Appendix B
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It's important for parents to know not only what is happening in classrooms but also why. So I sent a letter to families every week during the school year and used it to share logistical information and update them on our activities.
Hi there, everyone!
Here's a really great article from Empathy Educates, "Is There School Today?" Sadly, it captures the educational reality for a lot of kids. Check Not Joyful Learning or paste the following link into your browser: http://empathyeducates.org/is-there-school-today. I'd love for you to take a few minutes to read it and share your thoughts with me.
From Laurie: For the eighth consecutive year, all 4th, 5th, and 6th grade students participated in the New City Geography Bee. The students compete in teams first in their classrooms or social studies block, and then in a schoolwide bee. The teams work together to answer a series of questions that get progressively more difficult.
No School
Parent-Teacher Conferences are held next week, so there is NO SCHOOL on Friday, March 6.
Our two-week spring break begins on Monday, March 16, and we return to school on Monday, March 30.
The Police Were Here!
From Mary, Assistant Head for Student and Family Support: The difficulties in Ferguson (and elsewhere) have caused people to sometimes question the role of the police. They are here to serve and protect, yet that is not always how they are portrayed. To reinforce that the police are on our side, we asked representatives of the St. Louis Police Department to come and talk to our students.
Last week, three officers came to talk with the 5th and 6th graders about their jobs and place in the community and to answer questions. The 5th and 6th graders asked about the officers' impressions of the events in Ferguson as well as several other topics. The officers were very good at relating to our students and were very impressed with the thoughtful and informed exchange.
The officers will return to talk to students in other grades as well. We are hoping to have an ongoing relationship with them, and this was a really good start.
Join Us: A Discussion of For the Sake of All
From Stephanie, Director of Diversity: Did you know that in St. Louis …
We all pay a price when people in our region lack economic and educational opportunities. Please join us for a discussion on the For the Sake of All project. Please join us for a thoughtful and engaging discussion on Tuesday, March 3, from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m.
Free child care is available for all New City School students. Please RSVP to Stephanie if you plan to attend (and indicate if you require child care) or if you have any questions.
DODGED, DUCKED, and DOVE for Financial Aid
From Jessica, Director of Advancement: Thank you to the dodgeballers who came out and played in the friendly New City dodgeball tournament this past Saturday night. The proceeds went to our financial aid program. Fun was had by all!
Keeping Up With Technology
From Liz, our technology specialist: Parents often ask Scott and me how we "keep up with technology," especially regarding safety of kids. We'd like to share a few resources that we rely on to keep us updated.
I currently use the app Zite (iOS and Android) to get most of my information, favoring topics that are geared towards parenting, safety and media issues, and trends with children and technology. Zite aggregates articles from news sources and blogs based on your reading trends and favored terms, so you don't have to go searching aimlessly for resources. (If you've ever used Flipboard, you'll recognize Zite as a similar app.) Terms I have favored include social media, education, iOS apps, internet safety, and websites such as Common Sense Media. Generally, with these topics favored, issues and news I need to know about as a technology specialist will appear in my feed.
We also participate in the "tech world" and heavily recommend joining the apps and social media services your children are using. This list will help you get started. Note the "what parents need to know" section of each service.
Lastly, Common Sense Media is a great resource for parents who are interested in reviews and parent concerns of websites, games, and social media services. It's probably the most on-top-of-it resource currently available for parents looking to review technology.
Sign Up for Movie Day!
Don't forget to sign up for Movie Day! Join us on Sunday, March 1, at noon, for a special showing of ‘Babe’! Moviegoers will enjoy the film, a drink, and snack in the setting of MX Movies, located in downtown's historic Mercantile Exchange building. Children must be accompanied by an adult. Adults may either watch the movie or hang out in the lounge with access to beverages for purchase. Tickets for the movie are $15. A drink and a snack are included with ticket purchase.
Use the sign-up sheet in the hallway at New City! See you there!
Safety, please!
Please be extra sure to drive safely when you're around New City School. That includes:
And please remember that Westminster Avenue, the street to our north, is a private street and cannot be used for parking.
Thank you!
Is Grit Racist?
"Is Grit Racist?" is a pretty silly question in my mind. Yet that was the headline of an article in a recent issue of Education Week: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2015/01/is_grit_racist.html
Here's my letter to the editor (just published): www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2015/02/18/grit-helps-everyone-gain-real-world-success.html. Reactions are welcome!
