Fourth Grade Recognition Ceremony

2 HACKLEY REVIEW COMMENCEMENT SUPPLEMENT 2021

Fourth Grade Recognition Day

Director of the Lower School Lisa Oberstein celebrated members of the fourth grade at the Recognition Ceremony held on June 8, 2021.

Good morning families, faculty and staff, guests, and students as we come together to celebrate the Class of 2029! It is a real pleasure to be standing here with all of you this morning, in person! What a year this has been . Faced with the unprecedented, our Hackley community came together in ways we never dreamed possible and experienced, all in all, a year of joys, challenges, triumphs, and powerful learning .

In the Lower School, we had our first ever Fun Day, an experience that initially came out of the loss of going to Kingsland Point Park, but allowed us to create something special, brand new, and memorable. And who can forget the live streamed Halloween parade, a spectacle that received the highest accolades from families and students alike? Usually in the spring the 4th graders and their Kindergarten buddies visit the Wolf Sanctuary for a day long field trip. And although they could not do that this year, Mrs. DiStefano and all of the teachers arranged a full day of on campus activities, which culminated in a serenade by Kindergarteners to their 4th grade buddies, a song entitled “Walk Through Life.” “Walk through life. Every day is a new beginning. Shine your light. It’s your day the world is waiting. Move along to the song singing in your soul. Feel the beat, clap your hands, let it take control.”

This year our character education program was still as strong as ever and the virtues we focused on in the LS included curiosity, flexibility, friendship, and integrity. These virtues helped ground us and enabled us to keep asking questions, to pivot when needed, to reach out for help from others when necessary. I found a quote by author Greg Kincaid about resilience that I found particularly fitting given the massive amounts of snow we had to deal with earlier this year — “No matter how much falls on us, we keep plowing ahead. That’s the only way to keep the roads clear.”

I commend all of our Lower Schoolers for being flexible to the changes we had to make this year, and in particular I thank our fourth graders who remained our Lower School leaders throughout it all, showing the younger students how to care for one another, to be an upstander when necessary, and to show kindness and inclusivity to all even when it was a difficult thing to do.

As you move onto the next chapter in your academic careers, fourth graders, I hope you remember your time in the Lower School fondly. My wish for you is that you carry the things you learned forward so you can pave the way for your younger friends who will join you in the years to come, and so you continue to serve as a role model, as the younger students look down from the Lower School and watch you playing on Akin Common. I have seen how well you as a class embody our core values of Enter here to be and find a friend, and United we help one another. I know you will continue to make us proud!

Lisa Oberstein addresses the Class of 2029 at their moving up ceremony on June 8 . During her speech, she shared advice from the rising fifth graders to their Lower school friends .

FOURTH GRADE RECOGNITION DAY

The Class of 2029

A few weeks ago, I asked our fourth graders to share their favorite memories of the Lower School. They shared so many! Events and experiences like Flat Stanley, Trip Around the World, Scavenger Hunt, Field Day, and the Stings. Other students shared having and being a Kindergarten buddy, assemblies in the All Purpose Room, watering the new chestnut tree in memory of the old oak, painting the mural, playing football and soccer on Akin common, and even breakfast for lunch and taste testing smoothies in the Dining Hall! And one student said, I really don’t have one, because all of them are great.

Here is the advice that the fourth graders would like to give the remaining Lower Schoolers (and maybe to some of the grownups too):

• My advice is to not be nervous because there is nothing to worry about because everyone is nice here.

• I think that people coming into the Lower School should know that all the people here are kind, there are wonderful teachers, and they will help you with anything you need.

• Focus on the best things each day, week, month and year, because the bad things are not worth wasting your time thinking about.

• Don’t get bummed out about assignments, because they will make more sense overtime.

You just gotta keep trying.

• Always keep an open mind about everything.

You should never judge anything/anyone by the way it looks. • My advice is to try as best as you can. Don’t worry about things that are out of your control, and make sure to have fun!

• Be yourself because everybody else is taken.

• My advice is don’t be scared because all of these teachers will treat you like their own children just like they did for us.

The fourth graders want to thank their teachers for being funny, nice, caring, flexible, thoughtful, easygoing, interesting, fun, joyful, kind, creative, curious, helpful, compassionate, warmhearted, empathetic, open-minded, forgiving, and strict, “in a good way.” As one student said, “The teachers show grit. They also show courage.”

Thank you, fourth graders, for sharing your thoughts and observations with all of us. I am so proud of each of you and I know all of the adults in our community are too.

Dear Fourth Graders, “Go Forth and Spread Beauty and Light.” Share and spread your individual and collective beauty and light to all. Middle School is so lucky to have you.

In past ceremonies, one speaker was elected to represent the grade at the recognition ceremony. This year we decided to highlight each of the fourth graders’ voices through poetry, written and performed by each class. In this way we are able to honor our strong community and each student’s voice and experience.