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/

A Post from the Road

The 6th and 7th grades are off to Andover...! More updates will be forthcoming throughout the week on the progress of the Middle School trips.

 

From Research to Practice

Daniel Willingham addresses 

a small group of PCD faculty.

Every year the PCD faculty has the chance to read a common book and kick-start the year with a discussion about teaching. This year featured an even better opportunity, as the author of the summer read came to speak with the faculty about the implications of his work.

Daniel Willingham's book, Why Don't Students Like School: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What it Means for the Classroom, brings a variety of new psychological research to bear on some of the most pressing questions in education. The book emphasizes the incremental nature of learning, the importance of practice in developing deep understanding, and the idea that intelligence is malleable.

Faculty members clearly took the book to heart. “It confirms the perceptions we acquire through experience,” said English teacher David Cashman. Nowhere was this more true than in the book's call for a consistent, disciplined focus for teachers and learners alike.

It is no surprise, then, that the faculty and administration were so excited to spend a day with Willingham himself. His morning talk focused on students' attentiveness, and perhaps most importantly was filled with what English and Latin teacher Jane Kaufman termed “pragmatic suggestions” for getting students to focus on the material at hand. Willingham noted that, in the short term, paying attention is a decision. Students' brains quickly and subconsciously balance the quality and probability of outcomes with the level of difficulty, when they decide whether or not to pay attention. By changing those outcomes or the difficulty involved, teachers can affect attentiveness.

PCD faculty (from left to right) Dick Tierney,

Jen Aitken, Chris Dodd, and Sharon Hanover

discussing Willingham's research.

In the slightly longer term, Willingham suggested that both inward reflection--that is, taking time away from external distractions such as work or television--and sleep were crucial in building memory. Both are necessary for the brain to transform short-term memory into long term memory, which is a major step in developing deep understanding. Turning off both electronics and work for even thirty minutes a day, as well as getting to sleep earlier, might be two of the best things to do for improving brain function.

After lunch, Willingham worked more closely with some small groups of faculty on a range of topics. In all, the day was one of the most fruitful professional development days in PCD memory, as teachers left prepared and reinvigorated to begin the new school year with a handful of new ideas and tools to make their teaching even better