progressions GREENE HILL SCHOOL NEWSLETTER
SPRING 2014
DEAR GREENE HILL FAMILIES,
It is snowing as I start to write this letter for the Spring 2014 issue of Progressions but with our Winter breaks behind us I’m looking forward to the beginning of Spring activities at GHS. Of course, we are a community that embraces the here and now, and we have taken full advantage of the winter weather. Our second-annual all-school ice skating trip took place at the new Lakeside Center ice skating rink in Prospect Park. With a very enthusiastic group of parents we all, ages 4-10, hit the ice! This all-school trip is one of the ways GHS strengthens our identity as a community of learners who both take risks together and have trust in one another.
CONTENTS DIRECTOR’S LETTER EYE ON EDUCATION PATHS REPORT LEARNING + PRACTICE AT GREENEHILL EYE ON EDUCATION BOARD CORNER
GREENE HILL SCHOOL 39 Adelphi Street Brooklyn, NY 11205 718.230.3608 WEB SITE
www.greenehillschool.org
Committing to times for dialogue and having a genuine interest in one another’s thoughts and ideas are additional and important ways we strengthen our community. So far in 2014, we have established our first parent book club, formalized advisory groups for our oldest students and dedicated staff time to discussing what community means to us at Greene Hill. Our Diversity Committee organized a well-attended screening of the documentary film American Promise with a follow-up conversation hosted in a family home. Taking time to reflect together about our own experiences as parents in relation to those featured in the film became a meaningful way to share information about ourselves and our perspectives.
info @ greenehillschool.org BOARD OF TRUSTEES Nanci Berman, Chair Frank Alvarado, Treasurer Amanda Smith, Secretary Meredith Phillips Almeida Meeta Gandhi David Horowitz Jocelynne Rainey Beth Schneider
I hope you enjoy the photo spread on this year’s Greene Affair! Thank you to Craig Paulson (parent and photographer) who took pictures capturing the spirit of the evening. This is a really fun annual event in support of Greene Hill. This year we met our goal and raised more than $28,000. So many people contributed an enormous amount of positive energy to making the event such a success. We attempt to thank them all later in Progressions. For me, one of the highlights of Spring is our Grandparents and Special Friends Day. Last year over 60 people came to spend time at school with their loved ones. So mark your calendars for May 9! Children will be showcasing a number from our upcoming all school musical The Wizard of Oz and we can all plant together in our garden (thank you Gardening Committee). The Fork and Pencil book fair, organized by our Library Committee and in support of our library, will also be open between May 7-9th.
MY BEST, DIANA SCHLESINGER, SCHOOL DIRECTOR
GREENE HILL SCHOOL
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www.greenehillschool.org • 718.230.3608
SPRING 2014
NOTABLE DATES SCHOOL CALENDAR
APRIL 7-10 Parent/Teacher Conferences APRIL 14-21 Spring Recess MAY 1 GHS Parent Book Club MAY 7-9 Fork and Pencil Book Fair MAY 9 Grandparents Day
EYE ON EDUCATION The conversation about education today takes place in all kinds of venues and media. On February 22, 2014, Thomas Friedman wrote an editorial in The New York Times with the intriguing headline — How to Get a Job at Google (click here for a link to the article). Friedman talks to Laszlo Bock, the senior vice president of people operations for Google, who outlines Google’s hiring metrics: “General cognitive ability” which Bock defines as “not I.Q. It’s learning ability. It’s the ability to process on the fly. It’s the ability to pull together disparate bits of information.” “Emergent leadership” which Bock frames as a question: “... when faced with a problem and you’re a member of a team, do you, at the appropriate time, step in and lead. And just as critically, do you step back and stop leading, do you let someone else?” “Humility and ownership” which have an interesting relationship as characterized by Bock (as quoted by Friedman) “ ‘It’s feeling the sense of responsibility, the sense of ownership, to step in,’ he [Bock] said, to try to solve any problem — and the humility to step back and embrace the better ideas of others.” “Expertise” in a given subject is last. Bock emphasizes that it is not insignificant, just not enough.
MAY 15 Community Cocktails (current parents welcome new parents to GHS)
Neither Friedman nor Bock use the words “progressive education.” Neither of them discuss the American education system at any length or its attempts to educate students to take on the challenges of the work world.
JUNE 7 Barnes and Noble Book Fair
But when I read this, the first thing that came to mind was that this was an article about progressive education in the real world.
