Quantcast
Viewing all 256 articles
Browse latest View live

Faculty Voice: Emily Arsenault

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
FullSizeRender
I remember when I first encountered my piano, though it was years before I could call it my own. It lived in my cousins’ house in the toy room past the kitchen, sitting across from a tall bookcase of encyclopedias (back when people still bought encyclopedias). I recall sneaking down there during holidays and birthday parties, lifting up the fallboard, and placing my small fingers on the landscape of black and white keys. At the time, I did not know what to call them or how to read the figures on the pages in front of me. I knew, though, that those keys could sing something beautiful, and I immediately began to love them. I did not need an audience; I was content inventing little tunes for the toys in the room, for E.T. and Scooby Doo who watched from the corner, and of course, for the encyclopedias.

When I was 12, the piano moved to my house, and I was thrilled to start lessons in seventh grade. My sweet, hand-me-down piano was far from perfect, a half-step out of tune, with sporadic nicks in the wood and small chips in a few keys. Still, its sound was rich and warm, and it quickly became my beloved companion. Like my instrument, I was certainly not the “perfect” piano student. In every other area of my life, I was an ambitious rule follower, always striving to do my best work, to push myself harder, to be faultless. Driven to perform well, I obsessed over grades and never wanted anyone to think I had not given enough. This, however, was not the whole of my truth. In another breath, I was a curious daydreamer who was desperate to create. This was the part of me that wrote poems in the margins of my lecture notes. This was the mind that often drifted during class discussions, pulled instead into visions of the films I wanted to make, the houses I could design, the stories I wished to tell. This, too, was the part of me that I brought to piano lessons.

With piano, I was ready to “play” in the truest sense of the word, and I was lucky to have a teacher who understood who I was and what I needed during those hour-long sessions each week. My teacher realized pretty early on that while I was often reluctant to practice my scales and exercises, I was passionate about playing and would devote myself to learning pieces that I loved. In the years that I studied with her, she always gave me the freedom to choose my music. Moreover, she offered a space in which I felt safe to improvise, compose, and share my own. And on a few occasions that I remember, she understood that what I needed most was just to sit at the piano bench and talk about the day, barely playing a note.

Piano continues to be an important part of my identity, though one that few people usually see or hear. When I was younger, I did not play piano in recitals or practice for any auditions or competitions. Over the years, I have incorporated piano into my drama and movement classes from time to time, but rarely play in public otherwise. With piano, I am still very much that young girl at her cousins’ house, content to play for the toys and the books and herself. I still have my old piano, embracing its imperfections as I try to do my own. My piano is what I seek at the end of a busy day, a reminder of who I am beyond my to-do list. It grounds me and reveals me. It celebrates with me and it remembers. It sings with me when spoken words will not suffice. It articulates, clarifies, and amplifies. And sometimes, its music breaks through the chaos and complications of our world to sound something like hope.

At Milton, I see in my students many of the same ambitions and impulses that I felt during my middle school years. In various ways and in countless arenas, our students challenge themselves to work toward their goals, whether academically, artistically, or athletically. As a teacher, I always want to support my students in pursuing these challenges. Additionally, as I look back to my experiences learning piano, I remember the simple ways in which a teacher (or any person) can make an impact: recognizing students’ needs as both learners and people, creating spaces in which they can express themselves authentically, giving them opportunities to explore what they love, and most importantly, listening.

If I could offer a few pieces of advice to the students in our community, I would encourage them to not only seek out those who will listen, but to make sure to always listen to themselves, as well. As I reflect on our school motto, “Dare to be true,” I think about the ways life often calls us to speak our truths in the public eye. We are called to stand up and share our ideas, showcase our creations, exhibit our talents, and advocate for our perspectives, and we certainly should. However, in a world that often emphasizes and necessitates performance, I encourage you to also listen to yourself and seek a moment away from the spotlight when you need it. Dare to listen to your drive and your daydreams. Dare to pursue your passions, regardless of who knows, hears, or sees. Dare to play for yourself. Dare to choose your own music.


February 9, 2018

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
will_crissman
Dear Middle School Families,

Earlier this afternoon, you received an update on the principal search from Todd Bland. I hope that you will find the time to meet some or all of our finalists and offer your impressions. The first of our candidates will visit next week. Please refer to the letter from Todd for specific dates and times for each candidate.

This week, the chorus performed a concert with classical composer Jerrod Tate and baritone Grant Youngblood for our Middle School in the chapel. To prepare for their concert, students learned to sing in the Chickasaw and Creek languages, and they learned about the influence of language and culture in the creation and sharing of music. If you haven’t yet heard about the concert, ask your child about it!

I know that next week is busy, with a plethora of parent meetings. That said, I want to draw your attention to Tuesday night’s Community Conversations parent gathering. We are committed to supporting students and parents to reach a common cultural understanding and to facilitate the conversations that will allow us all to get there.

In today’s Middle School Newsletter you will find a thoughtful faculty voice piece by Performing Arts instructor Emily Arsenault; an invitation to attend two informative presentations: one from the Social Institute about the constructive use of social media, and an informative presentation about vaping among teens by our Parents’ Association; and a schedule for the busy week ahead.

Best,

Will

February 9, 2018

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
racheal-adriko2
Dear Lower School Families,

What an amazing Lower School Concert we enjoyed last night! Thank you to Pierre Young, Kristan Burke, Jenny Sorblom, Madhavi Siruvuri, Veronica Geroukos, Marlena Alex, and to all the faculty, staff and parents who provided support in the days and weeks leading up to last night’s performance. A special thank you to our ASP staff for offering gap coverage during the short turnaround from school dismissal to call time! Finally, a big thank you to our students who shared of themselves, their talents and hard work. It was a joy to see them singing and dancing and enjoying their moments in the spotlight! Early next week, we will share a link to the video so that you may share it with friends and family near and far.

Today I share some important staffing updates for the 2018-19 school year. First, it is with mixed emotions that I share that longtime Grade 3 teacher Susan Wheelwright will be retiring at the end of this year. Susan came to Milton in 2002, and for the past 16 years, has shared her steady and gentle spirit with students and faculty alike. Susan shares that she has been fortunate to have a wonderful and full career at Milton, shepherding third-grade students through their first year in Greenleaf, and guiding them through a year of exploring the natural world. We will miss Susan and we wish her well in this new chapter of her life, as she spends more time with her daughters and grandsons, and gets to do some exploration of her own. We will have ample opportunity to celebrate Susan in our end-of-year events. Second, I share that Grade 2 teacher Sachiyo Unger will be taking a year-long sabbatical during the 2018–19 school year. Sabbaticals are an important element of faculty growth, renewal and reflection. We are excited to provide Sachiyo the opportunity and congratulate her on this milestone in her career. At the end of the year, we will have the opportunity to say our temporary good-byes to Sachiyo.

Last, I draw your attention to the second of our three parent Community Conversations evenings planned for next Tuesday, February 13. Thank you to Yndia Lorick-Wilmot and to Director of Multiculturalism and Community Development Heather Flewelling for their work on these discussions. Opportunities to engage in work that supports our identity and culture exploration are few, and we are pleased to be able to create these programs for you. I hope you will make the time to join us. Click here to RSVP as well as to register any students for the complimentary childcare.

In today’s Lower School Newsletter, you will find an invitation to visit our Grade 2 Family Museum; an important health message from our nurses; an opportunity to share the contact information for grandfriends and special friends; and information about a special initiative of our Grade 5 Ambassadors to collect non-perishable goods and Valentine’s Day cards for the Milton Food Pantry.

Have a good weekend,

Racheal

 

 

The Week Ahead

Grade 5 Families are invited to the Middle School Parent Coffee: Middle School Principal Candidate, Tuesday, February 13, 9:15 a.m., Thacher

Community Conversations Parent Gathering, Tuesday, February 13, 5:30 p.m. dinner / 6 p.m. conversationJoin fellow Lower and Middle School parents to create a shared understanding of cultural narratives so that we can guide our children through this tumultuous time. No one has all the answers, but we all have questions: What do we say when our children ask difficult questions? How are we inclusive and accepting and understanding of one another? How do we teach our children to understand and to make a difference in the world they inherit?

