Pinpoints Pinpoints Magazine Spring 2020 | Page 16

A NICE CHANGE OF
[ S ] PACE
Tracy Dawahare knows the wisdom of providing a good amount of space for Middle
Schoolers. As Learning Center science teacher of sixth, seventh, and eighth graders,
she believes it’s common sense, really. They’re growing and they need to get up and
stretch long legs and arms.
Tracy Dawahare knows the wisdom of providing a good
amount of space for Middle Schoolers. As Learning
Center science teacher of sixth, seventh, and eighth
graders, she believes it’s common sense, really. They’re
growing and they need to get up and stretch long
legs and arms. They need to walk around and have a
change of pace and scenery. The relocation of Learning
Center classrooms into the new addition, just off one
of the three middle school hallways, does exactly that.
The kids are more in the TLS mix now, more a part
of the daily flow. There’s room to roam, and they love
it. Bigger space in the new suite of rooms allows for
bigger tables, accommodating notes and drawings
of cell division on giant paper. Mrs. Dawahare can
prep before each class arrives, saving valuable time for
students. Faculty and students coordinate space usage
through a calendar reservation system. Mrs. Dawahare
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accentuates, “In traditional Middle School, students
change rooms more often than we do. The addition of
large work rooms throughout the building allows us to
expand for various projects. Break time, which allows
for movement, is important, and the middle school
project room is a hive of activity then. Students are
working with laptops open and note cards out.”
ONE School planners specifically had in mind
students who will be freshmen next year, headed to high
school with larger, louder, more distracting classrooms
than they’ve become used to at The Lexington School.
Upstairs in the Academic Center, spacious Conference
Room 213 is a favorite of eighth graders; it even has a
sink. Similar to a college lecture class, it gives them a
feel for life after TLS. It’s good prep for the high school
environment. Mrs. Dawahare emphasizes, “As a team,
we’re trying to prepare them for the future.”