SEVEN HILLS
February 13, 2013
The Buzz
A Brief Word from Chris Garten I am often asked by visitors to the School how Seven Hills produces students who are so comfortable speaking in front of large groups. Part of the answer, of course, is the profusion of opportunities we create for students to practice presentation skills. Lotspeich’s Living Biographies project and Doherty’s Global Summit leap to mind, as does Doug Huff’s reenactment of the Continental Congress in seventh grade. Extracurricular activities like Model UN, JSA, Mock Trial and, of course, a host of performance opportunities in drama and music give students hours of training in this critical skill. As I visit in classrooms, what strikes me most is the frequency with which students are asked to articulate their viewpoints, present their findings, or defend their positions. The liveliness of intellectual discourse is one of the defining characteristics of this school, and our students’ skill in expressing themselves is one of its richest byproducts.
Congratulations to our National Merit finalists, Hauck Scholars, Mock Trial teams, outstanding athletes, and more! Congratulations to our National Merit semifinalists (at right), all of whom were named finalists in the 2013 National Merit Scholarship Program! Pictured are (front) Peter Todorov, Kyle Patel, Priyanka Parameswaran; Katie Shen, Katherine King, Leah Yuan; Chris Baggott, Claire Romaine, and Nicholas Au-Yeung. The Seven Hills School has awarded the 2013 Frederick Hauck Scholarships in Math and Science to seventh graders Mary Grace Ramsay and Curtis Sun, eighth grader Matisse Peppet, ninth grader Alex Jiang, juniors Hadiya Harrigan and Brian Hu. World-renowned nuclear scientist and philanthropist Frederick A. Hauck established the Hauck Scholarships at Seven Hills in 1983 to recognize students who are Alex Jiang, Hadiya Harrigan, Brian Hu.
Congratulations to members of Upper’s three Mock Trial teams, who competed in this year’s district competition. All teams won at least one round, and one team is continued next page
Chris Garten Head of School
Join families from all Seven Hills divisions in a celebration of the rich diversity of our school community at the Fifth Annual International Dinner on Mar. 8! Details to come.
demonstrating outstanding achievement and commitment in math and/or science. Winning students entering grades 9–12 receive a one-year scholarship of $1,000 to be applied to the Upper School tuition, and winning students entering grades 7–8 receive a $250 grant to be applied to a summer science or math program.
Inside this Buzz Mary Grace Ramsay, Matissse Peppet, Curtis Sun.
Big sports honors Books for Lunch with Curtis Sittenfeld Upcoming Creating Conversations Upper School News Middle School News Lotspeich News
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Doherty News
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Mock Trial honors continued advancing to the regional competition on Feb. 22. Members of Team Marshall, the team that is advancing to the regional competition, are Kyle Patel, John Rowe, Roshni Bagli, George Karamanoukian, and Shray Ambe. Members of Team Warren are Jay Panandiker, Ben Sorscher, Nicole Barresi, Brian Hu, Gregory Sun, Marisa Steele, and Carl Compton. Members of Team Jay are Chris Shoemaker, Daniel Sauers, Bennett Smith, Joanne Li, Pearce Kieser, Mekhala Rao, Leo Fried, and Adam Buford. Special thanks to our teams’ legal advisers—Pat Lane, Ken Patel, and Kelly McDow—and teacher/advisors Ann Griep and Jason Knarr. (First) Seven Hills Varsity Girls Soccer Coach Nick Francis, Zoë Pochobradsky, Mary Pochobradsky; (second) Athletic Director Brian Phelps, Pavel Pochobradsky, Dave Schureck (Zoë’s goalkeeping coach from the Ohio Elite Soccer Academy, her club), and Josh Burdick (Zoë’s fitness trainer).
Congratulations to senior goalkeeper Zoë Pochobradsky, who signed a letter of intent on Feb. 6 to play NCAA Division I soccer at Rice University. Last year, Zoë made a verbal commitment to Rice as a junior. The Rice Athletics announcement of Zoë’s signing stated, “Rice University Head Soccer Coach Nicky Adams’ third page 2
recruiting class features highly-regarded young players from across the nation who join Rice from some of the country’s elite club programs. ... “‘Our entire staff is very excited about this incoming class. I know each of these players will have the grit and fight to continue our winning traditions at Rice.’”
Junior guard Lauren Weems topped the 1,000-point mark on January 30, when the Lady Stingers defeated Lockland 57–32. Lauren entered the game needing 22 points to reach 1,000, and she came away with a game-high 27! Lauren is accustomed to big nights scoring; she sits second in the league with just under 19 points a game. She now ranks third in school history. Lauren is pictured with girls varsity basketball coach Tyler McIlwraith ’03, the all-time scoring leader in Lady Stinger history.
