All About “MFS June Week:” A Modified End-of-Year Celebration
By Vani Hanamirian ’22, Marketing and Communications Student Intern
With summer break just around the corner, MFS Middle and Upper School students are participating in a new week-long program to conclude the year – June Week. Rather than academic classes, students are spending their final days participating in hands-on learning and grade-level bonding events.
Upper School students have a modified schedule combining both Spirit Week (typically in October) and Intensive Learning (typically in March). The schedule begins with innovative programs in the mornings, such as Blacksmithing, Science Experiments, Historical Fiction Walks, Political Music, Mock Trial, and more. There are two course blocks a day, giving students the opportunity to experience three different classes throughout the week.
Upper School afternoons are filled with modified Spirit Week events. On Monday the students participated in a slimy fish toss competition, completed 90 minutes of service activities benefiting the local community, and finished the day with some water balloon fun. The remainder of the week is filled with events such as Airband, Float Decorating, Quiz Bowl, Tug-O-War, and Eliminator 2.0. Many of these annual events have been modified due to COVID restrictions. An example of this is the eliminator course. What was once a crowded gym full of Upper School students cheering for their grade was altered to an outdoor course that stretches around the MFS campus.
“The classes are informative and enjoyable,” said Olivia Neri ’24, who is new to MFS this year and has never participated in Spirit Week or Intensive Learning. “I am grateful to have the opportunity to participate in them this year.”
Emma Nei, a junior at MFS, reflected: “This is a great way to end the year after what we’ve been through as a school and as a grade. I think we are all bonding this week and seeing faces we haven’t seen in a while.”
Middle School students feel similarly, even though they are participating in different activities. The Middle School has been focusing on the environment and how they can be more environmentally conscious. Each grade is focusing on a different aspect of environmental studies. The fifth grade is focusing on the food chain and how to compost. They have had several speakers come into the classroom including the Head of the Religion Department, Melissa McCourt, who spoke on farming and how it relates to Quakerism. The fifth grade has played games related to the food pyramid and even had a chopped competition to better understand the importance of avoiding food waste. Other grades have practiced survival activities, learned about global warming, gone on nature walks, created recycled bird houses and participated in other environment-related activities.
“It’s pretty fun because I have learned about climate change,” said Makenna Wakahia ’26. “My eyes were opened by the hour-long video that we watched about a woman who had her life changed when she got cancer and also how the environment affected her disease.”
The Upper and Middle schools have both incorporated fun into a week of learning about serious and important topics. Shay O’Connor ’23 said:, “I think it’s a great way to interact with people from my grade, especially those who I don’t see often. I also have enjoyed talking with people from all of the grades during June week workshops. I feel like we don’t get that opportunity often and I would definitely look for more in the future.”