School Life

For boarding school students, and many teachers, the campus is home. Explore dormitory living, get expert advice on learning and living away from home and learn more about what can be done to help your child transition to and succeed in boarding school. Find resources for parents, teachers and students. We’ll cover sustainability, boarding school jargon, and corporal punishment. Read first-hand accounts from parents of boarding school students, find graduation gift ideas, and learn why small classes are effective.

View the most popular articles in School Life:

Parents' Biggest Worries About Boarding School

Updated
|
Parents' Biggest Worries About Boarding School
As you consider sending your child off to boarding school, you have concerns. Every parent does. We address some of those concerns for you.

One of our parental prerogatives is to worry about our children. That's probably because your child never came with an instruction manual and as a result, you have had to learn so many things about parenting simply by being a parent. No matter, worry is part of the parental landscape. Now, if you are thinking about sending your child off to boarding school, your worries will be quite specific. Probably along the lines of the following questions.

Many parents find the concept of sending a child to boarding school upsetting; a child's adolescence is such a distinctively affective period that entrusting it to others seems wrong. Yet boarding schools prosper, successors to institutions dating to medieval times. Source: Forbes.com

Will my child be safe?

Boarding schools take your child's safety very seriously. Contractually a boarding school functions in loco parentis which is a legal way of stating that the school acts in the place of the parent when it comes to supervision of its students, your child included.

Here is an overview of Pomfret School in Pomfret, Connecticut.


In many respects, your child is a whole lot safer at school where she cannot drive or go to somebody's house and get into who-knows-what. Drugs, drinking, and smoking are not permitted in a boarding school. Zero tolerance is the rule. Does it prevent teens from pushing the limits and experimenting? That's impossible,

. . .read more

Sustainable Schools

Updated
|
Sustainable Schools
Sustainable schools have become a part of our 21st century educational fabric.

By now, after two decades into the 21st century, it is obvious even to the most jaded, cynical people out there that we have to rethink how we live and function on this planet which we call Earth. We are discovering that Earth's resources are finite. We are finally realizing that we must conserve energy. We are rethinking the cost of goods and services regarding their carbon footprint. Sustainability is no longer a theory. It is a concept that is being put into daily practice.

That's why it is very encouraging to see so many private schools making progress towards developing sustainable schools. For schools, sustainability involves not just the wise use of energy and foodstuffs, but it also the prudent management of a school's fiscal resources and more. The National Association of Independent Schools has published an excellent white paper entitled Sustainability: Creating 21st Century Sustainable Schools. Let's look at the five areas of sustainability which this document puts forth. The NAIS calls these 'dimensions' which is an apt description. 'Area' implies a confined space. 'Dimension' speaks to the vastness of the challenge and the scope of the solution.

Financial Sustainability

Simply put, financial sustainability is all about drawing a line and setting responsible limits. It doesn't matter whether you have $100,000 in the bank or $900 million in your savings account. Schools need to use all the expertise and tools available to them to control expenses and maximize the use of every dollar of income available

. . .read more

Reflections on Sending Our Daughter to Boarding School

Updated
|
Reflections on Sending Our Daughter to Boarding School
Are you thinking about sending your daughter off to boarding school? Go for it!

We went our eldest daughter off to boarding school in 10th grade. That was back in the 80s. While the times were most certainly different from the 21st century, our motivation for making such a major decision would be the same today as it was back then. Let me tell the story which I hope will give you the courage to send your daughter (or son, for that matter) off to boarding school. It's well worth it.

Our Rationale

We were busy parents with careers and two children. The girls were five years apart. One was in junior high. The other was in elementary school. We lived in a little town in northwestern Connecticut. You had to drive ten miles to get to anything. Literally. While the regional high school was doing a good job, it was limited in the number of academic courses and extras which it could provide our daughter. Not only that, she had to be driven everywhere to participate in sports or extracurricular activities. With those factors looming large, we sat down one day with her and asked: "What do you think about going off to boarding school?" There was a rather enthusiastic acceptance of the idea. Probably because she realized that she would no longer be trapped in her circumstances. It would be a chance to see something different. To experience something new.