Dinner and childcare will be provided. Parent session will be held in Straus. Students will be in Thacher for dinner, then Middle School students will move to Ware, and Lower School students will move to Greenleaf during the conversation. Click here to RSVP.

Grade 5 Families are invited to the Middle School Parent Coffee: Middle School Principal Candidate, Thursday, February 15, 9:15 a.m., Thacher

Grade 2 Family Museum & Celebration, Thursday, February 15—Grade 2 students look forward to sharing all they’ve discovered about their families. This museum-style share is a Junior Building highlight!

Lower School Walkthrough of the Grade 2 Family Museum, Friday, February 16, 8:30-9:30 a.m.—Parents from across the Lower School are invited to join us to view this hallmark Grade 2 curriculum.

No School in observance of Presidents’ Day, Monday, February 19—When classes resume on Tuesday, February 20, we will follow a Monday schedule.

 

 

News and Announcements

Make Valentines and Donate Non-Perishable Food to the Milton Food Pantry—Grade 5 Ambassadors invite all Lower School families to join them in this important project. Beginning Monday, there will be bins for cards and for food in the lobbies of both buildings. Donations will end on Friday, February 17.

 

An important message from the Nurses’ Office—We are seeing an increase in the number of students either absent or being sent home sick with a variety of ailments including fever, headache, sore throat and cough, or stomach bug (vomiting and/or diarrhea). To minimize the spread of illness, if your child is reporting any of these symptoms in the morning before leaving for school, please keep him or her home.

  • Fevers: Students may return to school when they are fever free for 24 hours without the use of fever-reducing medication.
  • Vomiting or Diarrhea: Students may return to school when they are able to tolerate a normal diet without any further episodes.

When your child is sick, be sure to copy both nurses (annmarie_martens@milton.edu and diane_holland@milton.edu) on your communication with the School. If you prefer to call, the number is 617-898-1671.

Sick children do not belong in school. Beyond the risk to students and teachers, we have students in close contact with family who are immunocompromised. To these people, exposure to viruses can be life-threatening.  

Last, please confirm that your contact information as listed in your myMilton account is up to date. We use this information to contact families when their children are sick or injured.

Please join us for a special evening with representatives from The Social Institute, Tuesday, February 20, 7 p.m., Straus Library—The parent presentation focuses on the positive and constructive engagement in social media. The Social Institute has worked with many schools, universities, teams and organizations to analyze social media use in the community and to educate teens about how they can be empowered through the digital world. As part of their presentation, the Social Institute is requesting that parents participate in the following survey. Results from the survey will be shared at the presentation. Please complete the survey by Monday, February 12.

 

Important Reminders

Community Skating— Click here for the schedule. Community skating is a really fun weekend activity with children and their friends!

No Assembly on February 16—Students and teachers across the Lower School will be able to visit the Grade 2 Family Museum. Parents are welcome to join us in the Junior Building for this walk through.

Lower and Middle School Grandfriends’ Day, Friday May 11In late March, invitations will be mailed to our students’ grandparents and intergenerational friends. To confirm that we have the correct addresses on file, or to share the names and addresses of those whom you’d like invited, click here. Please complete this form by February 20.

Snack menu for next week:

  • Monday – Red Delicious Apples
  • Tuesday – Bananas
  • Wednesday – Special Snack: Strawberries & Cream
  • Thursday – Cantaloupe
  • Friday – Clementines

Students and Parents can now check the FLIK Lunch Menus on their mobile devices—Myschooldining can be downloaded from the App Store or from Google Play. Click here to bookmark the menu page on your computer.

 

Events Coming Up

LSPA Coffee: Focus on Curriculum! Thursday, February 22, 8:15 a.m., Thacher—Tying into our curricular discussions at the start of the year, join us and our LSPA in featuring curriculum presentations by three of our Lower School teachers. Kindergarten teacher Kelly Darling will share her experiences and reflections as teacher who is new to our community. Grade 1 teacher Jerrie Moffett and Grade 2 teacher Sachiyo Unger will present, “We’ve implemented the Lucy Calkins Reading and Writing Program…now what?”

Our newly-added March 29 Focus on Curriculum will be “All About Technology, Engineering and Design.” Mark your calendars to learn about how students are being prepared for the connected world of today.

Report Link sent to Parents—Week of February 26

Grade 5 Parent Meeting followed by Grade 5 Student Wax Museum, Wednesday, February 28.

Parent Conferences, March 1 and 2

  • To make an appointment with your child’s homeroom teacher, click here. Once on the conference appointment page, choose your child’s homeroom teacher from the list. You will be directed to his or her calendar where you can click on the time slot you wish to reserve. You will be asked to provide your name and email address so that we may confirm your appointment.
  • To make an appointment with a specialist, click here and follow the same procedure of selecting the teacher and providing contact information.

Egyptian Parade, Assembly, Share, Celebration, Thursday, March 8, 1 p.m. in Greenleaf and Thacher.

 

March 29, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Middle School Families,

After such a long break, I was feeling pretty nervous last Sunday night. I feared that there would be a rather slow start as faculty and students worked to readjust to structure, regain momentum, and achieve “flow.” But no wonder why it’s often said that time spent worrying is time wasted because this week, the Middle School was in it to win it! Faculty held over 100 parent/teacher conferences, each class I observed was as engaged and focused as ever, our spring athletes hit the practice fields in stride, and our Math Team completed their fifth and final meet with their highest showing yet — 2nd place! We are heading into April full speed ahead. Onward!

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Math March 2019
Congratulations Math Team!
Congratulations to Abe, Jonah, Andrew, Justin, Hailey, Tommy, Max, Melany, Ryan, Kenzie, Omar, Scarlett, Nina, Laurie, and Sebastian for their fantastic showing at yesterday’s math meet in Norwood.  Our team placed 2nd and Melany, Justin and Abe earned perfect scores!

 

ERB Testing week of April 29—We will administer the ERB’s Comprehensive Testing Program (CTP) to all students the week of April 29. Each grade will complete all testing in one day: Monday, April 29 (Grade 6); Tuesday, April 30 (Grade 7), and Thursday, May 2 (Grade 8); Friday. There is no test preparation needed except for ensuring that students’ Chromebooks are charged and that they’ve had a full night of sleep before their testing date.

 

The Week Ahead

Worcester Model United Nations Conference, Clark University is Cancelled.

Weekly Speech Practice—Tuesday, April 2, 4-5:30 p.m., Thacher

Speech Practice Party in preparation for Oak Hill Middle School—Thursday, April 4, 4–5:30 p.m., Thacher

Oak Hill Middle School Speech Tournament—Sunday, April 7, 8:00 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

 

 

Reminders

Important messages for Grade 8 Parents:

D.C. Info Night—Click here to watch a video of the presentation regarding the class trip to Washington, D.C.

US Tours for Grade 8 Parents Paul Rebuck, Director of Enrollment, is offering a few times (Tuesday, April 16—1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.; Thursday, April 18—8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.) for current Grade 8 parents to talk about the Upper School and tour the campus. If you are interested in attending please RSVP to Nina Panarese.

 

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Grade 8 Parent Meeting with Upper School Administration, Wednesday, April 10

Giving Day! Thursday, April 11

No Homework Weekend, Friday, April 12

No Classes in observance of Patriots’ Day, Monday, April 15

No Homework Weekend, Friday, April 12

No Homework Weekend, Friday, April 19—Happy Easter and Passover to those who are celebrating!

Grade 7 Field Trip, Monday, April 22

MS Parents’ Association Book Club, Tuesday, April 23  

Parent Coffee: Math Department, Tuesday, April 30

Foley Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5

 

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

April 5, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
Anderson.Outdoor.Head.Shot
Dear Middle School Families,

Greetings from sunny California! I am writing from San Diego where I am currently attending two back-to-back mathematics education conferences.

