'Lunch Meets' Foster Community for Middle Schoolers

Middle School faculty began offering 'Lunch Meets' this week to provide students with topics to discuss and activities to do during their lunch breaks.

“We are offering 'Lunch Meets' to offer students opportunities for connection and exploration of their interests beyond their academic classes,” said Assistant Head of Middle School Laura Todis.

Some of the offerings include meetings around art, sports, climate activism, Dungeons & Dragons, Oregon Battle of the Books, and the 2020 election. On Tuesday 'Lunch Meets,' OES's World Languages teachers host Chinese, Spanish, and French language and culture meetings.

Middle School Visual, Performing & Musical Arts Teacher David Gomes recently offered a lunch meeting for students to play Magic The Gathering.

“It was great just to chatter, laugh, complain about the game, enjoy the game, and just hang out together,” Gomes said. “The students are actually pretty good at this virtual connection. All in all, it was a wonderful experience that should grow, I'm guessing, once the word gets around.”

Gathering, a core tenet of our school’s Episcopal tradition, is now more important than ever and coming together in any way we can is key to fostering the community students need to learn and thrive.

“I love being able to just chat with kids about the things that are important to them,” said Middle School Humanities Teacher Claire Kucera, who recently hosted a current events discussion. “I also love to witness opportunities for kids to connect in these strange times. There are so many new middle schoolers who need connection. Also, so many kids are missing the "community" feel that was so palpable in the building.”

The 'Lunch Meets' will continue throughout the school year, helping some of our newest Middle School aardvarks get acquainted with one another and faculty, and have fun on their lunch break.

“I think for sixth graders, it's an especially valuable gathering to offer because remote learning can feel so disconnected, and a relaxed lunch get-together can give them a chance to get to know us a bit better and feel more comfortable with teachers,” Middle School French Teacher Jaime O'Dell said. “Also, of course, I get to know them better when they show up and I hear a little bit about their interests, which I love.”