LOWER SCHOOL CAMPUS LIFE
The Lower School campus is a small community and we participate in a variety of activities that helps add fun and service to our normal intellectual pursuits. These activities serve to define us, connect us with our extended community, or allow us to relax in the context of things we have accomplished. Here’s the list:
I Just Read A Great Book Week
During this week we celebrate literature in a little different way. A book is selected in grade PK through 3rd grade and read and talked about throughout the week. The older students, 4th – 5th serve as reading buddies to connect with the PK – 3rd. The students then dress up in costumes depicting characters and events in their chosen book and march in a parade for parents and visitors as a culmination of this celebration of literature.
Book Fair
We close up our Library and offer books for sale for a week three times a year. Students and parent’s come to the fair. A percentage of these proceeds go to purchase more books to add to our library collection or needed library equipment.
Grandparents Day
Traditionally we invite our Grandparents and Grand-friends where they are honored on the Friday before Thanksgiving. Grandparents are treated to a musical and/or dramatic presentation from all classes and then are escorted to their grandchild’s classroom where they are involved in some sort of cross-generational activity designed by the teacher to honor them or just have fun with them.
Musical/Drama Presentations
Throughout the year but especially during the holiday season our parents and friends are treated to a series of Musical/Dramas. Our students work hard to make these programs exceptional – very professional. They are complete with sound, lights, costumes, backups, sets and professional age appropriate program.
Community Projects
Service Learning is a term used in modern education to describe getting involved in some sort of service to the community. Each class picks a Community Service Project each year. We’ve had classes make fleece blankets to give comfort to those in emergency situations; some have collected stuffed animals for the same reason. We’ve collected water, snacks and lip balm during our wild fire season for our firefighters. Some classes pick a convalescent home to visit and adopt some grand-friends that they can spend some time with showering them with handmade cards and gifts.
Chapels
Our students gather for a weekly worship experience every Wednesday mornings. Student led chapels give our students platform poise and leadership opportunities. Each class prepares on to two chapels per year designed to lead their peers in worship.
Auction
The Lower School student contributes to our Annual Auction, by purchasing low cost tickets to go in a teacher can of their choice. Teachers and staff create these teacher cans with a prize of their choice. Tickets are then drawn and the winning ticket holder receives the prize Lower School Students also work on art projects which go into the silent auction.
LS Arts Gala
For one entire week in the spring we focus on the Fine Arts. The visual art pieces created through the year by our students are displayed and adjudicated. We invite outside performing music and drama groups, and visual artist to demonstrate their gifts to our students. Our own middle and upper school students from the Drama, Music, Orchestra, and visual arts departments come and share their talents with our lower school students.
Field Day
On the last day of school; we all gather together on our field to play variety of games; some of which involve water. Fun, Fun, and more fun are the order for the day. What a great way to start our summer.
Promotion Celebration
The final assembly is a tradition that has been dubbed the “Promotion Celebration”. During this ceremony teachers explain to their next year’s students what their new grade will be like and then invite the rising grade level to their new place in chapel seating. They physically leave their old seats and move to their new chapel seats. We honor our exiting fifth graders (rising sixth graders) and they symbolically move up to the Middle School, by exiting the building.
Middle/Upper School Campus Life
The Office of Campus Life and Ministry coordinates both the spiritual and the social activities of our school, including:
The Brook Hill Parent Association
Because Campus Life strives to model servant leadership, parents at Brook Hill are given opportunities both to serve and to be served. Events for parents include encouragement groups and Bible studies for moms or dads, appreciation breakfasts for teachers, and involvement in student activities.
Moms In Prayer
We are blessed with a group of moms who meet once a week to pray for the school community.
Chapel
On Wednesday mornings, students take a break from their regular class schedule to worship God and renew their minds. Each week’s chapel program features something different, including guest speakers, worship music, student presentations, and videos.
Biblical Worldview Curriculum
In a partnership with the Academic Office, the Office of Campus Life and Ministry oversees our Biblical Worldview curriculum. That curriculum includes studies that feature making wise choices in Grade 6, Old Testament and New Testament surveys in grades 7-8, integrated Bible and Humanities coursework in grades 9-10, and worldview and apologetics courses for grades 11-12.
Our Middle School courses focus on Biblical literacy that includes the major events, persons, places, and theological concepts of the Bible, and our junior Bible course asks these same questions about Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, and Islam. We prepare our graduates to make a difference in an increasingly connected world by affirming a Christian worldview while also helping them become literate in other major world relgions.
Advisory
Small groups meet weekly to encourage each other. Some weeks focus on Bible study and prayer. Other weeks focus on service projects and other team building activities.
Senior Transitions
In another partnership with the Academic Office, Campus Life and Ministry coordinates a unique spring course that introduces seniors to strategies for overcoming common obstacles experienced during the freshmen year of college. Topics include: personal finance, interpersonal conflicts, decision making, mental health, health and nutrition, and dating.
Homecoming
Campus Life partners with Athletics during homecoming week to sponsor a homecoming dance at the end of the week, theme-days for each school day, and a special Camp Brook Hill event during the middle of the week.
Dances
Besides our fall Homecoming dance, we also have a Winter Formal and a Junior-Senior Prom in the spring.
Student Leadership Development
Brook Hill is devoted to developing student leaders. Currently we have a student council that includes officers and representatives from grades 9-11, athletics, boarding, and fine arts. Student Council sponsors our Homecoming dance, fall service project, and other activities in the spring. We also feature a prefect system that allows students to partner with faculty and staff, serving specific needs of the school while developing leadership skills.
Clubs
Our clubs are inspired both by student and teacher interests, and so the exact list of clubs is subject to change. Some of our clubs have included national honor societies, robotics, cooking, international affairs, strategic games, and Bible studies.
Student Center
The heart of our daily Campus Life activities is our student center. Open during breaks and lunches, students enjoy ping-pong, pool, comfortable chairs, studdy rooms, a media center, idea lab, and other activities.
Community Service
While our specific projects change from year to year, one thing stays the same: Brook Hill provides multiple opportunities for students to perform community service projects, including advisory group projects and school-wide projects.
Brook Hill requires students to complete a certain number of community service hours each year as follows:
Middle School – 10 hours
Freshmen – 15 hours
Sophomores – 15 hours
Juniors – 20 hours
Seniors – 20 hours
Resurrection Week
The week before Easter, we host a special week of chapels and a day of service projects to help us remember Christ’s example of service and his gift of salvation.
Blood Drive
In a partnership with Carter Blood Care Center, Brook Hill hosts a fall and spring blood drive. Students 16 and older may donate blood and parents are invited to donate as well.
news
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Alumni Highlight: Drew Shaw ’17
Drew Shaw joined us as a boarding student in 12th grade and graduated from our Upper School in 2017. Drew initially attended the Boston Conservatory, but transferred and finished up his undergraduate at The Juilliard School in New York. He’s currently a Violist in the National Symphony Orchestra of Taiwan and lives in Taipei. Read more to learn about Drew’s experience at Brook Hill and what he’s been up to since graduation!
Alumni Highlight: Heath Dickey
Heath Dickey joined us as a day student in 8th grade and graduated from our Upper School in 2010. Heath attended Georgetown University in Washington, DC where he played Division I Football. He went on to receive his Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D.) from Texas A&M University School of Law and worked in the Texas Legislature, starting with the 84th Legislative Session and ending with the 87th Legislative Session before he moved back to Tyler, Texas. Read more to learn about Heath’s experience at Brook Hill, what he’s been up to since Graduation, and how he chose to enroll his daughter at Brook Hill too!
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