DE CE MBER 2014- JANUA RY 2 0 1 5
The Park Parent in this issue: DR. “O” ON BECOMING RESILIENT // 2 JORGE VEGA IN PROFILE // 3 DIVERSITY & INCLUSION // 4 AROUND THE LIBRARY // 7 PARKING SPACE // 11
A Place at the Table b y Sarah Smith , Park Parent Editorial Board
T
his October, Park eighth graders took part in a revamped Project Week program entitled,
“A Place at the Table.” The program has three
principal components: learning about food, learn-
ing about hunger, and learning about ways to serve. The focus on a new program began last spring. The Grade VIII faculty wanted to create a program for Project Week that would have an overarching, cohesive theme, rather than devote a few days to different activities, as they had done in previous years. Since the former eighth grade program had included a trip to The Food Project in Lincoln, where the students worked on a farm, and, separately, a service day at the Allston-Brighton Food Pantry, the teachers felt that creating a more comprehensive program highlighting food, harvesting, and service was a natural next step. Upper Division English teacher and Grade VIII Head Advisor Curt Miller says, “we wanted students to continued on page 6
Yoga at Park for All the Right Reasons b y CAROL BATCHELDER, ParK Parent Editorial Board
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aron Baptiste, The Blissful Monkey, H.Y.P, and The Park
School. What do all of these things have in common? Yoga.
Yes, that’s right…yoga at Park.
vo l u me 47 nu mb e r 3 a pub lication of the park s c h o o l parent s’ assoc iation
All kids (and adults for that matter) have trouble focusing, managing their emotions, settling down, and being patient sometimes. Yet that is what they are asked to do all day long. This is a tough task when you consider that we are wired to process everything around us in order to detect possible danger. Children’s minds especially notice everything, but we are asking them to stop thinking about all of those people, places, and things that are important to them right then and focus on exactly what we want them to concentrate on and respond appropriately. Yoga helps develop skills to manage this by teaching kids how to choose what to pay attention to and how to live more in the moment. continued on page 8
BECOMING RESILIENT
Learning Through Success and…Failure By O LIVIA MOORE HEAD-SLAUGHTER, Psychologist
I
t’s happened again! Another school year is well underway!
Routines are feeling familiar, the first conference has passed, and it’s time to take on, in earnest, the goals that were set for the year. Goal setting is a very personal and individualized endeavor. One size definitely does not fit all! Indeed, perhaps the most important implicit and explicit message in setting these goals is that everybody is working on something. Your child’s goals may have to do with improving reading or writing skills, learning math facts, presenting in Morning Meeting, trying a new sport, learning to tie shoelaces, making a new friend, or learning to use an assignment notebook. The list of possibilities is endless. And, perhaps, therein lies the tricky part. There are so many possibilities, one could become overwhelmed and decide to simply plod along and to let the year unfold without delving into the potentially stressful and messy business of goal setting. Why introduce that kind of pressure along with the possibility of disappointment and failure if the goals are not met? Both success and failure are excellent teachers, though one tends to be more welcomed than the other. As parents, it might be helpful to replay your own school experiences and to think about what you learned about yourself along the way. How did your experiences in school shape the person that you have become today? What did you learn from the times that were uncomfortable or really painful? It’s difficult to wish failure upon our children, but this will likely be unnecessary, as life has a way of “happening,” providing the bumps and roadblocks that our children will experience as “failures.” As difficult as it may seem, sometimes we will need to resist scaffolding, smoothing over, or buffeting these experiences so that our children are spared the hurt and disappointment that comes in tow.
