A Whole Mind

It's a rainy Sunday afternoon, but it feels as though the sun is shining. Maybe I still have a touch of runner's high from covering ten miles this morning. Maybe it's the residual effect of a 40-minute drive to the mall with five high-spirited teenage girls. Maybe it's the excitement of starting in on A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink, in preparation for leading the book-in-common discussions Family Weekend (I've already read The Female Brain). Or maybe it's d) all of the above. But the run is over, and the girls are moving from store to store, not only shopping but also building connections with each other (research suggests that when teenage girls go to the mall, it is often more about who they go with then what they do there). The book is on the table in front of me, open to page 100. So right now, that's most on my mind...

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The Humanities 8 class is off to an exciting start of the fall term. The students began by reporting on what they discovered in their summer reading and then quickly delved into their Ancient Greece projects. Each student selected a relevant topic, researched it and presented their findings to the whole class. The class has recently begun reading the Greek tragedy "Agamemnon" by Aeschylus. While most of the themes revolve around Greek Mythology, the class is paying particularly close attention to what type of community one might find in Athens during the 5th century BCE. The class also takes part in weekly grammar and vocabulary exercises in addition to a year-long focus on Independent Reading.

MOCA meets every Friday. At the meeting on September 25, the students

• agreed that the term of office for representatives to the all-school Student Council would be one trimester.
• elected Erin Moore (8th grade) and Franceska Eremeeva (7th grade) to be the StuCo representatives for the Fall Trimester.
• generated a long list of possible middle school activities and agreed to choose the first one that would take place at the meeting on October 2.

In Algebra, the students are finishing their first chapter which means they are compiling the first portfolio of the year. The class hit the ground running, moving quickly through the introductory topics. As they reflect on the completed work, the girls set goals for themselves for the year. We are moving into our work with integers.

The middle school instrumental class is off to a good start this year. The class has already been split into beginners and advanced players, with each group meeting twice a week. The beginners have received their instruments and have begun working on the fundamentals. They are keeping a log of their weekly practice and have been given links to YouTube beginning instrumental lessons in addition to their in-class instruction. The
advanced players have begun working on "A Friend Like Me," from the Disney movie "Aladdin." We have a diverse group of instruments in each class which makes for interesting arrangements. The highlight of the class thus far has been Franceska Eremeeva's excitement over learning to play the trombone. She has treated the whole school to a blast of notes out the window of her dorm room.

The Humanities 7 class have been delving deep into The Year of Impossible Goodbyes and Jacob Have I Loved. Discussions on the first book, which is being read to them, have been focusing on such issues as how people can treat other people with cruelty and how one resists and survives such cruelty. We are tying this in to the theme of Sara Louise, of Jacob Have I Loved, as a survivor. To lead up to this, the students wrote and delivered monologues describing Sara Louise from the perspective of one of the main characters in the book, presenting that monologue and having students guess who the presenting character was. As the students observed, the monologues worked effectively at many levels, often capturing the voice as well as the essence of their characters, exploring issues that run deep below the surface in the book. Meanwhile, the students continue to research and write their informational brochures. They designed an effective checklist for paragraph structure and topic sentences which they will use to self-evaluate their work. Other skills being assessed on this project will include the research skills of using citations appropriately and writing them in the proper format and the writing skill of proofreading.

After a lengthy discussion, the students agreed the next unit's theme question would be "Who are we?" as they explore themselves, the people around them and what life lessons they are learning intra- and inter-personally.

Finally, the students are continuing their independent work with vocabulary, independent reading and independent writing, and a daily request is, "Can I read my story?" Beyond the support provided to the students who do choose to read, we are also building a sense of spirit and excitement as the girls react to the strong writing they are hearing from each other in class.

With the new schedule in place, the MS Health class has taken on a different look this year. Instead of meeting four times a week for a term, we are meeting once a week for the whole year. We are also taking a bit of a different approach to what we cover each week. The class has become more of a "life skills" class and we recently brainstormed such topics as money management, eating habits, exercise, time management, dealing with grief and many other interesting and important areas the students want to cover. Each week the class has a "task" that will help them reflect on their own lives and look into how they might improve in certain areas. This week we are looking at what excuses we use instead of trying something new or taking a chance.

In science we are busy studying cells and organelles. The girls are learning about what is inside the cell and how it functions as we prepare to study cell processes. To help with learning the name and the function of the organelles, the students created an analogy between the cell and another more familiar item. They used this to compare the individual components to what they know and are familiar with.

We look forward to welcoming as many of you as possible to Family Weekend, held this Fall on October 16-17. The weekend includes class visits, a performing arts presentation, games, practices and a horse show, parent meetings and receptions and conferences. In the middle school, we do student-led conferences with advisors. Advisors will be contacting you to set up appointments. Additionally, if you haven't already, please register for the weekend at https://www.sbschool.org/home/calendar_item.asp?id=1191&pointID=1&calArea=all.

There will be no classes on Monday, Oct. 19, and boarding students must return by 7:00 P.M. on that day.

Thank you, and we look forward to seeing you!

During Fall Family Weekend, we will hold an optional discussion on The Female Brain by Louann Brizendine and A Whole New Mind by Daniel Pink. Interested parents and other family members may purchase either book, and will have the chance to participate in a jigsaw discussion to share ideas first with other people who read the same book and then with people who read a different book. If you have any questions, please contact Bill Ivey .

The School maintains an online calendar of events for use by parents, students, and other members of our community. You may access this calendar at

http://www.sbschool.org/home/calendar.asp

You may also access a copy of the academic calendar through the parent portal, signing in at:

http://www.sbschool.org/home/content.asp?section=parents

If you ever have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us. Thank you!