Three years that
change how
students see themselves.
Middle School at Woodlawn is where students discover what they think, how they work best, and what they want to stand for. Every project, overnight trip, and challenging question is designed around that discovery.
Middle School is where
the work gets
more complex.
The six graduate outcomes that begin in Early Childhood grow in depth and complexity during Middle School. Students move from understanding what a community is to analyzing how history shaped it. They move from working alongside classmates to leading alongside people who see the world differently.
These three years are where students begin to understand that their perspective matters, and that developing a strong one is worth the effort. That is what carries them into Upper School ready to go deeper.
Every Middle School project moves through the same four stages. The questions get harder, the research goes deeper, and the audience gets more demanding.
Rigorous. Integrated.
Built around real questions.
Middle School ‘Blazers study Language Arts, History, Mathematics, Science, and Spanish or French as core subjects, with enrichment in Visual Arts, Performing Arts, Music, Fitness and Service Learning. Students also select from Discovery Courses and enrichment offerings each year.
Every subject is connected by a driving question. To experience what that looks like in practice, we invite you to visit campus.
“Coming from a school where we never truly experienced this type of welcoming environment, the difference has been remarkable. We have felt embraced with open arms, and as a parent, that means more than I can put into words. Knowing that my child is in a place where she is known, welcomed, and surrounded by people who genuinely care has brought our family so much comfort.”Woodlawn Family
Learning that goes
beyond the classroom.
Middle School at Woodlawn is designed around the whole student. Common Hour, overnight trips, international travel, life skills, athletics, theater, discovery courses, world languages, and inquiry labs are all part of what makes these three years distinct from anything a student has experienced before.
Common Hour
Once a week, the entire Middle School comes together across grade levels. Students share announcements, lead activities, and build the cross-grade relationships that make Woodlawn’s community distinct. Students meet in advisory teams daily with a faculty advisor. Seasonal traditions, some serious and some joyful, are created and owned by the students themselves.
Overnight Trips
Every Middle School grade takes a signature overnight trip connected to their year’s essential question. Sixth graders explore nature at Tremont in the Great Smoky Mountains. Seventh graders travel to the Carolina coast for the Sound to Sea program at Salter Path, NC. Eighth graders spend a week in Charleston as the culmination of their American History studies.
Life Skills
Middle School ‘Blazers meet weekly with our Life Skills teacher to discuss the topics that matter most during adolescence. These conversations, about decision-making, relationships, and identity, are built into the school week because we believe the social and emotional work of these years is just as important as the academic work.
International Travel
Woodlawn’s international travel opportunity gives Middle School ‘Blazers the chance to experience a culture through its art, architecture, history, language, and food. Students travel abroad every year, returning with a wider view of the world and a deeper understanding of their place in it. This is the Awareness outcome made tangible.
Athletics
Middle School ‘Blazers compete across fall, winter, and spring seasons in soccer, cross country, volleyball, basketball, swimming, and track. Athletics at Woodlawn build the same outcomes the classroom does: teamwork, resilience, and the understanding that showing up for others is a skill worth developing.
The Red Barn Players
The Red Barn Players is Woodlawn’s Middle School theater program. Students audition, rehearse, and perform full productions for the school community, developing voice, discipline, and the creative courage that comes from committing to a role and seeing it through to opening night.
Discovery Courses
Discovery Courses give Middle School ‘Blazers the chance to explore interests beyond the core curriculum. Offered throughout the year, these student-selected electives are an early expression of the Agency outcome: students choosing what to investigate, and investing in the answer.
Spanish + French
Middle School ‘Blazers study Spanish and French, building fluency and cultural awareness simultaneously. World language study at Woodlawn begins before Middle School and continues through graduation, developing the Awareness outcome across every division of the PreK through 12 experience.
Inquiry Labs
Inquiry Labs give Middle School ‘Blazers dedicated time to investigate, experiment, and build. Students work through open-ended challenges that do not have a single right answer, developing the problem-solving skills and intellectual confidence that carry them into Upper School and beyond.
The experiences that
shape who they become.
These are the programs built into the fabric of Middle School at Woodlawn. Each one develops something the classroom alone cannot: integrity, public voice, and the understanding that real learning happens in the presence of a real audience.
Honor Code
Every Woodlawn Middle School student upholds the Honor Code: “On my honor, I will conduct myself with personal and academic integrity.” The Code is not a rule posted on a wall. It is a commitment students make to each other, and the foundation of a community built on mutual trust and respect.
Project Presentations
At Woodlawn, a project is not complete until it has been shared. Middle School ‘Blazers present their work to real audiences throughout the year, developing the public speaking skills, intellectual confidence, and ability to take and respond to questions that follow them into Upper School and beyond.
Service Learning
Middle School ‘Blazers connect their academic work to the Lake Norman community through regular service learning partnerships. These are not one-day volunteer events. They are sustained relationships that develop the Impact and Awareness outcomes through direct engagement with real community needs.
Competing on a
national stage
since 2005.
National History Day is a nationwide academic competition open to Middle and Upper School students. ‘Blazers submit original research projects in one of five categories: research paper, video documentary, website, exhibit, or performance, each responding to that year’s national theme.
The work is judged at regional, state, and national levels. Woodlawn students have participated every year since 2005, earning awards at every level of competition. For many students, NHD is their first experience doing original research, navigating a primary source, and defending their conclusions in front of a panel of experts.
In 2013, Jake Johnson became a National History Day National Winner, representing Woodlawn on the largest stage in the competition. In 2020, Joey Carol advanced as a National Finalist with his documentary on East and West Germany after the fall of the Berlin Wall. Multiple ‘Blazers have advanced to national finals across more than fifteen years of competition.
61 acres of room to learn and grow.
Woodlawn’s campus in Mooresville, NC gives Middle School students the space to do real work in a real setting. Garden beds, outdoor classrooms, and a community that extends into the Lake Norman region make the campus itself part of the curriculum.
Located just north of Charlotte, Woodlawn serves families across Mooresville, Davidson, Cornelius, Huntersville, and the broader Lake Norman area. Middle School enrollment is open on a rolling basis, space permitting.
See Middle School
in action.
The best way to understand what Woodlawn’s Middle School looks like is to watch it happen. Tour our campus in Mooresville, NC and meet the educators who designed these three years around who your student is becoming.