Cardigan Mountain School

1. Female Teacher Sexual Assault Case: A female teacher sexual assault case that occurred a few years ago might affect the school's reputation and trustworthiness. Although the school may have taken measures to address this incident, such an unfavorable event could negatively impact the confidence of students and parents.
2. Boarding Environment: For some students, leaving home to board at school can be a challenge. Adapting to a new lifestyle and social environment may take some time, especially for those far from home.
3. School Size: Cardigan Mountain School is a relatively small school, which means that student choices and resources might be somewhat limited. This could affect the diversity and depth of academic programs, extracurricular activities, and sports programs offered by the school.
4. Academic Pressure: While boarding schools typically provide a rigorous academic environment, this can lead to certain academic pressures, especially for students aiming to enter top universities. This may cause students to experience anxiety and stress.
5. Geographical Location: The school is located in a relatively remote area, which may present transportation and convenience challenges for students and parents. Furthermore, social and cultural activities in the surrounding areas might be relatively limited.
6. Cost Issues: Tuition fees for boarding schools are generally high, which can impose financial pressure on some families. In addition to tuition, there might also be extra costs, such as fees for extracurricular activities, textbooks, etc.

Principal Zhan's Comments: This American junior boarding school for boys has 41% international students. The school focuses on cultivating social skills among boys and building a strong learning community culture. In academics, arts, and sports, children are given many opportunities to try and challenge themselves in new areas.
Competition for American junior boarding schools is extremely fierce. Parents hoping to apply to such schools must plan and prepare in advance.
In terms of cultural heritage, the school has created many of its own traditional activities over the past 80 years to cater to boys' love for play and outdoor activities. Examples include sunrise climbing, the Sandwich Fair, and the biannual Eagle Creek Day.
Regarding academic development, Cardigan Mountain School adopts a "tiered instruction" approach. For grades 6-7, students are grouped within the class, learning the same curriculum content in the same classroom. For grades 8-9, based on students' academic potential in various subjects, each subject is usually divided into regular and accelerated classes. Accelerated classes use more challenging curriculum content, assign deeper homework, and emphasize independent learning and critical thinking more.
In terms of community building, the community atmosphere and facilities are excellent, warm, and safe. The school's Living Lab has many small animals, which are cared for by 7th-grade students. Children in other grades also have different responsibilities at school. Children will get to know all the faculty, staff, and students.
For emotional support, school counselors play an indispensable role in supporting students' academic, social, and emotional growth. Early adolescence is a period when students face personal and developmental challenges, and school counselors work with students to create plans to help them cope with these various challenges.

Regarding Cardigan Mountain School, I recorded a 4-minute video, http://www.findingschool.net/virtual-tour/107

A superb private boys' school, located in New Hampshire. While the geographical location isn't particularly convenient, it is extremely safe. With mountains, lakes, and rivers, the school campus is beautiful in all four seasons, each having its unique charm.

The school pays extremely high attention to its students, boasts good hardware facilities, and has highly qualified teachers and coaches. It encourages students to constantly step out of their comfort zones to challenge themselves and grow into true gentlemen. The school has a tradition: every spring, students are encouraged to complete a 28-day consecutive lake jump challenge. Those who successfully complete it receive an honorary tie. This method aims to overcome boys' inertia, cultivate self-discipline, and develop resilience.

The college admissions director at this school is also very dedicated and responsible, cares deeply about the students, and is well-versed in Asian culture.

A distinctive program at Cardigan is called PEAKS (Personalized Education for the Acquisition of Knowledge and Skills). This is a program designed to help middle school students recognize their learning patterns and establish good personal study habits.
In this program, teachers guide students through various research projects, for example, investigating the impact of sleep quality on self-control levels, the effect of having snacks in the room on study efficiency, or the degree to which advanced planning improves self-control and learning outcomes. Through these studies, students gain a clear understanding of how to achieve higher learning efficiency. I visited this school for three consecutive years in 2017, 2018, and 2019, and each time I saw their students' PEAKS project presentations. I believe the most unique aspect of this program is that it doesn't impose good study methods on students; instead, it guides students to conduct research to understand the logic behind effective study methods, thereby better enabling them to establish a set of learning patterns suitable for themselves.
For more details, please see the extended comments section.

