Middle school students rely on the structure a schedule provides, but they also need space to grow and mature into young adults. At Explo at Wellesley, we give our students full access to both.
The Explo at Wellesley schedule may seem innocuous enough — two morning courses, an afternoon workshop, activity periods, and an evening main event — but a lot of thought has gone into the structure of the day, so we can give our students the appropriate amount of support and space they need to grow, mature, and learn how to make their own decisions.
Building Choice Into the Schedule
The choices baked into a day at Explo are real choices — from choosing what to eat (and who to sit with) during meals to figuring out how to share space with roommates to deciding what activities to participate in (and with whom).
Our schedule is structured with choice all around, giving students the chance to build their own independence. Almost every day, students can choose between 10-12 different afternoon activities, 6-7 student-led clubs and leagues (see below), and 2-3 main event options. By choosing to explore the things they're most interested in, students are more invested in their choices — and the outcomes of those choices. They also discover that when they are doing the things they love at Explo, they quickly meet (and make friends with) a lot of fellow students who share their interests.
Thus. with each decision they make during the day, our students learn how to become more independent — on intellectual, social, and emotional levels.
Independent Time
The Value of Unstructured Free Time
During independent time (5–6:30pm) each evening, students have the opportunity to plot their own course. They can coordinate a pickup game of basketball, get ready for that evening's dance, enjoy a leisurely dinner with friends, or take a breather on their hall (or any mixture of the above). Once a week, they also get the chance to head into The Vil.
The Vil: A Wellesley Experience
Once a week, students have the opportunity to visit downtown Wellesley — or The Vil (as we like to call it) — a wonderful and walkable collection of cafés, shops, and eateries. For our students, a trip to the Vil is a big deal — it's a chance to go off-campus and exert their independence with their peers (with the safety net of knowing staff members are always nearby).
Huddle Up: Starting + Ending the Days Off Right
Morning, afternoon, and evening huddles are more than just student check-ins. Huddles are moments of the day when students gather with their living or day groups to set goals for the day, take on campus challenges, play games, and find out what options are available for afternoon activities, club meetings, and the evening's main event.
"Rather than rushing right off," Elliot says, "Huddles give students the opportunity to have a little bit more community time with their day and living groups. Get to know their peers better, get to know the staff better, and learn more about what's going on through that day, that evening, and upcoming events throughout the week."
Clubs and Leagues: Fostering Student Leadership
Every evening, Explo hosts a variety of student-led clubs and leagues. Clubs and leagues are where students get together and delve into the shared interests they're most passionate about. The Ultimate Frisbee League might launch a tournament, the Guerrilla Art Club could start a campus-wide project, the Improv Club might set up an impromptu improv stage on the quad, and the Community Service Club could organize a project to give back to the larger Wellesley community.
In 2015, clubs and leagues began as regular Sunday evening main events, but soon evolved into forums where students voiced their opinions, and started taking more active and visible roles in how the clubs and leagues are operated.
"It was particularly wonderful on those Sunday nights to see some of our quietest students really having a space to sit down with ten or fifteen other people, share their ideas, and really take ownership of something," says Ariel, "in a way they wouldn't necessarily get to do that comfortably for the rest of the week in the same way that other students might. They might do that in their classroom or their living group, but they weren't as much during the afternoons and evenings. By expanding clubs and leagues to an everyday part of our schedule, we will have more spaces for our quietest students to assert themselves, and more opportunities for students to make an impact on the Explo community and experience."
For a more comprehensive look at the schedule, check out Explo at Wellesley's Daily Schedule.