Just last fall we announced the opening of Building 500, an addition of three more classrooms, large, open decks, and dedicated bathrooms for the high school. By last spring, it became clear more space would be needed for the rapidly growing high school. Two new modular buildings - each with two classrooms - were added to the campus earlier this month.

Chartwell High School is rooted in project-based learning. Each school year is broken into four themed Project Periods. During each Project Period, the curriculum is shaped around a particular driving question and students engage in the production of a project that explores that question. This quarter Chartwell high school students will be pondering the driving question, “What is a good career for me and why?"

Electives and clubs offer students engaging and different ways to learn and develop skills - many of which they might have never been exposed to. This year several new offerings have students challenging themselves and growing socially and emotionally - including judo.

With the growth of the high school and an increased interest in sports, Chartwell High School is launching its first competitive athletics teams this year. We will start the year with basketball and wrestling, and offer golf in the spring. Garrett Benjamin joined Chartwell this year and will be the athletic director for the high school. Mr. Benjamin joins us from Saint Francis School in Mountain View where he coached golf, wrestling, football, and softball, in addition to his teaching and administrative responsibilities.

Chartwell School and STEAM Director Topher Mueller have been nominated in the Best School category and in the Best K-12 Teacher category of Monterey County Weekly’s “Best Of” Poll. Both categories are in the AROUND TOWN section. Voting is open until September 7, 2021. VOTE HERE 

For their fourth project period of the year, high school students are studying marine ecology. The field experiences have included a guided tour through the Elkhorn Slough Marine Sanctuary, tidepooling at Natural Bridges in Santa Cruz, and a whale watching excursion on the Monterey Bay. The period will culminate with final project presentations. Photo by Gabe Aquino, Grade 11

Chartwell parents came together to show their appreciation of our faculty and staff for Teacher Appreciation Week. On Wednesday, the Bella Bee Coffee Truck arrived on campus along with a table filled with breakfast treats. On Friday, parents created a smoothie bar and hand-delivered them to classrooms for teachers. Thank you to our Chartwell Family Network for your support!

Chartwell High School is rooted in project-based learning. Each school year is broken into four themed Project Periods. During each Project Period, the curriculum is shaped around a particular driving question and students engage in the production of a project that explores that question. The projects link subject matter and skills instruction into a coherent whole.

For Project Period 3 this year, the theme was Science Fiction and the driving question was: How can I use Sci Fi to envision what alien life would be in the Proxima Centauri system? 

This year, many students missed out on the traditional science camp due to COVID restrictions. STEAM Director Topher Mueller, realizing the educational and social-emotional value of this annual experience, worked to recreate an abbreviated on-campus science sleepover including science projects, a day hike, astronomy, games, and even a campfire.

Chartwell alumna Kayla Cromer was recently interviewed on the Hoda and Jenna Show for her role in the TV series Everything's Gonna Be Okay. Kayla's character, Matilda, has autism - a diagnosis Kayla also shares. Kayla has been a passionate advocate for dyslexia awareness, and the associated learning differences that often accompany it. Congratulations, Kayla, on your tremendous success. You can watch the segment here. 

Students in Mr. Owen's and Mr. Whitman's classes are studying Greek history. To bring the Olympic spirit to life, they hosted their own version of the legendary games. Ms. Benjamin, a college track and field athlete, came out and taught students how to throw the javelin and the shot put. The focus of the day was on trying new activities, being competitive and supportive of one another, and imagining what the early Greek games would have been like.

The Chartwell Cyberdogs joined 32 teams in Silicon Valley for the Northern CA Innovation Expo late last month- and were among just 12 finalists to present their innovative idea and solution to expert leaders in technology and engineering firms. While they were not among the three teams invited to continue to the Global Innovation Expo, their idea - which was improving orthotics for children with cerebral palsy - impressed the judges during their four presentations.

As part of an integrated project in math, science, and language arts, Ms. McClelland's homeroom built water rockets. Students designed and created their fins, cones, and decorations. They learned about the scientific method and set a hypothesis about the amount of water and its effect on the rocket's flight. Students participated in their second launch yesterday by changing one variable, either fin type, weight, or water amount. After successfully launching their modified rockets, students will "land" on Mars and learn more about the red planet.

Chartwell School's Teacher Training Institute has announced its Summer 2021 Structured Literacy course offerings and registration is now open. Click here to learn more and to register.