Structuring your day means choosing the courses and workshops you’ll take and the activities, main events, and trips you’ll explore and participate in. Below, you will find an outline of what an EXPLO weekday (and weekend) looks like.
The Daily Atlas, our campus newspaper, is your map to the day. Every morning at EXPLO, you’ll receive a copy which lists all of the opportunities and activity offerings available that day. Experience a day in the life at EXPLO.
There are required academic periods and check-ins throughout the day, as well as abundant time to investigate new passions through clubs, activities, and events that connect students. After class, enjoy lunch on the Quad, a walk into the Vil with your friends, or engage in a riveting student-led discussion. The choice is yours.
| Weekday Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| 7:45 a.m. | Residential Student Morning Huddle
The Morning Huddle is when students and staff meet with their living groups, review the day’s schedule, learn about afternoon activity options, issue the day’s challenge, play games, and share goals with their groups. |
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| 8:15 a.m. | Breakfast + Day Student Arrival | |
| 8:30 a.m. | Day Student Morning Huddle
The Morning Huddle is when students meet with their advisors and day groups, review the day’s schedule, learn about afternoon activity options, issue the day’s challenge, play games, and share goals with their groups. |
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| 9:30 a.m. | Courses
Students take two 75-minute courses in the morning, with a 20-minute passing time between courses. |
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| 12:20 p.m. | Lunch | |
| 1:10 p.m. | The Vil
On select days following the lunch period, some groups will have the opportunity to take a (staff-supervised) visit to The Vil, Wellesley’s downtown cafés and shops, just off campus. |
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| 1:30 p.m. | Clubs, Leagues, + Activities or Community Meeting
Students participating in clubs and leagues get together and delve into the topics they’re most passionate about, including art, board games, philosophy, improv, soccer, basketball, Ultimate Frisbee, reading, and Community Service/Common Good Initiatives. Four times per session, EXPLO hosts an all-campus Community Meeting (in lieu of listed activities) during this period. |
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| 2:40 p.m. | Workshops
Students continue their exploration during one 65-minute daily workshop each week. |
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| 4:00 p.m. | Afternoon Huddle or Day Student Dismissal
Day students who are heading home for the night gather for a brief Afternoon Huddle and Day Student Dismissal. All residential students — and day students who choose to stay late or spend the night — take part in Afternoon Huddles, where they review daily goals and challenges, and participate in living and day group games and activities. |
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Day Students are encouraged to stay late and stay over. To get the most out of their EXPLO experience, day students can stay as late as 8:15 p.m. every day (and they can even make that decision the day of!). Day students can also sleep over three nights per week, getting even more of a taste of residential student life.
| 4:15 p.m. | Independent Time
Independent Time is (staff supervised) chill time, when students can hang out with friends on the quad, join a club, play games, get creative in the Art Studio, or relax in the Student Lounge. |
| 5:15 p.m. | Dinner |
| 6:45 p.m. | Evening Events
After dinner, students can select from a number of Evening Event options, including live entertainment, movie screenings, creative time in the Art Studio, or friendly competition in our Board Game Studio. |
| 8:00 p.m. | Evening Activities
The evening activity period offers mellower fare for students, such as yoga and meditation, a night walk around Lake Waban, Glow Tag, or additional time in the Art Studio or Board Game Studio with friends. |
| 8:15 p.m. | Day Student Late Dismissal |
| 9:00 p.m. | Winding Down Time
During Winding Down, 8th-grade students head up to their floors for the night. 9th-grade students get a bonus half-hour to enjoy music and pizza on the quad, toss a Frisbee, and make next-day plans with friends. |
| 10:00 p.m. | Room Curfew |
Weekend trips are a chance to experience a side of EXPLO not found on campus and make new friends along the way. All residential students participate in weekend trips and day students are highly encouraged to take part in them as well, though they’re not required to do so.
| Weekend Schedule | ||
|---|---|---|
| 7:00 a.m. | Breakfast | |
| 7:45 a.m. | Quad Check-In | |
| 8:00 a.m. | Day Student Arrival | |
| 8:15 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. | Weekend Trips | |
| 5:00 p.m. | Independent Time + Dinner
Dinner is open until 6:15 p.m. to accommodate late trip returns. |
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| 5:30 p.m. | Day Student Dismissal | |
| 6:15 p.m. | Evening Events | |
| 7:30 p.m. | Evening Activities | |
| 8:45 p.m. | All Students on Floors (Check-In) or Day Student Late Dismissal | |
| 9:15 p.m. | Room Curfew | |
