Eton Edition June 2013 Vol. 35 No. 7

ETON EDITION Vol. 35 No. 7

June 2013

From the Head of School

A Year of Connections It is hard to believe that almost an entire school year has gone by. My wife and I feel so comfortable in our new home in the GPNW (I learned that one early on), that in many ways we no longer feel like “newbies� and more like locals. The same is true for me, professionally, at Eton.

When I arrived during the summer, I tried to familiarize myself as much as possible with the facility and the procedures and policies. It was not until September, however, that I was able to really immerse myself in the Eton School culture. The welcome I received and the willingness of everyone to help was heart-warming and immediately made me feel at ease in my new role. What I soon found was that, the more I learned about Eton School, the luckier I felt to be given this opportunity. As the year progressed, I learned what a special place this school is, and what special people make up this community.

Signature events such as the Cultural Fair, the Auction, and the Spring Event are wonderful occasions that show the closeness of the community and the diversity we enjoy on our little campus. It is often events such as these that show the real culture of a school and reveal the values important to the community. It is apparent to me, as it was apparent to the accreditation visiting team, that Eton School lives and breathes its Mission each and every day.

While I have learned to know the school better and become more familiar with its culture and traditions, I hope that the Eton School community has also had a chance to become more familiar with me and with my style. My first year has made me eager for my second to start, and I look forward to the future and what we will accomplish together.

Fifth Grade Student Pravir Das (l) and Third Grade Student Prerit Das (r) pose with Dr. Russell Smith when they were Head of School for the day.

In This Issue Accreditation............................................................... 2 Parent Council............................................................. 2 Admission..................................................................... 3 2013-2014 Changes .................................................... 4 Development................................................................ 5 Student Accolades....................................................... 6 Student Activities....................................................... 8 Class News.................................................................. 12 From the Office.......................................................... 23

Dr. Russell Smith, Head of School

Eton School Newsletter

Accreditation

Accreditation Update As most of you know, the joint PNAIS/AMS accreditation team visited the Eton School campus in mid-May. The team spent three days delving into every aspect of the school, from program and philosophy to facilities and the business office. Thank you to all those who participated in meetings with the team and helped them gain insight into our wonderful community. Before leaving, the team leaders gave the faculty an overview of the draft commendations and recommendations in the report, and everyone agreed that the team’s findings reinforced what we had discovered for ourselves during

the self-study process. In other words, there were not any surprises in what the team found.

Now that the visit is complete, we will have to wait a bit for the result. The team will give one report to the PNAIS Committee on Accreditation and another to the AMS School Accreditation Commission. Each of those groups will make a formal recommendation to the Board of Governors of each association, and the board will vote on re-accreditation. The PNAIS Board will meet in November, and the AMS Board will meet in December.

We will keep you posted.

Parent Council

Did You Know that You are a Member of the Eton Parent Council?

The Eton Parent Council (EPC) is not just the committee. It comprises the entire population of Eton parents and guardians. We are now in our fourth year, and since our inception, we have been evolving to meet the changing needs of the school—the staff, the leadership, and the students.

In a nutshell, the vision of the EPC is to support inclusion, partnership and cooperation within your school community. We want all Eton families, both old and new, to feel they have wide-ranging opportunities to be involved in the school—opportunities that suit your working hours, your strengths, your schedules and your cultures.

While the EPC has played a crucial role to date in working towards this vision, we are taking the opportunity to tweak things a bit for the 2013/14 school year. We have introduced four new roles: a community coordinator at each level of the school and an overall volunteer coordinator.

The Community Coordinators will be working closely with the room reps throughout the school, creating a collaborative team at each level, focusing on community building and creating a fun and engaged parent body.

If you have any ideas about specific issues or needs that should be addressed at individual levels, please reach out to us so we can do our best to help.

Our Volunteer Coordinator will be working closely with the Chairs of our major school events to ensure they are getting the support they need. We have such an active, visible volunteer community at Eton and we are thrilled that so many of you continue to help at the Auction, the Cultural Fair, and the Spring Event.

Nevertheless, there are so many other, less visible but equally crucial ways that families can get involved with

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Passing of the gavel at the May Meeting: Eton Parent Council’s 2013-2014 President, Catherine Manney (l) and the 2012-2103 President, Peter Roppo (r).

the school. Reading in classrooms, helping on picture day, stuffing envelopes from the comfort of your sofa, helping out on Grandparents’ Day, proofreading, the list goes on.

So our fearless volunteer coordinator will also be helping to maintain a rolling list of people who want to participate and help find opportunities that meet their specific needs.

Watch this space for opportunities to sign up.

Our EPC committee will meet monthly throughout the year and all are welcome to attend. The meetings will be to discuss forthcoming events and to manage day‑to‑day business of the EPC. Details will be posted in the school calendar online.

We recognize that not all of you are terribly interested in the detailed running of the EPC, so we want to give you more opportunities to meet other families, learn relevant information about the school and how it is run, and input into lively discussions on ‘hot topics’ at each level. Going forward, we will be having Learning Events that you are invited (and encouraged) to attend. These may be whole school events, or may be level specific, VOL 35 NO. 7

2013-2014 Eton Parent Council Executive Committee President Catherine Manney President-elect Open Secretary Nikki Rehman Treasurer Angela Ting Volunteer coordinator Smita Jain Community Coordinators Pre-elementary Amy Yu Lower Elementary Patti Sauntry Upper Elementary and Middle School Michelle Dehmer

depending on the needs of the school community. If you have any ideas about topics that you would like to see covered, please reach out to your Room Rep or your Community Coordinator on the EPC. For evening events, childcare will be provided and there will be refreshments for both children and adults. For this reason, we ask that when possible, you RSVP to the events so we can plan accordingly. Our new website, to be launched in the fall, will make this simple (we promise).

In addition to specific Learning Events, we also want to give you the opportunity to drop in to the school with any questions or suggestions you may have for the

EPC. To enable this, we are going to hold First Thursday coffees. On the first Thursday of each month, the EPC will be hosting the coffee, and will provide information, and friendship. Drop in, give us your thoughts, provide feedback, toss around ideas, and meet some other parents (location and time to be determined).

We have such a strong community of families at Eton, but it can be challenging to meet other parents when we drop off and pick up our children in a line of cars.

By creating these opportunities for involvement, and talking about them more, we hope that you can find a way that helps you feel engaged as a family, which fits in to the time constraints you have, with your jobs, your family and your other commitments. Getting involved is great for the school, but it is also great for you and your children. It provides opportunities for you to meet other Eton parents on a more personal level, and makes it possible for your children to meet other families socially, rather than just in school. We hope that by creating a wide range of opportunities to engage with the Eton community, you will continue to feel part of it, bringing benefits to you and your family.

So, watch this space. We will be posting information on the new website, updating the calendar, and keeping you informed about what is going on at the school and how you can participate. If you have any questions about the EPC, or any suggestions, please don’t hesitate to contact Catherine Manney at catherine.royle@gmail.com or call (206) 669 – 2102.

Catherine Manney, Eton Parent Council President

Admission

Are you registered for Eton’s Summer Program?

Have you submitted your registation? Registrations are still coming in for Eton’s Summer Program. Some classes are filling up, so do not delay if you have a particular week in mind. Remember, if your child is moving up to a new level, we strongly recommend a two‑week enrollment. Summer classes serve as a valuable orientation to the new program and help make the transition in September smoother. Classes for both Lower Elementary and Upper Level available.

A new class has been added to the summer agenda.

During the week of July 15-19, Jinny Heiskanen, a friend of Madame Parisa will offer Art Camp. Ms. Heiskanen, a life-long artist, fashion designer and experienced art instructor at NW Chinese School will help students ages 6-12 discover their inner artist. Activities include drawing, painting, cartoon drawing, watercolors, sculpting an Egyptian mummy, crystal projects, paper fashion and Chinese/Japanese brush painting, to name a few!

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To review the schedule for Eton’s Summer Program, visit the web site or pick up registration forms for any of the summer classes at the office. It is hard to believe that summer is right around the corner!

Cherie Goetz, Admission Director

Refer Eton School to Others!

Openings are still available for the upcoming 2013-14 school year. Continue to refer any friends or co-workers who are interested in Eton School.

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2013-2014 Changes

Endings and New Beginnings: Changes at Eton School As the current school year ends and we look ahead to the upcoming school year, we want to keep you informed of changes that are taking place at Eton School.

