Student Life

Clubs and Programs

Our clubs and programs allow students to pursue personal interests and explore new areas. Our programs are true extensions of Brimmer as they follows the School’s mission of promoting collaboration and a sense of personal responsibility.

Lower School Programs

List of 7 items.

  • The Buddy System

    The Buddy System, which pairs older students in the Lower School with younger students, fosters friendship and a sense of belonging. Buddies eagerly look forward to sitting together at Share Assemblies and enjoy being together for special events like the Apple Picking Trip in the early fall, the Annual Buddy Walk, and special Theatre Outings. 
  • Community Building Events

    Lower School families and their children come together for a variety of community-building events throughout the school year. First semester functions include a Lower School Picnic,  special assemblies on Visitors' Day, a Winter Concert, and Lower School Food Drive. Second semester highlights include the Family Skating NightWinterfest, and All-School Arts Festival. All Lower School parents are invited to visit their child's classroom. To truly appreciate Brimmer's strong sense of community, it is important to tour the campus and talk to current students, teachers, and parents. Brimmer's family-like atmosphere remains one of its most distinguishing characteristics
  • Share Assembly

    The strength of Brimmer's community stems from the relationships between the individuals who make up the school. Lower School students develop close bonds with their teachers and with each other. Each week the Lower School gathers in the theatre for a Share Assembly. Share Assembly activities include guest performers, storytelling, and school performances. 
  • Community Service

    In the Lower School, community service projects play a vital role in the life of students and are a reflection of the School’s Mission Statement, which promotes reaching beyond the School community. Having a heart for civic engagement and an awareness of the importance of public responsibility happens over time for children. For example, the Lower School has held annual Food Drive and Community Service Days, where the community donated non-perishable food items for the Greater Boston Food Bank. Parents are invited to visit their children's’ classes and then come together in the gymnasium to celebrate giving.
     
    Other examples of Lower School community services initiatives include:
    • Pre-K made apple pies for Ethos as part of the study of the Healthy Plate, which tied into the Lower School Food Drive. Students also collected hats and mittens for Helping Hands.
    • Grade 1 collected Box Tops.
    • Grade 2 wrote thank you letters to the benefactors of the MSPCA, and did Reading for the Red Cross.
    • Grade 3 held a used Book Sale fundraiser for the Red Cross.
    • Grade 4 oversees School Recycling.
    • Grade 5 collected money at Halloween for UNICEF and visited the Chestnut Park Senior Center.
  • Extended Day

    Extended Day is a true extension of Brimmer as it follows the School’s mission of promoting collaboration and a sense of personal responsibility. It runs until 5:30 p.m. from opening day to the last day of school. Click here for more information.
  • After School Clubs

    Clubs are open to all Lower School students and begin the end of January. Clubs run for one hour, one day per week from 3:15 - 4:15 pm. Click here for more information.
  • After School Music

    Students in PK through grade 12 have the opportunity to take private instrumental and voice lessons on the campus. Students receive a music education tailored to their individual needs based on their interest, age, and personal goals. In addition, lessons are designed to support students who are committed to participating in our band ensembles. Learn more.

Middle School Programs

List of 8 items.

  • Orientation Program

    Each year following the opening days of school, grades 6–8 spend two days at camp. Students are housed in cabins and spend the days getting to know their peers and their teachers as they participate in a variety of activities including outdoor initiatives, ropes course elements, sporting events, field games, collaborative challenges, and class meetings. This is a time for individuals and classes to set goals for the upcoming year and to gain a level of comfort and familiarity with risk-taking and collaborative learning. Middle School faculty members chaperone the trip and the camp provides staffing. 
     
    The Middle School trip to camp has several specific goals: 
    • To begin to build healthy, comfortable, safe, and trusting relationships among students and between students and faculty; 
    • To provide students with an opportunity to take risks and challenge themselves in a supportive environment; 
    • To provide individual students and class groups with an opportunity to reflect upon their previous experiences and their hopes and expectations in order to set goals for the coming school year
    • To enjoy an active, fun, and unanxious start to the new school year for all Middle School students;
    • To celebrate the eighth grade’s arrival at the culmination of Middle School and to promote a sense of leadership, responsibility, and reflection in individuals and within the class itself.
  • Social and Cultural Programs

    Social and cultural programs are an integral part of the school year in the Middle School. The Middle School Head works with the Middle School Dean of Students and the Director of Student Life to promote and schedule appropriate social activities for Middle School students. The School provides chaperones for School-sponsored events. Events include a Grade 6 outing at the beginning of the school year, a fall Grade 7/8 dance, a spring semi-formal, and open gym nights. Finally, each grade participates in a Cultural Theater Arts outing each year. Recent trips have included Ragtime and James and the Giant Peach at Wheelock Family Theater and The Sound of Music at the Opera House.
  • Community Service

    In an effort to nurture a sense of social responsibility and promote empathy and a commitment to others through service, Brimmer’s Middle School has Community Service Days throughout the academic year. The goal is to have students experience the joy and satisfaction of moving beyond their own personal, immediate needs to meeting the needs of others in their community and the world. Providing our students with structured opportunities to be global citizens is essential in creating and maintaining a community service program in the School—one with depth and meaning is of utmost importance. 