Over forty years ago, I had a very embarrassing and painful experience in fourth grade that remains as fresh and vivid as ever. I raised my hand to read a paragraph and proceeded to encounter what felt like a daytime nightmare. In this passage, I encountered a generous sprinkling of “trigger words” that exposed my stuttering speech to all of my classmates and my teacher. I couldn’t believe that I had volunteered for this torturous and humiliating experience. Somehow, I made it to the end of the paragraph, but that day was seared into my memory. I honestly do not recall the conversation that I likely had with my parents, but I do remember the resolve that emerged within myself to figure out how I would “fix” this problem. No doubt, this very difficult experience made me more empathic, understanding and supportive of others’ challenges. It also likely built some important resilience that fueled me through many future challenges. This fourth-grade moment is one of many resilience-building moments, each contributing a deposit into an account from which I continue to make withdrawals. Short of rescuing your child, there is much that you can and should do. As a parent, listening to your child and offering a supportive and nonjudgmental space for processing a challenging
Coming in future Park Parent publications! We are planning to pilot a new column in future editions of the Park Parent called “Ask Dr. O.” Do you have a question about parenting, child development, learning, or socio-emotional health and wellbeing that you would like to have answered in the Park Parent? You can remain anonymous or not, your choice. Please note that questions will be selected for publication by Dr. O in conjunction with the editorial staff of the Park Parent. Space constraints will necessarily limit the number of questions in each issue. We thank you for your participation and understanding! Questions can be submitted to: MooreheadO@parkschool.org or by placing your question in the box in the Lobby. Again, thank you!
continued on page 9
The Park Parent // PAGE 2
FACULTY PROFILE
#LeaveThingsBetter: A Visit with Jorge Vega, Park’s Director of Technology B Y E MILY RAVIOLA, Park Parent Editorial Board
I
f you’re curious to know which Park faculty member has
been a theater director, a physics teacher, and has authored a graphic novel, look no further than the Office of Technology. Similarly, if you want to meet someone who embodies Park21, our school’s strategic plan that fosters innovation, introduce yourself to Jorge Vega—whom we are lucky to welcome back to Park in his new role as Director of Technology. Before most kids had access to computers, Jorge was busy putting together servers at home in Far Rockaway, Queens, New York. He fondly recalls the day when his father first brought home a Commodore 64 in the 80s. Later, following a K-12 teaching career that included theater, physics, and public speaking, Jorge went back to school for networking at Hofstra University. Beginning in 2005, Jorge served as the Technology Specialist at Park for five years. In 2010, he left Park to become the Director of Technology at the Sage School in Foxboro, and then moved to New York to serve as tech director at the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in the Bronx. With a diverse experience and skill set, Jorge has a passion for working in schools which, as his experience has shown, offer the opportunity to present “all of oneself.” It follows naturally then that Jorge is focused on helping our students “be themselves online,” that is, with guidance and an appropriate level of adult supervision. Having made huge advances in its technology infrastructure during the last five years, Park has what, Jorge says, is a unique and exciting opportunity to “intentionally” approach its use of educational technology in a fashion consistent with the School’s core ideals. “We don’t have to worry about the ‘stuff,’ (e.g., equipment and devices). We have the stuff,” he says. “We’re now at the phase where we as a community can begin asking how do we best leverage our investment in technology to extend the School’s mission?” By helping our children navigate a successful relationship with technology, we can better ensure that we are embodying Park’s commitment to encourage each child to develop to his or her greatest potential and to become a contributing member of the community. School leadership, faculty, and staff are committed to ensuring that we have a consistent, high-quality conversation with our students about how to navigate in a high-tech world. This conversation will be critical to our success in enabling Park students to develop into savvy tech users and, simultaneously, strong contributing community members, both within Park School and also in the local, national, and global communities that they inhabit.