Retiring: Mrs. Barbara Bell, Curriculum Director

Mrs. Bell joined Eton School in the early years as a classroom teacher and then became the Curriculum Director, where she assisted and supervised faculty and specialists along with many of Eton’s programs. Over the last two years, Mrs. Bell led the preparation and documentation for our recent accreditation process. Her organizational and professional skills helped facilitate the visit by the accreditation team. Although we will miss her, we wish Mrs. Bell all the best in her retirement.

Leaving: Mrs. Tricia Wray

Our current fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Tricia Wray is leaving Eton School to move to Texas where her husband has a new job opportunity.

Mrs. Wray joined Eton School first as a parent and then as a teacher. She taught one year as a Math Specialist and four years as a fourth grade teacher. We wish Mrs. Wray and her family great success as they embark on upon this new path.

Changing Levels: Ms. Sadie Reitz

Current Lower Elementary teacher, Ms. Sadie Reitz is moving up to be the fourth grade math and science teacher. Ms. Reitz started teaching as a Lead Naturalist at Moran Outdoor School and the Seattle Audubon Society.

In 2005 She obtained a K-8 Washington State Teacher Certification and taught in Mount Vernon and Seattle Public Schools. In 2009, Ms. Reitz completed a Lower Elementary Montessori Certification. She joined Eton School first as an intern in Room 1 for one year and then

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accepted the position of teacher in Room 6. During her four years in Room 6 Ms. Reitz taught model drawing math, earned her Masters of Education (M.Ed.) and completed the course “Life and Learning of the Middle School Student” at the University of Washington, which earned her a Middle School Math and Science endorsement. Ms. Reitz is both saddened and excited about the opportunity to teach fourth grade. She will miss her students as they move up to second and third grade, but she is excited to be with all the students moving with her to fourth grade. Looking forward to her new position, Ms. Reitz noted, “I bring with me a background in environmental education and science, a passion for educating and connecting to students, and a balance of Montessori and traditional style teaching.”

Moving to New Position: Ms. Kris Meyer Gaskins

After many years as the teacher in Room 5, Ms. Kris Meyer Gaskins has accepted the position of Head of Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary at Eton School.

Ms. Gaskins has taught at Eton for 18 years in both Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary. During last two years, she has also served in a supervisory role for the Lower Elementary teachers. Ms. Gaskins’s involvement in Montessori education started in 1981, and she holds both Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary Montessori Certification along with a Master of Education (M.Ed.).

Although she feels somewhat saddened about leaving her classroom and students, she is excited for this new opportunity to work with the greater Eton School Community.

New Teacher: Mrs. Lora Boyd

We want to welcome Mrs. Lora Boyd to Eton School.

She will be the new Lower Elementary teacher in Room 5. Mrs. Boyd comes to us from Arbor Montessori School in Decatur, Georgia where she has taught children ages six years to twelve years. We are excited to have her join the Eton Faculty beginning in August 2013.

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Classroom Change: Room 6

Enrollment is changing in the Lower Elementary for the 2013-2014 school year. In order to maintain an ideal learning environment in a Montessori classroom, it needs to have a balance of genders and ages for group work, research projects, peer learning and healthy social relationships. In order to continue to provide an optimum learning environment for all the students in the Lower Elementary program, we decided to place the students in Room 6 into other classrooms in the fall.

The current teacher Ms. Reitz along with the Admission Director, Mrs. Goetz and the new Head of Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary, Ms. Kris Meyer Gaskins, will take into account the learning and social needs of each child and work carefully to find the right classroom and teacher for each child.

The beauty of a small student body is that teachers and students know each other throughout the year, including at recess, during the Cosmic Fair, during play practice, and through informal classroom exchanges and assemblies. Additionally, a Montessori classroom itself is the constant. Every classroom has the same learning materials and the children will be able to pick up where they left off in June. Every classroom strives to help their students grow socially and emotionally. Every teacher will work hard to help each student to quickly acclimate to his or her new environment.

Changes are an inevitable part of a growing community such as Eton School and we give you our assurance that we are well prepared to implement them in a smooth and positive manner.

Development

Thank You for Your Support and Dedication!

A gift to the Annual Fund provides enhancements to the existing programs at Eton. The technology program benefited with purchases of new equipment. Classes were able to go on field trips and some brought in guest speakers to enrich their units of study. Teachers were able to buy Montessori materials and other classroom materials that supported their lessons. Annual Fund gifts helped provide professional development for our teachers and staff so that they continue to be inspired and progressive in their teaching methods. Your gifts have helped to create an educational environment where our children will be confidently equipped with the intellectual tools to be responsible and compassionate global citizens. As Franklin Delano Roosevelt said, “We cannot always build the future for our youth, but we can build our youth for the future.” At Eton, we are truly preparing our students for the future.

An enormous thank you to all the families who have supported the Eton program through a contribution to the Annual Fund! So far 28% of our current families have participated (an increase from last year’s 18%)!

The Eton Staff have 88% participation and 100% of the

board contributed to the Annual Fund. We have received $66,000 in gifts for the Annual Fund and continue to receive pledges and matching funds from those of you who contributed through your employer. Thank you again for thinking of Eton during company’s Giving Month!

There is still time to participate before the end of the school year! If you would like to make a gift to the Annual Fund or to the Patricia M. Feltin Fund for Educational Advancement, you may donate online through Eton’s website (http://www.etonschool.org/giving/index.html) or fill out a form at the front desk. The Dr. Feltin Fund specifically supports financial aid and provides financial assistance for teacher and staff for professional development.

Thank you for your dedication in making Eton an amazing school for our children. Whether you spent time volunteering in the classroom, drove students on field trips or made a donation to the Annual Fund, you are all integral members of our great community here. Eton School could not be successful without your dedicated support and we are very grateful for that.

Seventh and eight grade students went on an amazing field trip where they learned to snowshoe. For more photos visit http://tinyurl.com/pta3tr5.

Room 6 brought in a guest speaker on whales and the presentation appeared on NPR’s KUOW. Read and listen to it at http://tinyurl.com/pzm35j4.

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Monica Mailing, Development Director

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Student Accolades

Celebrating Students Outside of School!

At the end of every year, Eton School likes to recognize the amazing things that our students accomplish outside of school. Thank you parents for sharing this wonderful news with us all.

Pre-Elementary Mezzo A Cameron Manney was recently in the Pacific Northwest Ballet Bellevue Petite Finale. He is the only boy in his class and managed to concentrate fully and perform fabulously as the strong Prince while 15 little swans fluttered around him.

Mezzo B Addie Langworthy appeared in her first piano recital and was one of top scorers on her Cougar Dolphins Soccer team.

Mezzo C Brandon Weisman won 1st placed in chess in K-1 category Chess 4 Life April 6, 2103.

Mezzo 1 Pulkit Ahuja performed on the stage for the Indian Cultural celebration of Diwali. He played the role of young Ram from Hindu mythology who has central role in the great Indian epic of Ramayana. This was Pulkit’s first stage performance in community and cultural affairs. Pulkit participated in The Big Climb along with the family and other team members representing the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society to help their fund raising. Pulkit, on his own, completed the climb of 69 flights of stairs. He kept climbing until he was done and served as motivation for his family to finish the climb.

Kaiden Bonilla played beautifully in his first piano recital at Eton.

Mezzo 2 Amber Pascovici has been practicing ballet at Art School Ellen in Redmond. Last winter she performed in their production of Nutcracker along with a number of Eton students. Next month she will perform in Coppelia.

Rohan Patel has been learning piano and arts for over a year and doing really well in both classes.

Lower Elementary Room 3 and Room 6 Kaitlyn Sauntry (Room 6) and her brother Sean (Room 3) have been very successful in their martial arts endeavors this year. They will be testing for new belts in

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June in their Shudokan Karate class. Kaitlyn began the school year as a yellow belt and is now testing for her black stripe on her blue belt. Sean moved up from his Little Dragons class to youth level and is now testing for his yellow belt, having earned his black stripe on his white belt in March.

Room 1 Zachary Boyle won First Prize (age group 7/8 years old) at Mount Si Fish Club’s Trout Derby on May 4, 2013 and earned a trophy for Chess (Pawn Level).

Kyla Johnston is a member of the Eastside Rabbits and Cavies 4-H club in Issaquah. She has had the opportunity to help the surrounding community and Eastside Baby Corner with a coat and clothing drive and also to be part of various “petting” tables around the area where she had brought her rabbit, Luke SkyHopper, to share with others. She has brought joy and information to retirement communities, a school and to a Petco with these meet-and-greet events. Kyla is part of the Eton Girl Scout Troop #41060 and they have taken part in some amazing community service opportunities over the years.

Atharv Vasisht is a Dan 1 Black belt student at Hwang’s Tae Kwon Do school. Atharv received Student of the Year award for his dedication, hard work and perseverance.

