Meet a Knight: Glass Master Mike Fradin

Our ongoing series Meet a Knight features discussions with members of the PCD community about what they do on and off campus. We began the year by having conversations with two new faculty members, and today we present our first chat with a current student, junior Mike Fradin. Mike is well known around campus as a student and an athlete. What most Knights don't know, however, is that Mike has also been creating glass artwork outside of school for years. @PCD caught up with Mike to talk about his art, a sample of which can currently be seen in a display in Lund Hall.

@PCD: I don't know that I've ever met a student who was also a glass blower. Can you tell me how you got into it?

MF: I started around 12 or 13, so I've been doing it now for four or five years. It's a class through RISD - my mom was the one who found the class and asked me if I wanted to do it, and I said, "sure!" and I've stuck with it ever since. 

@PCD: Do you still take the class?

Mike Fradin's glass is on display in Lund Hall. 

MF: In the beginning years it was really a class and I got a lot of directions from the guys who run the studio and have been blowing glass for a while. But after a while they lay off the directions and just let you do it. So I do still go to the class, but it's pretty informal. I go in for about three hours one day a week and take turns blowing with whoever else is there.

@PCD: I know almost nothing about blowing glass other than that it looks pretty intimidating. Can you explain the process of going from nothing to having one of your beautiful pieces of glass? I assume there is a lot of fire involved!

Students Learn about the Humanitarian Crisis in Burma

Myra Dahgaypaw addresses an Upper School assembly.

For several years, PCD's student-run Peace Jam club has been supporting the U.S. Campaign for Burma, an organization that provides aid to refugees from the ongoing humanitarian crisis in that country. Part of the club's ongoing effort includes this Friday evening's Burma benefit concert in Corkery Hall. A variety of students and faculty will be performing at the event, which begins at 6 on Friday evening. We will bring you more on the concert next week.

In preparation for the concert, the Peace Jam club brought Myra Dahgaypaw to an Upper School assembly Friday morning to teach students about the Burma crisis. In an engaging lecture, replete with statistics and photos, Ms. Dahgaypaw eloquently demonstrated the extent to which the ethnic minorities in the country have been persecuted for over 50 years.

School Comes Together to Clear a Trail

Ask any alum about what made PCD a great school while he or she was here and you'll get the same answer: the people, the relationships, the community. Ask around the campus today and the answer hasn't changed much. People love the school because they love its people. Take it from us: we here at @PCD speak with a lot of community members and the degree to which they echo the same thoughts about the power of PCD relationships is unusual for a school.

So perhaps it should have come as no surprise that 84 people would turn out for a morning of work along the nature trail behind Lund Hall. It was an event celebrating the power of the school's community to positively shape its physical campus. Those 84 participants wanted to show that they wanted to personally help the school grow. And yet, no one involved in the event really anticipated such a turnout. The event took place on a Saturday morning at 9 AM, an early time indeed for the 41 PCD Middle and Upper Schoolers who showed up on Saturday. The weather was cold and, at the outset, gray. The project was indeed work, involving lifting, removing rocks, raking, and picking up trash. Outside of the promise of coffee and cider donuts, and a couple of community service hours, there was no incentive for any individual to show up.

Click "read more" below to see the rest of the story and a whole lot more photos.

Political Songster Brian Dewan's Visit

Last Friday musician Brian Dewan visited PCD as the first in a series of visiting artists. It was a really great day--Dewan visited Upper and Lower School assemblies as well as six different classes. The PCD website has the story on the visit, which you can read here. We do have some pictures of him from one of the classes that did not make the website story, so we are posting them here. We're also working to track down some video--if we can, we will post it here as well.




 

Revolutionary! The Seventh Grade Visits Lexington and Concord

Mr. Andruchow and Mr. McLaughlin took the 7th Grade Civics class to Lexington & Concord, Massachusetts on Friday, October 26. The class first visited Lexington (pictured), taking in the historic sites of Battle Green, the statue of Captain John Parker, and Buckman Tavern. They then went up the road to North Bridge, seeing Paul Revere's capture point and Meriam Corner along the way. Once they were at the bridge, the 7th graders hiked up to the Militia's vantage point atop Punkatasset Hill and reflected on what it would have been like to be at that very spot on that fateful day of April 19, 1775.

Campus Looking Good!

 We're working on three stories revolving around what students are doing this week, all three of which will be up in the next week and a half. In the meantime, we'd point your attention to a story that ran last Friday on the PCD website. The story covered the recent updates to the PCD campus and served as an update to a story we posted earlier about the summer's Lund renovations. The new campus updates include the brand new fitness center, which opened today, and a preview of the community service day for cleaning up the new nature trail behind Lund. In addition to the first link above, you can also take a look at some pictures from the fitness center below. 

