Middle School Advocacy Groups are cleverly named, reflecting a fusion of the Advocate’s last name with something quirky, characteristic, or meaningful to the group. From Mr. Lambert’s “Lamberhead Sharks” to Ms. Nguyen and Ms. Cloward’s “CinnaNguyen Toast Clownch,” the names can’t help but put a smile on your face.

Which is precisely the point.

Menlo takes joy very seriously. It’s in the School tagline: “inspiring lives of meaning, impact, and joy.” And it received top billing in our refreshed Values Statement: “A Joyful Learning Environment That is Engaging, Challenging, and Supportive.”

So when Middle School Advocacy Coordinators wanted to help sixth, seventh, and eighth graders learn to embrace the school’s values, they knew that fun should be at the forefront. Rather than just hanging the posters on their classroom walls or reciting them out of context, Advocates designed developmentally appropriate activities to instill each value’s importance and inspire its practice.

Setting Expectations in Sixth

It was important for sixth graders to understand what values are before they could begin to understand why they matter. Before being introduced to the refreshed values statement, students were asked to think about what kind of person they wanted to be, how they wished to treat others, and how they would like others to treat them.

In Ms. Wheeler and Ms. Stark’s Advocacy (“Wheel-R the Baby Starks”), students were divided into four groups—one for each value—and shown a selection of photos from the school’s Flickr account. From friendly notes on lockers (culture of kindness) and creative group projects (engaging learning environment) to Special Olympics (purposes larger than ourselves) and Wellness Week (caring community), students were able to see Menlo’s values in action. They also brainstormed how to handle various scenarios where the values were being challenged—perhaps a classmate was left out of a group, left litter on the Quad, or cheated on a test—and the importance of being an upstander.

Next, students were asked to choose one value that they felt compelled to help strengthen, and design posters on Canva that both promoted the value and depicted the action steps they would take to defend it. This helped reinforce the ideal that upholding our values is a community-wide effort, one where we each play an important role. “I think when students are given opportunities to feel like they are active parts of the solution, they are empowered to make better choices,” said Ms. Stark.

Stepping it Up in Seventh

Walking into Seventh Grade Advocacy Coordinator Mr. Carefoot’s classroom, it’s no wonder that his group’s name is “The Care Bears.” He smiles generously as he explains how he adapted the values project for a slightly older age group.

After reviewing Menlo’s updated values statement, students participated in a brief discussion about how, why, and what it looks like to live these values individually, as seventh graders, and as a school. They practiced sentence-starters for instances when the values were being challenged and role-played how to be an upstander. “Most of our kids innately understand what to do, and so it’s just about trying it on for size and becoming more comfortable, so that they are able to speak up in the moment,” said Mr. Carefoot.

The Care Bears then divided into groups to create posters that reflected a value that resonated most with them. Ashley and Lara chose “A Culture of Kindness, Trust, and Belonging,” sketching a student dropping their book and somebody stopping to help pick it up, a trust fall, and a string of international flags. The girls feel as though their Advocacy does a good job of upholding this value. “We always switch partners when we talk, and we invite everyone to talk,” said Lara. “It’s important,” added Ashley, “so that everyone feels safe and feels like they are able to participate, raise their hand, and ask questions.” To which Lara chimed in, “And also so they can feel included. Everyone likes to feel included.”

Fellow seventh graders Emery, Channing, and Trevor chose “A Joyful Learning Environment” for their poster, which they described as enjoyable peers and teachers, prepared teachers and students, and fun and engaging lessons that they fully understand. “It’s definitely important to want to learn…and it’s important to feel comfortable being there and asking questions,” remarked Channing. When asked to share an example of their value in action, the boys describe a project in Whitaker Lab last year, where they worked with tools to build sustainable garden beds before putting them in soil and adding plants. “It was kind of fun—like fail first, and then learn how to do it,” added Channing.

To further drive the lesson home, students were asked to jot down in their journals which value was most important to them and why, what this value looks like in action and why it matters to our school community.

“We have phenomenal kids, and while we live these values in our day-to-day practice, really naming them, owning them, and reflecting on them is helpful,” Mr. Carefoot said.

Embodying Our Values in Eighth

Finally, in eighth grade, it was time for students to practice their leadership skills in living and modeling Menlo School’s values. They discussed the role core values play in highlighting who we are, guiding our behavior, and helping us avoid shame and guilt. They talked about how core values can shift and adapt as we grow. Eighth Grade Advocacy Coordinator Mr. Giardi (“Giardi in the USA”) gave an example of how health became one of his core values after his doctor noticed some higher-than-usual cholesterol levels. As a result, Mr. G made a commitment to improving his diet and eating habits, modeling for his students what it means to live by your values. In admitting to occasional slip-ups, Mr. G acknowledged that our actions might not always reflect our values, creating space to course-correct.

Bringing it back to joy, eighth graders played a game of “Four Corners,” where they were instructed to run to the corner of the room that represented their responses to various prompts: often, sometimes, rarely, or never. Examples included “My values are more important than the opinion of others,” “I find it difficult to live by my values around friends/peers,” and “I speak up for my values when I witness them being broken.” Finally, students were handed a Venn diagram to fill in with their own core values on one side, Menlo’s on the other, and shared values in the intersection.

Meanwhile, Middle School Wellness Counselor Ms. Uniacke beams over her latest wall decor: a shiny new Menlo School Mission and Values poster. It aligns perfectly with her recent Post-it Note project, where eighth graders were asked to write down something that they value right here and now and stick it onto a giant spectrum ranging from “raise my hand in agreement” to “launch a full-scale protest in support.” While in previous years, Taylor Swift and Fortnite reigned supreme, this year’s responses favored words like “kindness,” “joy,” “empathy,” “honesty,” and “trust.” “It’s just so sweet how it was so unprompted, and yet it still falls in line with our Menlo values,” reflected Ms. Uniacke.