To accomplish this, it will be critical that Park faculty, staff, and parents engage in regular and transparent conversations about the language we use when discussing behaviors and responsibilities with young people. Jorge emphasizes the critical role that we, as adults, have to play in helping our children learn to express themselves consistently both on and offline. Rather than leading the conversation with the dangers associated with being online, it is essential that adults emphasize a positive message that says “be yourself both online and offline.” Otherwise, we are indirectly instructing students to develop “alter egos” while they are online. The behavior of these alter egos is often disconcerting and rarely reflects the amazing kids we know them to be offline. (At the same time, Jorge reminds us that technology use should be age-appropriate: parents should follow Facebook, Twitter, and Instragram’s guidelines, which urge against children below the age of 13 using their services.) Jorge encourages adults to emphasize the opportunity the internet presents for students to put their knowledge and passions front and center, but to do so in a way that protects their personal safety and privacy. For example, to create a safe environment for students to begin “being themselves” online, sixth grade students are using a Park School Gmail account provided through the School’s association with Google Apps for Education. Jorge describes it as “a portion of Google-sphere with a Park fence around it.” School leadership administers, monitors, and archives all activity on these accounts. Kids know that they can reach out to friend, yet they can take a measure of safety in the fact that continued on page 5
DECEMBER 2014 – JANUARY 2015 // PAGE 3
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
How Does Park’s Focus on Diversity Show Up in How Our Teachers Teach? By L A U RA BARKAN, Park Parent Editorial Board
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story” for individual students—that is, when a feature or characteristic of a child is extrapolated to represent all that that child is about. For example, imagine a fidgety families of different races, ethnicities, sexual child who appears to not be paying attenorientations, and socio-economic backtion, and then a teacher dismissing the grounds. child as not engaged or a poor student. It It’s a community for all of us to be is important to remember that the child proud of and to be a part of. Yet we as is more than just fidgety and to be open parents often don’t get the experience of nor at creating an inclusive classroom.” to and honor the rest of the child. Single looking closer into how Park’s teachers In the SEED program, Park’s teachers stories become blindfolds when applied and leaders work with our children to help are able to explore cultural systems, looking to all peoples of the same race or ethnicity, ensure that diversity at Park goes deeper. at oppression and privilege, and heighten or having a similar feature or characterisRecently I had the pleasure of talking tic. Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi with Growth Education Department Head their own awareness of bias and its related behaviors. Director of Admissions, Merle Adichie gives a wonderful TED talk on this Margo Smith about this question—and Jacobs, a participant in the program said, “It issue in “The Danger of the Single Story.” about how an exciting program that has is really powerful to engage in authentic (http://bit.ly/1yxtKUk) recently been reinstituted at Park (called dialogue about these issues with colleagues Supporting an inclusive environment SEED) enables Park’s teachers to look whom we trust and respect to both support also means addressing slights or biased closely at how their own ideas, experiences, us and hold us accountable. We challenge comments when they happen. Teachers and identities relate to how they lead and ourselves to question our assumptions and are encouraged to be allies to children on influence a diverse classroom. dig deep when examining our biases. It is both sides of the dynamic, which may mean hard and rewarding work.” putting oneself in momentarily uncomfortWhat is SEED? able situations to talk openly about the SEED stands for “seeking educational How are learnings from SEED applied issue. Mandarin teacher Mulian Chen said, equity and diversity” and is an internationin the classroom? “SEED has reinforced for me the notion ally-used curriculum designed for teachers Kat put it eloquently: “SEED has made that there are different sides to each story. I to explore their own experiences and those me more frequently consider my own ‘lens’ would like to not only teach my students to of the children they teach and learn skills (formed by my identity) and reflect on its see things through different lenses but also to make their communities more inclusive. for me to understand things from my stuThe curriculum is largely experiential utiliz- influence on my interpretation of a child’s ing a mix of activities including