He has rarely missed his lessons and has always excelled his belt tests thus being an outstanding student all year long. Atharv won the Under 8 Chess Tournament hosted by a local non-profit Organization, Sahyadri Kannada Sangha (http://sahyadrikannadasangha.org/?page_id=17) on March 16, 2013.

Room 3 Kyra Benzie does the following after school activities, Gymnastics, Dance, Piano and Russian Language School.

Anna Rowell is a member of the PRO Sports club swim team. This year it was her second time participating in a swimathon to benefit Ronald McDonald Charities. Anna won the award for collecting the most donations this year and she had a lot of fun swimming with her teammates for 45 minutes non-stop.

Room 4 Skylar Couture received her 2nd Degree Black belt in Karate November 2012.

Angelina Simone has been in the Nutcracker and Alice in Wonderland ballet performances with the International Ballet Theater.

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Student Accolades Room 5 This year, Georgia Langworthy was Cinderella in a live theatrical production. She also won three ribbons in a Northwest jump rope competition.

Ryan Weisman won the Eton school Spelling bee championship and won 1st place in chess in grade 2-3 category in Chess 4 Life April 6. His ultimate Frisbee team made it to playoffs.

Upper Level Fourth Grade Ayush Bajaj’s 4th Grade team won second place in Division 2 in the Math is Cool contest. His Frisbee team, the Eton Phoenix Green made it to the playoffs. He was awarded a Trophy for completing 4 years of intermediatelevel piano training.

Benjamin Douglass scored a “hat trick” during the 2012-13 hockey season. He was recognized at the SnoKing Youth Hockey League Annual Banquet for his work. A “hat trick” is when one person scores three goals in the same game. In addition Benjamin was selected to play on the Bellevue East Little League 10U Select Baseball Team this summer.

Marisa Mulye achieved Superior ratings at the recent Edmonds Music Teachers Association competition in both the classical and non-classical piano performance categories. Marisa also gives her time to Hopelink. She collects travel-sized toiletries to assemble little “care packages,” which she donates to Hopelink clients in need of basic neccesities that many of us take for granted.

Kai Nylund won 1st place in the individual portion of the Math Is Cool Masters Competition. In addition, his team won 1st place in the team competition.

Karthik Shaji was selected in Center for Talented Youth at John Hopkins University. He participated in the Washington state chess tournament and placed 22nd at his grade level. He came in 5th in the individual at Math is Cool.

Antonio Yang has been actively figure skating and participating in competitions. He recently earned second place in May Blades in Tacoma. He has also earned first place in other competitions.

Fifth Grade Awsumb Hardy earned the Cub Scout Arrow of Light Award (the highest honor in Cub Scouting).

Melia Maling had a very successful year with her U10 Crossfire Premier soccer team. Melia is a talented JUNE 2013

goalkeeper and played that position most of the year until the State Cup tournament. The team brought in a new goalkeeper so Melia moved back on to the field to play midfield and forward. Her team advanced all the way to the finals of the State Cup Tournament where they lost in a very exciting game to a Snohomish team, 1-0. She is very proud of all her hard work with soccer and is looking forward to another great year!

Sixth Rahul Misal was part of the Math Olympiad for 6th grade and this team won 2 medals (which is rare to do).

Serena Home and Katrin Zender won with their team Lake Washington Premier Football Club White Piranhas the Puget Sound Premier League Spring Super League 2013. The team was undefeated for 7 consecutive games and won with 21 points ahead of Academy of Soccer Excellence G00 Emerald (15 points) and Washington Premier Football Club Fury 00 Black (13 points). They will spend part of their summer traveling to tournaments, which will prepare them for the Fall League in September 2013. Go Piranhas! For more info about the team, please visit www.lwpfc.com Seventh Grade Dancing For Joy…with determination Alisa Nishanova, loves to dance. She started at the age of two and danced her first solo at nine years old in the Nutcracker. Alisa was not born with any natural flexibility or anything that’s very good for dancing. Her knees are not designed well for ballet and she has the wrong foot type. She has always been told that she would have to work much harder than her friends to achieve the same result, and she does. She is always the first in the studio.

Alisa dances with the International Ballet Academy, the pre-professional division of the International Ballet Theatre. She dances 15-25 hours each week. This year Alisa danced as Alice in Alice in Wonderland, and she danced as Clara in the Nutcracker at the age of eleven in 2010.

When asked, Alisa said this about her craft. “Standing at the barre for the first hour of class used to be the most boring part. Now, it is what I look forward to. Looking in the mirror, perfecting every movement, remembering the combination, using the right dynamic, tightening every muscle and making it look soft, and trying to use proper placement is very difficult without a barre for support, and it helps concentrate on technique. Ballet classes are never boring anymore.”

Eighth Grade Cooper Matson is on the Rain City Water Polo team headed to the Junior Olympics this summer. He also completed his term as President of the Junior Classical League at the 2013 JCL convention in March.

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Student Activities

Your Spelling Word is…

by Ms. Kris Meyer Gaskins, Lower Elementary Teacher On Friday, April 26, the Lower Elementary held their annual Spelling Bee. Four students from each classroom participated in this competition, with Ryan Weisman, from Room 5, taking first place; Josie Albrecht, from Room 5, taking second place; and Krithika Gopalakrishnan, from Room 3, taking third place.

All classrooms held mock spelling bees on a regular basis to prepare for this exciting event. Preparation for the spelling bee was a wonderful opportunity for each student to improve his or her oral spelling as well as build awareness of correct spelling. The following is a list of the four spellers from each classroom:

Room 1 Sanjana Bajaj Kyla Johnston Kyra Niyogi Erik Vank

Room 4 Jimin Lee Audrey Lemson Misha Nivota Ariel Raizman

The students filled the stage and sat quietly while waiting for their word.

Room 3

Cuyler Aka Krithika Gopalakrishnan Praveer Jain Ayden Tan

Room 5

Josie Albrecht Ammar Ghouse Ellie Hsu Ryan Weisman

Room 6

Ai-Li Hollander Joycie Lu Kaitlyn Sauntry Andrew Zhou

The top three winners received their Spelling Bee Certificates: Josie Albrecht, second place (l), Krithika Gopalakrishnan, third place (lc), Dr. Smith (rc) and Ryan Weisman, first place (r).

Student Council Fundraiser National Park Foundation Written by: Heather Johnson and Gitu Devadoss Eton School Collected: $755.84

• • • • •

The Parks Mission

The National Park Foundation improves America’s national parks and programs through support from private donors.

This foundation directly supports over 400 national parks in America. Their areas of focus are conservation, preservation, education, and community involvement.

This year, the student council decided to collect money to donate to the National Parks Foundation. Upper collected money by doing a ‘Penny War’, and Lower Elementary collected for fun.

Penny Wars: • Fun way to involve students in Middle School • Fundraiser

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Motivates students to donate Only pennies count Other money deducts from the jar value People were excited Collected lots of money

Pennies for Parks: • • •

Involves lower school (Grades 1-3) Makes students want to do it again Introduces the value of charity and donation to younger students • Fun for the students • Gets lower school excited For more information about our money usage, go to: http://www.nationalparks.org/our-work VOL 35 NO. 7

Student Activities

Fourth Grade Success at Math Competition Thirteen Eton fourth grade students participated in Division 2 of the regional Math is Cool competition on Friday, April 19, at Des Moines High School. Three teams of four along with one alternate, represented Eton well by placing second in the team competition.

Team members included Ayush B., Julie G., Mehek G., Kathryn L., Vera M., Rohan M., Marisa M., Ayush N., Kai N., Jake O., Karthik S., and Tiffany Z. Karthik received fifth place for the individual score and best in school.

The top scoring team from regionals, consisting of Vera, Kai, Jake and Tiffany, continued on to the masters

Math is Cool competition in Moses Lake on May 19.

Congratulations to this team for their first place win!

Individual awards were given to Kai for first place, Jake for fourth place, and Tiffany for seventh place.

A special thanks goes to parent organizer and co-coach Amy Yu. Way to go fourth grade Math is Cool members!

Sixth and Seventh Grade Mathletes Celebrate!

On Saturday, May 4, in the shadow of Mt. Rainier at Selah Middle School in Federal Way, seven students from sixth and seventh grades competed in the Washington State Math Council’s Math Olympiad. This competition is different from many others in its structure and format. The competition takes place simultaneously at over ten local schools, so the tone of the day is more intimate than at many other math events.

