Text Box: What is Blocking?

Block Scheduling

What is it?

The sixth graders follow a different schedule than the seventh and eighth graders. While the other grades have a ten period day seeing all of their academic teachers per day, sixth graders have three academic blocks per day.

Why? What are the benefits?

We like the block schedule for a number of reasons. We find that block scheduling:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How does it work?

Students will begin the school year with Block A on the first instructional day. That day, they will have blocks A, B, and C in addition to their specials (art, music, phys. ed., and computer). The next day, they continue the schedule with blocks D, E, and A. The schedule continues in that fashion. Students catch on by the end of the first week. Teachers post the classes in their rooms or in the halls to help students prepare for the next day. We also post the block calendars for the month on our team websites. Copy it and post it for the month at home!

Another benefit not mentioned above, is that if there is a break in the schedule due to an assembly or a snow day, for instance, the schedule picks up where it left off, thus allowing for continuity in teaching and learning.

· encourages cooperative learning, problem solving, decision making, research, inquiry-based instruction and hands-on projects;

· supports interdisciplinary opportunities;

· provides in-depth, uninterrupted experiences resulting in less lesson fragmentation;

· provides the flexibility to coordinate special programs in academic and nonacademic subjects;

· eliminates unnecessary, unstructured passing times between classes;

· provides increased individualized teacher-student interaction in several areas.