guided dis- behavior or my delivery of information and dents’ eyes.” Kat added, “It is important to curriculum.” Teachers have recently been develop an environment where students feel cussions, exercises, personal reflections, and comfortable asking questions and wonderjournaling. Margo and second grade teacher, exploring the risk of developing a “single ing aloud about bias or assumption. If they Kat Callard, are trained SEED leaders who live in fear of saying the wrong thing, so are currently facilitating two groups of Park many learning opportunities will be missed.” teachers to go through the program, which The experience of going through the runs a three-hour session once per month SEED program is deeply moving and eye throughout the 2014-15 school year. opening for many teachers. Park’s investMargo said, “I believe passionately ment in such a program demonstrates how that until you look at your own journey and much personal and professional effort goes experiences, and how your own attitudes into creating an environment that is as (both conscious and unconscious) effect you, inclusive as possible. you cannot be highly effective as a teacher hen you walk the halls of Park School, you see the faces of diversity—children and
The Park Parent // PAGE 4
Jorge Vega, continued from page 3 adults, who care about them, are watching them online. In the case of any inappropriate correspondence, adults will use the occurrence as a “teachable moment,” with the school division head or teacher involved in an in-person discussion about the interchange. And, are you wondering, what Jorge’s longer-term vision is? Ask him. It will inspire you. “In five years, I’m hoping ninth graders are leaving the school not just better writers, speakers, and thinkers, but that they’re channeling those skills into their online contributions, sharing their voices and their knowledge via published material online—fiction, music, art, science, political discourse, the whole enchilada. I can envision an era where Park students aren’t only receiving a great education, but are also generating content that educates and informs the discussions and ideas of others well beyond the Park domain. In five years, our students will be leaving the Internet better than they found it.” And what’s Jorge up to this year? He said he is focused on getting to know the students, saying, “the key to really deep change at school is engaging the student body in that change.” To initiate this conversation, Jorge spoke during morning meeting in September, at which point he introduced a new hashtag #LeaveThingsBetter. He’s encourag-
ing the Park community to email him examples of how they are improving the communities they are a part of—both online and offline. Students, faculty, staff, and parents can join in the conversation by emailing him at vegaj@parkschool.org. Please be sure to include the hashtag #LeaveThingsBetter in the subject or body of your message!
THANK YOU for your support of the 2014-15 Annual Fund. Over 60% of current families have contributed so far this year! Your important contributions account for 9% percent of the revenue the School needs each day, and are central to everything that makes Park such a special place. Thank you for your enduring generosity and support. If you have not yet contributed, please consider making your gift by year-end. You can do so via The Park School website at parkschool.org/development/waystogive, or by calling Jessica Conaway at 617-274-6019. Thanks and happy holidays!
DECEMBER 2014 – JANUARY 2015 // PAGE 5
A Place at the Table, continued from page 1
experience a thematic, interdisciplinary kind of study, with immersion in an issue, and connect the study of food and hunger with ways to serve. We really wanted to pique our students’ curiosity, to awaken these issues for them.” The faculty knew that they needed seed money for the new program, and a service-learning expert, too. Thanks to a grant from the Parents’ Association and a partnership between Park parent Heidi Johnson and the Grade VIII team, “A Place at the Table” was born. From the outset, Heidi, who came on board to provide programming leadership, ideas, and organization, knew that the program had to include a study of food as a necessary prelude to a discussion about hunger or service opportunities. “You can’t talk about hunger without talking about food,” Heidi says. She crafted a program that included three off-campus trips, numerous speakers, a movie, and two special lunches, along with exposure to new foods, new ways of thinking about helping others, and introduction to the idea of personal service missions. The program ran for four days. Day one, called “Farm to Table,” began with a visit from Chef Andy Husbands, chef/ owner of two Boston restaurants and an advocate for ending hunger for children. The students also went on a scavenger hunt at the Farmer’s Market in Copley Square, where they learned about foods grown locally, tasted fruits and vegetables that were new to them, and met some of the people who bring the food to the city.