Our sixth grade team, Graham Frangooles, Rahul Misal, Kavya Varkey, and Jon Zhu earned top medals on both the Long and Short Tests. The group was so excited by the recognition. The seventh grade team, Dipu Devadoss, Gitu Devadoss, and Jonathan Lau competed bravely when their teammate, Martin Armanasu, came down ill just before the event.

Sixth Grade Team

The first part of the competition day is all about the ‘Long Problem’ that is unique because it does not have a correct answer – it is a design problem with multiple requirements and copious data. As a team, the students must work through the requirements in an hour. Judges take their work and score it based on accuracy, strategy, methods of communication and attention to detail. Partial credit is given. This style of problem is tough, but very valuable for our students to experience. The remainder of the day is spent on more typical style problems.

The students all appreciated the chance to participate with fellow competitors from schools around the area and many of them are planning to return again next year.

Congrats to all the students for their commitment to learning and courage to compete. Thanks to all parents who drove, hosted meetings, provided snacks, made pizza, cajoled, demanded, proctored, and just plain made it fun—especially those who coached in the classroom, Ying Li, Maya Subramanian and Teresa Yao.

Seventh Grade Team

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Student Activities

Academic Highlights The Science and Engineering Expo, held on May 23, was an energetic culminating event for fourth through seventh grade science students. Each room, filled with display boards and future scientists, was abuzz with enthusiasm and pride, after months of dedicated work. The science projects are designed to provide the opportunity for students to learn and apply a scientific process. Each student researches a topic of interest, poses a question, develops a hypothesis and conducts an experiment. Displays of student work include a summary of procedures, material lists, data charts or graphs, research papers and summaries. Presentation skills are part of the process, incorporating beautiful visual display boards and students’ enthusiastic explanation to peers, parents and visitors. Topics were as varied and unique as each of the sixty skilled young scientists.

Eighth grade students are given the freedom to complete research on a topic of their choosing in order to create a personal culminating project. The eighth grade projects include extensive research to gain a conceptual understanding of the topic. They then have

the opportunity to apply the information in their own innovative or creative way. The process often includes an interview of an expert, a proposed solution to a problem, a personal performance, or an original design component. The research and visual presentations incorporate the use of technology and emphasize communication skills through public speaking. This year, on May 28, an audience of more than 75 friends and families enjoyed the eighth grade presentations that included slide shows, a musical performance, a karate demonstration, expressive art work and an outstanding original model of a contemporary skyscraper. Students researched areas in neuro-anatomy, endangered species, grunge music, the history of karate, architecture, the role of crows in science and literature, and quantum physics. There is a great sense of pride and ownership in completing a project and presentation of such professional quality. Further, it is excellent preparation for high school, college and the workplace.

To see more, visit Eton School’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/etonschool.washington.

Seventh Grade Students Enter the 2013 Washington State Science and Engineering Fair and Offer Advice On April 5 and 6, Eton sisters, Dipu and Gitu Devadoss, entered individual science projects at the Washington State Science and Engineering Fair in Bremerton, Washington. Dipu’s project, Yeast for Life, was about the rate of oxygen production during a chemical reaction.

Gitu’s project, The Influence of Copper on Plankton Growth, was about the relationship between plankton concentrations and dissolved copper levels at different locations in our watershed.

The girls enjoyed the experience and plan to participate next year, hoping that others will join them, too! They made these observations and recommendations for future student success: • Include lots of data; it is the most important part of your project.

• Make projects relevant to people—help others understand a topic better.

• Have a really bright board so it catches the judges’ attention and makes them want to see your board. Use lots of big pictures and graphs to catch their attention.

• Have a journal that is full of process and observations and all the research. If you change something, include that in the journal.

• Dress is very formal, telling the judges that you are taking the process very seriously. Some of the high school boys were wearing tuxedos.

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• Judges ask lots of questions about the work.

• You have to project your voice during your interviews with each judge. The room is very noisy.

• You can have between 1 to 8 different judges interviewing you.

• Judges like display items in front of your display boards.

• The more work you do for your presentations, the better the judges will score it.

• Pay attention the whole time you are there. Stand, be aware, sometimes you may not be aware that someone is actually a judge or is interviewing you as they come by.

• Choose a project that no one has done before. This catches the judges’ attention.

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Student Activities

Students Present at Salish Sea Student Science Symposium Friday, May 31 marked the 5th Annual Salish Sea Student Science Symposium that showcased scientific water quality research by the youth of Puget Sound.

Nine of our seventh and eighth grade students presented their projects from the school year. These students participated in an amazing learning opportunity earlier this year—Salish Source. They tested water quality at Marymoor Park, synthesized data and took their findings to the Symposium. Twenty-four groups from middle and high schools in the area presented, so this was quite a learning opportunity.

The keynote speaker was Jennifer Hempelmann, a molecular geneticist working at NOAA’s Northwest

Fisheries Science Center in Seattle. She discussed the use of DNA in identifying Southern Resident Orca diet and she talked about the local resident whales in general. It was fascinating. Later in the day, professional scientists offered four student workshops about topics such as fur seal genetics and creating rain gardens.

Eton student participants included Julian Adams, Martin Armanasu, Dipu Devadoss, Gitu Devadoss, Heather Johnson, Jonathan Lau, Kevin McDermott Charney and Michael van der Hoeven. They were fantastic! The students were accompanied by seventh and eighth grade science teacher, Laura Moore, and the class assistant (and more), Kirsten Zender.

Macroeconomics Comes to Life in Seventh and Eighth Charles Moore, father of Eton alums Thomas and Charlotte, returned for his sixth year to teach his enormously popular macroeconomics class. Charles is a Microsoft employee and a teacher at heart. He came to the classroom here at Eton with simulations and lectures that were so cool, students could not wait until his next class, and it did not hurt that candy was involved at times. Topics included the Federal Reserve, bonds, inflation, the meaning of value, and how these topics all relate to our lives.

We are thrilled that he continues to visit us with his energy and love for the students. Furthermore, we want him to know that the students look forward to his class, as it is a highlight of the year.

End of Season, but Phoenix will Rise in Fall What a great year for the Eton School Ultimate Frisbee teams! The players worked hard, played hard and had a blast throughout the season. Each team played 8 to 10 games against other independent schools and Seattle Public schools. They represented Eton School with enthusiasm and confidence, and truly demonstrated the spirit of the game.

The Green Team coached by Sadie Reitz was made up of third and fourth grader students. They won over half their games and had a fantastic time playing together.

Great job Phoenix Green: Ayush Bajaj, Isabella Dehmer, Jake Olson, Ariel Raizman, Katie Field, Mehek Gosalia, Keeler Frangooles, Philip Roppo, Manav Verma, Praveer Jain, Emma Young, Janik Zender, and Ryan Weisman.

The Yellow Team had fourth and fifth grade students with coach Kevin Gilfillan. They showed determination and focus. The team made it to the playoffs! Way to go Phoenix Yellow: Ai-Li Hollander, Benjamin Douglass, Awsumb Hardy, Jacco Bouw, Adit Hattikudur, Jacob Keller-Rusch, Alex Klimecky, William Le, Melia Maling, Jen Manelski, Isha Murali, Evan Suty, Acacia Niyogi, Mateo Zoroza, and Shiv Rajurs.

JUNE 2013

Our first ever Middle School team was coached by Monica Maling. The team had a great time playing against other Middle Schools and they won their division Spirit Award for being positive, fair and fun. Super job Phoenix Blue: Cooper Matson, Michael van der Hoeven, Kavya Varkey, Madrona Maling, Hana Mahmud, Jesus Bautista Feliberti, Rahul Misal, John Zhu, Jack Orton, Graham Frangooles, Megha Murali, Riley Dehmer, and Kevin McDermott Charney.

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Class News

Fourth Grade: Using Literature to Explore Multiple Perspectives Ms. Sonja Everson, Mrs. Tricia Wray and Dr. Susan Walker The fourth grade students have been spending the school year using literature to examine multiple perspectives. The novel Crash by Jerry Spinelli was the most recent title the students examined together. While the characters Crash Coogan, the middle school football star, and his quirky next-door neighbor, Penn Webb, grasped the fourth graders’ attention, the students were unaware that they were simultaneously improving their own reading skills, developing a passion for literature, and encouraging their personal development of empathy.

Jerry Spinelli’s writing style creates characters who are relatable and funny, yet presented our class with rich themes ripe for discussion.

In Crash, Jerry Spinelli takes the stereotypical bully, Crash Coogan, and muddles the readers’ initial perceptions by inviting them to experience the events and characters in his life that shape who he is and who he chooses to become. As our fourth graders are reaching the age where they are able to start recognizing the grey areas of life, this type of story is perfect to help push them into recognizing multiple perspectives.

