Extracurricular Programs
We’re delighted to provide our students the opportunity to develop skills and broaden their horizons through the exceptional extracurricular programs we offer at Valley Prep. These various programs within our school and the community help our students learn and develop as a whole person.
Drama club meets weekly on Monday afternoons and is open to fourth through eighth graders. It is designed to support the holistic, inquiry-based approach of the International Baccalaureate and provides our students with the incredible benefits of theater. Students engage in drama games, improvisation, reader’s theater, and a staged performance of a classic play. At the end of the fall semester, the students will present a showcase of individual soliloquies and small-group scenes. They will produce Shakespeare’s As You Like It in the spring. Students also receive exposure to other famous playwrights and authors such as Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Agatha Christie, Oscar Wilde, and Arthur Miller.
We are pleased to have Valley Prep alumna, Christina Jensen, who earned her MFA in dramaturgy at the ART/MXAT Institute for Advanced Theater Training at Harvard University. She works as a freelance stage director, dramaturge, and playwright throughout Southern California. There is limited space in the club. Please see our flyer for more information.
Houses at VPS instills leadership skills, encourages service to others, and strengthens the school’s founding values—Truth, Judgment, and Courage. Students from kindergarten through eighth grade are members of one of the three houses throughout their VPS years. Leaders and members of each house lead the rest of the school in a service project determined by the House Council each semester.
The House Council is a group of elected and appointed middle school and junior high school students who, together under the guidance of an adult advisor, meet at lunch on a weekly basis to form VPS’s student government. Students learn techniques of good government and problem solving as they determine and execute community service projects and school spirit activities.
We hold elections and appointments at VPS annually. Each house is represented by one elected president, one elected vice-president, one appointed secretary, one appointed historian, and two appointed members-at-large from the middle school. A student in the seventh or eighth grade class fills the position of the president. To be a candidate for a house council office, students must be in “good standing” socially and academically (3.0 GPA or better and no N’s or U’s in citizenship or work habits).
Junior high school students may apply for membership in the California Junior Scholarship Federation (CJSF) each semester. This is a statewide organization originally founded in 1967. Its main purpose is to foster high standards of scholarship, service, and citizenship in the middle school grades. Students participating in CJSF will show strong service to Valley Preparatory School as well as the community while fostering pride in scholastic achievement.
Eligibility is based on academic standing.
VPS fields teams in a variety of sports. We participate in the following seasonal sports:
- Fall: co-ed soccer and co-ed cross country
- Spring: basketball
Fifth through eighth graders are eligible to play on the teams with preference going to seventh and eighth graders. Fifth grade students may practice with the teams but will not travel to away games unless specified by a coach. The school will provide game jerseys and equipment. Students must purchase their own shorts and shoes.
In order to participate in sports, students must have at least a 2.3 GPA in core academic classes (English, math, science, social studies, and foreign language) and be in good behavioral standing (no N’s or U’s) at the end of each trimester. All decisions regarding eligibility are at the discretion of the head of school, the assistant head of school, and the athletics director.
Valley Prep contracts with Sportball (a national, after-school program provider) to offer the following activities for our elementary-age students:
Multi-Sport Classes
Multi-sport classes are the heart of Sportball programming. Coaches focus on the basic skills common to all sports, like balance, coordination, stamina, and timing in a fun, supportive, noncompetitive setting that emphasizes teamwork. Each class focuses on one of the following eight different popular sports: hockey, soccer, football, baseball, basketball, volleyball, golf, and tennis.
Basketball
Basketball introduces fundamental concepts of gameplay and teaches the basic skills students need to hit the court with confidence in a supportive, non-competitive environment. Coaches zero in on skills like dribbling, passing, catching, shooting, and defense in fun, exciting, skill-focused play.
Soccer
Soccer introduces fundamental concepts of gameplay and teaches the basic skills required to bend it like Beckham in a supportive, non-competitive environment. Coaches zero in on skills like throw-ins, dribbling, trapping, and passing in fun, exciting, skill-focused play.
Homework club is available to students who are registered in our daycare program. A teacher is assigned to monitor behavior, check homework, and answer questions.
Robotics is an after-school activity at Valley Prep that provides opportunities for students (primarily in grades 4–8) to build and program robots and drones. This program supports the STEAM program.
All VPS students at all grade levels participate in music and art classes. In addition, we occasionally offer our after-school programs to students who want to explore these disciplines in more depth.
Cubs Choir (grades K–2) meets weekly on Mondays from 3:15 to 4:00 p.m. Lions Choir (grades 3–8) meets weekly on Wednesdays from 3:15 to 4:00 p.m. Both choirs perform at various VPS events, as well as a performance in the community.
The gardening club is moderated by our science teacher and meets weekly after school to maintain the school's various gardens.
The chess club meets weekly on Friday afternoons at 3:00 p.m. after school. Chess is proven to enhance mental clarity and mental dexterity which is required for solving problems, analyzing consequences, and formulating future tactics. Children playing chess from an early age often exhibit extraordinary memory skills. Chess also helps in improving concentration and academic performance of the child.