    Our Middle School regularly partners with the Great Boston Food Bank. Every Middle School student spends a day volunteering at the Food Bank and we also participate in a food drive in December. The eighth grade embarks on a yearlong, eight-hour independent community service initiative, which culminates in a Service Fair in May. Their objective is to serve the community, reflect on their experiences in writing, and then share their projects with the community.
  • Outdoor Education Program

    The Middle School Outdoor Education Program has several goals: to provide students with personal and group challenges outside the classroom, to integrate fitness and problem-solving with outdoor educational experience, to provide students an alternate arena for appropriate and safe risk-taking, and to develop student leadership skills. The Outdoor Education Program commences with the trip to camp at the beginning of the year and continues throughout the year. 
     
    One full school day twice a year is dedicated to Outdoor Education, were we take advantage of all New England has to offer! Yearly outings include hiking Blue Hills, a bike trip on the Minuteman Trial, working at the Natick Organic Farm, and white-water rafting on the Deerfield River.
  • After School Activities

    On Monday afternoons from 3:15 to 4:15 p.m. in the fall and spring, students have an opportunity to participate in activities such as the After School Creative Arts Program (see below), Creative Technology, Stagecraft, Math and Science Clubs, Photography, Knitting, Book Club, etc. Faculty leaders advise activities groups, but students are encouraged to develop activities from among their interests, assume leadership roles in them, pursue personal interests, and explore new areas. Students have the opportunity to change their activity selection for each activity period. Participation in activities and clubs is optional.
  • After School Creative Arts Program

    During the fall and spring (concurrently with the athletic seasons), Middle School students can participate in creative arts offerings on Monday afternoons. No athletic practices are held so that students can, if they choose, participate in a variety of offerings that typically include acting (in the Middle School play, which is a drama or comedy in the fall and a musical in the spring), technical theatre, costume design, photography, and music. Other electives, including music, dance, costume design, and studio arts, may be offered when available.
  • After School Music

    Students in PK through grade 12 have the opportunity to take private instrumental and voice lessons on the campus. Students receive a music education tailored to their individual needs based on their interest, age, and personal goals. In addition, lessons are designed to support students who are committed to participating in our band ensembles. Learn More.
  • After School Study Hall Program

    Click here for information about After School Study Hall Program.

Upper School Programs

List of 9 items.

  • Student Senate

    Student Senate is a group of elected student leaders (and two faculty advisors) who meet weekly to discuss School issues, plan School events, and represent student concerns, suggestions, and ideas. 

    Middle School Senate and Upper School Senate have their own officers and meet separately. Student members on Middle and Upper School Senate include the president, vice-president, and secretary/treasurer, as well as two representatives from each grade.
  • Judicial Board

    The Brimmer Upper School Judicial Board—comprised of students, administrators, and faculty members—is committed to strengthening our community by developing and maintaining a tone of decency and sense of responsibility in our daily interactions.

    The Judicial Board seeks to promote honesty, ethical behavior, equity, and equality in the School community. It strives to be impartial, to uphold the rules and values of the School, to maintain confidentiality, and to respect an individual’s right to a fair disciplinary process. 
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, & Belonging (DEIB)

    Brimmer prides itself on its diverse student body, which includes students of varying races, ethnicities, family structures, personal identities, religions, neighborhoods, and countries of origin. Student friendships and support networks span across this diversity, and those bonds enrich our community.
    In an effort to support our students, promote our core values, and respond to the world around us, Brimmer maintains a range of student diversity clubs and affinity groups that meet regularly. These include: Black and Latinx/Hispanic Affinity Groups in the Upper School; GSA Club (Gender and Sexuality for All) in Middle and Upper Schools; and Middle School Students of Color Affinity Group; 5th Grade Diversity Lunch Bunch. Topics discussed in those groups, which are student-led with faculty/staff guidance, range from celebrations of identity to history lessons to politics and current events to microaggressions. The make-up and existence of these groups may change year to year as we respond to the needs of our community.

