Middle Schoolers Explore “Our Backyard”

Last Friday middle school students spent time bringing the theme of “our backyard” to life through three different grade level retreats.

The 6th grade spent the day getting to know the ins and outs of Greenhills. Students rotated through various activities, including group-building games and initiatives, an all-school scavenger hunt throughout the building, lively skits which taught various aspects of our handbooks, and a grade-wide mural-making project that focused on local landmarks within Ann Arbor and Michigan. The day was capped off with an advisory kickball tournament.

In 7th grade, students traveled to Barton Park for their annual service project of chipping the trails with the help of Ann Arbor’s Natural Area Preservation.  Sleds were used to transport mounds of woodchips to various points along the park’s walking trails. This work will continue in November here at Greenhills when the seventh grade works to chip our campus trail system. Students capped off the day with a picnic and some field games at Dexter-Huron Park.

The 8th grade gained a firsthand appreciation of our backyard by canoeing and kayaking the Huron River. Newly added to the trip was the option of students taking kayaks down the cascade rapids system which resulted in a few capsized boats and about a dozen soaking wet students.  Nonetheless, drenched or not, lots of laughs were shared by our oldest middle school students and their advisors as they made our way downriver to Gallup Park.

“Our middle school grade retreats have a wonderful and intentional purpose behind them,” says Jamey Hein, head of middle school. “They serve as a positive way for each grade to set a healthy tone for itself as the year gets underway.  It’s always fun seeing our kids branch out on these days and connect with classmates beyond the classrooms.”