At the start of the week, I attended the annual meeting of the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics (NCSM). This conference attracts over 2,000 math specialists, administrators, and curriculum coordinators, from across the United States and beyond who gather to share professional guidance on teaching, curriculum and assessment practices in mathematics. As in the past several years, Milton Academy was a part of the conference program. Doana Marcellus (Lower School teacher), Melissa Vazquez (Grade 8 mathematics teacher) and I collaborated on a talk entitled, “Avoiding HIdden Hazards on the Road to More Equitable Math Classes.” Our session attracted approximately 60 participants and was very well received by the audience. Several people sought us out at the end of our talk to tell us how much they learned. (Some even said that they’d like to move to the east coast to come to Milton!)

Having given talks at conferences for nearly two decades, I can say with confidence, that this one was a hit. And I am pretty sure I know why. First, the audience was primarily composed of math “supervisors” (i.e., educators who support new teachers in some capacity) and I think they delighted in seeing Doana and Melissa speak so confidently and knowledgeably about their work. Second, we cited the relevant literature at length, which empowered the audience with data that they can use to have important conversations when they return to their schools. And third, we spoke with heart. For every empirical piece of data we shared, we also offered an example or anecdote from our own work at Milton. So it was very clear to everyone in the audience that seeking equity is our modus operandi at Milton.

We understand that asking questions like, “Is this accessible to all students? How can we support individual students in reaching our expectations? What’s standing in their way of success and how can we remove that obstacle?” is daily work that should affect all aspects of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. And that is why I love teaching at Milton where the entire community supports teachers in their professional growth, colleagues have the work ethic and courage needed to deliver a knockout presentation, and students remind us what it’s all for.

I look forward to catching up with you all next week. I’ll try to bring some SoCal weather back with me!

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Day of Silence—On Friday, April 12, Middle School students will observe a day of silence to highlight the silence and erasure of people who identify as LGBTQ+ in schools. Participation is optional and teachers will have “silent friendly” lessors and activities in their classes.

 

The Week Ahead

Oak Hill Middle School Speech Tournament—Sunday, April 7, 8 a.m.–5:30 p.m. The bus will depart the Ware Loop at 7 a.m. Students who choose to meet the team at Oak Hill should plan to arrive no later than 8 a.m.

Weekly Speech Team Practice—Tuesday, April 9, 4:30–5:45 p.m., Ware Hall/Thacher

Grade 8 Parent Meeting with Upper School Administration—Wednesday, April 10, 7 p.m., Straus Library

Giving Day!—Thursday, April 11 all day!

No Homework Weekend—Friday, April 12: Happy Patriots’ Day Weekend!

No Classes, Patriots’ Day—Monday, April 15. When we return to school on April 16, we will follow a Monday schedule.

Grade 8 Students depart for Washington, D.C.—Monday, April 15, 5:45 a.m. Please be sure to read today’s email message from Grade 8 Dean Josh Kronenberg for important information about the trip.

 

Reminders

ERB Testing week of April 29—We will administer the ERB’s Comprehensive Testing Program (CTP) to all students the week of April 29. Each grade will complete all testing in one day: Monday, April 29 (Grade 6); Tuesday, April 30 (Grade 7), and Thursday, May 2 (Grade 8); Friday. There is no test preparation needed except for ensuring that students’ Chromebooks are charged and that they’ve had a full night of sleep before their testing date.

Important message for Grade 8 Parents: US Tours for Grade 8 Parents Paul Rebuck, Director of Enrollment, is offering a few times for current Grade 8 parents to talk about the Upper School and tour the campus. If you are interested in attending please RSVP to Nina Panarese with whether you prefer Tuesday, April 16—1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. or Thursday, April 18—8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m.

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

No Homework Weekend, Friday, April 19—Happy Easter and Passover to those who are celebrating!

Grade 7 Field Trip, Monday, April 22

MS Parents’ Association Book Club, Tuesday, April 23

Parent Coffee: Math Department, Tuesday, April 30

Foley Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
MSASP
Last week, Milton Academy Upper School students visited the Middle School ASP program to share their knowledge about what to expect in high school. They discussed topics like homework loads, student clubs, and their experiences moving from Middle to Upper School. Their positive and constructive comments helped to develop new excitement in the Middle School students! Thank you to all who attended and volunteered to make it a success.

 

April 19, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Middle School families,

“Silence is the respite of the confident and the strong.” -Ryan Holiday

This mantra was on full display in our Middle School today as our students observed a day of silence to highlight the silence and erasure of people who identify as LGBTQ+ in schools. So many students chose to participate in the day and faculty also supported their efforts with “silent friendly” lessons and activities in their classes. The silence felt and heard in the Middle School all day conveyed a strong and confident message of support and allyship for the LGBTQ+ community. The Day of Silence is just one of many wonderful moments to recognize and celebrate.

I hope you read through the contents of this newsletter for more exciting news and announcements. And speaking of excitement… Grade 8 departs for Washington, D.C., on Monday! I am grateful to Sharon Mathieu and Josh Kronenberg for their leadership and to all of the faculty chaperones (Barbara Benitez, Samantha Cristoforo, Jacqui Hardaway, Josh Kronenberg, Tom Troy, Sharon Mathieu, and Melissa Vazquez). Please send warm wishes for a safe journey and transformative experience for us all.

Have a good long weekend.

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Foley Fest Speech Tournament is looking for volunteers! Sunday, May 5. Prior experience with Speech or Speech events is not necessary. All are welcome! Click here to sign up. If you have any questions about the tournament schedule, please reach out to Yoshi Makishima, or our parent coordinators Lisa Wilson and Kerri Polimeno.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
IMG_4369
Milton well represented at two national math conferences
— Last week, faculty members from all three divisions attended two national mathematics education conferences. First, Nancy Anderson, Doana Marcellus, and Melissa Vazquez attended the annual conference of the National Council of Supervisors of Mathematics (NCSM) and gave a talk entitled, “Avoiding Hidden Hazards on the Road to More Equitable Math Classes.” Over 60 educators attended this talk and in the week that has followed, Nancy, Melissa, and Doana have received many requests to share their message via podcasts or publications. Nancy also gave a talk at the annual meeting of the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) entitled, “Must the Guide Stand on the Side? Examining (False) Dichotomies in Mathematics Education.” Upper School mathematics faculty members, Phil Robson and Tory Lockwood also attended NCTM.

 

 

The Week Ahead

No Homework Weekend—Friday, April 12: Happy Patriots’ Day Weekend!

No Classes, Patriots’ Day—Monday, April 15. When we return to school on April 16, we will follow a Monday schedule.

Speech practice — Tuesday, April 16, 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., Ware Hall

Grade 8 Students depart for Washington, D.C.—Monday, April 15, 5:30 a.m.

Grade 8 Parent Tour of Upper SchoolTuesday, April 16 from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m. or Thursday, April 18 from 8:30 a.m. to 10 a.m. If you are interested in attending please RSVP to Nina Panarese with the tour you would like to attend.

Grade 8 Students return from Washington, D.C.—Thursday, April 18, between 8 and 9 p.m.

No Homework Weekend—Friday, April 19: Happy Easter and Passover to all who are celebrating.

 

 

Reminders

ERB Testing week of April 29—We will administer the ERB’s Comprehensive Testing Program (CTP) to all students the week of April 29. Each grade will complete all testing in one day: Monday, April 29 (Grade 6); Tuesday, April 30 (Grade 7), and Thursday, May 2 (Grade 8); Friday. There is no test preparation needed except for ensuring that students’ Chromebooks are charged and that they’ve had a full night of sleep before their testing date.

 

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Grade 7 Field Trip, Monday, April 22
MS Parents’ Association Book Club, Tuesday, April 23
Orchestra Concert, Friday, April 26
Parent Coffee: Math Department, Tuesday, April 30
Foley Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5

 

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

April 19, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Parents,

What a fantastic trip we had to Washington, D.C.! Highlights from the trip included walking tours of the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, FDR Memorial, and Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. We spent one morning engaged in service learning with the Anacostia Riverkeepers. Our students worked to pick up over 60 pounds of trash from the riverbanks and surrounding parks! We were transformed by our visits to the National Museum of African American History and Culture and the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum. Although these were emotional experiences, our students leaned into their discomfort and spent hours walking through the exhibits with their eyes and hearts open. And they left each museum with a greater understanding of why it so important that each and every one of them never stops asking “why?”

