The Fifth Grade Year

The fifth grade year at WCFS brings together all of the academic, social and spiritual growth each student has experienced during their school years. Through their work with experienced and dedicated faculty, fifth graders have become young people who think critically and challenge assumptions, who reach out to others and have a sense of responsibility to the community, and who draw upon their West Chester Friends School experiences to conduct themselves with integrity and conviction.

A curriculum that links literature and history brings students to stories and narratives populated with protagonists in a variety of historic, sociocultural and economic settings.  These are often young people like themselves, developing self awareness, courage and nascent independence. Their reading impacts their writing, as well, as they continue to discover and develop their unique voices.

Opportunities for service and collaborative  leadership are at the center of the fifth grade year.  Students may join the Quaker Leadership Team (QLT), a group that meets weekly to design and coordinate service activities in the local community. Their campus activities include leading the celebration of International Day of Peace and Cooperative Games Day, and, often, presenting queries for contemplation at Meeting for Worship.

The traditions of fifth grade at WCFS are many and they are fun!  The graduating class leads the lawn games at the Fall Fair; they play games, read and enjoy conversations  every Friday with their elder friends at the Hickman; their contributions to the annual science fair take the form of amazing, creative inventions; and in the late spring, they work hard with Walnut Street Theater actors to present a Shakespeare play.

At graduation, they move forward with a foundation of skills and values toward lives of contribution and caring leadership, and are successful at a variety of public and independent schools, including Westtown, Wilmington Friends, Media Providence Friends, Upland Country Day, Montgomery and Malvern Preparatory Schools.

 Please enjoy our Fifth Grade Graduation video from June 2023.