Activities

MIDDLE SCHOOL ACTIVITIES

Students in grades five through eight have a variety of organized activities available to them during the school day as well as before and after school.

Clubs

Clubs for Middle School students are offered during the school day once a week.  Students select three choices from the list of clubs offered. Students enroll in one club for the first half of the year and a new club for the second half of the year. A few clubs are year round clubs. Examples of past club choices include Environmental Club, Chorus, Art Club, Open Gym, Gardening Club, etc.

Before and After School Activities

Supervision

There will be a program of supervised study before school from 7:00-8:15 a.m. in the Commons and after school from 3:15-5:30 p.m. in the library. All Middle School students who are on campus between the hours of 7:00-8:15 a.m. and 3:15-5:30 p.m. and who are not formally involved in sports or drama activities are required to attend the supervised study. Students who must wait for their rides following after-school activities must attend the supervised study. Parents are required to pick their daughters up no later than 5:30 p.m.

Performing Arts

The After-School Drama Club is for students in grades five through eight.  The club performs two major productions during the year, and students are able to participate in one or both productions.  Rehearsals are after school on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 3:30 - 5:30 p.m. and are set up to allow practice of selected scenes and acts in the plays; therefore, students need to attend only the rehearsals they are directly involved in.  This is determined by the play schedule, which is available once the cast has been selected.  All students who join the club participate in some capacity in each play.

All aspects of After-School Drama Club are based on sound, logical rules of theatre. The process of creativity develops within this discipline. The success of a play comes through the work of all involved, from small to large parts, from curtain puller to stage manager. This is truly a total team effort!

Middle School Athletics

The majority of Middle School Athletics are affiliated with Catholic Youth Organization (CYO). The CYO program emphasizes the development of the student as an athlete and complements Forest Ridge's commitment to support students in their athletic endeavors, while maintaining a good balance with academics and family obligations. 

Fifth through eighth grade students are invited to turn out for sports teams. All athletes are taught age-appropriate skills, simple to intermediate strategies, and good sportsmanship. Forest Ridge has a "no-cut" policy.  Anyone who turns out and regularly attends practices participates in games and contests.  Practices are generally scheduled on weekday afternoons. Occasionally, if we have a higher than average turnout and more teams, schedules could include a morning and/or Sunday practice time.  All CYO competitions are held on weekends. For more detailed information about sports teams, please visit the Middle School Athletics page on the Forest Ridge School Web site.

Forest Ridge seventh and eighth grade students have the opportunity to participate in lacrosse as well, which is affiliated with Washington Area Schoolgirls Lacrosse Association. Practices and games are both scheduled during weekday evenings and weekends.

All sports participants are required to have a recent (annual) physical form on file in the Athletic Department PRIOR TO participating in any sport. They are good for two years. Athletes are not able to participate in any practice or game without this completed form given to the Athletic Director.

The sports seasons are listed below:

• Soccer - late August to early November
• Fall Conditioning/Cross Country - early September to mid October
• Basketball - early November to mid February
• Winter Conditioning- November through March
• Volleyball - mid February to early May
• Lacrosse (7^th and 8^th only)- late February to mid May
• Track - mid April to late May

While effort is made to allow a student the ability to participate in after-school drama and middle school sports, there will be unavoidable conflicts.  It may not be possible to participate in both drama and sports. Families should use Goal Five and personal priorities to determine the appropriate level of after school activity. Please keep in mind the possible impact on the student, programs, and the teams when choosing several after school activities.