Advisory Program
We want to meet the needs of all our students and this given time gives our students the opportunity to have a close relationship with an adult in the school. We cut out 20-30 minutes at least three times a week for a small group of students to meet with their advisory. Middle school can be a very stressful time for our students and this program is designed to address students developmental and affective needs. During this time students can ask questions or discuss fear or frustration that they may be facing, in general this program should give students that comfort and guidance that they may need.
Benefits of an Advisory Program
There are many different benefits to this program. Middle school can be challenging and sometimes all a student needs is someone to listen to them and be there for them. This program allows that time for peers and trust adult to listen to them. This program also allows a safe place where students can talk about some challenges that they may face and can explore different solutions for that given challenge. This also provides an environment where students can express their fear or anxiety to a trusted adult who is there to listen and provide them guidance. We try to group the students from all different social groups and this can encourage communication with students who might not of talked to each other before. During this program we also provide the time where it is structured more as homeroom setting giving students the ability to work on more administrative functions like planning and organizing. These skills are very important for students to learn before going into junior high.
How Its Organized
All schools organize their programs differently. Some schools can be very structured with a specific plan to guide discussion and activities. Our team however, takes more of an individualistic approach to decide how the time could be set. Some days it might just be focusing on test preparation and homework completion while other days we may focus on a planned discussion. This time is designed to help students with whatever they might need help with that given day, so structure might not always be the best option for this type of program.