The Bement School Viewbook

Go. Do. Be.

THE BEMENT SCHOOL LOWER SCHOOL | I LOWER SCHO O L | I

What makes Bement remarkable?

At the core of Bement lies a community of faculty, staff, and families that believes in the promise of every child. For nearly 100 years we have cultivated in our students a sense of personal responsibility, intellectual curiosity, artistic and athletic passions, and a commitment to serving others, qualities that blossom in our classrooms, dormitories, stages, and fields. Nestled in a bucolic village, Bement’s mixture of a challenging program with a nurturing culture promotes growth and a sense of belonging for all students.

MIKE SCHLOAT HEAD OF SCHOOL

Be exceptional.

THE BEMENT SCHOOL IS A JOYFUL COMMUNITY THAT VALUES HAPPINESS AND HARD WORK. OUR STUDENTS HAVE BIG ASPIRATIONS AND MOVE ON TO BECOME LEADERS AT TOP SECONDARY SCHOOLS AND CARING CITIZENS IN THEIR COMMUNITIES. Our approach balances experiential learning and rigorous academics with outdoor play and fresh air. Small classes and impassioned teachers set students up for success, and our global diversity introduces students to other cultures from a young age. Most importantly, Bement is a place where students get to be themselves—exceptional mathematicians and musicians, artists and athletes, scientists and public speakers—and are excited to come to school every day.

Small classes and one-on-one attention from teachers give all students the opportunity to stand out and uncover what makes them special.

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“Our motto to “fly on your own wings” is really fitting.

In a loving, supportive community, students are encouraged to stretch themselves and take flight with new things. At the same time, students inspire us as staff and faculty to do the same. There is a feeling you are left with that you can make it to the sky if you just try.”

— Current faculty

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Our values are multidimensional as unique as individuals every student.

BE COMPASSIONATE. Learn to put yourself in others’ shoes and practice stewardship of your environment.

BE TRUE. Choose to do the right thing even if the right thing is hard.

BE RESPONSIBLE. Take pride in being answerable for your actions and deeds.

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BE KIND. Treat others the way you want to be treated—with kindness and respect.

BE ACCEPTING. Celebrate differences and enjoy a campus where everyone feels at home.

BE HARDWORKING. Set the bar high, dedicating yourself to meeting your goals.

BE YOURSELF. Embrace your true nature and discover your voice.

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Be transported.

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DEERFIELD RIVER

Bement

HISTORIC DEERFIELD

DEERFIELD ACADEMY

POCUMTUCK RANGE

VERMONT

LOCATED IN THE HISTORIC TOWN OF DEERFIELD, BEMENT IS SURROUNDED BY

NEW HAMPSHIRE 91

2

Bement

Boston

Logan Airport

MASSACHUSETTS

90

HAVEN THAT INCLUDES THE ESTEEMED FIVE COLLEGES, WORLD-RENOWNED MUSEUMS, AND CHARMING NEW ENGLAND TOWNS.

Springfield 84

Bradley Airport

Our street in Historic Deerfield, where Deerfield Academy is our neighbor, gives students

Hartford

CONNECTICUT

95

NATURAL BEAUTY AND SITUATED WITHIN AN INTELLECTUAL AND CULTURAL

RHODE ISLAND

New Haven

a window into our region’s past, and easy trips to nearby cities offer diverse experiences.

In one day, students can hike the mountain range towering behind campus then gaze at a Paul Cézanne painting at the Smith College Museum of Art. We draw on our location and

NEW YORK

resources to deepen our students’ knowledge and appreciation for community, nature, the arts, and culture.

SEE A DETAILED CAMPUS MAP Bement.org/campusmap

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Be inspired.

“Our family LOVES this school! From the daily fine arts and P.E. classes to the small class sizes and constant communication from my children’s teachers, Bement is all about community building. Bement values integrity and respect for others, and the faculty model these traits daily.”

“I feel most connected to my teachers and coaches. The teachers that make class enjoyable and are easily approachable provide the best opportunity to make connections. ” —Upper school student

— Current parent

“I don’t feel like a grain of sand anymore; I feel like a tree. I stand tall and people notice me.

The students are all trees at Bement.”

— Lower school student

“Bement is a place where being different is good.”

— Upper school student

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“Bement makes me feel happy because I use my imagination.”

“I’m an only child, and as a boarder, I get to have the experience of what it’s like having older sisters and brothers.”