JUNE 12 AND 13 All school musical The Wizard of Oz
Imagine a GHS class in the midst of an Open Work session. Students are working on long-term projects gathering information from different sources. Two students are researching the history of the development of airplanes. They gather materials but then have to develop their own framework for evaluating and synthesizing the collected information. Visualize the 6s class working together to design and build their in-class restaurant during Community Work. They need to develop the restaurant menu — but how to decide how much to charge? Watch the emergent leadership skills evolve as children offer ideas, evaluate them and come to a decision.
GREENE HILL SCHOOL
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www.greenehillschool.org • 718.230.3608
Watch as the whole-school musical evolves from just a script to a play produced by everyone. Watch the students practice their lines together, watch them discuss how to make scenery look as awesome in reality as it does in their imaginations. And then watch them applaud each other. What makes this particularly progressive? Can’t you see the same types of scenes in more traditional schools? The answer is found in our definition of learning. Like Bock at Google, we do value expertise in (age-appropriate) content. GHS students do learn how to read fluently, how to divide fractions and understand the narrative arc of a novel. But we are also uniquely focused on developing children’s ability to see themselves as creators of knowledge, as questioners and as seekers. As John Dewey said in My Pedagogic Creed, “I believe that education, therefore, is a process of living and not a preparation for future living.” GHS students are already practicing the skills of leadership, ownership, humility and expertise as they make their way through school and life. They are not preparing for life as adults in the 21st century economy, they will create it.
RACHAEL BURTON Friedman, T. (2014, February 22). How to get a job at Google. The New York Times. Retrieved from the website www.nytimes.com
Parents and Teachers Helping the School (PATHS) SPOTLIGHT ON THE DIVERSITY COMMITTEE The Diversity Committee has produced two beautifully-designed and wonderfully informative booklets on Black History Month and Women’s History Month. These booklets are available to all teachers and parents at Greene Hill and provide background history and information about current cultural events.
GHS Diversity Committee hosts “American Promise” On Thursday February 27th, the Diversity Committee hosted a screening of American Promise a documentary that chronicles two middle-class African-American boys from Brooklyn, N.Y. as they navigate private school, self-perceptions, identity, family, autonomy and independence. This riveting film won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award, 2013 at the Sundance Film Festival. One week following the screening, Greene Hill parents and staff gathered at the home of Ahtis Davis (Chair of the Diversity Committee) and Sheron Cloyd for a follow up discussion. Participants reported a nuanced, personal, and thoughtful discussion of sensitive topics such as race and class. The discussion also served as a way to reflect on parenting, and helpful ways to encourage motivation, drive, inquiry, resilience, self-esteem and the love of learning in our children. In addition, the forum allowed parents of varied aged students to get to know each other on a more intimate basis.
To join the Greene Hill School Diversity Committee please contact Ahtis Davis ahtis@yahoo.com or Diana Schlesinger at info@greenehillscool.org
VANESSA BOBB
Board Corner The Board is pleased to report that plans are moving swiftly along for the opening of the middle school with the first 6th grade class in September 2014. Renovations have started up on the 3rd floor, admissions are well underway, and the teachers and staff are planning our first “moving up” ceremony. Check the next edition of Progressions for more detailed information.
SPRING 2014
Greene Affair is a Great Success . . .
Caroline and Stav Birnbaum took on the multi-faceted feat of soliciting and organizing over 100 items for our silent and live auctions.
Thank you everyone who contributed to the successful sixth annual Greene Affair in February.
Charles Starr did a great job of auctioneering — making us laugh while we emptied our pockets for GHS.
We met our fundraising goal — the Greene Affair raised more than $28,000 for the school and far surpassed our expectations as a tremendously fun party. I want to take a moment to acknowledge all of the dedication and hard work that goes into creating this festive fundraiser for GHS. Caroline Bollinger acted as both auction guru and point person for all of the event details. It is an extensive undertaking and she did it with thoughtfulness, enthusiasm and great skill.
GREENE HILL SCHOOL
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www.greenehillschool.org • 718.230.3608
Ben Langsfeld’s invitation set the tone for the evening and many thanks to Mac Montandon, Morgan Spurlock and Rachael Burton for helping to spread the word about the Greene Affair.