The students were excellent ambassadors for Milton. They listened to the tour guides, followed directions from their chaperones, and kept their eyes and hearts open to everything we experienced. Many people we encountered along the way—chaperones from other schools, tourists, and museum officials—complimented our group on their comportment. They were so, so happy throughout the entire trip; their delight in being together as a group was evident to all.

And finally, I am so impressed and inspired by the chaperones—Barbara Benitez, Samantha Cristoforo, Jacqui Hardaway, Josh Kronenberg, Sharon Mathieu, Tom Troy, Melissa Vazquez. They were attuned to students’ emotional and physical needs at all points of the trip. And it was clear that the relationships students had developed with their advisors all year helped them feel comfortable and engaged—even during the most emotional parts of the trip. Specials thanks, in particular, to Josh and Sharon for co-organizing this year’s trip. Josh and Sharon have spent countless hours getting ready for the trip and they really did think of everything. They could easily make a living as professional tour guides! (But don’t tell them I said this; I don’t want to give either of them any ideas!)

I hope you all have a chance to talk with a student or faculty member who attended the trip. You will delight in hearing about each person’s pivotal moment, key takeaway, or lingering question.

To all of you celebrating Easter or Passover, best wishes for a healthy and happy holiday.

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Staffing Updates: I have a few staffing announcements that I would like to share with you.

  • Emily DiDonna, Grade 7 English teacher and Grade 7 dean, is departing Milton to pursue a principal fellowship through the Lynch Leadership Academy at Boston College, in partnership with the Boston Public Schools. We are all grateful to Emily for her work in the English classroom, her leadership as dean, and her involvement with our culture clubs and affinity groups. We wish her the best of luck with her new endeavors.
  • Sonya Conway, Grade 6 social studies teacher and Grade 6 dean, will take a sabbatical in the fall semester of the 2019–20 school year. She will return to her position in early February.
  • Meg Burke ’91, our K-8 director of admission, has accepted a position as director of admission for the Tenacre Country Day School in Wellesley. Meg, who worked in Milton’s Upper School admission office for 10 years, has spent the past six years guiding Middle and Lower School families through the admission process and working collaboratively with faculty to support families through the K–8 experience.
  • After 10 years leading our Middle and Lower School communication efforts, including five years as Lower School dean and parent liaison, Marlena Alex will leave Milton to become the head of Lower School at Dexter Southfield School in Brookline. Marlena began her Milton tenure as a parent and active parent-volunteer, evolving into a transitional consultant for the K–8 admission office before moving into her current roles.
  • We are hiring a Middle School music teacher who will lead the chorus, advise in the Middle School, and provide vision and direction for our Middle School music program. We are also hiring a resource teacher who will support the social growth of students, implement school-wide systems, and assist with supervisory duties.
  • Beginning in fall 2019, the administrative structure of the Middle School will no longer include grade-level deans. This restructuring will allow all faculty to focus on their work related to curriculum and instruction as well as their roles as facilitators of student activities, affinity groups, and culture clubs. Communication to families and students will flow directly from me, the dean of students, and faculty advisors.

We will have an opportunity at the end of the year to celebrate our departing faculty and staff, but for now please join me in thanking them for their many contributions to Milton Academy.

 

Interested in being a Host Family to a new student? Our K–8 Office of Admission invites you to join in welcoming new families by participating in the host family program. Through this program, current families are paired with newly admitted families to help answer any questions they may have and ease their transition to Milton. Although there are no specific requirements for host families, click here for a document containing more information about the role and how host families may choose to connect with a new family. Click here to indicate if your family would be willing to host for a newly-enrolled student and their family. We will gather the responses and make the pairings in the coming weeks. At that time, host families will receive an email from our office with information about their assigned family. If you have questions, please contact our office. Thank you in advance!
–Meg, Corey, Katie & Whitney

Grandfriends’ Day—Grandparents and special friends are invited to experience a morning at Milton Academy enjoying a continental breakfast, visiting classrooms, and attending a special assembly on Friday, May 10. Invitations are in the mail. If your special visitor has not received an invitation, contact Caroline McCourt. Click here to view the invitation and response card. Click here to respond on behalf of your guests.

Grandfriends’ Day Volunteer Opportunity—We are looking for volunteers from across our Lower and Middle Schools to help Grandfriends’ Day run smoothly. Roles include greeting in the lobbies of the buildings, providing directions between buildings, etc. Click here to be a Grandfriends’ Day volunteer.

 

The Week Ahead

Grade 7 Field Trip, Monday, April 22—International Museum of World War II

MS Parents’ Association Book Club, Tuesday, April 23, 8:20 a.m., Ware 101

Weekly speech Team Practice, Tuesday, April 23, 4:30–5:45 p.m. Ware Hall

Looking Ahead to Middle School, Thursday, April 25—this event is intended for our current Grade 5 families

Orchestra Concert, Friday, April 26, 7:30 p.m., King Theatre

 

Reminders

Foley Fest Speech Tournament is looking for volunteers! Sunday, May 5. Prior experience with Speech or Speech events is not necessary. All are welcome! Click here to sign up. If you have any questions about the tournament schedule, please reach out to Yoshi Makishima, or our parent coordinators Lisa Wilson and Kerri Polimeno.

ERB Testing week of April 29—We will administer the ERB’s Comprehensive Testing Program (CTP) to all students the week of April 29. Each grade will complete all testing in one day: Monday, April 29 (Grade 6); Tuesday, April 30 (Grade 7), and Thursday, May 2 (Grade 8); Friday. There is no test preparation needed except for ensuring that students’ Chromebooks are charged and that they’ve had a full night of sleep before their testing date.

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Parent Coffee: Math Department, Tuesday, April 30

Foley Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5

 

MS After School Program

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
IMG_7567
The After School Program is available Monday to Friday
from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

This year’s Middle School ASP Ice Cream Sundae Party was even better than the last! There was an amazing variety of flavors and toppings. Students were able to be creative with their ice cream sundaes. The music and games were great additions to the party. Thank you to all that attended!

April 26, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
April 26, 2019

Dear Parents,

This week, you received your child’s spring mid-semester course comments. These narrative comments are intended to provide you with feedback about your child’s learning so that they can apply that information to move toward proficiency on each course’s major learning objectives. We encourage you to read through the comments both alone and in the company of your child. Ask your child to identify strengths and growing edges as indicated by their teachers’ comments. Be sure to also ask if there is anything unclear in each comment and encourage them to ask for and necessary faculty clarification. Finally, ask your child to identify two or three goals for the remaining months of the year. This is a very important step in each student’s increasing ownership of learning. These spring course comments give students guidance for the best ways to finish the year and are a wonderful reminder that the year is far from over.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Spring Course Comments are available for viewing—The spring course comments are available for you to view. Please go online to MyMilton (http://my.milton.edu/parents) where you can find them under the Student Info tab. Select Grades from that tab and you should see a link to the comments there. If you have any trouble finding the comments or if you forget your username or password, please contact Samantha Cristoforo at 617.898.2368.

ERBs—Next week, students across the Middle School will be taking the Educational Records Bureau (ERB) CTP-4 standardized tests. The ERBs, widely administered among independent schools, are the only standardized tests administered in our Middle School. As a standardized test, the ERBs do not directly correlate to our curriculum, but rather provide a snapshot of your child’s basic skills at the time of the testing, and help the school understand both individual students and larger patterns over time. Similar to last year, students will be completing the tests online on Chromebooks. The best preparation for children is a good night’s sleep and a hearty, healthy breakfast in the morning. The tests are administered in room 101 in the Middle School in a timed setting. Individual subtests range from twenty to forty-five minutes each. All subtests are in a multiple choice format.