Thomas R. Hoerr, PhD
Head of School
Yo, how's it going?
We have NO SCHOOL on Friday, March 6, due to Parent-Teacher Conferences. In next week's FL, I'll ask you about your conferences.
This weekly FL and the weekly PL sent by classroom teachers play an important role in your child's educational experience. The letters contain information about what's happening in the classroom, what's going on at school, as well as educational ideas and questions. But everyone's inbox is already filled to the brim, I know. WHEN would you like to get your child's weekly class PL? We're wondering if there's a better day/time than on Fridays at 6 p.m.
Also, what about my weekly FL? I sent last week's FL on Wednesday night; was that better? Do you have any preferences on when it comes? Any suggestions for content (other than better jokes?)?
Spring Breaaaaaak!
Our last day of school before Spring Break is Friday, March 13. We are off for two weeks, resuming on Monday, April 30.
From Shannah, art/spatial teacher: In 3rd grade art, we looked at images of Native Americans in various formats; fine art, posters, cartoons, and sports. We examined how these images of Native Americans influence our perceptions, and we questioned who should have control of these images and why.
Our Winning Equations Team
On Tuesday, February 24, 10 of our 5th graders participated in Gifted Resource Council's Academic Challenge Cup for Equations at UMSL. More than 1,400 students from more than 80 public, private, and parochial schools in the St. Louis metropolitan area participated in this competition over a seven-day period in February and March. The competition consisted of a series of half-day events designed to challenge students in grades 2 through 8 in mathematics, language usage, and creative problem solving.
Movie Night Is March 6
From Jessica: Our Social Action Committee will be showing two movies on Friday, March 6, at 6:30 p.m. (doors open at 6:00), one in the theater and one in the library. This way we hope to reach all age ranges! We will be watching STAR WARS (the original) and THE LEGO MOVIE!
This is a family event, and children must be accompanied by an adult, but you may choose to split up and watch different movies! For example, if one parent comes with two kids, the parent may watch a movie with one while the other child watches the other movie in a different location. You are welcome to invite families outside of the New City community as well! We are asking for $5 per person donations for movie tickets and will have some snacks available for purchase. No RSVP necessary! Just show up and join us in the fun!
Writing About Ferguson
In addition to educating our students and preparing them for success in life—not settling for success in school—New City also plays a leadership role in the larger educational community. That's true educationally—we were the second school to implement MI and are now the leader in MI—as well as with our focus on diversity. A recent example is that Stephanie, our Director of Diversity and a 5th grade teacher, wrote an article for Educational Leadership that described some of the ways in which our faculty and students were responding to the difficulties in Ferguson. You can see Stephanie's article here: www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/mar15/vol72/num06/Teaching-%C2%A3Ferguson%C2%A3.aspx.
I also used our response to the killing of Michael Brown and the subsequent community disruption in Ferguson as the topic for my monthly "Principal Connection" column. You can see it here: www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/mar15/vol72/num06/Responding-to-Ferguson.aspx
Stephanie and I would welcome any thoughts that you have about these articles (or diversity at New City School).
The World Is in SO Much Better Shape. Really!
It's easy to look around and see all the negative things, things that aren't as good as we'd like, times and places where progress hasn't occurred as quickly as we hoped, and where problems are still unsolved. That's true, from Ferguson to the state of public education in many places, to the high percentage of children living in poverty, both in the United States and the world. Clearly, we have a long way to go.
That said, things have improved quite a bit. It may be hard to recognize it when you're in the middle of things, but it's true! There are data—on hunger, mortality, disease, crime, and so on—that show just how far the world has come, even though we probably don't realize it. Check out the graphs. I'd love to hear your reactions!
Is Grit Racist? Again
Our focus on grit falls within our valuing the personal intelligences. My comment "Who you are is more important than what you know" is a way to convey that success in the world, however you define it, depends upon far more than academic skills. Successful adults know how to work with others, they are good teammates, they care about people, they respect and appreciate others regardless of demographic variable, and they show grit! Those are the kinds of things on which we work each and every day.
Looking way ahead, we will be hosting our second PETER MARTIN CONCERT here on Friday evening, May 22. The New City School jazz band will also perform. Last year's concert was spectacular, and you won't want to miss this one!
Thomas R. Hoerr, PhD
Head of School