News from Lisa
While the Leaves Turn
It has been a busy month on campus, what with various characters (the usual plus some new ones) frolicking about. The annual appearance of Frida Kahlo plus some new characters such as the bus driver from Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus and Cruella de Vil from 101 Dalmatians (there were multiple sightings of Cruella) set a high bar for the annual Literary Character Day parade.
Highlights of the month:
The Fall Celebration and Annual Fund Kick-Off was held on Sunday, Oct 26 at Mayfield Park. It was a beautiful afternoon with music by the acoustic band The Lost Pines, and a large number of peacocks in attendance. Graduate Alex Kelly '05 spoke, as did parent-trustee Jennifer Hotz. Our honors orchestra performed, our girls delivered their class cheers (with a little help from their friends), and we heard (well, just barely) a scene from Alice in Wonderland. (For those of us who were close enough to hear them, they were excellent.) As we were cleaning up after the event, a Mayfield Park volunteer made a point of telling us that in her fifteen years volunteering there, she had never seen such a sweet event. Sweet.
Nancy Hoover escorted our 8th graders, their parents, and a few friends of the school to the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Worth on Wednesday, Oct 29 to see the Impressionist exhibit on loan from the Art Institute of Chicago. It was a fabulous trip and the girls could easily have stayed even longer, so mesmerized were they by the art and art-teacher-turned-tour guide, Nancy Hoover.
Our 5/6th grade volleyball team placed second in the WAYA league and came home with a trophy for our new athletics display case (check it out!) near the Kindergarten room.
The kindergarten and first grade attended the play Mariposa at the Zachary Scott Theater on Oct 29. The logistics for a trip involving kindergarten and first grade cannot be adequately described on these pages but suffice it to say that it involves a large number of car seats. Fortunately, our teachers are well prepared for the challenge. Mrs. Brewer and Mrs. Hayden, clipboards in hand, had the group of wiggly students loaded up in no time.
The parent coffees were well attended. We discussed the short term plans for our current campus, our long-term growth plans, and the Sanctuary property. I also presented a brief "state of the school," and there was plenty of time for informal conversation. The parents seemed to enjoy the coffees and so did I!
Plans are underway for a 7th grade retreat to Highland Lakes Camp in January where the girls will participate in conflict resolution training and a high ropes course. The new ethics course, also for the 7th grade, will begin the week after the retreat.
Work has begun on the planning for this year's 8th grade trip, which will be an expedition to Washington D.C. in May. The theme may well be "traveling on a shoestring," but parents and students are excited about working on the logistics.
Meanwhile, the 8th grade has been providing excellent leadership in their community-wide service learning project. Recall that each grade will participate in the project and that the 8th graders will assist in planning and coordinating the activities. Next up, the 5th grade will be sponsoring a food drive and assisting at the Capital Area Food Bank.
Mock Elections were held on campus on Tuesday, Nov 4. The 8th graders presented the presidential candidates' views on several key topics at a community meeting the week before the vote. The mock elections provide an opportunity to discuss the importance of listening carefully to viewpoints and engaging in dialog—crucial to our democratic process.
Our Speech Club will perform scenes from Alice in Wonderland in the Private School Interscholastic Association competition in February. The one-act play is the only group entry in the speech competitions with PSIA. Our lead actress is Gabi Petterson as Alice. Public speaking is an especially crucial skill for girls, and we are thrilled that so many of our middle school girls have taken on the challenge.
We will hold a tie-dyed scarf sale on campus during lunch during the first week in December. This will take the place of the sale at the Dell Children's Hospital event, which was cancelled for this year.
The Mobile Learning Barn from the Texas Farm Bureau was on campus for grades 4-8 on Monday, Nov 3. Students heard a short talk on Texas agriculture and then the speaker met with the Volcanic 7 robotics team over lunch. The Volcanic 7 has chosen to study the effect of climate change on cotton and so the conversation naturally focused on cotton growing and harvesting.
It's hard to believe that the year is already one-third over!
Lisa K. Schmitt
Head of School
(11/08)