Science Department

The mission of the Science Department is to foster our students' curiosity about, understanding of, and connection to the natural world around them, our responsibility for it, and our use of it.

We educate our students to be scientifically literate citizens capable of understanding science as it is applied in our culture and of informing themselves in making thoughtful decisions about science and technology as they are applied in their lives. We also challenge those students considering pursuit of science as a career to prepare themselves for study at the nation's top colleges and universities.

Our dedicated faculty, who average 16 years of experience, teach students about the natural world in a curriculum coordinated from Pre-School through Twelfth Grade that provides age-appropriate, hands-on experience at every level. Beginning in First Grade, students study science in laboratory facilities that provide opportunities to get their hands on their world to understand it more directly. When leaving the lab to study outdoors or to work in other venues provides a better opportunity, classes do that. From Pre-School through Grade 6 students explore a variety of topics within each grade. Beginning in Grade 7 and extending through the Upper School, students study within a single discipline for the entire year.

In Grade 7 students study the large-scale world from the big bang and astronomy to Earth science. Science 8 focuses on human anatomy and physiology. MS Health is incorporated into Science 7 and Science 8 as students enter their adolescent years.

Upper School Science follows a physics-first sequence with students studying the core sciences in the sequence Physics, Chemistry, and Biology. This sequence best connects key concepts that explain the natural world. Honors and Advanced Placement courses give students the opportunity to pursue study at a more sophisticated level and to revisit a subject area in greater depth.

Science Department Faculty