 

The Week Ahead

Orchestra Concert, Friday, April 26, 7:30 p.m., King Theatre
ERBs for Grade 6, Monday, April 29
ERBs for grade 7, Tuesday, April 30
Weekly Speech Team Practice, Tuesday, April 30, 4:30–5:45 p.m., Ware Hall
ERBs for grade 8, Thursday, May 2
ERBs Make-Up Day, Friday, May 3
Speech Team Practice Party, Thursday, May 2, 4–6 p.m., Ware Hall
Trustees Weekend, Friday & Saturday, May 3 & 4
Foley Fest Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5, at Milton Academy

 

Reminders

Interested in being a Host Family to a new student? Our K–8 Office of Admission invites you to join in welcoming new families by participating in the host family program. Through this program, current families are paired with newly admitted families to help answer any questions they may have and ease their transition to Milton. Although there are no specific requirements for host families, click here for a document containing more information about the role and how host families may choose to connect with a new family. Click here to indicate if your family would be willing to host for a newly-enrolled student and their family. We will gather the responses and make the pairings in the coming weeks. At that time, host families will receive an email from our office with information about their assigned family. If you have questions, please contact our office. Thank you in advance!     –Meg, Corey, Katie & Whitney

Grandfriends’ Day is two weeks away! Friday, May 10, from 8 a.m. to noon—Grandparents and special friends have been invited to experience a morning at Milton Academy enjoying a continental breakfast, visiting classrooms, and attending a special assembly. We look forward to hosting your guests and welcoming them to our community. Please note that this day is about Grandfriends only. While we enjoy parent visitors, our classrooms do not have the capacity for more than our Grandfriends on this day. Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation. If you want to remain on campus during the morning, there are ample volunteer opportunities for parents. Below are some details for the day:

    • If your special visitor has not received an invitation, you may either contact Caroline McCourt or click here to view the invitation and response card. You are also welcome to respond on behalf of your guests. Click here to do so.
    • The schedule for the morning of May 10 is as follows:
      • 8 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.—Check-in and breakfast at the Arts Commons in the Kellner Performing Arts Center
      • 8:30 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.—Classroom visits, including snack and recess
      • 11 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.—Middle and Lower School Assembly in the Caroline Saltonstall Gymnasium (CSG)
      • 12 p.m. Grandfriends depart from the assembly. Middle School students will be dismissed for lunch. Lower School students will return to their classrooms for a 12:15 p.m. dismissal.
    • Parking:  We have designated three parking areas for Grandfriends’ Day use – the lot to the right of the Junior Building, the lot behind the Pritzker Science Center and Upton Field. Staff-operated golf carts, stationed throughout campus, are available to assist Grandfriends as they move from one location to another. If your Grandfriend has mobility concerns and needs additional assistance, let us know and we will make special accommodations. PLEASE ask your Grandfriends not to part in the Pool Lot as it will interfere with Lower School dismissal.
    • Assembly: Seating is limited in the CSG and seating priority will be given to Grandfriends. There will be overflow seating in Thacher with a closed-circuit feed of the assembly for parents.

Grandfriends’ Day Volunteer Opportunity—We are looking for volunteers from across our Lower and Middle Schools to help Grandfriends’ Day run smoothly. Roles include greeting in the lobbies of the buildings, providing directions between buildings, etc. Click here to be a Grandfriends’ Day volunteer.

Foley Fest Speech Tournament is looking for volunteers! Sunday, May 5. Prior experience with Speech or Speech events is not necessary. All are welcome! Click here to sign up. If you have any questions about the tournament schedule, please reach out to Yoshi Makishima, or our parent coordinators Lisa Wilson and Kerri Polimeno.

 

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Parent Coffee: Math Department, Tuesday, April 30
Foley Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5

 

 

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

 


May 3, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Families,

If I ever write my autobiography, there will definitely be a chapter entitled, “Seemed like a good idea at the time.” And I take solace in knowing that I will have plenty of entries for that chapter (no writer’s block there).  My most recent potential entry is my decision to volunteer as an assistant coach for my daughter’s softball team. This is my second year “coaching” and it has been quite the experience. The practices have been going well and I’m cherishing the time with my child. She is developing a love for softball which was my favorite sport as a child too. And while I try to stay present in the moment and focus on each pitch and each drill, my mind often wanders and many questions and thoughts float my brain.

  • It’s a shame that hand-eye coordination (like so many other things) doesn’t get better with age.
  • How long until I pull or strain something? And how will the brace affect my spring wardrobe?
  • Why am I still wearing a down jacket in late April?
  • Could the players possibly be any more adorable … And do you think they notice the assistant coach is having trouble catching the ball?
  • I hope none of the parents have ever heard me say how important it is that a teacher has a command of his or her subject. And,  I wonder how long till they start complaining?

And then, of course, my mind wanders to our Middle School — it’s never far from my mind these days — and specifically our athletics program. I think about our faculty coaches who give 100% to their curriculum work during the first part of the day and then somehow find another 100% to give to their student athletes.  I think about our students. The ones for whom athletics is a focal point of their identities and a highlight of their Middle School day. And the ones who show courage by learning a new sport and remaining open to considering a variety of possibilities for this part of their identity. Finally, I think about Sam Landau and his stalwart leadership of our athletics program. Like I do about students in math, Sam truly believes that every student can be an athlete. Sam reminds our students all the time that what’s important is to remain coachable, set achievable goals and work hard to attain them, and strive for improvement (not perfection. And as I’m learning this spring, this is timeless advice for coaches too.) Now play ball!

Sincerely,
Nancy

News and Announcements

Last call for Grandfriends’ Day Volunteers—We are still looking for a few Middle School parents to help Grandfriends’ Day run smoothly. Roles include greeting in the lobbies of the buildings, providing directions between buildings, etc. Click here to be a Grandfriends’ Day volunteer.

Course Planning 2019 – 2020 Students in Grades 6 and 7 were sent the Course Planning Form and asked to complete it by Monday, May 6. This form will give us the data needed to place students in music class and in the fall afternoon program. Please take time this weekend to discuss the choices with your child. Click here to see an overview of the course planning offerings.

 

The Week Ahead

Trustees Weekend, Friday & Saturday, May 3 & 4

Foley Fest Speech Tournament, Sunday, May 5, at Milton Academy

Weekly Speech Team Practice, Tuesday, May 7, 4:30–5:45 p.m., Ware Hall

Visual Arts Show Opening, Thursday, May 9, 10 a.m., Arts Commons, Kellner Performing Arts Center

Grandfriends’ Day, Friday, Friday, May 10, from 8 a.m. to noon—Grandparents and special friends have been invited to experience a morning at Milton Academy enjoying a continental breakfast, visiting classrooms, and attending a special assembly. We look forward to hosting your guests and welcoming them to our community. Please note that this day is about Grandfriends only. While we enjoy parent visitors, our classrooms do not have the capacity for more than our Grandfriends on this day. Thank you in advance for your understanding and cooperation. If you want to remain on campus during the morning, there are ample volunteer opportunities for parents. Below are some details for the day:

    • If your special visitor has not received an invitation, you may either contact Caroline McCourt or click here to view the invitation and response card. You are also welcome to respond on behalf of your guests. Click here to do so.
    • The schedule for the morning of May 10 is as follows:
      • 8 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.—Check-in and breakfast at the Arts Commons in the Kellner Performing Arts Center
      • 8:30 a.m. – 10:50 a.m.—Classroom visits, including snack and recess
      • 11 a.m. – 11:50 a.m.—Middle and Lower School Assembly in the Caroline Saltonstall Gymnasium (CSG)
      • 12 p.m. Grandfriends depart from the assembly. Middle School students will be dismissed for lunch. Lower School students will return to their classrooms for a 12:15 p.m. dismissal.
    • Parking:  We have designated three parking areas for Grandfriends’ Day use – the lot to the right of the Junior Building, the lot behind the Pritzker Science Center and Upton Field. Staff-operated golf carts, stationed throughout campus, are available to assist Grandfriends as they move from one location to another. If your Grandfriend has mobility concerns and needs additional assistance, let us know and we will make special accommodations. PLEASE ask your Grandfriends not to part in the Pool Lot as it will interfere with Lower School dismissal.
    • Assembly: Seating is limited in the CSG and seating priority will be given to Grandfriends. We will not be offering a closed-circuit feed of the assembly. Instead, we will tape the assembly and share the link the following week.

