Upper School Schedule

List of 10 items.

• A later start to the day - right for teenagers, backed by research.

  While our campus opens to students at 7:00AM, our first class does not begin until 8:55AM, allowing an extra 10 minutes to sleep in on Wednesdays. This late start allows students to get more sleep, which their bodies and brains need. We use the extra time in the morning for faculty collaboration, professional development and office hours for students who would like extra help.
  
  

  What the research says:

  "High schools that start t 8:30AM or later allow for more than 60% of students to obtain at least 8 hours of sleep per school night. Teens getting less than 8 hours of sleep reported significantly higher depression symptoms, greater use of caffeine, and are at greater risk for making poor choices for substance use. Academic performance outcomes, including grades earned in core subject areas of math, English, science and social studies, plus performance on state and national achievement tests, attendance rates and reduced tardiness show significantly positive improvement with the later start times of 8:35AM or later. Finally, the number of car crashes for teen drives from 16-18 years of age was significantly reduced by 70% when a school shifted start times from 7:35AM to 8:55AM."
  
  

  Source: Wahlstrom, K., Dretzke, B., Gordon, M., Peterson, K., Edwards, K., & Gdula, J. (2014). Examining the Impact of Later School Start Times on the Health and Academic Performance of High School Students: A Multi-Site Study. Center for Applied Research and Educational Improvement. St. Paul, MN: University of Minnesota.

• 60-minute periods - "just right length"

  Each day contains five 1-hour blocks in addition to community time and lunch. These 1-hour blocks are the "just right length" for the kind of teaching and learning we do at ICS. We find the typical 40-minute period to be too short to really get into the material. And while more than 60-minutes can be useful for certain labs and projects, it's also easy to lose interest when you go much longer than an hour. So, we have flex periods in place to expand class into when more time is justified.

• Limiting total work time for student balance

  At ICS, work is divided into "synchronous" and "asynchronous" activities. Synchronous work is done together with classmates and teachers (direct teacher instruction, class discussion, group work, etc.). Asynchronous work is done by students independently, either during the class period or as homework.
  
  

  In addition to students' work during the 60 minute class period, they may be assigned up to 20 minutes of asynchronous work to be completed outside of class, or 40 minutes for Accelerated and AP level courses. Additional work may not be assigned on days when classes drop out of the schedule rotation.
  
  Teachers work with students, throughout their time at ICS, to help them learn to prioritize responsibilities and build strong time-management skills.
  
  

  Sample student course load:

  • Statistics and Data Science
  • History
  • AP Literature
  • Latin 2
  • Art Foundations
  • Computer Science
  • AP Physics

  On Tuesday, that student has Statistics and Data Science, AP Literature, Latin 2, and Computer Science.
  
  

  Total class time: 60 minutes x 4 = 4 hours
  
  

  Total asynchronous homework time: 20 minutes x 3 (Pre-Calc, Latin, Comp Sci) + 40 minutes (AP Literature) = 1 hour, 40 minutes
  
  

  Total school work time: 5 hours, 40 minutes
  
  

  *Exceptions to the asynchronous work time limit may be given for tests announced at least 10 days in advance and major assessments including projects and essays.
  
  

  Why do we do this? It's about balance.
  There's a lot of research out there on the diminishing returns of homework after a certain amount of time, and there's also a lot of research out there that suggests that high school students are often over-worked and over-stressed. ICS students have rigorous school work that stretches and challenges them, and yet, we don't think it is fair or right to expect our students to stay up until the wee hours of the morning just to be able to do what is expected of them. Many of our students have active commitments in the arts, athletics, service learning, and participation in activities outside of school.

• Most students take 5 or 6 classes at a time

  Students are required to take a minimum of five block courses each semester. Each of these block classes will meet a total of seven times over our two-week rotation (three times one week and four the other week).  Students may take up to six courses during the academic blocks. Permission to take fewer than five courses in a semester needs to be approved by the Upper School Principal, as does permission to take more than six academic courses. Students can also receive course credit for certain courses that meet outside the academic blocks such as Chorus, Band, Strings, STEM, Eagles with a Purpose (EWAP), online courses and BLincs, and performing in the play and/or in the musical. Students can adjust the number of classes they take each semester and each year, but the minimum number of academic credits required for graduation is either 21 or 22 depending on their graduation year. 

• Students have "Get Things Done (GTD)" time most days

  Students who take 5 classes have GTD time most days, and students who take 6 classes still have GTD time once or twice each week. Students use GTD time for whatever they need: a snack, time in the Academic Resource Center getting homework done, a workout in the fitness center, meeting with their college counselor, time with a Learning Lab coach developing study strategies, meeting with a teacher, etc.
  
  

  Our 9^th and 10^th grade students are assigned to a classroom or the Academic Resource Center for their GTD time and may sign out with the teacher on duty to go elsewhere. By 11th grade, students are ready to manage that time on their own. 

• Year-long and semester courses

  ICS core classes meet for a full year or by semester. Check out our Course Catalog for course descriptions, graduation requirements, and typical course progression.

• X-Block

  In addition to their core classes, Upper School students have daily "X-block" time to be used for specialized meetings such as STEM program events, chorus rehearsals, Human Development classes, clubs, and more.

• Community Time

  Regularly scheduled time to connect with faculty and peers is an important part of the Upper School schedule as well.  Dedicated community time includes:
  

  • Regular advisory check-ins and two or three weekly meetings depending on the schedule rotation.
  • Weekly Upper School Meetings
  • Class meetings twice a month.

• Students can do it all

  At ICS, students do not have to choose between academics, athletics, arts, and other co-curriculars. We have designed the schedule so as to limit as often as possible the number of sacrifices students have to make. We build our academic schedule each year based on course selections so we can get students into as many of their top-choice courses as possible. Students at ICS very often participate in theater (rehearsals typically meet in the morning), in chorus (rehearses during X-block), in clubs (during community time), and on athletic teams (practices/games after school).
  
  

  We believe high school is a time when students should try as many opportunities as possible to explore their passions and discover new interests. We are fortunate that our schedule doesn't force students to choose between doing the things they love.

• Before and after school

  Students may arrive on campus as early as 7:00AM and can stay as late as 6:00PM. Before school, students can grab breakfast from the cafeteria, meet with a teacher, work in the Learning Lab, socialize in the student atrium, or - at certain times of the year - participate in play or musical rehearsals.
  
  

  After-school time is reserved for athletics practices, though students who are not participating in a sport are welcome to stay on campus to work on assignments, have a snack, etc. until as late as 6:00PM.