Notes from
Ca rdigan
Nonprofit Organization U.S. POSTAGE PAID Canaan, N.H . Permi t No. 1
Cardigan Mountain School Canaan, New Hampshire 03741
August 1976 The 1976 Summer Session opened on Wednesday, June 23, and again this year, the school had a capacity enro ll ment of over 130 students from a ll over the nation and the wor ld, inc l uding such foreign countries as Japan , Holland, Luxembourg, I ran, Mex i co, and the Dom ini can Republic. The faculty for the Summer Sess i on brought together a wide range of ideas and educationa l approaches. Cl asses are considerab ly smal l er during the Summer Sess ion , and the emphasis is p l aced on individualized i nstruct i on. The curricu lum for the Summer focuses main l y on the fundamentals of English and mathematics, which for most s tud ents , ma kes up the bulk of their morn ing studies. The remaining period or periods are devoted to e ith er Deve l opmental Reading , Typing, French , or Language Training , depend in g upon the individua l requirements of each student. Grading is based upon the effort that a student shows in his subjects , and there is no formal l etter grade given for accomp li s hment. The result i s that the c l asses are structured so that a student may work at his own pace with the teacher's superv i s i on and help. The enthusiasm shown by the Summer Session students was excellent , and there were a number of in-class activities offered in each class , whi ch helped to ma ke their program of study as meaningful and effective as possib l e. There were qu it e a number of students on the Effor t Honor Roll, both at the mid-term and at the end of the summe r, which certain ly speaks well for the attitude of the student body toward their work. After noons , following the one hour reading period were for act i vit i es. This year , there were more different activities offered than eve r before. In addition to the outdoor sports and instructional activities of baseba ll, lacrosse, tennis, sa ilin g, canoe in g , archery , riflery, soccer, and trapshooting, students were also offe red instruction in jewelry making, woodshop, track and fie l d events, sketching, cond iti on i ng and go lf . In addition, one member of the faculty offered courses in photography , mode l rocketry, and astronomy. Part of the activity program every sum~er is the drama class offered by Mr . Fink be i ne r . Th e end product of this al l -summer course i s an operetta , which is presented du rin g th e c l osi ng ceremonies on the l ast day of the session. This year, Mr. Finkbeiner and his group produced Gi l bert and Sull i van's The Mikado. The p roduction was exce l lent, with much good singi ng and acting , and the aud i ence enjoyed it as much as the actors did! A further aspect of the activity program in the Summer Session is the on-going batt l e between the Green and White teams during Tuesday evening act i vities. This summer , i t l ooked as if the Whites wou l d walk away with the award because they maintained a s ub stant i al lead in the standings throughout the six weeks, but everyone was surprised when the Green team won the Great Race on the final day, to emerge victorious by an e i ght po int marg i n. The Greens had been trailing by a seemingly hope l ess ninety-two points go in g into the race, and thei r win was an upset for the Whites. Both teams deserve congratu l ations for their continuing competitive spirit. This summe r, the students were given many opportunities to visit interesting p l aces in New Hampshire and to have outside groups, shows, and exhibits come to· campus. Wednesday and weekend afternoons were free for the students to select their own activit i es , and on those days there was usual l y an off-campus trip offered. Trips went to Lost River, the Polar Caves in Pl ymouth, New Hampshire, the Montshire Science Museum in Hanover, and the traditional climb up Mt. Cardigan. Other school events included the Canaan July 4 parade