The Park Parent // PAGE 6
Day two, “Food Insecurity,” focused on hunger. Students waited to eat breakfast until they gathered in the dining room at 10 a.m. Each student used one word to describe how being hungry makes him feel; the words included “empty,” “cranky,” “uncertain,” “sick,” “pre-occupied,” “lifeless,” and “powerless.” The students watched a movie, “A Place at the Table,” which showcases the insidious, heart-breaking problem of childhood hunger in America, a nation of plenty in which one in five children “are hungry, or don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” according to No Kid Hungry (nokidhungry.org). The students also took part in a “hunger banquet” for lunch, in which the meal they were given and where they could eat were a reflection of their relative “wealth” (conferred, for the purposes of the lunch, by lottery). Day three, “Cooking up Solutions,” included an opportunity to cook in host kitchens, and to bring the finished dishes back to school for a community lunch. Then, a panel of three Park parents (Bill Creelman, Courtney Forrester, and Mark Romano) and Park alum Nathan Henderson ’98, spoke about the food-related businesses they created. On day four, “Being the Change,” students went to The Food Project in Lincoln to work at the farm and harvest food to be brought to urban areas with limited access to fresh food. The program wrapped up with a conversation with Park parent and chef Ming Tsai, followed by student reflections about the kinds of service they were
inspired to do in the future. Was the program a success? Curt says that the de-briefing in advisories was “incredibly positive.” In particular, students loved the trip to the Farmer’s Market, the movie, the Hunger Banquet, and the panel of Park parents and alumni who came in to discuss their businesses—a restaurant, a cupcake chain, all-natural sparkling drinks, and a farm. Mr. Miller noted that the students were particularly interested in the entrepreneurs’ business plans because the students wanted to know how these leaders had made their dreams come true. The adults on the panel talked to the students about caring for the community, taking risks, being self-starters, and working very hard. “For me,” said a current eighth grader, “the best part of the week was the time I spent with friends at organized activities off-campus. We don’t usually get the time, especially as a group, to share new experiences outside of school. It was great to bond together over activities like shopping at the Farmer’s Market and cooking together in home kitchens.” Curt feels the program succeeded in fulfilling its objectives. “A focus on feeding ourselves well and feeding others well is a metaphor for taking care of ourselves and others in myriad ways,” he says. The Project Week faculty team hopes that the eighth graders had a memorable experience that will encourage them to continue to explore ways to think about food, hunger, and service. “A Place at the Table” gives them real food for thought.
nd
o r A u
The Lion Who Stole My Arm by Nicola Davies A remarkable story for elementary readers which incorporates adventure, evocative descriptions of African life, a light-hearted tone, and a serious message.
FOR OLDER READERS
The Library
I
Josephine by Patricia Hruby Powell, illustrated by Christian Robinson Sophisticated illustrations and appropriately fast paced prose tell how Josephine Baker’s
nspired by the current nation-wide campaign, #WeNeedDiverseBooks (weneeddiversebooks.org), the Library
the segregated South propelled her to Paris
recommends the following 2014 publications for their power to offer
and, eventually, a life of fame.
love of dance and anger at the constraints of
“mirrors & windows” into diverse lives and experiences.
El Deafo by Cece Bell A touching and important graphic novel FOR YOUNG READERS
memoir about a girl who becomes deaf at
Viva Frida by Yuyi Morales
the age of four and starts school with an
A luminous picture book that brilliantly
awkward, overcompensating hearing aid
captures the emotional aesthetic of the
which gives her at times rather unsettling
remarkable Frida Kahlo.
hearing ability.
The Misadventures of the Family Little Humans by Brandon Stanton
Fletcher by Dana Alison Levy
The creator of the wildly popular Humans
A heartfelt chapter book debut that features
of New York crafts a photographic picture
a very modern family for the middle-grade
book of his littlest subjects. A visual feast of
reader. Two dads, four adopted sons, and
everyday diversity
comic misadventures aplenty!
The Turtle of Oman Norman, Speak! by Caroline Adderson,
by Naomi Shihab Nye
illustrated by Qin Leng
A rich and textured tour of the Sultanate of
A family’s cultural assumptions are radically
Oman through the eyes of Aref, a list-making,
challenged by a most unusual circumstance:
animal-loving boy who is saying goodbye
the dog they adopt only understands
to everything he loves before moving to
Mandarin Chinese!
Michigan for three years.
Firebird by Misty Copeland,
A riveting narrative about dramatic events
illustrated by Christopher Myers
of 1944, when a brave protest followed
An inspiring tale for any young dancer by
a disastrous explosion at Port Chicago, a
ground-breaking African-American ballet
segregated navy base near San Francisco
The Port Chicago 50 by Steve Sheinkin
soloist Misty Copeland. Myer’s artwork is
where black men loaded dangerous
the perfect partner in this stunning picture
ammunition in unsafe conditions.
book.