Books for Lunch 2013 presents Curtis Sittenfeld How many internationally-acclaimed, awardwinning novelists can tell the audience of Seven Hills Middle Schoolers she is addressing in the Kalnow Gym, “I used to sit where you’re sitting”? Only one: Curtis Sittenfeld, the guest author for Books for Lunch 2013 and a member of the Class of 1993. Years before the publication of her bestselling novels Prep (2005), The Man of My Dreams (2007), and American Wife (2009), which have been translated into 25 languages with more than 1.6 million copies in print, Curtis Sittenfeld was a Seven Hills student, first at Lotspeich, then at Middle, before she left after eighth grade to attend boarding school at Groton School in Massachusetts.
Middle Schoolers particularly enjoyed her reading excerpts from her upcoming novel Sisterland (June, 2013) which focused on her characters’ young adolescent years. Curtis’s embrace by her audiences continued at the Books for Lunch Lecture Luncheon and Book Signing at Cintas Center, where she was introduced by her brother, P.G. Sittenfeld (’03), who is a Cincinnati City Council Member. In part, the advice she shared with her student audiences included the following: • It’s okay to be a little bit weird, a tad different from your peers. If you don’t entirely fit in in Middle or Upper School, don’t worry. Be patient. • Read a lot and read a lot of different kinds of books. • Practice your own writing by joining the school newspaper. • Take some chances. • Don’t be in too much of a rush. [Curtis wrote Prep over three years, and it was rejected 14 times by publishers.]
The rich detail, empathy, and spot-on observation of the minutiae of daily life that connect readers to her novels filled her anecdotes about her days at Seven Hills, much to the delight of her Books for Lunch audiences.
Kerrin Antonsson, Curtis Sittenfeld, Nancy and John Silverman.
• “Writing is my job. I have to be disciplined. I don’t believe in writer’s block. You just have to do it.” Books for Lunch 2013 was a grand success, selling out the Dinner with the Author Feb. 7 at the home of Nancy and John Silverman and selling an outstanding 430 tickets to the lecture luncheon the next day! We are grateful for the generosity of the event’s sponsors and for the efforts of Committee Chairpersons Kerrin Antonsson and Christine Cho and their parent committee, which made Books for Lunch 2013 such a successful event. Books for Lunch 2013 was a very special event for Curtis’s former teachers, family, friends, and many fans, happy and proud to welcome our distinguished alumna back to Seven Hills.
Head of Upper Nick Francis, Curtis, Head of School Chris Garten.
Curtis told the students, “I hope you enjoy your time at Seven Hills as much as I did.”
Parents, join us Feb. 28 for Ann Anzalone on “Setting Children Up for Success”
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The next event in Seven Hills’ Creating Conversations Speaker Series will feature Ann Anzalone, a nationally recognized expert on learning styles, educational plans and academic performance. The program will be beneficial for parents with children of all ages. For more information on Ann, visit www.annanzalone.com. To RSVP, go to www.7hills.org/creatingconversations or call Judy Arnold at 513.728.2363. Bring a friend!
A look at what’s happening at Upper School
See page 6 for Middle School, page 7 for Lotspeich & page 9 for Doherty The Buzz sincerely apologizes to senior and cross country team member Laura Gonzalez for missing her name and photo (!) among the fall athletes honored as Enquirer All-Stars. Laura was Divs. II-III Runner of the Year! Quoting the Enquirer, “The senior was third at district, 15th at regionals and 44th at state with a time of 19:38.32.”
The Chinese I and II classes of teacher Yu-Chun Lin prepared and shared dumplings for their celebration of Chinese New Year. For the latest Upper School news, go to http://7hillscanvass.org/.
Seven Hills welcomed eight students and two teachers from Liuzhou High School in China from Feb. 7 to 14. Their visit included living with Seven Hills host families; shadowing host students to classes; visiting the Dayton Air Force Museum, LaSalle High School and U.C.; touring Cincinnati; and attending the Chinese New Year Celebration at the Greater Cincinnati Chinese School. continued next page page 4
Twelve students, Environmental Science teacher Linda Ford, and Dean of Students David Brott spent the night at the Cincinnati Zoo’s Center for Research of Endangered Wildlife (CREW) on January 24. The visit included a tour of the CREW laboratories, activities concerning the protection of biological diversity, night walks on the grounds, and behind-the-scenes visits with some very special animals, including the severely endangered Sumatran rhinoceros. Freshman Marney Briggs, sophomore Jared Nelson, junior Emily Addy, senior TJ Robinson, and Athletic
Director Brian Phelps represented Seven Hills at the Miami Valley Conference community service event at The Healing Center in Springdale on Feb. 7. It was a great way to help others while getting to know fellow league athletes outside of the sports arena.
