We Are Cougar Opening School with Optimism & Creativity By Brooke Arthur, Director of Marketing & Communications
Of course, the changes were immediately apparent. Parents could no longer walk students into the Thacher or Welles build-
As schools around the world adjusted to their “new normal,”
ings, instead dropping them off at the curb to be greeted by
Country School began its planning over the summer — as
the friendly and welcoming (masked) faces of their teachers.
always — with the simple question: What is best for children?
The beloved Lower School “Friday high five” carline greeting
What has happened since has been quite a feat. After
transformed into Friday afternoon (socially distanced) dance
hundreds of hours spent reimagining physical spaces, adjusting
parties with the Cougar. Students had to reorient to buildings
lesson plans and daily schedules, building out digital course
that had been divided differently, with certain sections assigned
pages, conducting professional development training sessions,
to specific grades or new purposes. Students lined up for lunch
and making adjustments to nearly every aspect of school life,
outside the Dining Hall, and inside, the tables were separated by
the front gates opened, cars lined the drive, and school opened
plexiglass, making lunch conversation a bit more challenging. All
in September just as it always does with the joyful sounds of
around campus clusters of tree stumps and benches dotted the
children filling the air.
landscape as outdoor classrooms emerged in new and familiar
1. Kayla Mouzon during fifth grade writing • 2. Upper School Science Teacher Scott Lilley and seventh grade Life Science students
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NEW CANAAN COUNTRY SCHOOL BULLETIN • Winter 2021