What a beautiful event! Thank you to Nicole Porter, Daria Sanford and Theres Wegmann for the overall vision and for transforming the Community Room from a utilitarian to a magical space and to Alexis Langsfeld, Erin Douglas, Krista Cohen, Luca Gajdus, Melanie Loebig, Adrienne LaBelle, Stav Birnbaum, Russell Champa and Rafael Hernandez for their time in making sure all of the details were put in place. We enjoyed delicious food donated by our amazingly talented parents including Lev Gewirtzman and Sabrina Hellman, and Daria Sanford and Nils Mellquist. Franco Goette, Julian Bobb and Lars Weiss made sure the bar was a lively place to be and kept us in good spirits all night. There were many more people who helped make this event a success — far too many people to list here — and we offer heartfelt thanks to all. As you can see the Greene Affair is truly a community event in support of one another, our children and Greene Hill School!
SPRING 2014 Summer Camp at Greene Hill CONTRIBUTORS Laurie Baum Vanessa Bobb Caroline Bollinger Rachael Burton Barbara Frailey Diana Schlesinger Sally Stark-Dreifus PHOTO CREDITS Laurie Baum Rachael Burton Barbara Frailey Craig Paulson Diana Schlesinger Marjorie Vareen LAYOUT AND DESIGN Ilana Greenberg Please contact Rachael Burton at rburton@greenehillschool.org for information about contributions to the school
Greene Hill School Day Camp staff is proud to collaborate with the best of Brooklyn sports and arts education to offer a wonderful summer program including: GYMNASTICS AND CIRCUS CERAMICS SOCCER YOGA STOP MOTION ANIMATION KARATE DANCE
DAY CAMP AGES 3 TO 6 Day Campers will participate in their choice of two electives per session of arts and/or physical activity with our incredible partner programs. Every day, children will play outside, work with open-ended materials, and engage in different types of art projects. Each week campers will visit a fabulous local playground. On Fridays, the entire camp will convene in the school year for an all-camp game day.
EXCURSION CAMP AGES 7 TO 10 Children ages 7 to 10 will explore the best of New York City’s parks, monuments, and museums. Each week, Excursion camp will focus on a different borough with trips to NYC institutions like Coney Island, New York Hall of Science, Intrepid Sea, Air, and Space Museum, and much more! Campers will travel by NYC public transportation or private coach depending on the destination. Excursion trips will occur Tuesdays through Thursdays. Some excursion days may end later than regular camp hours with no additional fee.
GREENE HILL SCHOOL
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www.greenehillschool.org • 718.230.3608
QUICK FACTS DAY CAMP For kids ages 3 to 6 (campers must be toilet trained) EXCURSION CAMP For kids ages 7 to 10 WEEK-LONG SESSIONS $400 for 1 week $750 for 2 weeks $350 for additional weeks
Giving at Greene Hill GHS announced 3 new giving initiatives, called MissionDriven programs for Sports, Technology and the Arts, at the Greene Affair. We are delighted to announce that support for all of them has been enthusiastic. SPORTS This spring, the 9s and 10s will start Running with Lucy! Lucy is excited to introduce the elements of running that she loves: self-motivation, personal bests, concentration and physical exertion and joy! Watch out for those Greene Hill runners.
Weeks DO NOT need to be consecutive HOURS 9:00am – 3:00pm Early drop off at 8:30: no extra charge Extended day until 5:30pm: $125.00 per week SESSIONS Greene Hill Summer Camp 2014 runs five week-long sessions from June 30 - August 1. Select the weeks you want — weeks do not need to be consecutive. WEEK WEEK WEEK WEEK
1: 2: 3: 4:
June 30 – July 4 July 7 – July 11 July 14 – July 18 July 21 – July 25
WEEK 5: July 28 – July August 1
Download Download Download Download
the 2014 Camp Registration Form the 2014 Camp Agreement Form the Camp Health Record Form Materials for Campers
TECHNOLOGY Whether it is our youngest students investigating electricity to create robots in a mixed age lab setting or our older students programing in MIT's Scratch to further their critical thinking and create projects based on their interests, GHS uses technology in exciting and innovative ways to create, think, and learn! ARTS GHS is expanding our arts partnerships with local organizations — adding guitar lessons with Brooklyn Music School and a partnership with Urban Glass next year. And tap into your inner Oompa Loompa as we prepare for our second annual all-school musical — The Wizard of Oz. If you’d like to support these programs with a contribution to the 2013-14 Annual Appeal, simply click here. This winter, the Greene Hill School Community Service committee worked with students and families to collect food for City Harvest and coats for NY Cares. As a community we collected 500 pounds worth of food! We were also able to donate 50 coats to NY Cares. Way to go Greene Hill School!
NONDISCRIMINATION POLICY AS TO STUDENTS Greene Hill School (the “School”) admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the School. The School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sexual orientation, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, financial aid programs, and athletic or other school-administered programs.
Š 2014 Greene Hill School