About Alumni: Soccer Star Allie Gnys

Allie Gnys '10 being launched at
an incoming ball.

After they graduate, Knights frequently continue their athletic pursuits. Many play in college and afterward, whether on varsity, club, or recreational teams. Alumni frequently cite the desire to play the game in any capacity as one of the school's culture's great gifts. A PCD baseball career, for instance, might be followed by four years on a college team and later in a local rec league.

Occasionally, however, alumni jump to new sports entirely. In the case of Allison Gnys '10, currently a junior in the nursing program at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, CT, college presented an opportunity to try something she had never previously considered. Allie, as she is known to her friends, is in her second year as a starting lock on Quinnipiac’s NCAA Division I Rugby Team. She is a grizzled veteran on the Bobcats, which, in only its second year of existence, has relied on athletes converting from other sports.



 

In (or Out) of the Classroom: Microarthropods!!

PCD seniors investigating the woods behind Lund

One of the ongoing projects at Providence Country Day is to make great use of the outdoor space. The school sits on a beautiful campus, offering opportunities to athletes and nature lovers alike. Of course, it is also a great spot to learn about the natural world and humans' impact on it. One group investigating just that is Ms. Hanover's Environmental Science class. The class, open to seniors, provides a rigorous study of the science of the natural world.

They scanned the forest floor for microarthropods

Recently, the class has been outside in the area behind Lund Hall, which is also the site of a future nature trail. The students have been conducting a biodiversity study of microarthropods on the forest floor. Arthropods, for those whose grasp of zoology isn't quite what it used to be, are invertebrate animals with exoskeletons, segmented bodies, and jointed appendages. We see them all the time: insects, arachnids, and crustaceans are all arthropods. But they are not limited to mosquitoes, spiders, and lobster. As the Environmental Science class has learned, they can be quite small and live in great numbers on the forest floor.

They bagged their findings, bringing it back to the lab for
further research

Although the woods might have at first appeared uninteresting to the group of seniors that have spent years looking at them, there is no doubt that PCD's natural area is home to a wide array of wildlife. And the activity served as a powerful reminder to the students that, sometimes, the learning inside the classroom is no more important than the learning outside of it.  

Meet a Knight: Photographer Jo Sittenfeld

Ms. Sittenfeld snapping a photo.

Our series "Meet a Knight" features discussions with members of the PCD community. We are beginning the year by speaking with the faculty and staff who are new to the school this year. After starting with college counselor Terry Ward last week, today's chat is with Art Teacher Jo Sittenfeld.

Ms. Sittenfeld actually joined PCD last spring, so this marks her first full school year at 660 Waterman Ave. She is a woman who wears many hats. At PCD she teaches photography and digital media. She also works as an adjunct professor at the Rhode Island School of Design, where she currently teaches a range of photography classes and in RISD's "Project Open Door," an after-school program aimed at getting high school students interested in art. She somehow manages to take photographs for her own work, which she has exhibited all over the country. You can find her around PCD every day, either teaching a class or shooting photos of our busy students.

@PCD: Hi Jo, thank you so much for talking with us. How did you get into photography?

JS: Well I feel like my mom actually steered me--she would always get me these biographies of Margaret Bourque-White and all these pioneering women photographers when I was around eight. But when I was in college I took a photo class. I'd always loved art and art history, and thought it was this side thing I would do, and that I would be an English major or a science major or something like that. But during my sophomore year I took a photo class and it sort of changed my world and my life, and ever since then I have been doing photography steadily. I was an Art and Art History major and got my teaching certification, and from there taught high school art before I came to RISD and got my MFA in photography. It's always been this balance between making art and teaching it, which for me is a really good balance.

Señora Garcia-Mata's Easter Island Travels

Over the summer, three PCD faculty took advantage of E.E. Ford Summer Travel Grants to broaden their horizons. The grants, which support enrichment opportunities for full-time teaching faculty at the Providence Country Day School, are designed to enable teachers and their families to travel. Though the destinations and programs need not relate specifically to a teacher’s classroom curriculum, the broadened perspectives and ignited imaginations that only travel can inspire inevitably make their way into the classroom and the PCD community at large. One of the three recipients, Spanish Teacher Sarah Garcia-Mata, fulfilled a long-time goal of traveling to Easter Island, a small island in the South Pacific famous for the moai, or monolithic statues that dot the island's coast. We caught up with Señora Garcia-Mata and asked her to tell us a little bit about her experience and why she caught the travel bug.