— Lower school student

— Lower school student

“Bement has provided me opportunities to achieve my best. Everyone has held me to a high standard and believes I could do anything I set my mind to. Now I believe it myself.”

— Upper school student

“Bement Is a wonderful place to teach. There is an energy, a curiosity, a strong sense of spirit in the children here that makes each day exciting and fun. The children here are simply delightful!”

— Current faculty

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Be inventive.

BEMENT IS A HUB FOR INGENIOUS IDEAS. At Bement, students learn history and also make it, becoming young inventors and innovators themselves. Our makerspace is the perfect spot for students to gain confidence voicing their ideas and dabbling with a range of low- and high-tech tools— from 3D printers to Lego structures. The dynamic Clagett McLennan Library, with over 9,000 titles, supports our students’ imaginations and inventiveness, and our librarian teaches digital citizenship. Along with gaining coding skills, information literacy, and keyboarding proficiency, Bement students learn to be ethical users of information and to protect their privacy.

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Be captivated. .

Mini-term topics have included “oceans” and “inventions,” for which students have visited the New England Aquarium in Boston and built 3D printer cars on campus.

OUR CURRICULUM IS ENGAGING AND MOTIVATING. Learning at Bement is an enthralling experience. At Bement, our goal is to foster a love of reading, a curiosity about the natural world, and strong problem-solving abilities. Each year builds on the last, delivering a carefully curated journey that introduces students to new experiences, insights, and material at just the right time. Hands-on projects help students to better recall and apply lessons, enhance their critical problem-solving skills, and teach them to collaborate in groups. For three weeks each winter, mini-term provides students the opportunity to dive deeply into a single topic that reflects current events and teachers’ interests and passions. This program allows teachers across departments and grade levels to team up, combining subjects in innovative ways.

Ninth graders compete in an egg drop challenge in physics class, using scientific principles to design a vehicle to keep their eggs from breaking upon landing.

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AT H L E T I C S

OUR ATHLETES COME PREPARED TO PLAY. Bement athletes are fierce competitors, and we have a range of athletic offerings. Some of our athletes can dribble balls in their sleep, while other aspiring players are still developing their skills. Everyone brings their best to each competition, learning how to dig deep, work as a team, and compete with good sportsmanship. Many of our athletes continue to play in secondary school at the highest levels. In the lower school, physical education classes build motor skills, strength, and hardiness, preparing students to play team sports. From our soccer fields to our partnership with Deerfield Academy, our community rallies together to cheer us on: “Go Bement!”

Every Friday afternoon in winter, our upper school students hit the slopes at Berkshire East Ski Resort, where our competitive ski team trains and competes.

“Our athletic program at Bement is so strong because being active and learning to compete is normalized in our culture. When students have an opportunity to play sports every day, they begin the process of mastery.”

— Alex Bartlett ’87, Athletic Director

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Be strong.

Deerfield Academy’s swimming pool and squash, basketball, and tennis courts allow our students to compete in world-class facilities.

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Be creative.

The ninth grade musical is the culminating event in the arts program for graduating students, giving them a chance to shine on stage or behind the scenes.

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THE ARTS

WE CULTIVATE ARTISTIC EXPRESSION. The arts are critical to our curriculum, teaching students to prioritize their creativity, express themselves, and uncover their passions.

Our daily arts program builds each year by introducing students to a range of mediums and artistic opportunities. It’s common to see students painting landscapes or practicing their music outside.

Many of our painters, singers, and performers work hard to become accomplished artists.

Whether performing, drawing, singing, or dancing, our students find their artistic passions at Bement.

Many of our art and music teachers pursue professional endeavors outside Bement, and they infuse their teaching with real-world knowledge.

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Be outside.

OUR SETTING IMMERSES STUDENTS IN BREATHTAKING NATURE. Just a short walk from our traditional classrooms lies Pine Hill, our 12-acre outdoor education center. Set among towering pines and nature trails, these woodlands provide a serene backdrop for biology studies, landscape painting, and mediation. The fields and forests of Pine Hill inspire faculty to create rich and meaningful learning experiences while allowing students to engage in spontaneous, child-driven “free play.”

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COMMUNITY

WE ARE A TIGHT-KNIT COMMUNITY. We’re deliberate about building unbreakable bonds across age groups and instilling a sense of school culture and camaraderie campus wide.

