Private Middle School Electives That Build Confidence and Curiosity

Middle school is a time of enormous growth. Students are discovering new interests, becoming more independent, and beginning to understand who they are as learners. The right educational environment gives them room to explore while providing the support they still need.

Electives can play an important role in that process. At a private middle school like Rowland Hall, elective courses give students meaningful opportunities to make choices about their education and discover interests and strengths they may not have known they had.

What Are Middle School Electives and Why Do They Matter?

Electives are courses students can choose based on their interests, giving them opportunities to explore subjects beyond required classes. That choice is particularly valuable during early adolescence, as middle schoolers are increasingly ready to make decisions for themselves but still benefit from guidance as they learn what interests them and where their strengths lie.

How Electives Build Confidence

Confidence often grows when students see what they are capable of doing. An elective may ask a student to speak in front of an audience, program a robot, perform onstage, or take on another unfamiliar challenge. Because students have some choice in these experiences, they can feel greater ownership of their learning. As they practice new skills and see their progress, they gain evidence that they can take on new challenges.

How Electives Spark Curiosity

Electives create space for students to ask, “What am I interested in?” Some students dive more deeply into something they already enjoy; others encounter an entirely new field. And exploration doesn’t need a predetermined outcome. Trying something new, and discovering whether or not you want to keep pursuing it, is valuable in itself.

Electives That Build Confidence and Curiosity at Rowland Hall

At Rowland Hall, students can choose from 49 elective classes within a Middle School program that balances academic depth with exploration and choice. These opportunities take two forms: extensions (yearlong and semester-long courses offered in grades 6–8) and electives (half-semester courses offered in grades 7–8). For simplicity, we’re using “electives” to refer to both throughout this post.

Aviation

Middle schoolers don’t often get the chance to pilot an airplane. They do at Rowland Hall. Through our aviation electives, students progress through courses that introduce principles of flight, aircraft design, engineering, and flight simulation. By the advanced level, they have the opportunity to pilot an aircraft alongside professional instructors, putting science and math to work in a real-world setting.

Robotics, STEM, and Computer Science

After building foundational technology skills in sixth grade, students can explore electives including robotics, app and game design, immersive technology, 3D modeling and printing, and engineering. These courses invite students to experiment and troubleshoot, helping them see that figuring out why something didn’t work can be an important part of figuring out what will.

Visual and Performing Arts

Rowland Hall students can explore visual art, music, theatre, dance, media arts, public art, and other creative disciplines. Along the way, they build technical skills while making their own artistic choices. Often, they discover a new way to express themselves or simply find a creative pursuit they enjoy.

Debate and Public Speaking

All sixth graders take Foundations of Debate, where they’re introduced to public speaking, argumentation, and reflective listening. Interested students can continue into competitive debate or explore courses such as Mock Trial and Model United Nations, learning to research ideas, consider different perspectives, and communicate with greater confidence.

More Ways to Explore: World Languages and Clubs

Choice extends beyond Rowland Hall’s elective courses. Every middle schooler chooses a language to pursue throughout grades 6–8 (French, Mandarin Chinese, or Spanish). And student-designed and -run clubs give middle schoolers another way to try something new while taking an active role in shaping their school experience.

More Than Electives: Advisory, Class Trips, and the Mission to Mars Capstone

Exploration is only one piece of the Middle School experience. Strong relationships and thoughtful guidance help students make the most of these increasing opportunities for independence. Each student belongs to a small advisory group led by a teacher-advisor who provides consistent support, while annual class trips extend learning beyond campus and strengthen relationships through shared experiences.

In eighth grade, students bring together three years of learning through Mission to Mars, a capstone project in which they design a sustainable human colony on Mars. Drawing from science and the humanities, students consider everything from human survival to the culture of their imagined community, then present their vision to an audience acting as potential investors.

How Rowland Hall’s Approach to Electives Is Different

What distinguishes Rowland Hall among Utah independent middle schools isn’t simply the number of choices students have. It’s how those choices are introduced.

Sixth graders receive a structured introduction to several subjects through Foundations while also beginning to explore their interests through extension courses. As students move through our Middle School, their choices expand. Extensions continue through eighth grade, and seventh and eighth graders can also choose from half-semester electives. Together, these opportunities give students increasing freedom to pursue existing interests and discover new ones as they become more independent learners.

This progression reflects Rowland Hall’s approach as an independent middle school: students aren’t expected to already know what they love or what they’re good at. Instead, they’re supported by adults who know them well and are given increasing opportunities to find out for themselves.

Helping Your Child Choose the Right Electives

When elective registration arrives, it can be tempting to help your child assemble the “right” schedule. But middle school doesn’t have to be about finding the perfect combination of classes. Instead, encourage your child to consider what genuinely interests them. They might continue something they already love, choose a class that stretches them in a new direction, or try something simply because they’ve never done it before. And if an elective doesn’t become a lasting interest? That’s useful information too. Discovering what isn’t for you can be part of understanding what is.

Learn About Rowland Hall’s Middle School Electives

At Rowland Hall, a private middle school in Utah serving students in grades 6–8, exploration and academic challenge go hand in hand. Through electives and other opportunities for choice, students can discover new interests and gain a clearer sense of themselves as learners.

Explore Rowland Hall’s Middle School program and see how your child can make the most of these important years. And if you have questions or want to experience our Middle School for yourself, our admission team can help you plan a visit.