In the third grade, Campus School students move to the intermediate department. Third graders remain in essentially self-contained classrooms, while fourth and fifth grades change for some classes as they move towards greater independence and responsibility. Parent teacher conferences and quarterly progress reports help students and parents monitor individual progress. In the intermediate unit, cooperative learning groups, individualized instruction, hands-on activities, and directed research are all used to enhance the literature of the anthologies and the trade books read. Student-generated literature is an essential component of the language arts at this level.
Students use journals, creative writing, poetry, and letter writing to respond to literature.
The writing process, introduced at the primary level, is refined, and strategies to assist the students' use of conventional grammar and spelling are taught. Students enjoy many opportunities to share ideas through oral and dramatic presentations. There are also many opportunities for cross-disciplinary studies which connect the language arts to music, art, technology, and other content areas. Many opportunities are provided for investigations and discovery of problem solving strategies. Hands-on activities, cooperative group work, and drill are provided to ensure an understanding and command of the basic concepts and computational skills.