Señora Garcia-Mata in front of moai on Easter Island

I love to travel! It is the only way to know cultures, peoples, languages and learn history without studying. For me it reaffirms the solidarity of humankind and the innate goodness of people. So funding for travel is paramount to me. In my language classes students have trouble remembering verb forms, but they do not forget my stories about adventures I had traveling, or some interesting factoid that I picked up somewhere along the way. Photos of pre-Incan salt mines in Peru necessitate a large amount of historical knowledge that the student would probably not remember if not seeing the pictures and figuring out (without realize their brain was doing it) all the ramifications of what pre-Incan means, the location, the history, etc., etc. My experience and personal photos of the many different Hispanic countries that I have visited make a big difference in my classes (at least I believe that). So I was incredibly fortunate to travel on an EE Ford grant this summer!

Partnering In and Out of the Classroom

For the third installment of our series "In the Classroom," we continue to follow the 9th grade as it opens the year with a unit on national myths. The units genesis was a collaboration between PCD teachers and two Providence College professors. A story on that collaboration can be found on the news section of the PCD website, or you can link to it at: http://providencecountryday.org/Community/NewsandEvents?nid=1208 

As with all of our stories, please feel free to comment in the comments section below, provided that all comments are respectful in nature and tone.

In the Classroom: Should Myths be Taught?

This is the second installment of our series "In the Classroom." Although we will be broadening the series to examine a variety of classes throughout the school, we are currently tracking the multi-disciplinary first unit of the freshman year on the relevance and purpose of national myths. This is the second installment, a dispatch from the History class' project of examining whether various American myths should be taught in school.

Students working in their groups.

It didn't take long to get the Upper School's newest students fully immersed in Leed's Library. Last week the 9th graders were already busy conducting background research for their projects. Each group chose a myth or a group of myths to study in more depth. As a whole, the class has a great variety, from the legends of Paul Bunyan and John Henry to those based in history such as the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. A few groups are even studying within a theme, such as monster legends or cowboy folklore. The students focused their research on two things. First, they learned the myth itself and the most common versions that are told across the United States. Then they worked to fact check or debunk the story, searching out the underlying facts.

Meet a Knight: College Counselor Terry Ward

Welcome to the second of our new series: Meet a Knight, where we will be talking with members of the PCD community and sharing their perspectives. Kicking off the series is PCD's new college guidance counselor, Terry Ward. 


Mr. Ward comes to PCD most recently from the Ross School in East Hampton, NY, where he was the director of college counseling. With many years of experience on both the independent school and college sides of the college admissions process, Mr. Ward has hit the ground running at PCD. Mr. Ward is busy working with the new seniors, but we took a couple minutes to catch up with him as he was settling into his new role here at Country Day.


@PCD: Hi Terry--thanks for taking the time to speak with us! Can you tell us how you got into college counseling?

In the Classroom: The 9th Grade Confronts Myths

This blog's aim is to show what happens at PCD--both in and out of the academic buildings--on a day to day basis. In that spirit, we will be bringing you a number of running series on different aspects of school life. Today we kick off our first one: In the Classroom. We begin that with a mini-series of its own: a look at some changes to the 9th grade curriculum this fall. You can always view the entire "In the Classroom" series by clicking on the label, located in the bar on the right of the page.

Over the summer the 9th Graders began their study of Greek mythology through their summer reading book: Mythology by Edith Hamilton. This fall the discussion of mythology will continue through a "Project Based Learning" unit focusing on national myths. The unit is a collaboration between the classes of Ms. Morris (history) and Ms. Kaufman and Mr. Harper (English). In each class, students will work towards completing a project. In both classes, the driving question for the project is: What is the purpose of national mythology?

What do Paul Bunyan and Hercules have in 

common, and what do they mean for us today?

In history the students are looking at American mythology and the stories and legends that inform our national identity. In groups they will study one story in depth. They will learn the various versions of the story and study what, if any, historical facts the story is based on. Understanding the story in more depth, students will decide if and to what extent the story should be taught in American elementary schools. They will create an online poster using the website Glogster to promote their decision. In doing the project, students will consider the role that myths play in our culture and the value and meaning that they carry. Looking at myths from their own culture can help students connect to the mythology of past cultures and understand that important historical concepts are universal; in other words, the role of myth transcends particular periods and regions. Additionally, students will develop their research, technology, and cooperative work skills. 

In English, students will discuss the nature of mythology in a Greek and modern context. Why did ancient myths exist? Why do they persist (or do they?) today? English classes will discuss the definitions and uses of ancient and modern myth. The goal of the project is to write a modern myth that re-works the themes of an original Greek myth, in story form as an audio performance of about 5 minutes. The students will be thinking about the driving question both as it relates to ancient Greece - what does ancient myth tell us about the Greeks? - and as it relates to their own lives - what do myths tell us about ourselves? Students will work cooperatively and creatively and perform their "new" myths for each other and a broader audience of Middlers plus fellow freshmen. 

