A LASER FOCUS ON PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Woodworking Takes a
Deep Dive
at The Peck School To be the best possible teachers they can be, every four years Peck faculty take on a unique learning and evaluation challenge In the movie Groundhog Day, Bill Murray plays a character
that encourages deep conversations about
experiencing what Nietzsche referred to as “eternal recurrence.” Each
teaching, opportunities to reflect, and a
day he wakes up at exactly the same time, in the same bed, to the
chance to learn new things. Known as the
same alarm music, and must relive a single day in his life. Although he
“Deep Dive,” this yearlong process gives
endures an endless cycle of February 2nds, he maintains his free will
teachers the opportunity to participate
and can alter the course of each day if he chooses. The only certainty
in a meaningful, reflective activity or
he must accept is that the day will end and he will begin again exactly
project that will benefit them personally, as
where he started.
well as their students and the school. The
Sadly, some people think teaching follows this pattern. They mistakenly believe that the academic year is cyclical, and teachers approach their subject matter each year with the same recurring,
goal of the Deep Dive is to have a lasting and direct impact on their teaching craft and curriculum.
formulaic units of instruction and exercises and assessments. This couldn’t be farther from the truth, especially at The Peck School. In Groundhog Day, Murray’s character eventually frees himself from his gyre by approaching each dawn as an exciting opportunity for growth. Through this love of learning and focus on his own personal development, he is able to transform his environment, cultivate meaningful relationships, and transcend the rut of repetition.
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Mr. Mortensen’s Deep Dive For decades, third- through eighth-grade students at Peck have enthusiastically participated in the school’s traditional woodworking program. With the
This same love of learning and a reverence for timely
increasing emphasis on STEAM (science,
transformation are infused throughout The Peck School’s
technology, engineering, arts, and math),
curriculum—and are especially ingrained in the school’s faculty
woodworking teacher Mark Mortensen has
growth and reflection process.
been collaborating with teachers in other
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disciplines to blend woodworking projects
could only be roughly accomplished with a
with assignments in other subjects; yet, the
scroll saw.
tools and techniques used in his woodshop have remained fundamentally the same:
Mr. Mortensen’s Deep Dive has not only
band saws, hammers, files, and sandpaper.
transformed the woodworking and fine arts
department at Peck, the use of the laser
Last year, Mr. Mortensen decided
cutter has rippled into other disciplines.
to spice things up a little—or, more
Eighth graders can manufacture laser-
accurately, slice things up a little—by
etched components for their trebuchets
introducing a state-of-the-art laser
in science class, while fifth graders
etcher into his program. As he explained
might create architectural façades for a
in state-of-the-art laser cutting
Science teacher Tim Loveday learned EV3 and Lego Robotics programming, community on Mars as part of their crossand his eighth-grade students are now curricular challenge to “build” a civilization using these tools for data collection and on our neighbor planet. A handful of sixth, analysis with previously unattainable seventh, and eighth graders are even trying levels of accuracy. to etch the Peck Pride logo onto a metal
and engraving.”
plate for a bike they’re building during an
elective activity class!
in his rationale for purchasing the laser etcher, “the students and I will need to balance time-honored woodcraft instruction and learning with lessons
At the beginning of the past academic year (and thanks to the school’s Parents Mini 18 Laser Engraving System. Mr.
Many Divers, A Deep Impact
Mortensen dedicated countless off-school
Six other faculty members at Peck
Association), Peck purchased an Epilog
hours to understanding every aspect of the technology. He taught himself the graphic application CorelDRAW, which interfaces with the device. He practiced setting up the laser and adjusting it to execute various projects on a variety of materials. He studied the software that serves as a “printer driver” between the graphics application and the etcher.
participated in Deep Dives in the 201617 year: Former music teacher Bronagh Coakley learned to play the ukulele and then re-sequenced the fourth grade music curriculum to incorporate the instrument. Third grade teacher Katie Bruno took a deep dive into the Responsive Classroom approach to teaching, incorporating collaborative learning, positive discipline, and differentiated learning. Art teacher
Mr. Mortensen’s own growth mindset and
Karen Dispenziere asked the question,
his instincts about the transformational
“How can I incorporate the elements of
nature of this new technology paid off.
science, technology, engineering and math
Stop by the arts wing of The Peck School
while maintaining the aesthetic integrity
today and you’ll find a whole new world of
of the arts as well as the notion of art for
expression. Fine arts projects make their
art’s sake?” Her research and practice led
way into the digital domain and are burned
to the creation of a Discovery Zone in her
back into analog life on a plank of wood by
art room. Math teacher Amy Papandreou
the tip of a laser.
was so impressed with the potential of
problem-based learning after a Phillips
Students are now incorporating finely
Exeter workshop that she re-tooled her
etched patterns into the lids of carefully
seventh-grade Honors Math curriculum to
sanded wooden boxes. They are laser
incorporate the method. English teacher
etching favorite family photos onto front
Elizabeth Muller delved into close-
pieces for their finely crafted wooden wall
reading techniques and other methods to
clocks. They are making amazingly precise
improve her fifth-grade students’ reading
interior cuts into wood panels that before
comprehension and passion for reading.
This year, Bruce Schwartz (Director of Peck’s new Idea and Design Lab) will be mapping out what is sure to be a deep and thorough reflection on the process of opening an Idea & Design Lab for an elementary/middle school curriculum. First grade teacher Christa Nees will be implementing Orton-Gillingham Techniques to support spelling and reading. English teacher Sarah Chan is inspired to use The Moth Story Slam (open-mic and radio narrative, told live) as a tool for exploring narrative, identity, and personal growth. And third grade teacher Sasha Schriener is exploring the best approaches to creative writing in a third-grade classroom. Life at The Peck School in Morristown will never be equated to the film Groundhog Day. Through the Deep Dive process and other methods of professional development, the growth mindset has gone viral at the school. The transformations that our Divers created in their own curricula have rippled outward and created excitement and new collaborations with their colleagues. The most exciting aspect of The Peck School’s faculty development process is the lasting benefit it creates for students. No two academic years will ever look the same at Peck, as the entire academic program rolls inexorably forward and undergoes continuous improvement. Peck News
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