Our Boarding School Exploration Process

Looking back, I cannot honestly call it a school search process. There was no Internet via

. . .read more

Parent Perspective: Words of Wisdom for the Reluctant Parent

Updated
|
Parent Perspective: Words of Wisdom for the Reluctant Parent
Learn about an initially reluctant parent's perspective on boarding school.

By Shari Bunks Geller, parent of Blair Academy alumni

I survey my son's room. High school graduation is just two weeks away. College is no longer on the horizon, but our next step forward. I am looking to see what he will need to take with him and what he will leave behind. Looking around his room I am keenly aware of how our worlds have expanded more than we could have imagined just four years ago when we applied Michael to high school. Boarding school was consciously not on our radar when we began our high school search.
At the start of his eighth-grade year our son announced that would he like to apply to boarding school. My husband and I had a serious conversation about boarding school as an option. We both attended good public schools growing up. We had decided against our public high school as an option for our four children and were committed to sending them to an independent day school. While neither my husband nor I came from families with a boarding school culture, we had many friends whose children attended boarding schools across the country. We had been frequently cautioned that once a child visits a boarding school all-day schools will pale in comparison. The facilities, the campus and the notion of a different level of independence are very alluring to a fourteen-year-old. Although our conversation was serious, we quickly agreed that we

. . .read more

Gifts for the Boarding School Graduate

Updated
|
Gifts for the Boarding School Graduate
May is the month for private school graduations. Boarding school graduation is an especially poignant occasion. Why not mark it with a special gift?

Chances are that if you went off to boarding school for three or four years, May is a very special month. AP exams are over. IB work is complete. You probably have your college acceptances in hand. Finally, you can focus on graduation and leaving the school which has been your home away from home for these past several years.

You will most certainly receive graduation gifts to mark this very special occasion. With that in mind here are some suggestions which you might want to email to that favorite aunt or uncle. You know that mother and father will give you something special to commemorate your achievements. So I will leave the pens, watches, and pendants off this list. To make things even easier, copy and paste the suggestions below in an email to your favorite relatives and family friends.

A Tablet

There's a tablet for every budget. These lightweight, portable devices allow you to do just about anything your graduate needs to do. Watch movies? Listen to videos? Play a game? Shop? She can do all that and so much more. Best of all, she can store all of her sensitive files such as term papers, applications, etc., in the cloud. Tip: read the reviews of the models you are considering, unless, of course, your graduate has specified a particular brand and/or model.

This video offers a review of a poplar tablet.

A

. . .read more

Recent Articles

Characteristics Of The Best Schools
Characteristics Of The Best Schools
What are the characteristics of the best schools? We explore what makes some schools the best schools.
Boarding School FAQs
Boarding School FAQs
Read frequently asked questions on a range of boarding school related topics.
A Conversation About Boarding Schools
A Conversation About Boarding Schools
Explore the world of boarding schools through this insightful article, covering topics such as academic excellence, campus life, safety measures, specialized teaching for learning differences, and alumni experiences. Discover the advantages of boarding schools and gain valuable insights for choosing the right educational path for your child.

Featured Schools

Featured Schools

School Life

FOR STUDENTS
Here you’ll gain knowledge about student life at boarding school. User our glossary of terms to learn boarding school jargon, discover the importance of a partnership between school, parent and child, and find great gift ideas for the boarding school graduate.
What's It Like At Boarding School?
What's It Like At Boarding School?
The Boarding School Glossary
The Boarding School Glossary
A Year At A Swiss Boarding School
A Year At A Swiss Boarding School
FOR TEACHERS
The articles in this section are related to teaching at a boarding school. Learn more about what is being taught, why small class sizes work, and the impact of sustainability on boarding schools. You’ll find a list of eBooks about boarding schools, be able to view pictures of boarding school life, and explore course offerings.
Why Small Class Sizes Work
Why Small Class Sizes Work
How I Made Latin One of the Most Popular Classes
How I Made Latin One of the Most Popular Classes
A Survival Guide For Boarding School Teachers
A Survival Guide For Boarding School Teachers