 

 

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Special Middle School Student Assembly: Dr. Hartman, Monday, May 13, 2 p.m., Wigg Hall

Rosie’s Place Volunteer Opportunity, Tuesday, May 14, 3:45-8 p.m.

An Evening of Socials! Friday, May 17, 6–8 p.m. Lower and Middle School parents will gather in Straus; Middle School Students will gather on the Ware Quad and in Ware 101.

Grade 7 Choose To Participate (CTP) Walk-Around, Monday, May 20, 8 a.m.–12 p.m.  Wigg Hall

Grade 6 Sustainability Gala, Thursday, May 23, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.

No Classes in observance of Memorial Day, Monday, May 27. When classes resume on Tuesday, we will follow a Tuesday schedule.

ARTStravaganza, Tuesday, May 28, 2:15–3:30 p.m., King Theater

 

After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

May 10, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Families,

Today is Grandfriends’ Day — one of my most favorite days of the year. The love and joy that fill our campus on this day are palpable; I have a smile on my face and a tear in my eye from start to finish. As I watch our grandfriends engage with their grandchildren, I imagine how wondrous it must be to see the children they once held as babies standing at the precipice of young adulthood with grace and confidence. I delight in seeing my students’ smiles, mannerisms, and dispositions as I interact with their grandfriends. (Aren’t genetics beautiful?) And, of course, today reminds me of my own grandparents — two of whom were Milton residents. They would have delighted in seeing their granddaughter (and great-granddaughter) blessed with the opportunity to call Milton Academy their school and community. They are on my mind today and in my heart always.

Happy Mother’s Day.

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Grade 7 Choose To Participate (CTP) Walk-Around, Monday, May 20, Wigg Hall. The exhibit will be divided into two sections. The first 28 students (Abati–Ibrahim) will present their projects from 9–10 a.m. and the second group (Jones-Booker–Thakore) will present from 10:30–11:30 a.m. Click here for a printable program of the morning.

Sixth-Grade Students will assist in Lower School Field Day, Monday, May 20—Lower School students appreciate the assistance and excitement of our sixth-grade students during their Lower School Field Day! To distinguish the classes, each grade has been assigned a shirt color. The Grade 6 color is black.

Grade 8 Moving Up Day, Friday, May 24. 8th-graders will shadow current Class IV students for the first half of the day. Specific details of pairings and expected classes will be shared with students prior to the day.

No After School, Thursday, May 30. So that all our faculty and staff can attend the Faculty Appreciation celebration, the After School program will be closed on May 30. Thank you in advance for your understanding and for making alternate plans. ASP will resume its regular schedule on Friday, May 31.

 

The Week Ahead

Special Middle School Student Assembly: Dr. Lester Hartman—Monday, May 13, 2 p.m., Wigg Hall Dr. Hartman will speak with all Middle School students about the dangers of vaping.

Parent Coffee: Transitions to Upper School–Tuesday, May 14, 8:20–10 a.m., Ware 101. Details in the Parents’ Association section.

Rosie’s Place Volunteer Opportunity—Tuesday, May 14, 3:45-8 p.m.

Weekly Speech Practice—Tuesday, May 14, 4:30-5:45 p.m. Wate Hall

An Evening of Socials! Friday, May 17, 6–8 p.m.
Lower and Middle School parents will gather in Straus.
Middle School Students will gather on the Ware Quad and in Ware 101.

 

Add These Dates to Your Calendar

Grade 6 Sustainability Gala, Thursday, May 23, 11 a.m.–3 p.m.

No Classes in observance of Memorial Day, Monday, May 27. When classes resume on Tuesday, we will follow a Tuesday schedule.

ARTStravaganza, Tuesday, May 28, 2:15–3:30 p.m., King Theater

 

Reminders

Course Planning 2019 – 2020 Students in Grades 6 and 7 were sent the Course Planning Form and asked to complete it by Monday, May 6. This form will give us the data needed to place students in music class and in the fall afternoon program. Please take time this weekend to discuss the choices with your child. Click here to see an overview of the course planning offerings.

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

May 17, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Families,

On Monday, the Muslim Student Association hosted an Iftar celebration for the K–12 Milton community. It was a beautiful evening that I will cherish forever. Students, parents, faculty, and staff from all three divisions gathered in community to break the day’s fast during this holy month of Ramadan. The evening began with a prayer ceremony followed by a shared meal of halal foods and heartfelt remarks from members of the Muslim community. The evening was a wonderful example of the power of faith in bringing communities together and of Milton’s commitment to celebrating the diversity that makes our school so strong.

To all of our Muslim friends here at Milton and beyond, Ramadan Mubarak.

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

News and Announcements

Math Exposition Night—Come to Cox Library this Friday night, May 17, from 6-8 pm to see a variety of presentations of student work in math and computer science, as well as the robotics team. Students will present a range from Introductory Computer Programming to Level 4 Applied Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence, and from Geometry to Calculus. Families are welcome! This year’s presentations include: a Coffee Run app, a neural Turing machine, strategies on how to win big at blackjack, an investigation of the question “How do the number of wins that an NBA team receives correlate with the money earned  throughout the season?”, some mathematical magic tricks and much more. Stop by to see some of the amazing work being done this year.

Humanities Workshop, Sunday, May 19 1–3 p.m. at the Edward M Kennedy Institute: Founded by  Lisa Baker and Alisa Braithwaite, the Humanities Workshop examines urgent social issues through a humanities lens. Sunday’s event will feature the work of over 1000 students, including work from our own eighth-grade students, thanks to the leadership of Sharon Mathieu. We hope you will join us!

Come Celebrate our MILTON PRIDE, Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., meet in the Trinity Church square—Join the 2019 Milton Academy community marching corps for the 48th Annual Boston LGBTQ+ Pride Parade, Looking Back, Loving Forward: 50 years post-Stonewall. Families are welcome to stay past 2 p.m. to enjoy the festivities. We will meet as a group at 10 a.m.(ish) by Trinity Church Plaza (specific time and location will be updated pending information from parade organizers). The parade ends at Boston City Hall. Marching tends to end by 2. If you would like to join us please fill out THIS SIGN-UP FORM  by Friday, May 31. If you would like a T-shirt, please do so by May 24 and include t-shirt sizes needed in the designated area of the form.

 

Year-End Events

An Evening of Socials! Friday, May 17, 6–8 p.m.
Lower and Middle School parents will gather in Straus.
Middle School Students will gather on the Ware Quad and in Ware 101.

Track and Field Special Olympics, Sunday, May 19, 9:15 a.m.–2:30 p.m., Milton Academy Track—Join Milton Academy’s Community Engagement Program as they host over 500 athletes from 24 teams around greater Boston (including our own home team). The Opening Ceremony at 9:15 a.m.; competition follows. All students K–12, families, staff, faculty are invited to stop by to cheer on the athletes! In addition, any middle school students interested in helping to assemble lunch for the athletes from 9-11 should contact Sonya Conway.

Grade 7 Choose To Participate (CTP) Walk-Around, Monday, May 20, Wigg Hall. The exhibit will be divided into two sections. The first 28 students (Abati–Ibrahim) will present their projects from 9–10 a.m. and the second group (Jones-Booker–Thakore) will present from 10:30–11:30 a.m. Click here for a printable program of the morning.

K–6 Field Day, Monday, May 20—Lower School students appreciate the assistance and excitement of our sixth-grade students during their Lower School Field Day! To distinguish the classes, each grade has been assigned a shirt color. The Grade 6 shirt color is black. **The rain date for Field Day is Tuesday, May 21. We will try to make the call on Sunday night so we can notify you in advance.**

Weekly Speech Practice—Tuesday, May 21, 4:30-5:45 p.m. Ware Hall

Grade 8 Moving Up Day, Friday, May 24—Eighth-graders will shadow current Class IV students for the first half of the day. Specific details of pairings and expected classes will be shared with students prior to the day.

 

Week of May 29

No School in observance of Memorial Day, Monday, May 27—When we return to school on May 28, we will follow a Tuesday schedule.