DECEMBER 2014 – JANUARY 2015 // PAGE 7
Yoga, continued from page 1 Yoga first found a place in the Park classroom five years ago when Kat Callard began teaching her own second grade classroom. The combination of wanting a routine to greet the day for an age group that loves to move their bodies, needing a stretch after her bike ride to school, and her graduate study of enhanced learning through movement all inspired Kat’s famous Grade II daily yoga sessions. She hears her students say “this feels so good” and watches them relax and restart their brains and bodies in preparation for learning after what is often a hectic morning rush to school. And this is accomplished in a mere seven minutes in a collaborative, low-pressure, fun, and communitybuilding way. Now yoga is a part of the Physical Education curriculum for Pre-K through Grade II as well as Grade VIII. Thanks to a Parents’ Association grant, Pre-Kers enjoy an additional yoga class every Tuesday and there’s another grant being reviewed for a Physical Education yoga program for ninth graders as well as some teacher training. In the Upper Division, yoga is also offered within the Growth Education curriculum. Yoga is presented to seventh graders as a healthy way to relieve stress in the unit on Stress and Drug & Alcohol Abuse. When studying Mental Health, eighth graders are given the opportunity to take a yoga class. And after the unit on Stress and Mental Health, ninth graders are offered three classes on yoga and meditation. A handful of Park teachers are integrating yoga into their classrooms and faculty are getting involved with a weekly yoga class offered to anyone interested. So, why the surge in yoga at Park? Let’s get scientific for a moment. The lower part of the brain, the limbic area, develops before we are born and houses our emotions, reflexes, instincts, and basic bodily functions. When we react based on an emotion or impulse, it comes from this part of the brain. Think safety and immediate gratification. Think kids. The prefrontal cortex section of the brain is where the thinking, planning, and imagining take place. When this is all working well, we think before we act. The problem is that this part of the brain is not fully developed
until our mid-twenties. We, therefore, need tools to encourage and support our kids to help them live a more balanced life with good decision-making skills and focused attention. This takes work under the best conditions, but when you factor in the stress of being a kid these days, the challenge increases dramatically. We can’t fully eliminate the over-scheduled days, lack of sleep, overwhelming stimuli, and social dynamics our kids face, but we can help manage it all by recognizing the sources of stress; helping our kids feel secure, safe, calm, and unconditionally loved; teaching stress-relief techniques; and helping to strengthen and train the thoughtful part of the brain so the protective part doesn’t take over. Impulsive and unpredictable conduct can be labeled troublesome, especially when it seems as if kids are choosing this behavior, but when you consider their developmental stage, these actions can take on a different meaning. Yoga and mindfulness can work together to help build up the thoughtful brain, improving the capacity to focus by learning to recognize when the mind is wandering and bring it back. Once this happens, kids are more ready to learn. In fact, the original (physical) practice of yoga was designed specifically to prepare people to be able to sit in meditation for long periods of time. One definition of yoga is “a method of bringing the whole human—body, breath, and mind—into a balanced and healthy state” which helps “bring a greater amount of present-moment awareness to all areas of life.” (Little Flower Yoga for Kids). Mindfulness has been defined as “nonjudgmental present-moment awareness and the capacity to act based on that awareness.” Alleviating some of the burden that can come with dwelling on what has already taken place, and anticipating what is to come, allows kids to live more thoughtfully in the moment. With that comes patience, appreciating what you have, helping others, understanding that making mistakes helps us grow and learn and enjoying the moment. With that comes better focus. The range of benefits that yoga brings to children is astounding. Well beyond the stress relief, feel-good continued on next page
The Park Parent // PAGE 8
stretching, and living more in the moment, yoga also gets kids moving in ways that have been proven to build up sensory systems, diminish fidgeting, increase core strength, and allow kids to pay attention, focus, and learn better. Our kids are busy. They are being asked to do so much on top of all of the things they want to do. Eight hours of school, homework, and extra-curricular activities in addition to growing, socializing, and don’t forget about the just being kids part. If only we could all start our day with some yoga. Maybe as a result of what Park is offering, our kids will always make yoga a part of their lives and feel less stress by living in the present just a little more. Yoga isn’t a cure-all, but it’s nice to have another resource that helps our kids be their best version of themselves.