To further support this developmental shift, during our study of Westward Expansion, fourth graders were tasked with reading a novel about the time period from either

the perspective of a Native American family or a pioneer family. Students came together to discuss how many conflicts of this time were fueled by prejudgments and misunderstandings. Students also examined how different sides of the same story are told through a lens of bias.

After reading Dr. Seuss’s The Lorax, students were quick to judge the factory owner, Mr. Onceler, as the villain of the story who recklessly cut down the truffula trees and polluted the town of Gricklegrass until it was uninhabitable. The Lorax was the hero in the students’ eyes because he advocated on behalf of the environment.

To question this assumption of good guy versus bad guy and to push students to recognize the grey areas of decision making, the class was challenged to design a new town that would meet the needs of four characters in the story: Mr. Onceler (the factory owner), Lorax (environmentalist), Mr. and Mrs. Barbaloot (wildlife), and the Funslers (townspeople). Students assumed one of these roles, analyzed their positions, costs, and benefits, and then negotiated with the other characters until everyone’s needs were met.

Students benefit from opportunities to practice putting themselves in others’ shoes, and using literature to do so grants them access to a diverse array of perspectives.

This not only helps to develop critical thinking skills, but it also helps students cultivate their sense of justice and empathy. It has been exciting to watch the fourth grade students develop their ability to step outside of themselves, challenge assumptions, and recognize the richness of other people’s perspectives.

Fifth Grade: Big Task, Small Reward Mr. Peter Kashevarof and Ms. Candace Davidson Some may or may not be aware of this, but the fifth graders are in charge of “Big Recycling,” which means they take all of the recycling from the Mezzo and Casa Buildings up to the large recycle bin at the Main Building. Not only is this a rather large responsibility, but it is also a necessary and important service that the students provide for Eton. Over the course of the year, each fifth grader helped with Big Recycling about 35 times, or about 20% of all of the days spent at school.

Many may agree with the age-old adage, “Effort is its own reward,” though many might also see the value in acknowledging a job well done. With that, the fifth

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graders recently celebrated the hard work they put in by going out to lunch and a movie. The students ate at Crossroads Mall, which was a special treat compared to eating lunch in the classroom, and it was also a wonderful social time for the students. Then, they went to see Epic, a new computer animated movie about the preservation and caretaking of nature, which nicely coincided with the recycling they have done all year.

A very large thanks goes out to all of the Big Recyclers, and while lunch and a movie were but a small reward, the students can be very proud of the effort they put forth.

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Class News

Sixth Grade: Oh, Say Can You See… Mrs. Marjie Butler, Ms. Laura Moore, and Dr. Susan Walker The sky is dark, sleepy eyes all around, parents hugging children, lines forming, checking in luggage and security just down the wide hall. Jesus B. will lead us with hips of steel! There is an air of excitement as the wheels touch down. “Don’t forget anything in the seat back pouch.

Pack your cords and grab your water bottles. Meet in the lobby by the gate.”

Thus began our adventure in Washington, D.C. The school traveling with us, St. Theresa School, from Palm Springs, joined us at the bus. With greetings all around, we headed to the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial.

Though very serious, the artistry of design and meaning behind each bench and pool, date line and position impressed upon us the deep commitment of those of us left behind. Never will we forget those that were lost, nor ever let this happen again.

Throughout the week, our students became more aware that each memorial, grave site, and sculpture clearly symbolized or embodied a much greater meaning than just the first visual experience: the Lincoln Memorial, Arlington Cemetery and the changing of the Guard of the Unknown Soldier, the nurses that served in Vietnam.

While touring federal buildings (the Capitol), we had conversations about the establishment of the Library of Congress, the National Archive of documents that our government is based on, and the ability of each and every one of us to see the very documents that protect the rights that are ours.

As we delved into many of the Smithsonian Museums, there were specific displays that were favorites. The collection at the Air and Space Museum went from the model of the Space Shuttle Columbia to the Spirit of St. Louis. The Natural History Museum held many delectable finds including the African Elephant, a gift shop, the Hope Diamond and JUNE 2013

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Class News

all the other cut gems. The American History Museum captivated the attention of each person in our group from the preservation of the Star Spangled Banner to the diner

where African Americans refused to leave the seats at the counter. There was so much to see and yet, not enough time to soak in all the historical meaning in each exhibit.

“There isn’t enough time to see it all,” complained one of our sixth graders in spite of being tired and sore footed!

Even after returning, the conversations in the classroom continue to return to an experience or physical location connecting our studies with our experiences. There is great satisfaction having experienced this unique trip to Washington, D.C. Each of the students knows each other better; their camaraderie is more intertwined and complex.

Memories were made, much of which may be glossed over in the future, but each one of us has changed in some way. We are closer. There is a new set of perspectives established in each of us, which we have created and shared. In the future, somewhere, at some time, a memory will be stirred, dredge up, and rehashed. A has been made, and hopefully, a breadth of knowledge enhanced with this sixth grade experience in Washington, D.C.

Seventh and Eighth Grades: We are Reading and Writing Mrs. Marjie Butler, Ms. Laura Moore, and Dr. Susan Walker The Bellevue King County Library System’s librarian, Darcy Brixey, continues her collaboration with Eton’s Middle School. On Monday, June 3, Darcy brought a panel of four authors of young adult fiction to talk with the sixth, seventh, and eighth graders: Kevin Emerson, Martha Brockenbrough, Cat Patrick, and Sean Beaudoin.

The genres include science fiction, fantasy, and realistic fiction. The King County Library System’s budget for visiting authors has been cut, however, Darcy always makes a point to bring authors to Eton. She explained that our students are engaged, involved, and love to read, and she finds them a wonderful and receptive audience for the yearly author visits.

Our Middle School also had the privilege to welcome author, and Eton parent, Eric Nyland. Seventh and eighth graders had just begun a science fiction unit.

They were reading and analyzing science fiction short stories and beginning a science fiction novel for literature circles in preparation to write their own short story. They were to research an aspect of science to use as a foundation for their story. Eric talked with the students about the process of writing a science fiction story, plot development, and how to integrate science.

The students jumped into brainstorming as soon as he left, and are now deep into writing some amazing science fiction!

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VOL 35 NO. 7

Specialist News

Upper Level Physical Education: Leaning Life Lessons Mr. Kevin Gilfillan

Upper Level Physical Education just finished the final Presidential Fitness Challenge of the 2012-2013 year. I was again amazed at how dedicated and determined the kids are to improve their scores from the previous go round.

Their hard work REALLY paid off! We went from nine National Award winners to nineteen! That is a huge step forward. We went from three Presidential Award winners to nine! I could not be prouder of the kids. Everyone had a score that improved and many did better at all events. The effort level has been through the roof this year!

Our sports of the late spring quarter were wiffle ball, badminton, and kickball. The kids were very excited to get out and play all three. I cannot say the same for their wanting to practice them. I also cannot say I blame them. It has been a pretty wet year with a recent stretch of gorgeous days. Now the sun is shining, the days are warmer and playing games just feels like the right thing to do.

It has been a wonderful year, and once again an overwhelming pleasure to work with the students. I feel so lucky to be here and get the chance to do what I do.

I hope that, over the course of the year, we get across more than how to kick a ball, run fast, and play games.

I hope that life lessons are being learned. Physical Education is a wonderful opportunity to become a leader, work effectively with others, and push yourself harder than you thought you could. In every class, we strive to accomplish these things and more. These are real world lessons that should have a carry over effect into the rest of their lives.

Lower Elementary, Sixth, Seventh and Eighth Grade Art: Completing the Circle and Making Connections Mr. Clay Blankenship The visual arts come full circle with ongoing connections throughout every lesson. Lower Elementary students focused on the circle as the main shape and form in each project. They used the circle as both the positive image and as the negative space that supports the main composition.

Then we took the circle further and developed it into a sphere and a cylinder. These two shapes allowed the students to understand depth perception through overlapped shapes. These circular shapes also allowed the students to visualize and interpret form in the round.

Students were able to discuss what might be behind, above, and below a sphere. The ideas ranged from ground to pebbles, grass to trees and light to moon beams. We based the final two projects on a hollow sphere and a cylinder.

Students constructed a hollow body for an animal in order to manage the stress level from the heat in a kiln. They converted the cylinders to sea life and stacked per class to achieve a totem affect with the final painted sculptures.

The final process consisted of the study of the color wheel to help inspire the most dynamic images painted with warm and cool colors adjusted for emphasis using white and black for value and intensity modifications. The results are stunning and I am very proud of my students.

