<p>Hi everyone. Well, I've really been thinking about boarding school, and I can't imagine that boarders have much fun on the weekends. I mean, on the websites, it says that they go to movies, mall, etc., but I can't imagine so many kids doing this (never mind the expense). So, what can boarders really do on the weekends besides homework, athletic events, and sleep. And what happens if your school is in the middle of nowhere?</p>
<p>Thanks </p>
<p>xAxBxC</p>
<p>if the school is near a town sometimes they walk to town. and plus you can hang out w/ friends etc…
W/ schools that are predominately boarding there is stuff to do on wknds.</p>
<p>like what? 10 char</p>
<p>like school funded things(ie dances etc) and going into town hanging out w/ friends. if you’r that boring that you can’t find anything to do w/ friends then…</p>
<p>Some schools have Saturday classes.</p>
<p>Weekends at Andover can actually be a lot of fun. I’ll describe a typical weekend schedule.</p>
<p>Friday:
Go to the Den (student hangout/grill in the basement of the dining hall) for smoothies and TV- often times there will be games like foosball set up
Go to a Dramalab (student-run plays that happen every Friday night)
Back to the Den, or maybe to a dorm with a group of friends. Fridays are mostly just for unwinding after the week.
Dorm sign-in at 10:00</p>
<p>Saturday:
Wake up around 11, hang out in the dorm, shower, etc.
Walk into town for Bruegger’s and Starbucks with some friends around 1, maybe get some homework done, go for a CVS run and look around the shops
Head back to campus to catch a few sports games (very popular, the stands are usually full, so it’s a lot of fun.)
Relax/go see a performance if there is one (some favorites are the hypnotist and Black Violin, a group that performed with artists such as Kanye West and Alicia Keys)
Go to the dance in the Den from about 9:30-11:15 (there’s a dance basically every weekend- often times they have themes, like Jersey Shore or black light)
Dorm sign-in at 11:30</p>
<p>Sunday:
Wake up around 11, hang out in the dorm, shower, etc.
Head to Commons (the dining hall) for brunch at around 12:30
Walk around campus, throw the lacrosse ball around in the Cage, go into town again, etc. for most of the afternoon
Go to the library in the evening/study hours (a pretty social place, believe it or not)
Dorm sign-in at 9:30</p>
<p>That’s pretty much it! It’s also really common for local boarders to go home, or take their friends out for lunch. It’s less common but definitely not unheard of for students to take a trip into Boston- I’d say I go into the city once or twice a term. Really how much fun you have on the weekend is up to you. You’re surrounded by friends and have many options to choose from- you have to learn to make the most of it.</p>
<p>My kid loves the weekends at St. Mark’s. Many weekends start with Saturday classes, followed by athletic events. After that, however, the weekends are the best time to hang out with friends. Many schools now employ someone to arrange weekend activities. Interesting weekends help to draw day students to campus.</p>
<p>I took the last weekend activities list from St. Mark’s website. If you’re interested, the URL is [St</a>. Mark’s School: Parents Upcoming Weekend Activities](<a href=“http://www.stmarksschool.org/parents/upcomingweekendactivities.aspx]St”>http://www.stmarksschool.org/parents/upcomingweekendactivities.aspx). Many schools list weekend activities somewhere online, often under the “parents” menu options.</p>
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<p>Wow!! These sound really fun and exciting. It’s a wonder people are able to do their work with all these distractions (ie. skating, coooking club, study break).
Does anyone know how Exeter’s weekends are?</p>
<p>You can look here [Blair</a> Academy - News & Events](<a href=“http://www1.blair.edu/News_Events/news_ev_weekhigh.shtm]Blair”>http://www1.blair.edu/News_Events/news_ev_weekhigh.shtm) starting around Fri. April 2nd. The school is on an extended March break now.</p>
<p>A typical weekend has multiple activities including mall trips, movie and fast food trips, dances, etc. Special activities not offered every weekend include things like trips to NYC to see of play, museum, festival, etc. Same with Philadelphia. Horseback riding, paint ball, skiing, amusement park, etc. There is almost always an event for B.I.G points (Blair intramural games), which is a competition among the dorms. After 4 years, I’ve never heard son complain that there was nothing to do.</p>
<p>How about short breaks like Thanksgiving, President’s Day etc? I’m worried because I’m intl and it’s not possible to fly all the way home in the breaks. Do people stay in the dorm during Thanksgiving?</p>
<p>what about at st. pauls?</p>
<p>I second boardingschools question.</p>
<p>At Blair, and I imagine at most boarding schools in the US, there are parents who volunteer to host students over short vacations, like Thanksgiving, or long weekend breaks. If it’s just a long weekend with an extra day off, the dorms stay open and some students stay on campus. I think there are scheduled activities on these weekends. You can see the calendar here <a href=“http://www.blair.edu/events/ev_calendar.shtm[/url]”>http://www.blair.edu/events/ev_calendar.shtm</a>, and it notes when dorms close. You can visit classmates or go to the homes of parent volunteers. I hear that some Korean students go to cram schools in NYC with students from other boarding schools. There might also be a trip abroad offered.</p>
<p>What is a cram school? Sorry if my question sounds ignorant.</p>
<p>Sorry, I don’t know much about it. SAT prep or math prep or something like that.</p>
<p>Exeter Weekends can be quite busy…
Saturday Classes sometimes, but when we don’t, we have buses to the mall, [or the grocery store… XD], and to the movies. Every weekend, we have a movie showing in one of the auditoriums.
On Sundays, church services are available for religious people, aaaaand math club meets on Sundays, so if anyone’s into math, their Sundays are sure to be filled! :DD</p>
<p>Thanksgiving break is normally one week [maybe 1.5?], Winter is around 3 weeks long[ish?], and spring break is around 2 weeks. It varies every year, and we’re trying this weird three-year experiment with the lengths of the terms… >.<</p>
<p>I’ll be one of those parent volunteers :D</p>
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<p>Can you tell me more about this experiment, please?</p>
<p>umm. I’m not sure about it either…</p>
<p>I have heard about the faculty deciding to shorten the blocks by 5 minutes and requiring uppers and seniors to check in 30 minutes earlier.</p>