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For alumni:
facebook.com/ParkSchoolAlums
For parents, grandparents, faculty, and friends: facebook.com/ParkSchoolBrookline For everyone! LinkedIn: follow us at “The Park School - Brookline”
Learning Through Success and... Failure, continued from page 2
experience is important. You are uniquely qualified to hear and to validate your child’s feelings and to reassure her/him that you are present and available for support. Importantly, there may not be a ready solution to the difficulty at hand. Even if there is, offering it may not be in your child’s best interests. A better scenario may be to engage your child in a conversation that invites her/him to problem solve, to think about future scenarios where there might be opportunities to have a different outcome, and to think about what might have been learned from the experience. Remind your child that failure is a “wonderful teacher,” preparing us for those times in life when circumstances do not turn out to our liking. What we do at these times determines who we ultimately become. Be adamant that we are not defined by a singular failed experience. Rather, our successes and our failures contribute to the rich complexity of our lives. Consulting with a teacher, advisor, division head, or psychologist may be helpful in determining when and/or if more support is needed. As a parent, one way to gauge the need for professional support is by observing your child’s response to a “growth experience” over time. Does s/he learn from the experience, recover
and move forward? Or, does s/he get stuck, maybe even repeating behaviors that continue to produce nonproductive outcomes? Sometimes, seeking professional intervention is helpful and will provide a plan and the right dose of support for the path forward. Park School is a vibrant community of learning. At any given time during the school day, one can hear the sounds of children engrossed in a rich and varied array of subjects and interactions that will engage their intellect, expand their thinking, and challenge them to grow. Sometimes this growth is fun, easy and exciting, the stuff that inspires a triumphant “fist bump.” Other times, growth looks down right grimy, grueling, and like a slog through a sea of molasses. Emerging from a day like that is not easy and not pretty. The child who greets you at the end of a day of this latter kind of growth experience may resemble a downtrodden, soggy noodle or a touchy, angry bear. Either way, there is likely to be no interest in a “fist bump” of celebration for the experience. Yet, capturing and cultivating the grit of this challenging time is important to your child’s long-term learning. Ultimately, learning to move forward after both success and failure will build resilience that lasts a lifetime.
DECEMBER 2014 – JANUARY 2015 // PAGE 9
Electronic Reading — A New Opportunity! B y D oro t hea Black, Librarian
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e have launched our initial collection of around 80 ebooks and a few audiobooks, available for download to personal devices through OverDrive, a service that may be familiar to users of public libraries. For information about how it works, visit the Library page on the Park School web site for links to guides and videos.
Our new Digital Library can be found at http://parkschool.lib. overdrive.com. The easiest way to borrow a book from the website is to download and read it in a web browser using the OverDrive Read application. Books and audiobooks can also be downloaded to any kind of device, including Kindles, Nooks, smartphones, iPads, and Android devices. Library books are free, but to transfer a book to a personal device you need an account with OverDrive or Amazon. Account holders must be over age thirteen and submit an email address. Until our Digital Library gets bigger, checkouts are limited to one book at a time and no more than five checkouts a week. If you want to test different books in the ebook format, you can download samples. Answers to a variety of questions can be found at http://parkschool.lib.overdrive.com/Help.htm. The librarians are always happy to help you in person.
image: http://www.ftp-sgpartners.net/tdceu/uploads/uploaded/ereaderstablets.jpg
Fall Musical & Grandpare nts’ Day Performance s Available Online
The cast of Charlotte’s Web, second graders serenade grandparents and special friends, and Pre-K in their turkey farmer costumes!
The Park Parent // PAGE 10
Videos of Gra ndparents’ D ay and Yule Festival performance s and school plays are available to the community at no cost. The Parents’ Association, in partnershi p with the Park Scho ol Communic ations Team, has crea ted a link for the whole comm unity to acce ss the edited fo otage. (Log in to the website an d search for the performance on the “Featu red News” tab. Yo u can downloa d it and burn yo ur own CD.) Questions? Pl ease contact Carole Carter. carter c@parkschool .org.
