At the beginning of each school year, Upper School students pause academics for a day of class bonding; a tradition aimed at fostering deeper connections within their grade and to support student well-being. Retreat Day for upperclassmen falls on the day after the annual middle school sleepover. These bonding days shape each grade’s identity as a whole, as well as establishing strong relationships with fellow classmates.
For 7th through 9th grade students, the Middle School Sleepover begins on a Thursday afternoon; the field becomes populated with a wide range of activities such as a bouncy house, bracelet making and nail polish. For dinner, they enjoyed food from Joe’s Pizza and In N Out food trucks. Before going to sleep, each grade participates in its own advisory lip sync battle, which sets the tone for a memorable night and year to follow.
For 10th graders, retreat day is the first time they have the opportunity to interact with each other as they enter the upper school. In previous years, students and accompanying faculty participated in a beach clean up and visited the aquarium. This day was primarily rooted in service and education while still acting as a mechanism to unite the grade. This year, however, the retreat day was changed to be centered around a ropes course and team-building exercises located at a park in Culver City.
The decision was made by 10th grade Dean Katherine Pollock. After considering feedback from the previous year’s 10th graders and holding discussions with the other 10th grade advisers she adjusted the retreat’s itinerary.
Pollock recognized the value of this retreat day and implored her students to enter the day thinking about what kind of class they want to be, and what legacy they want to leave behind in a few years.
This was the first time students were able to interact with their new advisories outside of the classroom setting. Having classmates who they are not necessarily close with supporting and encouraging them meant a lot to Pollock and the 10th grade advisers.
While the sophomores spent their day at the ropes course, the junior class had the opportunity to explore Los Angeles, focusing on exploring the city’s culture. In previous years, there were a variety of options for where students can go for their retreat day. This year, however, the class council worked to create a more unified experience with larger groups split between just two places, downtown Santa Monica and Little Tokyo.
“We’re always thinking about how to make sure retreats are meeting different goals, one is to bring the class together and have them bond with communal experiences, so when we had 10 different trips, everyone was having different experiences,” 11th Grade Dean Ilyana Contreras said.
The decision behind modifying this retreat was to allow for friend groups to potentially expand and interact with those they wouldn’t normally interact with, while still taking advantage of the many fun options Los Angeles has to offer. Instead of “Explore LA” the title of this retreat was now called “Escape LA,” where students were put into randomized groups and attempted an interactive escape room-esque game, where everyone downloaded the same app that contained clues and hints to their game. This modification allowed students to work together outside of the classroom.
“I’m more interested in trying to figure out how we’re going to use AI, as opposed to trying to avoid it,” Director of Middle School Sean Fitts said.