ARTStravaganza, Tuesday, May 28 and Thursday, May 30, 2:15–3:30 p.m., King Theatre

No After School, Thursday, May 30—So that all our faculty and staff can attend the Faculty Appreciation celebration, the After School program will be closed on May 30. Thank you in advance for your understanding and for making alternate plans. ASP will resume its regular schedule on Friday, May 31.

Awards Ceremony, Friday, May 31, 8 a.m., Chapel—Chapel Dress

Grade 8 Straus Reading, Friday, May 31, 9:30 a.m., Straus Library—Ten to fifteen Grade 8 students will be selected by their peers to share original poems created in English class at the annual Straus Reading. This event is open to anyone in the Milton community. The Straus reading typically lasts 30-45 minutes and showcases student creativity and emotional depth.

 

Week of June 3

Final Assembly, Monday, June 3, 2:15–3:30 p.m.

Grade 8 Social, Monday, June 3, 7–9 p.m., Wigg

Class Day, Tuesday, June 4—Grades 6 and 7 will be going to Canobie Lake Park in Salem, NH and Grade 8 will be going to Apex Entertainment in Marlborough, MA. Admission fees are covered. Students in Grades 6 and 7 should bring money for snacks and lunch. Students in Grade 8 will be provided lunch; students are welcome to bring lunch if they prefer.

Weekly Speech Practice—Tuesday, June 4, 4:30-5:45 p.m. Ware Hall

Closing Ceremony, Wednesday, June 5, 8:30–10 a.m., King Theatre—Following the ceremony, there will be a reception for Grade 8 students and their families on the Middle School Quad from 10–11 a.m.

Dismissal for Summer at 11 a.m. No ASP.

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

May 24, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Families,

What a week it’s been for the Middle School! One week ago today, students enjoyed an unforgettable student social. As usual, Jacqui Hardaway and Sharon Mathieu outdid themselves. They thought of every detail and handled the changing weather like event pros. Sunday brought two other wonderful Middle School moments: Kayla Mathieu ‘21, Laurel Starks, and Sonya Conway helped to organize an energetic team of student volunteers to prepare lunches for hundreds of athletes and their coaches at the annual Special Olympics Track and Field event on campus. Later on, our students dazzled again at the Humanities Workshop at the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate. The original masks and poems created by our Grade 8 students were heartfelt and authentic depictions of economic inequality and moving examples of the power of humanities in raising awareness of social justice issues. I am so grateful to Sharon Mathieu for her leadership and diligence in making sure our students had such a strong presence at this event.

By late Sunday night, I was beaming with pride about our Middle School students and faculty and wondering, “Can it get any better?” And then about 12 hours later, I got my answer: Yup. The Choosing To Participate student showcase was a tour de force! The Grade 7 students prepared a diverse slate of projects that left all visitors feeling enlightened and inspired. Many, many thanks to all Grade 7 advisors for their help in guiding students’ work all year. But a very special thank you in particular to Steven Bertozzi for making the CTP a marquee element of the Grade 7 experience and for empowering each student to believe they are capable of high-level scholarly work that can make our community—and world—a better place.

Wishing you all a fantastic Memorial Day weekend!

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

 

Year-End Events

No School in observance of Memorial Day, Monday, May 27—When we return to school on May 28, we will follow a Tuesday schedule.

ARTStravaganza, Tuesday, May 28 and Thursday, May 30, 2:15–3:30 p.m., King Theatre— Chorus and Jazz will perform on Tuesday and General Music and Speech will perform on Thursday. Parents are welcome to join us to celebrate the performing arts.

No After School, Thursday, May 30—So that all our faculty and staff can attend the Faculty Appreciation celebration, the After School Program will be closed on May 30. Thank you in advance for your understanding and for making alternate plans. ASP will resume its regular schedule on Friday, May 31.

Awards Ceremony, Friday, May 31, 8 a.m., Chapel—Chapel dress required. Chapel dress consists of skirt, dress pants and blouse, or dress; collared shirt, tie and slacks (not jeans or shorts) and appropriate footwear. Only parents of award recipients are invited to attend and will be contacted individually.

Grade 8 Straus Reading, Friday, May 31, 9:30 a.m., Straus Library—Ten to fifteen Grade 8 students will be selected by their peers to share original poems created in English class at the annual Straus Reading. This event is open to anyone in the Milton community. The Straus reading typically lasts 30-45 minutes and showcases student creativity and emotional depth.

Grade 8 Social, Monday, June 3, 7–9 p.m., Wigg—Grade 8 students are invited to their final social before heading to the Upper School! This event also requires chapel dress. There will be a candy bar, snacks and refreshments. Dinner will not be provided.

Class Day, Tuesday, June 4—Grades 6 and 7 will be going to Canobie Lake Park in Salem, New Hampshire, and Grade 8 will be going to Apex Entertainment in Marlborough, Massachusetts. Admission fees are covered. Students in Grades 6 and 7 should bring money for snacks and lunch. Students in Grade 8 will be provided lunch; students are welcome to bring lunch if they prefer.

Weekly Speech Practice—Tuesday, June 4, 4:30–5:45 p.m. Ware Hall

Closing Ceremony, Wednesday, June 5, 8:30–10 a.m., King Theatre—Chapel Dress. Grade 8 families are invited to attend. Due to limited space in King, we are only able to guarantee seating for two family members per eighth-grade student. Following the ceremony, there will be a reception for Grade 8 students and their families on the Middle School Quad from 10–11 a.m.

Dismissal for Summer at 11 a.m. No ASP.

 

 

Reminders

Come Celebrate our MILTON PRIDE, Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., meet in the Trinity Church square—Join the 2019 Milton Academy community marching corps for the 48th Annual Boston LGBTQ+ Pride Parade, Looking Back, Loving Forward: 50 years post-Stonewall. Families are welcome to stay past 2 p.m. to enjoy the festivities. We will meet as a group at 10 a.m.(ish) by Trinity Church Plaza (specific time and location will be updated pending information from parade organizers). The parade ends at Boston City Hall. Marching tends to end by 2 p.m. If you would like to join us please fill out THIS SIGN-UP FORM by Friday, May 31. If you would like a T-shirt, please do so today and include T-shirt sizes needed in the designated area of the form.

 

 

MS After School Program

The After School Program is available Monday to Friday from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The Middle School ASP is open Monday through Friday—Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday from 3:30–5:45 p.m.; and Wednesday and Friday from 2–5:45 p.m. (unless otherwise noted on the Milton Academy Calendar). The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537. Students who have not been picked up by 5:45 p.m. will be escorted to Cox Library by an ASP teacher where they can wait for rides.

May 31, 2019

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
nancy-anderson_MA20180508-1152
Dear Families,

With June 1st here, we have officially reached the end of the year.  Wow, how did that happen!? As an educator, June is always a very reflective time for me. That is particularly true this year as I finish my first year as principal. This past year has been one of the most rewarding years of my professional career. I love my new role as principal and have so many people to thank for the joy I have felt coming to work every day.

I am grateful to Todd Bland for the stellar leadership advice he has given to me all year that has made me a better principal, better colleague, and better person. It is an honor to work under his leadership. I am grateful to the faculty and staff of the Middle School for affording me the opportunity to lead this amazing school. Working alongside you this year has left me in awe of your content knowledge, pedagogical skill set, and unwavering care and love for our students. Thank you for the patient and encouraging way you have supported me as I’ve transitioned from teacher to principal and for extending the growth mindset you have for all learners to your new principal too! I am grateful to the students for reminding me every day what it means to be brave, resilient, and earnest.

I will miss greeting you in the morning over the summer months but I’ll be at the door ready and waiting come fall. And finally, a huge thank to you the families of our Middle School. Thank you for all of the times you expressed your support for our program as well as every candid conversation where you offered important perspectives on complex issues and pushed us to be explicit about our decisions. Having a diversity of opinions and perspectives is essential in any academic setting and you have fulfilled this need while also working in partnership with us to support your children. Our school is a more effectual, responsive, and inclusive community because of you.

I wish you all a very long, healthy, and relaxing summer. See you next year!