Upper Level students have had a tremendous level of skill development over the past few months. A culmination of the year’s experiences into art is definitely reflected JUNE 2013

in each student’s unique point of view and exemplified through individual style. The whole group has worked to create circular shields with a theme for JCL. The group has also created a classroom mandala using daubers for dots to emphasize the consistency of the circle through the spiraling designs used to create the image. The students have found a wonderful balance between working together and maintaining individual integrity for throughout each project. The colors, the lines, the images, and the projects all spiraling throughout the year provide a wonderful launching point for future artist. The results have been spectacular and the students have gained so much confidence, I am very proud of them all. The circle is complete now that all the connections have been made to support each idea.

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Specialist News

Eton Hosts Junior Classical League Convention (JCL) Mrs. Ellen Gatton The 66th Washington/British Columbia Junior Classical League Convention was held at Warm Beach Conference Center April 26-28 and hosted by Eton School. It was nothing less than a superlative experience. This was Eton School’s 17th JCL convention and, as always, Eton school students not only won numerous awards (see below) but comported themselves in way that demonstrated proficiency, good will, integrity, enthusiasm, and courtesy. Win or lose, they worked hard, stayed positive and most importantly, enjoyed themselves.

The many parents who attended the convention kept us feeling safe, loved, and looked after which made the convention one we shall remember always. We are thankful for your good natures and willingness to pitch in and do anything we asked of you! We are looking forward to seeing everyone’s photos so please send them to me when you can.

Our students earned awards in a variety of competitions including academic, graphic and performing arts, sports, and costume. One of our biggest thrills, however, was to bring home the Novice

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Certaman first place trophy for the third year in a row!

Certamen is a Jeopardy-like, highly competitive academic game. Students must not only have knowledge of Latin grammar, vocabulary, history, mythology and culture, but be able to buzz in before the other teams. Dipu and Gitu Devadoss, Jonathan Lau and Cooper Matson spent their lunch times preparing and practicing all year.

The 7th-8th grade skit, The Last Time Hercules Gambled, placed third. The sixth grade class wrote the Spirit song and won the first round of competition. Rahul Misal (grade 6) won the coveted Pictor Anni-Artist of the Year award. Acacia Niyogy won the Themed Art competition and Tiffany Horter, Jonathan Zhu and Jonathan Lau participated in the talent show. Jonathan Zhu was chosen to be part of the banquet entertainment, performing his Latin dramatic interpretation. So many wonderful stories to tell and people to thank!

Every student attending the convention participated in the spirit of the Junior Classical League. We can be very proud of each and every one of them. Congratulations one and all!

VOL 35 NO. 7

Specialist News Academic Contests

Novice Certamen 1 Cooper Matson, Gitu Devadoss

Dipu Devadoss, Jonathan Lau rd Roman Life 3 Jonathan Zhu 2nd Daniel Choy, Kavya Varkey 1st Tiffany Horter, Dipu Devadoss

Matthew Ludeman Derivatives 3rd Rahul Misal, 2nd Acacia Niyogi, Kavya Varkey 1st Rahul Misal

Tiffany Horter st Ancient Geography 1 Rahul Misal, Isha Murali Latin Grammar 3rd Dipu Devadoss Mythology 3rd Tiffany Horter, Jonathan Lau 2nd Alex Klimecky 1st Alexander Hong

Hana Mahmud

Matthew Ludeman Mottoes, Quotations 2nd Korinne Adams 1st Tiffany Horter Roman History 3rd Alexander Hong 2nd Hana Mahmud, Jonathan Lau 1st Tiffany Horter,

Graham Frangooles

Dipu Devadoss Essay Contest 3rd Heather Johnson 2nd Megha Murali 1st Jonathan Zhu st

Creative Arts Contests

Dramatic Interpretation 1st Jonathan Zhu Modern Myth Writing 3rd Julian Adams

2nd Rahul Misal

Matthew Ludeman

1st Madrona Maling

Gitu Devadoss Costume Contest Alecto 1st Acacia Niyogi

Heather Johnson Roman 1st Tiffany Horter Skit 3rd The Last Time

Hercules Gambled Talent Show Finalists: Jonathan Lau

Jonathan Zhu

Tiffany Horter Spirit Contest 1st Day One Celebrate by Sixth Grade

Graphic Arts Contests

Themed Art 1st Acacia Niyogi Pictor Anni 1st Rahul Misal Audio Visual 1st Rahul Misal Traditional Photo 1st Cooper Matson Cartoons 3rd Rahul Misal 1st Jonathan Zhu Greeting Cards 1st Tiffany Horter

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Illustrated Quotes 1st Dipu Devadoss Textiles

1st Heather Johnson Small Models 3rd Graham Frangooles 2nd Kavya Varkey 1st Alex Klimeky Large Models 3rd Alexander Hong 2nd Rahul Misal Sculpture 3rd Heather Johnson 2nd Rahul Misal 1st Jonathan Zhu Mosaic

1st Sofia Guerrero Mixed Media 1st Rahul Misal Colored Ink 3rd Tiffany Horter Colored Pencil 3rd Alex Klimecky 2nd Ria Deshpande 1st Tiffany Horter Charcoal 3rd Rahul Misal 2nd Dipu Devadoss 1st Tiffany Horter Black Ink 3rd Rahul Misal Black Pencil 3rd Tiffany Horter 2nd Jesus Bautista-Feliberti 1st Megha Murali Water Color 3rd Tiffany Horter Pastel 2nd Tiffany Horter 1st Rahul Misal

Olympika

Catapult 1st Alexander Hong 2nd Jacob Keller-Rusch, Daniel Choy Mile Run 1st Madrona Maling 200 Meters 3rd Tiffany Horter, Julian Adams 2nd Korinne Adams 1st Madrona Mailing

Graham Frangooles rd 100 Meters 3 Kavya Varkey 2nd Korrine Adams, Julian Adams

Alex Klimecky 1st Madrona Maling

Graham Frangooles Broad Jump 3rd Mateo Zoroza 1st Rahul Misal Shot Put 3rd Jesus Bautista-Feliberti

Matthew Ludeman 2nd Jack Orton 1st Jacob Keller-Rusch Roman Wrestling 3rd Jacob Keller-Rusch

Hana Mahmud,

Matthew Ludeman 2nd Jack Orton, Tiffany Horter

Cooper Matson st 1 Alexander Hong

Madrona Maling Gladiators 3rd Alex Klimecky, Tiffany Horter 2nd Alexander Hong 1st Madrona Maling, Megha Murali ETON EDITION | 17

Specialist News

Latin Exam Awards and Scores Mrs. Ellen Gatton

Congratulations to the following for their placement on the 2013 National Exams:

National Mythology Exam

National Latin Exam

95-99% Silver Medallion

Silver Maxima Cum Laude Medal : Latin I

Cooper Matson 33/40

Certificates of Achievement: Introductory Level

Martin Armanasu 38/40 Alisa Nishanova 38/40 Gitu Devadoss 34/40

Classical Literacy Exam Level I Perfect Score

Alisa Nishanova

Level I Bronze Award

Dipu Devadoss 49/50 Gitu Devadoss 48/50 Cooper Matson 48/50

Level I Honorable Mention

Matthew Ludeman 45-50 Jonathan Lau 45-50

100% Athena Gold Award of ofExcellence Gold Medallion

Jonathan Zhu

Serena Home 98% Hana Mahmud 98% Jonathan Lau 98% Tiffany Horter 97.5% Isha Murali 97.5% Kavya Varkey 96% Sophia Guerrero 95% Alexander Hong 95%

90-94% Bronze Medallion

Dipu Devadoss 94% Matthew Ludeman 94% Pravir Das 92.5% Daniel Choy 92.5% Mateo Zoroza 92.5% Awsumb Hardy 92.5% Kevin McDermott 92% Rahul Misal 92% William Le 90% Olivia Finklestein 90% Alexander Marlow 90% Acacia Niyogi 90% Chaaru Sathiskumar 90%

Fourth and Fifth Grade Spanish: Gaining Confidence Ms. Concepcion Miranda-Perez Summer is almost here and the end of this school year is a time for children to mature and to learn. The fourth graders have been learning Spanish at different levels and in a very fun way. The children were involved through interesting projects about Spring, Mi Primavera and their ideal house, Mi Casa Ideal. Their projects were creative and reflective of their Spanish vocabulary for rooms and objects in the home.

Present tenses, verbs, adjectives, nouns and prepositions are used every time the child writes, reads and speaks in Spanish. Equally important, is the creative process of each student’s expression. Thus, the fourth graders created short sentences to describe actions, to describe places and even to apply basic math in Spanish.