WELCOME, JANE GLAZER, MA, MSN, CPNP, FNP-BC We are pleased to welcome Jane Glazer to the Park School nursing staff. She will work Wednesdays and Fridays, beginning Wednesday, November 5. (The Nursing Office will now be open from 8 - 4:30 PM on M, W, Th, and F to provide medical coverage during after-school activities.) Jane is a pediatric and family nurse practitioner and looks forward to using her strong medical background, combined with her health education expertise, to make a positive impact on health with children and families. She first became interested in child health in college at the University of Vermont, where she worked with the Vermont Child Health Initiative. She expanded upon these interests while serving two AmeriCorps health service years in California teaching sexual health to high school students and working in a women’s health center. After this initial experience with health education, she completed a master’s degree in nursing, as well as an additional master’s degree in clinical bioethics at Case Western Reserve University.
The Park School
PARKING SPACE
Parking space ads are free! Contact Kate LaPine by phone (617-274-6009), or e-mail (communications@parkschool.org). The deadline for the February/March issue is Monday, January 19th.
Piano, Music Theory, and Improvisation Lessons. David Leach offers lessons for all ages and abilities out of studios in Roslindale, Jamaica Plain, and in students’ homes throughout greater Boston, with free trial lessons. To learn more about David, visit www.DLEACHMUSIC.com or contact parent Bettina Scemama. Or contact David directly at 617-721-3821 or dleach.music@gmail.com. Suzuki Cello Lessons. Melanie Dyball, professional cellist and teacher with 20+ years of experience has limited spaces available for new pupils in her Jamaica Plain studio. For more information, contact Melanie at 857498-1677 or www.CelloLessonsBoston.com, or Park parent Christina Baker. Dog Sitter Available. Going away? Worried about your pet? Park alum and graduate nursing student available for dog/house sitting nights and weekends. References available. Please contact Hilary Segar at segar.h@husky. neu.edu
DECEMBER 2014 – JANUARY 2015 // PAGE 11
Upcoming Dates of Note December 19 Friday Yule Festival (Pre-K – IX Dress Day), 9:30 a.m. 11:30 a.m. dismissal – No ASP Winter Vacation begins
The Park Parent Editor: TC Haldi Editorial Board Chair: Stanley Shaw Director of Communcations: Kate LaPine
January 5
Monday
School resumes
January 8
Thursday
Kindergarten Parent Social, 6:30 p.m.
January 15
Thursday
Pre-K Parent Social, 6:30 p.m.
January 19
Monday
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day – NO SCHOOL
January 22
Thursday
Grade III Parent Social, 6:30 p.m.
January 27
Tuesday
Grade I Parent Social, 6:30 p.m.
January 29
Tuesday
Grade VI Parent Social, 6:30 p.m.
Editorial Board: Harlyn Aizley, Lawson Albright, laura barkan, Carol batchelder, CarolINE bicks, ELIZABETH DUNN, Anne Harvey Kilburn, Todd idson, Dawn Oates, Emily raviola, Ritu Singh, SARAH SMITH, Nicky Tolliday Syken, Sarah Hall Weigel President, Parents’ Association: Shannon Falkson Chair, Board of Trustees: vinny ch iang
December 1 – February 21
Grade VIII, IX Drama
December 2 – February 27
Grade IV After-School Sports
December 2 – January 16
Grade V After-School Sports
January 19 – February 27
michael Robinson
We want to hear from you!
Visit the calendar on the Park School website for more dates!
If you have a story idea or issue you’d like to see covered or thoughts about something you’ve read, please let us know.
TheParkParent@parkschool.org
Read The Park Parent online at www.parkschool.org The Park Parent
December 2 – March 6
-DECEMBER 2014- JANUARY 2015
Grade VI Drama
Head of School:
The Park School 171 Goddard Avenue Brookline, MA 02445 617-277-2456
Grade VI – IX Winter Athletics