We believe it’s important for students to understand the value of being part of a larger community, where they can practice caring for one another and sharing and working toward common goals. By instilling our core values: compassion, integrity, resilience, and respect, we cultivate a community at Bement where everyone belongs.

Each week, we gather as an entire school during morning meeting, where we celebrate birthdays, share updates, showcase student performances, and cheer on our sports teams. Initiatives like our Reading Buddies program allow upper school students to mentor lower school students.

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Our family style meals are a chance to extend learning to the table, where students develop good manners, make intrepid food choices, and socialize with their classmates and teachers.

Be together.

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Be curious.

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LOWER SCHOOL

kindergarten through grade 5

EVERY DAY BEGINS A NEW ADVENTURE. We give our young students time and space to play, discover, and experiment, and they burst into class each day excited and engaged. Students develop traditional literacy and numeracy skills and embark on cutting-edge, hands-on experiences, learning to code, tinkering in our makerspace, or exploring our outdoor education center at Pine Hill. Guided by loving teachers who are experts in early childhood development, our lower school students develop a joyful relationship with learning and a curiosity about the world around them.

LOWER SCHO OL | 2 1

LOWER SCHOOL

OUR STUDENTS BECOME CARING WORLD CITIZENS. Our curriculum is strategically designed to develop our students’ critical thinking and social-emotional skills: self and social awareness, responsible decision making, and essential life habits. Each student comes to understand his or her role in the classroom, the local community, and an increasingly global world. In essence, our students learn to be conscientious about their friends, family, and planet.

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Students experience history close up at Historic Deerfield and dress the part as they study Colonial America.

Be challenged.

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UPPER SCHOOL

grade 6 through grade 9

UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS IMAGINE WHO THEY CAN BECOME—AND THEY WORK HARD TO ACHIEVE THEIR GOALS. Upper school students are at a pivotal age, transitioning from children to teenagers; thus, we blend moments for play with stimulating and rigorous academics. Our distinguished teachers ask students to work hard to push their own boundaries and take giant leaps—from speaking on stage to leading a class discussion to proposing a student club. In such a supportive community, it’s safe for students to take risks and to make and learn from mistakes. Our approach prepares students for entry into competitive secondary schools and helps them cultivate a life of meaning, consequence, and community consciousness.

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UPPER SCHOOL

A RIGOROUS EDUCATION CAN STILL BE FUN. In the upper school, students encounter scholarly and sophisticated academics that stretch their minds and ready them for secondary school. At the same time, students embark on hands-on learning leveraging the unique location and resources of Bement, infusing each day with creativity and inventiveness.

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Working in small groups allow students to hone their collaboration skills, giving them the confidence to tackle projects independently and as a team.

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BOARDING LIFE

BOARDING AT BEMENT IS MORE THAN JUST LIVING AT SCHOOL. IT OPENS DOORS TO ENHANCE STUDENTS’ EDUCATION. Bement has nearly 100 years of history as a junior boarding school. Each of our dormitories is a second home, where students live, study, and create lifelong bonds. Students who board at Bement grow in ways that will serve them well for the rest of their lives. Our boarding students have more opportunities to further their learning and more time on campus to practice instruments and sports, use library and classroom resources, consult with teachers and tutors, and collaborate with peers on projects and assignments without the hassles and exhaustion of commuting from activity to activity.

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Be home.

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“By boarding, you learn that you’re not the most important thing in the world, and that you have to learn to cooperate with everyone around you. It’s the most basic way of practicing teamwork.”

— Tim, ninth grade

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BOARDING AT BEMENT PROVIDES A NURTURING PLACE TO GROW, LEARN, EXPLORE, AND EXCEL. Whether encouraging one another to summit a mountain or study for an exam, our boarding school students accomplish goals as a group and learn to be exceptional together. What’s more, they thrive as a joyful community of dedicated students and supportive dorm parents who live together in a family environment. They gather for family style meals, sharing stories of their day, and planning for the next. On weekends, they experience local and regional attractions and enjoy cultural events and activities like hiking, biking, and skiing, and healthy social outings.