Students have gained confidence to speak in Spanish when reciting poetry, singing, talking about oneself,

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describing and answering simple questions like Que es?

(What is it?) or Donde esta?(Where is it?).

The fifth graders gained fluency in their acquisition of Spanish along with a better understanding and knowledge of the culture. The students understood the various functions of Spanish grammar. They gained confidence in their verbal skills in talking not only about the everyday situations like the weather, classes, meals or sports, but also about the profession they might choose or vacation plans. Each student worked hard on their own project of Mi ciudad ideal (My ideal city), where they designed a dream city and shared it with the class in Spanish.

The fourth and fifth graders also learned about different Spanish celebrations during the Spring season, such as Las Fallas (Valencia,Spain), La Semana Santay La VOL 35 NO. 7

Specialist News Feria (Sevilla,Spain) and Cinco de Mayo (Mexico). The presentation of the artwork by Gaudi, Picasso, Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo as well as documentaries about Spain, Peru and Argentina brought a vivid perspective to the Spanish program.

It has been a great year for the students to learn a new language and to enhance their knowledge of cultures in the world with a natural, fun and dynamic approach.

May each child and his family experience a great summer in the months to come.

Lower Elementary and Pre-elementary Spanish: Building a Common Vocabulary Ms. Enid Mendez Flores I cannot believe we are so close to the end of the school year. I have had the privilege to be part of the Eton family this year and feel so blessed with the opportunity to teach Spanish and some traditions from the Latin countries to all the wonderful students from Pre‑elementary and Rooms 3 and 4 of Lower Elementary. It has been a great school year!

Pre-elementary

In Mezzo 1, 4 and A classrooms, we learned colors, numbers, body parts, family members, fruits, and food.

The children loved the game Como te sientes, which gave them the opportunity to describe how they feel using Spanish vocabulary. We danced to the rhythm of la Macarena to count numbers from 1 to 12 and enjoyed the book La Oruga Muy Hambrienta (The Very Hungry Caterpillar) to review fruits, food, and numbers. Of course, we also used the magic words por favor (please), gracias (thank you) and the song Si, si, no, no to end the class.

Lower Elementary

Our last unit El Restaurante (The Restaurant) provided the children with opportunities to learn various vocabularies. This included the following words: silverware, plates, napkin, glass, pan, vegetables, and food (beverages, main dishes and desserts). We designed a menu for our restaurants and did two pretend plays. In the first play, students asked a very polite mesero (waiter) for a plato (plate) or whatever was missing on the table.

In the second play, one student is the guest and the other the waiter. They practice how to greet each other, along with asking for food, silverware, and the check.

Some of the students were very serious about their restaurant design and showed potential for being strong business people. Next time you and your child go to a Mexican restaurant or on vacation to a Latin country do not forget to ask your child for some help so they can practice what they learned in Spanish class this school year!

Lower Elementary and Pre-elementary Japanese: Learning Vocabulary Through Singing and Books Ms. Yuko Azemoto It is the end of the school year. I cannot believe how fast the time has passed. I had a great time teaching Japanese to the children. I especially loved seeing them improve and learn very quickly and naturally. Even though Japanese is quite a different language from English, Eton students are acquiring it without any hesitation.

For both Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary students, we enjoyed singing. I would teach a new song once or twice and then by the end of class, the students practically finished singing it without my help. Their motivation to learn was high. They really wanted to memorize the song, so they were eager to commit the words and sounds to memory. In May, they learned the songs, If You’re Happy and You Know It Clap Your Hands, and Ai Ai Monkey and Bun Bun Bee. They mastered so many songs!

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The children loved hearing stories. I did not explain or translate much, and they seemed comfortable hearing the Japanese sounds. For Lower Elementary, I selected famous and well-known English stories and translated them into Japanese. I asked a student to first read the story in English and then read the story in Japanese. The children know several Japanese words and they challenged themselves to listen for them. They enjoyed guessing the stories. We read the books Hungry Caterpillar, Rainbow Fish, Swimmy, and Big Turnip.

In Lower Elementary, the students advanced into higher-level sentence structures by adding adjectives, adverbs, and action verbs to write descriptively. They learned sentences and words by using English flash cards. I explained both vocabulary and grammar. The children had a strong understanding of Japanese logically ETON EDITION | 19

Specialist News and could translate English into Japanese. At first, the students seemed to find it a challenge, but then they enjoyed making funny sentences. They were proud of their ability to speak long Japanese sentences. They expanded

on what they already learned and added participles along with connecting more phrases. Their understanding is at a very high-level. They enjoyed speaking Japanese, and I am very pleased with their improvement.

Lower Elementary and Pre-elementary French: Making the Language Acquisition Journey Fun Ms. Parisa Behzad-Pour

Summer is around the corner. The children have noticeably improved their French and they have more confidence in understanding and making simple sentences.

I am very proud of them for their effort and enthusiasm.

The Pre-elementary classes, Mezzo B and C, worked on the following themes: Days, Months, Seasons, Weather, Family, Community Helpers, and Transportation. The children were very cooperative and enjoyed the lessons presented with sensorial and hands on activities. They loved matching different objects to the French word on flash cards or simply finding the item when the French vocabulary was provided for them.

We finished the French workbooks in the Lower Elementary classes. The last themes focused on the following: Places in the city, Transportation, and Occupations. Each theme was accompanied by a grammar lesson. They were taught a few of the most common verbs such as Aller (to go), Venir (to come) and Etre (to be). They were also taught some prepositions such as en, a and de in

order to make complete sentences about places and how to get there. For example, Je vais a la banque en moto (I go to the bank on a motorbike). Bingo, Memory, and other games also completed our work and gave the children opportunities to have fun using their knowledge on the subject. In addition, with supplementary packets and work sheets, they practiced grammar and simple sentence compositions. Thank you for encouraging them to be responsible with their French homework.

I noticed that many students enjoyed our classes and some have enrolled in summer French camp. I hope your students keep working on their French. This is why I plan to offer extended classes at Eton for those that wish to pursue French classes further. Please check with the office for more information. I am very honored and thrilled that I have been able to teach students French and also to have created, and cultivated the love of learning another language and culture in your children.

Have a great sunny summer.

Music: Masterworks, Themes, Variations and Plays Mrs. Mary Springer

It is always a tradition in theatre to review the production and consider what worked and what did not. The end of the year is a time to celebrate our accomplishments, reflect on what we have done in the process of this experience. With this in mind, I would like to share some thoughts about why I believe it is important to include these performing experiences in the school curriculum.

It is often assumed that the reason to offer a performing experience is the value of the actual performance. I invite you to consider the performance as a “part” of the experience and not the purpose of the experience.

• In learning the story and beginning their work with a performance project, the students have an opportunity to listen and evaluate each other as they audition for the various roles. This inclusion gives them an opportunity to recognize the talents of their peers as well as devote serious preparation to their own auditions.

• After casting the roles and the rehearsing begins, they learn the technical challenges of developing a quality production.

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• Making choices based on individual character interpretations is a key element in theatre. As the students work in this process, they are invited to develop a personal history for their character, which contributes to the final product. Their imagination is the vehicle transporting them through this process.

• Understanding the importance of ensemble is a life skill and one that is critical to the creative process.

Each character is dependent upon all the other characters to build the story and tell the tale.

• The students develop the courage and conviction to tell their interpretation of this work in front of an audience. It is a risk for anyone to be able to stand in front of an audience and capture them in the telling of their story. It requires concentration, commitment, and organization. It demands flexibility and creative responses.

• By production time, they have much more than a polished performance. They have learned to work together. They have learned to wait, to listen, to contribute, and to follow direction. In addition, they learned about each other, how to work under a time VOL 35 NO. 7

Specialist News constraint, how to solve problems in an instant, and how to believe they can do it.

I am always grateful to be a part of the process. I learn so much from the students and about them as we take this kind of journey. It is my hope that they know that we all depend upon each other to create something. As a school community, these experiences bond them to each other and encourage them to celebrate their contributions as well as the contributions of others.

The Pre-elementary students worked with songs that tell a story. This included a favorite, Three Pirates came to London Town. The children played a game based on the song and then continued the story by coming up with “what happened next.� In addition to this work, they read a form book with the rhythm and melodic chunks. We reviewed the many composers they studied throughout the year, including Tchaikovsky, Vivaldi, Handel and a personal favorite, the Beatles. We had fun using sign language with the song Hello Goodbye.

