Middle School Scheduling
For almost 50% of students, grades 7-9, are often the “make it or break it” time for students. By the time students reach the 10th grade, we average losing almost 1/3 of students nationally and over 60% of at-risk students and students from high-poverty urban areas. Traditional scheduling has failed to address the specific learning needs and requirements they need to be successful. To increase the odds of graduation, scheduling must provide the necessary supports for success, acceleration and opportunities for choice, intervention/enrichment as needed, foundational supports for core classes, flexibility, and the opportunity for credit recovery.
Scheduling is a critical component of effective middle schools. Traditional middle schools schedules reduce the amount of instructional time in core reading and math courses, while adding additional time to science and social studies while adding exploratory courses. Middle schools schedules must strategically allow appropriate core instructional time, have flexibility to allow for needed additional instructional, offer exploratory course to meet social/emotional needs and prepare students for high school tracks, and offer student choice and acceleration options.
Examples of Middle School Master Schedules
The schedule must align with the needs of your students, provide appropriate instructional time for every student, and align to the culture of the school and the goals of the school, align appropriate with strategic staff and strategic resourcing, and be purposeful in helping the school to achieve it's mission/vision
6 Period
7 Period
8 Period
5 Block Modified (80% Core)
6 A/B Schedule
7 A/B Schedule
8 A/B Schedule
5 Block (60% Core)
4 Block Double Reading/Math
8 A/B (4-Day Block) w/ I'E Period
8 A/B (4-Day Block)
8 A/B with Intervention
2 Teacher Team
3 Teacher Team
4 Teacher Team
6 Teacher Team
Flex Scheduling in Middle/High School for Student Choice/Intervention
Some middle schools use 30 minute increments of time on Fridays to design a different kind of school schedule that allows for student choice. Our staff shares their talents and passions while also creating different activities and workshops to aid in the teaching and learning of academic content.
Innovative Middle School Waterfall (Drop) Schedule
Rotational scheduling at the middle school level prevents students from missing the same classes re