Our guests from Liuzhou, China, enjoyed their visit to Seven Hills and Cincinnati, and so did we!
Students Adeline Sawyer, Shannon Murray, Olivia and Camille Williams, George Karamanoukian, and teachers Karen Glum and Jacky Kalubi were hosts to Lilynette Liu, Miranda Li, Shirley Ye, Up Yao, Melody and Laura Luo, Kayla Lv, Alice Liao, Truly Jiao, and Snow Yang. page 5
A look at what’s happening at Middle School
Math teacher Tom Betts told us, “We are gearing up for the Cincinnati Chapter MATHCOUNTS competition on Sat., Feb. 23, at U.C. and the U.C. Math Competition on Sat., Mar. 2. Pictured are Mary Grace Ramsay, Sarah Zhang, and Nate Rising at the SMOY mini-MATHCOUNTS event. Congratulations to eighth grader Rebekah Jonas, whose synchronized skating team earned Second Place, winning medals and a trophy, at a competition on Feb. 10. Becky has been doing synchronized skating for the past year, competing at the nation’s largest competitions. She said, “At the Dr. Porter Synchronized Skating Classic, we scored fourth out of eight in our first section, then third out of 16 in our second section. At the Mid-America Synchronized Skating Championships, we scored sixth out of ten in our first section, then sixth out of 20 in our second section.” Teacher Carri Haskins said, “Seventh graders in my Algebra 1A class have been learning about the stock market and how it works. We are playing a virtual stock market game (www.weseed.com) where we are given $10,000 to buy stock. After about a month and a half we will see who has made the most overall gains.” page 6
Teacher Ken Revell’s eighth grade Physical Science students built a “roller coaster” using tubing and ball bearings as part of a unit on energy. Science teacher Karen Glum said, “Seventh grade students are learning about plate tectonics. As part of their study, they are creating projects on the different types of plate boundaries. Students are allowed to work in groups or alone, and they have choices about the type of project they will complete. So far, projects include stop-motion animation, iMovies in which students act as newscasters or explorers, Keynote presentations, and 3-D models. Students will present their work to their classmates next week. Some students are writing and performing songs/raps as well.” Head of Middle School Bill Waskowitz told us, “On Middle School’s Day of Service at Matthew 25 Ministries on Jan. 21, we had over 30 students and parents volunteer their time and efforts. This was a wonderful way for some of our families to spend time in honor of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.”
For the latest Upper School news, go to http://7hillscanvass.org/.
A look at what’s happening at Lotspeich Congratulations to fifth grader Peter Stein (right), winner of Lotspeich’s Geography Bee, and fourth grader William Hawgood, who was runner-up.
“Math, math, and more math!” said teacher Danielle Necessary. “Second graders have been busy with Math Exploration Days, Math Data Day, and the 100th day of school! Students have been exploring with weights in pounds, developing readiness for division, exploring area and patterns, measuring length to the nearest inch, finding the median in a set of data, and celebrating 100 in various ways!” Mrs. Necessary continued, “Second graders traveled to Happen Inc. in Northside on Feb. 5. They visited the Toy Lab to create an original toy made of pieces from old, broken toys. Upcycling! Students also turned plastic ketchup bottles into ‘robots with a purpose.’” Second graders also welcomed Art Reach from the Children’s Theater of Cincinnati on Feb. 8. The presenter shared the program, “Harriet’s Journey,” focusing on the life of Harriet Tubman. This tied in with the second graders’ American Leaders unit and Black History Month.
Grains were the subject of the first graders’ latest food exploration.
Fifth graders surveyed their first grade buddies on their favorites, including board games, class in school, pizza, and sports. Then the fifth graders compared them to the answers that they gave when they were surveyed as first grade buddies. page 7
These first graders are planning and then performing mini puppet shows in drama classes this week.
Kindergarten teacher Theresa Cohen told us, “Our celebration of the 100th day of school was the culminating experience of a math activity we have been doing throughout the school year on every 10th day of school. The children counted out 10 beads and add them to their jars until we made it to the 100th day. The children then strung the beads in groups of ten up to 100 to make their 100th day necklace.”
Science teacher Natalie Willliams told us, “The third graders went on a fossil hunting field trip at Trammel Fossil Park in Sharonville. Trammel Park is special because there are many different time periods represented in one area. The signs describe the time period and which types of fossils can be discovered in each area. Cincinnati was once covered by an ocean, so there are amazing oceanic fossils to be discovered.” page 8
A look at what’s happening at Doherty with musical instruments, and dressed up as young Masai.”
