After two-and-a-half weeks of students complaining to their parents about how stressful middle school was, the evening of September 2 gave parents the opportunity to spend a day in the life of their child(ren).  The annual Back-to-School Night (BTS) began at  6:30 p.m. in the gym where parents gathered to listen to Head of Middle School Mr. Charles Hagy, Head of School Mr. Robert Goldberg, President of The Benjamin Parents’ Association (BPA) Joy Motto, and Annual Fund Chair Robin Ayers talk about the aspects and goals of the Middle School.

Parents followed the schedule of their child(ren) for the night, attending advisory and all seven classes. They attended each class for about 10 minutes to hear about what the students would be learning this school year.  BTS Night may seem like a short look into the student’s point-of-view, however, a lot of preparation is required on the teacher’s end.

Teachers spend their own time creating presentations to tell parents about themselves and the class.  In preparation for BTS Night, substitute math teacher Ms. Catherine Broadhead (filling in for Mrs. Rachel Rudner while she’s on maternity leave) said she “prepared a presentation for the parents to know what happens in math class, how they can check on their students, and how they can communicate with us.”  The presentation outlined “class expectations, how parents can help at home, and [how they can] get in contact with me.”

Eighth-grade science teacher Ms. Gabriele St. Martin enjoys BTS Night because it allows her to “. . .brag about what we do in the Middle School which is always fun, and I think the parents always enjoy coming.”

That sentiment was confirmed by eighth grade parent Mrs. Lynda Abrams, who was impressed with all that the Middle School offers. “[It was a] good overview [of the classes] in a very short time and it made me wish that I  could go back to middle school again and be a student.”