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Middle School

Middle School Philosophy

Middle School is a time when young adults are developing their identity, discovering themselves, and building independence. It is a time to encourage mistakes and healthy risk-taking, to create more opportunities for learning life lessons, and to focus on individual character development in preparation for future success. VMS Middle School students benefit from being led on a path of self-discovery in terms of who they are as a learner, who they are as a friend, and who they are as a member of a community. The VMS Middle School faculty endeavors to know the whole child inside and outside of the classroom to better support them on their three year journey of learning.

Vail Mountain School is Proud to be Named to the 2024 AP School Honor Roll, Platinum Status 

The teachers know our daughter can do more than she's ever been asked to do up to this point and they are pushing her to explore an education beyond the boundaries of the regular curriculum. Middle and Upper School Parent

Trevor Adams
Director of Middle School

Middle School

The Middle School incorporates experiential learning into our academic and advisory curriculum across grade levels throughout the school year. We believe it is important for students to have experiences inside and outside of our school building that support a cycle of reflection, analysis, and experimentation. We strive for students to have four different curriculum-driven opportunities each school year that may include place-based, project-based, expeditionary, or service learning. These experiences may be day trips or overnight trips based on the experience that has been crafted by the faculty.

Read More about Experiential Education

Every child participates in the Homebase program, which is a defining element of a VMS education. Homebase is a daily meeting between students and an advising teacher which serves as a time to reflect, plan, prioritize and support each other in a family environment.

Read More about Homebase

Middle School is a perfect time to build a passion for the outdoors and the skills to explore the natural world around us. Each school year begins with multi-day orientation trips to create a strong learning community and welcome new friends.

Read More about Outdoor Education