirt on Thursday, February 12, for the Lunar New Year Performance. We look forward to seeing you there! 

Finally, we celebrated two birthdays last week! Happy birthday Jiyah and Bridget! 

Announcements & Reminders: 

Please sign up for a Spring Conference Slot here

  • February 12: Lunar New Year Performance 2:30 pm (all families welcome)

  • February 16-20: Mid Winter Break (No School)

  • February 23: Teacher in Service (No School)

  • March 7: Community Work Day 

  • March 12: Teacher-Parent Conferences (Half-day)

  • March 13: Teacher-Parent Conferences (No School)

Thank you for the honor of teaching your children, 

Ki Lesley

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Specialty Highlight February 2026: Handwork

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Fourth & Fifth Grade: February 2 - 6, 2026