Cardigan Mountain School is a 6th-9th grade boys' boarding school located in New Hampshire, spanning 525 acres with 225 students. I have visited and toured the school; its facilities and environment are excellent, and the admissions officer was very enthusiastic. The American students who showed us around spoke highly of the school. Through communication with the admissions officer, I learned that in recent years, Chinese students have had excellent high school matriculation outcomes, with one Chinese student being admitted to Phillips Exeter Academy last year.

School Highlights:

1. Strong Sports Program: Ice hockey, lacrosse, mountain biking, and skiing programs are excellent.

2. Personalized Academics (EAK): EAK, which customizes knowledge and skill learning methods based on individual characteristics, is the cornerstone of Cardigan Mountain School's academic program. All students take this course, attending four classes per week.

3. Gates Invention and Innovation Competition: This academic and afternoon program, provided by the Gates Frontiers Fund, is mandatory for 6th and 7th graders and elective for 8th and 9th graders.

4. Rich Science Resources: The science department utilizes the school's beautiful 500-acre campus, which includes an ecosystem rich in diverse organisms of all shapes and sizes, and environmentally varied land features.

5. Global Leadership: The year-long Global Leadership elective is a weekly required course for all students, designed to foster students' leadership self-awareness, respect for diverse perspectives, life experiences, and social identities.

PEAK is an acronym for Personalized Education for the Acquisition of Knowledge and Skills, serving as the cornerstone of Cardigan Mountain School's academic program and helping students learn more efficiently.
The PEAK department focuses on each student's progress in every class, helping students understand the inherent connection between learning and well-being. Students can learn about their strengths and weaknesses, which helps them express themselves. All students at Cardigan Mountain attend this class four days a week, guided by PEAK mentors, to find their vibrant lives both academically and beyond, comprehensively enhancing learning skills, scientific technology, and physical health.

During the pandemic in the U.S., children were able to stay at school until they secured a flight home.

Since 2017, the Chinese students at this school have been excelling, with their college admissions getting better year by year. Let's look at the offers for the Chinese 9th-grade students in 2020:

Exeter: 2 offers
Andover: 2 offers
Lawrenceville: 3 offers!
Kent: 1 offer
Blair: 1 offer
Middlesex: 2 offers
Taft: 2 offers
St. Mark’s: 3 offers
SPS: 1 offer
SAS: 1 offer
Deerfield: 2 offers
Stevenson: 1 offer
Episcopal: 1 offer
Milton: 1 offer
Choate: 1 offer
Peddie: 1 offer

They are definitely among the top three US boarding schools, and in 2020, they might even rank first!

1. As an all-boys school, approximately 10 Chinese boys graduate each year, and most of them achieve excellent outcomes. The matriculation results for 2019 included top-tier schools like Exeter, Taft, and Lawrenceville, and even the average students could be admitted to quality boarding high schools such as Williston and Westtown. (Based on FS rankings)
2. All Cardigan students are required to participate in a project that encourages innovation and invention. If you are a boy interested in various small animals and organisms, you will definitely find excitement in Cardigan's biology department. Cardigan's educational philosophy places great importance on how to stimulate boys' learning interest and potential. During the admission process, the admissions director revealed to me that they value more whether Chinese boys have curiosity and genuinely enjoy their school life, rather than what they must know or must learn.
3. Management is very strict, even harsh. All electronic devices are confiscated 24 hours a day – that's 24 hours, not like other US junior boarding schools with designated "tech time."
4. Sports are very strong, and the school has its own ice hockey rink. Located by the lake, there are sports like sailing, and currently, there are 4 Chinese players on the team.

Every student at the school must take six core subjects each year, including History, English, Math, Science, and World Languages (French, Latin, Spanish, or ESL). To enhance the boys' learning experience, the school also requires them to choose two to three arts electives annually, based on their grade level, which include visual arts, music, drama, and woodworking. Students in grades six and seven are required to participate in the 'Gates Invention and Innovation Competition Program,' while students in grades eight and nine have the option to participate. The student body is diverse, so students must also participate in Cardigan's year-long Global Leadership Program.