A Week in Review

At the end of a very busy week I found myself in the auditorium lobby watching the Science Olympiad team test their Trebuchets (I have included a link for those that may be a bit confused

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trebuchet). Ours were not quite that big but certainly imaginative! It was amazing to see so many different designs all testing out the same physics principles. Today the students had to calibrate their instruments. A huge thank you to Ms. Gatti and all of the parents there to help. The students did so well. I promise that many pictures were taken :)

Yesterday I was in a 7th grade science classroom to learn how the digestive system works. Our science department is interested in kinesthetic techniques for student learning - this lesson used movement to teach into the digestive process. Students were placed in small groups and asked to "story" the process through action. Groups were given time to think about and practice what each step would look like if it were acted out and then put it in order. The group presentations were incredible - one student played the "food" while the rest of the students in the group worked collaboratively as the different organs found within the digestive system (i.e. what happens to the food when it gets to the stomach, etc). Watching it made me feel pretty sorry for the PB&J sandwhich I had just eaten for lunch. Beyond learning, students were active, joyful, collaborative and creative in their work. It was a sight to see.

I was also able to sit in on a 7th grade math class where students are exploring algebraic patterns. Students each were given a fictional business and then asked to chart the profits of the business. Students are practicing data collection and analysis while trying to find the patterns between the numbers. It was wonderful to see those "light bulb moments" when students discovered the pattern in the data. This unit is a hard one because it introduces them to much more abstract ways of thinking.

In other news, Ms. Cortes (7th grade science) has too many trout and is looking for an additional tank. 7th grade parents may remember that Lab School was the site for the fertilization process. This allowed us to start with more eggs than normal. Usually by this time in the process many fish have died; however, our "school" seems to be going strong at OVER 200... If anyone has a tank (20 or 40 gallon) that they would like to lend through the spring please let us know. Ms. Cortes, the 7th graders and the fish would all appreciate it.


Congratulations to the Invisible Children (http://www.invisiblechildren.com/home.php) student organization. Over the past few months the student led group developed an informational campaign to raise awareness for Ugandan child soldiers. They also implemented a massive book drive - gathering over 400 books to be used by the organization. These young Labbies are realizing and living the second half of our mission "Acting bravely in our world". With the book drive complete, the students are now turning their attention to Haiti.


A final note...
A striking thing was realized by the Lab School community today - it's January (and therefore winter). As I was standing outside today before school, I had at least a dozen Labbies comment that it is cold outside. The first eleven times I thought (said), "gee, yes it is". By the twelfth child I realized - it's winter of course it's cold outside. At lunch a similar thing occurred. I was sitting in Kelly Park watching as our little ones ran around - coats unzipped, no hats, no gloves, etc. I went up to one 7th grader and asked, "aren't you cold". His response, "no Meg...it's because I'm Finnish". There is a point to these stories...it is cold, it is winter, it is January and students need to dress accordingly. I will continue to remind your students at school if everyone can also make sure they're coming from home dressed appropriately. It seems that global warming has gotten the best of us and we've forgotten how to dress in January.

Warmly,
Meg

Events of the Past Week

News of the earthquake in Haiti last week made me pause and consider once again how blessed we all are. The PA has posted information on SchoolHub about how families can donate and support the Haitian people. Money is what is most needed right now - please check-out the website to learn about the various organizations that are accepting donations. Natural disasters of this magnitude have an impact on all of us. The Department of Education has provided a number of materials that parents can use in helping their children cope with these events. I will have these resources posted on SchoolHub. We also have a wonderful guidance department on-site to provide ongoing support.


School Related News...
Every Wednesday at lunchtime room 424 becomes a lesson in civic engagement - it's the time when Lab's Student Government Organization (SGO) meets. I took a break from my normal lunchtime routine in Kelly Park to meet with the Events/Fundraising committee at the last meeting. The students are planning a school-wide dance that might be Valentine's Day themed if they get it organized in time : ) In planning the dance, the students are responsible for all the components (i.e. they must fill-out the correct paperwork, organize the chaperons, plan the budget...etc). The process of planning and execution provides practice for many real world skills. I witnessed a heated debate about the price of the dance tickets - should the tickets cost $5.00 with food as an additional fee or should the ticket be $7.00 with a food ticket included (there were of course several other variations). It was exciting to watch the students replicate the same collaborative interactions that they have been practicing constantly in their academic classes. I have no doubt the dance will be a blast but what's more important is how much these students are learning in leadership.

All of our 6th graders are currently reading John Steinbeck's The Red Pony in humanities. For those that have not read the book (and some who may not of read it since middle school), it is a series of short stories about a boy who grows-up on a ranch. The stories are beautiful and at times incredibly sad. Right now the students are practicing developing high-level discussion questions using the text. I was able to hear some thoughtful conversation in both Ms. Mazarakis's and Ms. Licht's homeroom classes. If you have a 6th grader be sure to ask them what they think of the book.

The table tennis team has gotten off to a great start. Ms. Rinna and the team practice in the space in front of the auditorium many afternoons if you want to see them in action. This is a new sport for Lab MS and I am really excited by the response. Go Gators!

I want to provide a point of clarification for a memo sent home last week. The school was required to distribute a memo about District 2 not making Annual Yearly Progress (AYP) for the past school year. AYP is a measure defined by the state in conjunction with No Child Left Behind legislation. The memo referred to the overall progress of District 2. Lab MS did make AYP last year - meeting the progress metrics set by the state. I will be sharing more about our school's data at State of the School presentation in February. Please let me know if you have any further questions.