The students in first through third grade put on their production of The Aristocats, May 30 at Redmond High School. This delightful musical introduced the children to a world of jazz and a story of friendship and acceptance. Each classroom prepared a song from the play and all the third year students were cast in the leading roles. I believe this gave them a great opportunity to work with students from other classrooms as they developed a wonderful production to share with their families. I would like to thank the wonderful teachers

JUNE 2013

and parents who were flexible and supportive as we prepared for this production.

The fourth grade students finished earning their belts for their recorder study. The fifth grade students have worked with the ukulele and learned a series of chord progressions. They enjoyed singing the song Wavin’ Flag from the World Cup. The seventh and eighth grade students finished their production of Much Ado about Nothing. This was a challenging production and the students did a wonderful job creating believable characters.

Shakespeare is challenging to do and the students shared a delightful performance. We decided to set the production on a Hawaiian island and enjoyed exploring that theme and how it fit the story. I believe learning and performing Shakespeare is an invaluable experience for them at this age level.

As we look to summer, I will be offering my drama classes again. The Pandemonium Players is a process drama experience for children 6 to 12 years old. I will be offering this class again at Eton school June 24 through the 28. There are a few spots left, so if you are interested in signing up, please check at the front desk for a form.

Several students from Eton have attended in the past. If you are interested in enrolling your child, please call me at 206-937-6047 or return the registration form included in the flyer.

I have truly enjoyed my work with your students this year and look forward to seeing them next year. Have a wonderful summer!

ETON EDITION | 21

Specialist News

Reading During Summer Increases Skills Mrs. Dianna Labate

With the end of school fast approaching and the long dog days of summer around the corner, now is a perfect time to start thinking about how to encourage your child to pick up books and read for pleasure. With so many activities, distractions, and electronic entertainment options available to children, it seems that at times the simplicity and pleasure of a well-written story is sadly forgotten. However, research reveals that children who read during summer actually increase their reading skills rather than experience summer learning loss. It is essential to practice and apply the skills acquired during the school year through the summer months. While reading on a consistent basis is important to increasing a student’s skill set, it is equally important to read just for pure enjoyment.

Reading ignites a child’s imagination. Stories whisk readers away to different worlds, introduce them to exciting new people, fantastical characters, provide diverse perspectives, and grant solace. A story does not end with the final page but can live on in the mind of the reader. A good book can become an old friend, and take the reader on a journey that would otherwise be impossible.

There are many ways in which we can help children catch the excitement of reading. During the summer months, the local public libraries offer exciting programs for children of all ages. For example, the

King County Library System has a yearly summer reading program, and they already visited our school to explain to the students how the program works. You can find out more information about summer reading programs at your local public library or by going to King County Library System’s website: www.kcls.org.

Another way to share the love of reading is family reading time. Reading aloud to your children is a great way for every member of the family to enjoy and discuss a good story. If you are traveling this summer check out audio books at the local library, it is always fun listening to a story together during a road trip. Lastly, if you are stuck not knowing exactly what books to read this summer or what books your child should be reading please feel free to contact me and we can put together a list of possible books to read that will spark your child’s love of reading.

Progress Reports: Behind the Scenes Ms. Diana Butler

You open your e-mail, and there is your child’s end‑of‑the-year progress report. Your eye scans over Eton’s mission statement and fastens on the part about your son or daughter. As you read, specific comments about your child and general comments about class activities merge to form a detailed picture of his or her development and of life at school.

How do Eton’s teachers formulate these progress reports? In the hour or two spent writing it, what goes through their minds? What sources of information are used? How is Eton’s mission statement reflected in the progress report?

Sitting at the computer or perhaps with a yellow legal pad, armed with a cup of tea, teachers strive to accurately describe each student’s development. With the added advantage of having personal relationships that extend beyond academics, teachers can craft progress reports that not only tell how the academics are developing, but that also provide insight into the development of the whole child.

Eton teachers use a variety of information sources as they write. These include anecdotal records and checklists for individual students, records of lessons given, work chosen, work completed, assessments of mastery level,

22| ETON EDITION

portfolios of student work, and for older students, summative assessments recorded in grade books. By taking frequent, small measures, teachers create a detailed, descriptive picture of each student.

All five components of Eton’s mission statement are reflected in the progress reports. In addition to information about your child’s academics, embedded in the checklists and narratives are remarks and assessments of your student’s physical, spiritual, social and emotional development. For example, a Pre-elementary teacher may observe that a three-year-old’s large motor coordination has strengthened so that walking on the line at circle time is easier, or that a kindergarten student’s handwriting and needlework show increased fine motor coordination. A Lower Elementary teacher may write that a second-grader is developing generosity and empathy. An Upper Elementary teacher may note a student’s leadership in a fund-raising project or increased confidence as a result of participation in the annual play. Eton’s teachers pay attention to students’ growth in these critically important areas.

The teachers hope the progress report will provide insight and information to help you more fully understand your student’s development. Pour yourself a cup of tea and enjoy the picture of your child that emerges.

VOL 35 NO. 7

From the Office

News and Information

Calendar

Tuition Payments for 2013-2014 School Year

Tuition Refund Plan (TRP) and Activity Fee

June 10 Variety Show

The fourth tuition payment for Academic Year 2013-2014 was due on June 1 if you chose payment plan #1 (12 equal installments).

Following is a brief summary of the three options offered with respective payment due dates.

Payment plan #1 is basically a pre-pay with the balance being due before July 1, 2013. Tuition Refund Plan is voluntary with this plan.

Payment plan #2 is a quarterly plan. First quarterly installment was due by April 1, 2013; second quarterly installment is due by July 1, 2013; third quarterly installment is due by October 1, 2013; and the fourth quarterly installment is due

by January 1, 2014. Tuition Refund Plan is required with this plan.

Payment plan #3 is a 12 month payment plan due the first of each month beginning March 2013 and ending February 2014. You may remit payment on-line as credit card transaction, via check, or ACH automatic withdrawal.

New for 2013-2014 school year is a 2% convenience fee to handle the administrative costs of processing credit cards for tuition payments.

Tuition Refund Plan is required with this plan.

Please remember that Eton School does not send home billings and that payment is due the first of each month. If not received before the fifth, a $250 late fee will be assessed by the Business Office.

Payments for TRP and Activity Fees are due by September 1, 2013.

They can be combined on one check, separate from tuition payments.

June 11 Eighth Grade Graduation

Checks Payable to Eton School All checks should be written to Eton School. If your child’s last name is different than the name printed on the check, please note your child/ children’s name on your check in the memo portion. Please write separate checks for Clubhouse, Tuition Refund Plan and Activity Fees.

JUNE 2013

Clubhouse (Childcare) During Month of June

Clubhouse will be open Wednesday, June 12 (Eton School’s final day of the 2012-2013 school year).

Clubhouse will also be open Thursday, June 13 and Friday, June 14. Please register online for Thursday and Friday.

Monday, June 17 through Friday June 21 childcare is available as part of the Eton School Summer Program. Registration forms are available at the Main Office.

Summer School classes start on Monday, June 24. Registration forms are available at the Main Office.

Contact Change Notification

Please be sure to notify the Main Office with any changes to your mailing address, telephone number, and/or e-mail address. We want to insure that you receive all of our correspondence.

Lost & Found

Please remember to check the Lost and Found for any items your student may have misplaced. Items not claimed will be donated to charity.

Use of Parent Contact Information

The Student Directory gives parent contact information and is exclusively used for the convenience of current families to communicate with other Eton School families.

The school does not give out information to any vendors or others not authorized. We expect our parents to respect the confidentiality of the information in the Student Directory as well.

(Check with your child’s teacher)

Sports Court Main Building 1:15–3:00 pm

June 12 Last Day of School Early Dismissal

June 12 End of Year Picnic

Everyone is invited!

Dome Shelter, Grass Lawn Park 12:00–2:00 pm

June 13–June 14 School Closed/Clubhouse Open Register Online

June 17–June 21 School Closed/Clubhouse Open June 24–August 2* Pre-elementary and Lower Elementary Summer School June 24–July 5* Upper Level Summer School June 24–August 2* Enrichment Classes

Please see office for fliers, availability, and registration.

August 5–9 Full Week Childcare Only August 12–16 Full Week Childcare Only September 4 First Day for New Students September 5 First Day for All Students *No School, Enrichment Classes or Childcare on Thursday, July 4 ETON EDITION | 23

Vol. 35 No. 7

June 2013

Save the Dates

ETON SCHOOL 2701 Bellevue-Redmond Road Bellevue, WA 98008-2253 425.881.4230 | www.etonschool.org

Summer School Pre-elementary Lower Elementary

June 24–August 2

Summer School Upper Level

June 24–July 5

Enrichment Classes

June 24–August 2

First Day New Students

September 4

First Day All Students

September 5