    Brimmer is committed to educating and empowering all of its community members to be leaders in social equity. Throughout each academic year, we hold internal events that celebrate culture and difference. We also bring in speakers and hold workshops for our students and faculty on a range of topics addressing equity, inclusion, and belonging. These programs are meant to give each participant the tools to be meaningful contributors to Brimmer and to the larger world around them. Brimmer students help to develop internal DEIB programming at all levels but are also active in the opportunities that are offered to them off campus. Our students attend the NAIS Student Diversity Leadership Conference (part of the NAIS People of Color Conference) each year as well as AISNE Students of Color Conferences for Middle and Upper School students. These conferences address topics of race but also cover in-depth issues surrounding all aspects of identity. Students also participate in smaller, more local programs when opportunities arise.
  • Community Service

    In the Upper School, community service initiatives are designed to help students develop a fuller understanding of their ability to make a difference in the world. To this end, Students must complete 40 hours of community service as part of their graduation requirement. These placements should ideally contain elements of social service that represent the maximum use of a student’s social capital. 
     
    Each grade is expected to design and initiate one community service project each year. These projects may include fundraising and/or service and may be on-going or singular events. Grades 9 and 10 participate in a Community Service Day, where students are split into different groups, and spend the day learning about an organization and doing volunteer work.
     
    Throughout the school year, students, parents, and/or faculty initiate and engage in school-wide community service and fundraising to benefit local and global organizations in response to on-going and immediate service needs. Students also have frequent opportunities to engage in in-school service helping out at school events, working as aides in a Lower School classroom, providing support at athletic events, etc. Students may also choose to join the Community Service Club to work on student led service initiatives.
  • Outdoor Education Program

    Outdoor Education trips are offered during the fall, winter, and spring seasons. Trips may focus on hiking, backpacking, rock climbing, fishing, skiing, snowshoeing, camping, or other outdoor activities. 

    Students learn practical skills in camp-craft and outdoor living, outdoor cooking and menu preparation, emergency wilderness first aid, minimum-impact camping, and environmental preservation. There is also an emphasis on developing leadership skills, communication, trust, and cooperation. Enrollment is limited to 15 students and to one season of participation unless space allows.
  • Wellness Program

    Upper School students participate in wellness programs geared to support their social, emotional, and physical well-being. As a School, we know there is much more to a student’s life than just academics. 

    We strive to develop students who will go on to be successful in the world and educate them in areas that will allow them to be prepared to make informed decisions when faced with challenging situations. Each grade has week-long workshops in either the area of sex education or stress management and substance use and abuse. Other topics include: Nutrition, Community Building, Academic Wellness, CPR/First Aid Training, and Equity and Inclusion workshops. When possible we try to offer a parent workshop as well.

    Learn more about Health and Wellness at Brimmer.
  • Upper School Retreat

    Upper School students spend two days at the beginning of each academic year at an outdoor camp. This overnight trip allows Upper School students and faculty to get to know each other, to learn how to work together effectively, and to have some fun.

    The School trips provide an excellent introduction to the school year. The programming for camp is designed by student leaders with the support of the Dean of Students and Upper School Head. The camp experience is a tradition at Brimmer and May and is designed to facilitate community building. (In years when religious or other holidays fall during the annual camp trip, alternate programming may be scheduled.) The Upper School goes to Camp Wingate-Kirkland on Cape Cod, where students will spend time bicycling, kayaking, swimming, exploring the beach, playing field games, paddle boarding, etc. All Upper School students are required to attend camp. 
  • Activities and Clubs

    Extracurricular activities allow students to pursue personal interests or explore new areas. Students with common interests are encouraged to form new clubs. Groups meet during lunch or an activity period. Additional meetings take place when needed. Recent clubs offered include the following:  Model United Nations, Quiz Bowl, Student Diversity, Gender Equality, Film Club, Philosophy Club, Math Competition, Digital Fabrication, Knitting, Politics Club, Stock Market Club, Acoustic Music, and Doodle Art.
  • After School Music

    Students in PK through grade 12 have the opportunity to take private instrumental and voice lessons on the campus. Students receive a music education tailored to their individual needs based on their interest, age, and personal goals. In addition, lessons are designed to support students who are committed to participating in our band ensembles. Learn More.
As an inclusive private school community, Brimmer welcomes students who will increase the diversity of our school. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, or any other characteristic protected from discrimination under state or federal law, in the administration of our educational policies, admissions practices, financial aid decisions, and athletic and other school-administered programs.