Big Buddy Program

In one of our most popular and cherished ACDS traditions, all fifth through eighth grade students serve as mentors for a “Little Buddy” in preschool through second grade.

Buddies are matched at the beginning of the year, and the relationships are nurtured all year long through weekly visits and activities on campus pairing the older and younger children. The Big Buddies join their Little Buddies in a variety of classroom-based activities as well as outdoor play. They also partner with them in school-wide activities including the Fun Run, Halloween Parade, and Thanksgiving Feast.

The Big Buddies Program is an integral part of our social-emotional teaching, fostering the close, caring, and kind relationships that abound at our school, affording role models to the younger children, and providing eagerly anticipated leadership opportunities to children entering the upper Elementary and Middle School grades.