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NINTH GRADE YEAR

EVERYTHING BUILDS TO NINTH GRADE, WHEN STUDENTS EMBARK ON THE MOST TRANSFORMATIVE YEAR OF THEIR YOUNG LIVES. Ninth grade at Bement is a powerful academic year—equivalent to a freshman high school year—that further cultivates students as leaders and prepares them to be competitive secondary school applicants. The challenging ninth-grade curriculum stretches students’ abilities, and arts and athletics push students to lead on the stage and on the court. This pinnacle time is filled with leadership opportunities, rites of passage, and cherished traditions that guide students to become self-sufficient, capable, and confident young adults. When students graduate, they’re more ready than ever to “fly on their own wings,” soaring into the next phase of their education with grace and determination.

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“In ninth grade I was challenged with becoming a leader at Bement both academically and athletically. Staying for ninth grade prepared me for secondary school by creating a foundation of leadership and independence skills that allowed me to become a more well-rounded student.”

— Alum

Be ready.

All ninth graders participate in a team-building excursion as soon as they arrive on campus so the grade can coalesce and start to develop trust and leadership skills. At the end of the first trimester, ninth graders go on a four-day cultural trip with their advisories. This is a time for the students to bond and develop long-lasting memories. In the past the ninth grade has traveled to the Dominican Republic, Tucson, AZ, and Washington DC. Finally at the end of the year, just prior to graduation the class embark on a two-three day camping and hiking adventure in the Adirondacks or White Mountains where they come together one final time as a group before heading off after graduation.

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Be impressive.

BEMENT STUDENTS HAVE GONE ON TO ATTEND THESE AND OTHER SECONDARY SCHOOLS: The Academy at Charlemont Berkshire School Blair Academy Brooks School Choate Rosemary Hall Concord Academy Cushing Academy Deerfield Academy Dublin School Emma Willard School Ethel Walker School The Governor’s Academy The Hill School

SECONDARY SCHOOLS SEEK OUT BEMENT GRADUATES.

Hotchkiss School Kent School

Admissions directors at competitive secondary schools recognize that there’s something special

Kimball Union Academy

about Bement graduates, from their poise to their authenticity. But we don’t rely simply on this

The Lawrenceville School

intangible spark to help students gain acceptance to schools on their list. Our faculty are dedicated

The Loomis Chaffee School

to ushering students through the application process, providing one-on-one guidance to families

The Masters School

as they make important decisions about their child’s future. Preparing for secondary school begins

Mercersburg Academy

at a young age, as students learn how to represent themselves with conviction, and our pivotal

Middlesex School

ninth grade year hones the writing and interviewing skills students need to be outstanding

Milton Academy

candidates and exceptional citizens at their new schools.

Northfield Mount Hermon Peddie School Phillips Academy Phillips Exeter Academy Pomfret School Putney School St. Mark’s School St. Paul’s School Stoneleigh-Burnham School Suffield Academy Tabor Academy The Taft School Tilton School Vermont Academy Westminster School Wilbraham & Monson Academy The Williston Northampton School The Winchendon School Worcester Academy

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We invite you to visit.

CONTACT ADMISSIONS

SCHEDULE A TOUR

We would be thrilled to assist you in learning more

We think the best way to understand Bement is by visiting campus.

about Bement. Visit our website at bement.org.

A typical visit will include a tour and interview or screening. Families

Please do not hesitate to contact us with any

may also learn about Bement by attending one of our virtual or

questions at 413.774.4209 or admit@bement.org.

on-campus events. We look forward to welcoming you.

We hope you apply.

THE ADMISSION PROCESS

IMPORTANT DATES

Along with your student’s application, we require

Bement will review applications for all grades as space is available.

a personal interview or screening, current and

A wait pool for certain grades or for boarding is common, so we

previous school transcripts or school reports,

encourage families to adhere to the application deadlines. Interna-

teacher recommendations, and testing scores.

tional students should complete their application by December 15;

The Admission Committee looks for students

domestic students should complete their application by February 1.

who will benefit from and contribute to the life of the school.

FINANCIAL AID We understand that the cost of attending Bement can be a challenge, and we set aside funds to assist U.S. families that demonstrate financial need.

Financial aid applications are due February 1.

The Bement School admits students of any race, color, sexual orientation, ancestry, religious affiliation, national and ethnic origin to all rights, privileges, programs, and activities made available to accepted students. The school does not discriminate in the administration of any institutional programs.

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94 OLD MAIN STREET, PO BOX 8 | DEERFIELD, MASSACHUSETTS 01342 | 413.774.7061 | BEMENT.ORG 38 | TH E B E M E N T S CH OOL