We will continue to post updates on this project over the next two weeks from both the teachers' and students' perspectives. In the meantime, if you have any comments, please leave them in the comments section below (but be sure to do so in accordance with our comment policy, which can be found in the blog's first entry).

Thursday at Nature's Classroom

Today, the 6th grade took a field trip, including a five-hour hike! Then, students took part of a simulation called "albatross." They discussed the definition of culture & what it means to be part of several different cultures. They then took part of a "ceremony" of the Albatross people, trying to interpret (or misinterpret) different aspects of the fictional culture. Night featured s'mores and TNL skits (Thursday Night Live, of course!). 

Our First Update from Chewonki!

There have been a steady stream of updates from the 6th and 7th grades at Nature's Classroom this week, as teachers have been in cell phone range and able to relay pictures back to us. The 8th graders, however, have been doing some serious backwoods camping so far into Maine that, the rumor has it, cell phone signals are unable to reach such high latitudes!

Today, however, Ms. Randlett, who had been at Chewonki with the 8th grade, returned to PCD and brought with her several photos. Although she was exhausted and @PCD was unable to catch up with her for a more formal account of how life was up in the great north, we figured we would upload the pictures and let them tell the story...

                               

Today's Update from Nature's Classroom (with video!)

Today's update from Nature's classroom, with pictures courtesy of Ms. Hanover and two videos from the indomitable Mr. Andruchow! Video is below the jump (click the "read more" button)

Photos from Activity Day Fun!

Last Friday, September 7, Upper School students left school to spend a day with their peers, be outside, and develop class cohesion. Each of the four classes embarked to a different location, some near and some far. Some climbed and some floated. Some roamed the woods and some made the newspaper. But regardless of where they went and what they did, students from each class had really positive responses to how they'd spent the day. In that spirit, we thought we'd share a quick summary and some pictures of what each did, after the jump. (Click the "read more" button)

6th/7th Grade Night Sing

Before bed, the 6th and 7th graders end each night with a quiet song.

Silly Songs Get Giggling Going

Courtesy of Ms. Hanover: After each meal, kids participate in Entertainment! They sing a silly, interactive song. It gets the blood pumping & the giggling going.

A Few Quick Pics from the 6/7th Grades

Courtesy of Ms. Hanover, a few quick pics from today's action on the 6th/7th grade trip. Looks like it was a great day for our Middle Schoolers to be outdoors, using their hands, and learning to work as a team.

Constructing a geodome, learning
about the strengths of different shapes

Stay posted for more pictures and info in the coming days...

Building a fire

A Brand New Lund

An updated Lund classroom

Coming to school early this September, a PCD student could be forgiven for assuming that everything would be similar to last year. Just as in years past, the school gates were open and the grass was mowed. The soccer goals were out and football goal posts up, prepared for another great fall sports season. Students eagerly milled about, preoccupied with what classes they would take or what new friends they would make. Chace, Metcalf, Murray, and Lund, the main school buildings, stood in the distance, just as they had for years.

But behind the scenes, the summer had been busy on the Providence Country Day campus. Led by Superintendent of Grounds Vincent Nocera, a crack construction team worked throughout the summer vacation to give Lund Hall, the school's main Upper School building, a dramatic facelift. Although the construction has been more or less complete for a couple of weeks, the benefits are only now being truly understood as students and teachers ease into their newly renovated building.

Leeds Corridor, before (above)

and after (below) renovation.

Emerging through the Class of 2012 foyer--a gift of the graduating class last June--students encounter a cleaner, brighter, and more open building. Lockers have been moved to open up hallways, the floors replaced with wood and carpet, and the furniture completely overhauled. 

Students have offered unsolicited praised for a number of the changes, from the improved chairs and desks to the new carpets and walls. "The new benches and chairs are great," an excited senior remarked from a renovated bench in the Leeds Corridor. "They are so much more comfortable!"

But as much as the comfort has been a hit, teachers and students alike have noted that the building has a new, more positive atmosphere that has so far been much more conducive to learning. The renovation "opens the school up to a whole new dimension, adding light and joy!" exclaimed another senior. "That will make it such a great place to learn!"

A view from the Class of 2012

foyer in Lund Hall.

The changes to the building are, of course, only cosmetic. The business of PCD--students and teachers discussing and learning--remains the same great, dynamic process as ever. But there can be no doubt that the feeling inside the building is more aligned with that process of education than ever. As the appearance of Lund has come to match the quality of what goes on inside, the feeling at PCD is that this already has the makings of a great new school year. Or, in the inimitable words of a member of the recently-graduated class of 2012, it's "too bad they did this after we left!"

For more photos of Lund Hall before and after renovation, please check out our photo album at http://www.flickr.com/photos/providencecountryday/collections/72157631439912134/