The Model

The Middle Grades Institute is designed to model effective middle schooling practices. Click on the items below to explore what makes the MGI model so powerful.

MGI participants are each placed on an interdisciplinary team for the duration of the institute. Each MGI Team has 4 or 5 facilitators who have expertise across middle grades practice and teaching. Team time allows participants to engage in advisory and working groups.

Working Groups are collaborative groups in which participants share professional goals, design projects for the year to come, and demonstrate proficiency toward their selected competencies. Working groups can consist of school teams, school faculties or individuals with shared goals. Each working group has a lead facilitator who helps to coordinate learning.

Advisory provides a chance for reflection and self-care; to offer and receive feedback on work in development; and to model and experience the type of advisory that is appropriate for middle grades students in these trying times. Participants are typically organized in groups of ten with one advisor.

The MGI Facilitator Team is a mix of 20 professors, middle school teachers, and professional development specialists. All have personal experience teaching in the middle grades and are also skilled in facilitating adult learning. Learn more about them here.

MGI hosts a cohort of middle grades students from local schools to serve as experts, panelists, and consultants for the week. Signing up for a Student Consultation is a valuable way to get feedback from young adolescents on your work, ideas and practices.

Workshops are one hour interactive presentations and discussions designed for you to extend your learning about specific practices or topics. Some are provided by MGI facilitators and others by community partners and experts.

Modules are online resources that are designed for you to extend your learning about specific practices or topics, either individually or in collaboration with others. They can be a helpful part of building your personalized learning pathway.

Each afternoon ends with an optional book talk that allows participants to discuss issues raised in the book of the day. Last year's books were Front Desk, Free Lunch, Pet, and Stamped: Racism, Anti-Racism, and You.