Late last week I learned of our school's mid-year budget cut. Lab MS lost $94,200.00 in this current round of cuts. This amount is far above the publicized city-wide 1% cut that most schools experienced. This cut is indeed frustrating for our school community. This news is not intended to cause alarm. I am sharing this news because it is important for our school community to know how these cuts have impacted our school. All academic programs and extra-curricular programs (athletics, after school and clubs) will remain intact. The budget cut will not result in the loss of teaching faculty or other school personnel. We are able to maintain our current academic programs in part because proactive budgeting and cost-cutting measures taken throughout the school-year. The extra-curriculars are solely dependent on the fundraising efforts of the Parents' Association and the generous spirit of our school community. I am truly grateful for your continued support. In the coming week I will be sharing more about the budget. We have two main priorities moving forward - continuing to provide the best educational experience for our students and ensuring that we do not start next year with a budget deficit (a challenge many schools are facing). I am certain that we will be able to achieve both of these goals.

It is time for lunch - I am off to Kelly Park.

Warmly,
Meg

Your Future Seems Bright and Other Tales from the Hallways of Lab

801 is working on the future tense in Spanish class. Ms. Ordonez has created a group project where students develop different fortune telling devices and then write future fortunes to share with one another. The groups are are all creating their own devices - the magic eight ball, tarot cards, fortune cookies, fortune dice...and the list goes on. Beyond the creativity, students are challenged to practice grammar skills (sentence construction and conjugation) along with vocabulary. It was a fun project to see the start of. I am not sure if I want to tempt fate and have an 8th grader tell my fortune :)

This morning I sat alongside 602 as they started their fractions unit. Today the students spent time making fractions strips. This is a project that takes a tremendous amount of thought and precision. They will use these manipulatives throughout the unit. There was so much learned through the "construction process" - observations about patterns of fractions, representation of fractions, values of fractions, etc. It was wonderful to participate in such a kinesthetic activity early on a Monday morning.

We have added one more offering to our winter athletics program. There will be a Lab Runs Winter Conditioning/Training program. This is open to students who participated in the fall Lab Runs XC and/or the 7th and 8th graders who participated in Lab Runs Track and Field last spring. Students will be training together (mostly indoors) once a week and will be invited to participate in a couple of road races this winter. Running in the road races will take additional training and commitment outside the once a week practice. This program is great for runners not already in another winter sport that want to remain active and condition for the spring track season. There will be an informational meeting for students on January 12th at 12:15 in the auditorium. The winter running program would not of been possible without the hard work and enthusiasm of our team - students, coaches and parents. I love running and I am proud to say that we have a full school-year of running at Lab - this has been a dream for so many Labbies.

In related sports news, the girls' basketball team beat Clinton by nearly 20 points in last Thursday's game. Our gators looked impressive on the court. The defense was strong - allowing very few points and the offense scored a number of 3 pointers. The team this year is led by some talented 8th graders that are wonderful models of sportsmanship. It was also great to see such a great turnout of students, faculty and parents to cheer on our gators.

I hope that this finds everyone well.

Warmly,
Meg

Welcome 2010

Welcome Back Lab Families!

I hope that everyone had a wonderful winter break and a great start to the new year. I spent much of my time snowbound in Omaha, NE. It was nice to relax with family but I found myself longing for Lab after only my third day on break. The energy and noise of 600 middle schoolers was missing from my life. It was exciting to see everyone yesterday - our school seems to be in such high spirits.

It has been a busy start to 2010. Yesterday I watched presentations by Ms. Licht's 6th graders on ancient Mesopotamia. The presentations were the culminating projects to the unit. Each group was responsible for researching and creating a presentation on a specific topic about Mesopotamia. During my time in the classroom I learned about Mesopotamian architecture through a study of ziggurats. I also learned about the Code of Hammurabi through a game show called "Guess the Punishment". It was a lively and original experience. The most important part of the project was how student driven the process was. Students practiced skills of writing, researching, planning, presentation and collaboration. I am so proud of our 6th graders (all of whom worked on these projects).

Monday was also our monthly full-staff meeting. Yesterday we began the process of developing a 5-year strategic plan for the our school. The work started with brainstorming in six key areas: Instructional Technology, Communications and Operations, Student Support Services and Intervention, Curriculum and Instruction, Climate and Culture, and Staff Development and Support. It was an exciting and productive conversation to have. My leadership cabinet and I will use these brainstorms ("where we are at" and "where we want to go") to start the framework for these plans. The School Leadership Team is also working on this process - looking specifically at Instructional Technology. There is so much to do and I will certainly be soliciting help from families as we move forward in this project.

It is shaping up to be a very busy winter sports season. We currently have three sports representing our Gator Pride. Both the girls and boys basketball teams have gotten off to a great start. The teams are playing in a challenging league against many tough opponents. Basketball has been a long tradition at Lab Middle School - it was wonderful to see our gym bleachers filled with Labbies. We also introduced two new sports to this season. Our golf team started just before the break. We are running the sport in collaboration with a program called First Tee - the program helps us secure (and afford) space at Chelsea Piers. We are lucky to be part of such a great partnership and I am thankful to our golf coach Mr. Skinner for building this relationship. We are also starting a Table Tennis team. Ms. Rinna will be holding an informational session next week - all interested students (not already in a winter sport) are invited to join. The team will be playing against other middle schools in Lower Manhattan. The growth of our sports and after school programs is one of the things that most excites me about our school. These programs help students make a connection to each other, to our faculty and to our school. They have helped to make Lab a richer and more fulfilling place.

First period is coming to a close and I am off to see some science classrooms.

Warmly,

Meg