The Cincinnati Museum Center’s Program on Wheels recently visited Doherty third graders. The program, “Walking City,” explored how geographic factors kept Cincinnatians confined to the downtown basin and how Cincinnati remained a walking city longer than most. The students used period maps, a map key, advertisements, and illustrations to help them understand what life was like in Cincinnati in 1863. Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park offers many of the nation’s best storytellers. Units I and II students had the opportunity to experience renowned storyteller Lyn Ford, who shared her “Home-Fried Tales,” adaptations of folktales from her childhood. Her storytelling is rooted in her family’s multicultural “Afrilachian” traditions and her love of stories. Teacher Anne Vanoy said, “First graders began their world continent studies with culture lessons from the Cincinnati Museum Center. The program, ‘One World, Many Cultures,’ allowed them to step inside the lives of children from Peru, China, Kenya and Mexico. The children took part in a dragon parade, told stories page 9
The Cincinnati Museum Center presented “Coral, A Colorful Community” to third graders. Students learned about coral, where it lives, what it eats, and how it protects itself. They explored real coral skeletons, experienced how a coral polyp feels, and viewed photos of creatures that live in a coral reef. The fourth and fifth grade students all read the first eight chapters of The Secret Zoo and were treated to a Skype session with the author, Bryan Chick, in the Doherty Library. The students asked thoughtful and engaging questions both about the book and about
authorship and were thrilled when Mr. Chick took the time to answer each question personally. The author had a lot of good suggestions, especially on how to begin writing and what tools to use to fill in the structural details. He shared how his childhood helped give shape to his series and said that he believes to become an author, one should write something by oneself and keep imagination alive by writing all the time!
Eight students enjoyed a Make Your Own Sundae party in the Doherty Library after taking the initiative to read The Wright 3 by Blue Balliett over the winter break and complete the packet that included evaluating the characters and working with tangrams. Pictured are Emma Rooney, Caroline Corbett, Alex Grass, Kevin Wang, Ajay Gupta, Allison DeWitt, and Linley Dawson. Jon Bennett is not pictured. Unit III teacher Tracy Hickenlooper said, “My students have created a Current Events website called ‘Hickenlooper Headlines.’ Each week a group of students meets for the Monday morning meeting, and they pitch news ideas for the week. They work as a team to publish three or four news stories that week. Some students
work in groups and some work independently. We hope to make the website interactive with blogs, surveys, maps, etc. This is a project that will continue to evolve as we work through the rest of the school year. My students are very excited about it and most have shared the website with their parents. www.hickenloopercurrentevents.com.” Unit III students presented a service learning convocation about Unified for UNIFAT as a kick off event for the Annual Pancake Breakfast and Art Auction. Linley Dawson and Stephen Walsh presented a keynote created by Unit III students from teacher Patty Dawson’s homeroom that had short video clips about Uganda, the UNIFAT School, and the Unified for UNIFAT program. Student representatives from each grade talked about the artwork that they had created. The theme for this year’s artwork was “Under the Sea” and featured beautiful collages teeming with various forms of sea life. The convo ended with a beautiful song sung by the whole school about service done in various ways. Unit I students in teacher Kirby Schucheter’s class read Many Luscious Lollipops, a book about adjectives. Then each of the students received a lollipop and had to write adjectives that described how the lollipop smelled, looked, sounded, tasted, and felt. They created their own luscious lollipop with a balloon, then used their adjectives to describe their lollipop’s creation. The buddy classes of teachers Anne Vanoy and Bill Schmidt made Valentines for Montgomery Care Center. Mrs. Vanoy said, “The children added love and warm wishes, and the residents were thrilled to have the children’s thoughts along with their lunch trays.” page 10
Pancakes and student artwork benefit a great cause! Doherty’s Pancake Breakfast and Student Art Auction on Saturday, Feb. 2, was a huge success, even with the snow and ice! The all-school (Beginnings through Unit III) event raised $4,816.59 for student Aloyo Stella and her school, UNIFAT in Uganda, as part of Seven Hills’ Unified for UNIFAT effort in all divisions. Guidance Counselor Mitzie Moser, who organized the event with art teacher Mimi Stricker, wrote to Doherty faculty after the event, “What a great morning! I’m so proud of our students!” She provided the following breakdown of “our successful service learning project.” • $4,816.59 raised ($1212 from pancakes; $3604.59 from student art auction) • 253 attended, even in the snow • 1,400 pancakes flipped
• 63 canvases of original artwork auctioned • 10 poetry books of 51 original poems about Unifat, Aloyo Stella, and service learning written by Unit III students for each table [See our next Buzz for a sample of the poems.] • 32 student volunteers for the breakfast • 12 student presenters at the convocation with 1 keynote created by Patty Dawson and Unit III and 1 amazing song by Maria Eynon sung by Pre-K–5 • 10 beautiful centerpieces made by K and Pre-K • 6 bid boxes made by Extended Day • 36 letters written by Unit II, securing our coffee donation from Lookout Joe’s Congratulations and thank you to all!