Sincerely,
Nancy

 

 

News and Announcements

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
MS Awards 2019
Congratulations to this morning’s Middle School Award recipients and their families: Grade 6 – Gavin & Kenzie; Grade 7 – Omar & Soraya; Grade 8 – Jonah & Caroline

 

 

 

 

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.
sharon-mathieu-20170921_103
Congratulations to Ms. Sharon Mathieu, winner of the Talbot Baker Award—
Sharon Mathieu personifies every quality of the educator that Talbot Baker sought to recognize and celebrate. An advisor, teacher, coach, faculty liaison for Black Student Union (BSU), Student Council faculty chair, and colleague who, when finished with one goal, immediately asks, “What’s next?” without ever seeking recognition or credit for any of her outstanding work. Sharon is an enthusiastic, vital, loyal and dedicated leader who, with her unique charm and warm sense of humor, is determined to help students do good and be good—in the classroom, on the field, and in the ways they treat every person in each interaction, large and small. Congratulations!

Staffing News

  • Mary Sisson is our new Grade 7 English teacher. Mary is an Upper School English teacher at Princeton Day School in Princeton, NJ. Her past experience includes teaching English and history at grades 5 and 7. Mary graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with highest honors, Phi Beta Kappa,  earning a double major in English and history. Mary earned her master’s at Bread Loaf School of English at Middlebury College. She is active with volunteer working including Girls on the Run a nonprofit program that uses running to educate girls in grades 3-8 on life skills.
  • Alan Rodi is our new Middle School music teacher. Alan is the music and chorus teacher at two middle schools in Framingham. He graduated with high honors from Wesleyan University and then earned a master’s in music education from Eastman School of Music at the University of Rochester. Alan is a piano player and organist and also served as music director for ten productions including Shrek Jr. Oliver, Hairspray. A performer himself, Alan’s credentials as an actor include roles in Peter Pan, West Side Story, and Oliver.  
  • Stephen Armandt will be the Grade 6 Social Studies sabbatical replacement for the fall semester. Stephen just completed his master’s in philosophy from Boston University. He holds another master’s in divinity from Gordon College where he also earned his undergraduate degrees in philosophy and biblical and theological studies. Before his time at BU, Stephen taught religion to students in grades 6-12 and AP modern European history at Boston Trinity Academy. He has also taught at Plumstead Christian School in Pennsylvania where he was the wrestling coach, baseball team, chess club founder and also the Senior High Dean of Students. Stephen has extensive experience in the realm of social justice including work as the Assistant Director of the Trinity Institute for Leadership and Social Justice in Boston.

 

Year-End Events

Grade 8 Social, Monday, June 3, 6–8 p.m. (NOTE THE TIME CHANGE), Wigglesworth Hall— Grade 8 students are invited to their final social before heading to the Upper School! This event also requires chapel dress. There will be a candy bar, snacks, and refreshments. Dinner will not be provided.

Class Day, Tuesday, June 4—Grades 6 and 7 will be going to Canobie Lake Park in Salem, New Hampshire, and Grade 8 will be going to Apex Entertainment in Marlborough, Massachusetts. Admission fees are covered. Students in Grades 6 and 7 should bring money for snacks and lunch. Students in Grade 8 will be provided lunch; students are welcome to bring lunch if they prefer.

Closing Ceremony, Wednesday, June 5, 8:30–10 a.m., King Theatre—Chapel Dress. Grade 8 families are invited to attend. Due to limited space in King, we are only able to guarantee seating for two family members per eighth-grade student. Following the ceremony, there will be a reception for Grade 8 students and their families on the Middle School Quad from 10–11 a.m.

Dismissal for Summer at 11 a.m. No ASP.

End-of-Semester Skills Evaluations available on MyMilton—Friday, June 14

 

 

Reminders

Come Celebrate our MILTON PRIDE, Saturday, June 8, 10 a.m.–2 p.m., meet in the Trinity Church square—Join the 2019 Milton Academy community marching corps for the 48th Annual Boston LGBTQ+ Pride Parade, Looking Back, Loving Forward: 50 years post-Stonewall. Families are welcome to stay past 2 p.m. to enjoy the festivities. We will meet as a group at 10 a.m.(ish) by Trinity Church Plaza (specific time and location will be updated pending information from parade organizers). The parade ends at Boston City Hall. Marching tends to end by 2 p.m. If you would like to join us please fill out THIS SIGN-UP FORM today! We have t-shirts in limited sizes available.

 

 

After School Program

The After School Program will be available only on Monday and Tuesday this week, from dismissal until 5:45 p.m. The program closes promptly at 5:45 p.m. If you are unable to pick up your child by this time please notify rebecca_veira@milton.edu or call 617-898-2537.

Five Reasons Why Instructional Coaching Is Essential in an Elementary School Setting

Tyler Jennings, Lower School Dean of Teaching and Learning

Research is conclusive that the most important factor in children’s learning is the quality of their teachers (Burroughs et al., 2019), and increasingly, substantial bodies of research demonstrate that the most effective professional development is instructional coaching (Garet et al., 2016; Gregory, 2017).

What is instructional coaching? It’s a job-embedded type of professional development in which a trained coach works one-on-one with a teacher over time to plan and teach lessons and assess student learning.

It is not surprising that this type of professional development has been proven to be more effective than others (such as workshops and conferences) (Garet, 2001; TNTP, 2015): It’s the only one that enables the professional developer to deeply know the teacher and students, work with them amidst the action of teaching and learning, and support them consistently.

For the past 20 years, many public school districts have invested intensively in coaching (Galey, 2016). Interestingly, the independent school world has not responded to the research in the same way. It is still fairly rare to find a role focused solely on teacher development in elementary divisions and even more so in secondary ones. Historically, independent schools have created organizational cultures that live up to their name: employees, including teachers, have expected a great deal of independence. But is that what’s best for our students? In Milton’s Lower School, by investing in coaching, we are investing in the power of learning together.

Our investment in coaching is based on the assumption that effective teaching is highly complex, demanding work. So if the most important factor in student learning is teacher quality, what factors into the quality of a teacher, and how does a coach work with a teacher in those zones of growth? Here are our top five:

  1. Intentional care and love. Profound warmth and kindness are key, but there is also much more that goes into the care and love of students. A student’s belief in their own efficacy is a prerequisite for successful learning. A student’s self-efficacy only becomes possible when a teacher creates an inclusive, equitable, and just environment; continually updates their understanding of their students so that each learner feels known; expects those learners to struggle productively with worthy tasks; and shares meaningful feedback about their successes (Hammond, 2015). That is how a great teacher says, “I see you, I believe in you, and I won’t give up on you,” without needing to say it.
How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   A coach supports teachers to create updated portraits of each learner in their classes, so that teachers can deliver a carefully calibrated level of challenge to each of them.

b.   A coach supports teachers to recognize productive struggle, as well as “errors” as signs of risk-taking, approximation, and growth.

c.    A coach supports teachers as they develop specific feedback for students related to the content.

 

  1. Content knowledge. Academic content and curriculum are not at all the same thing. Effective teachers use curriculum as a tool and situate it within a far more vast context of content knowledge. An analogy might be that curriculum is what shows up on a well-designed website, but content knowledge is all of the back-end coding that the average visitor doesn’t see. For instance, a second-grader doesn’t need to know how a missing addend problem relates to algebraic problems later that year, next year, and in middle school, but a teacher needs to know how algebraic thinking works holistically in order to guide that child across a continuum of increasingly sophisticated, interrelated problems. To be responsive to the learners in our classes, to be prepared to follow their lines of inquiry and their individual journey through content learning, we must know how academic concepts work and how they interconnect with and build upon one another.
How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   A trained coach possesses expert knowledge of the immense realm of content underlying academic subjects in elementary school. This means that they also “see” the whole interconnected picture of academic concepts through the grades. A coach supports teachers to envision the horizon toward which they are guiding individual students and the class (Fosnot, 2005).

b.   A coach supports teachers to unearth the academic content that is often implicit in an academic task or problem, and to identify when students are demonstrating an understanding of that deeper content.

 

  1. Pedagogical content knowledge. One of the things that our society at large often misunderstands about elementary education is that it involves carefully studied technique. Effective teachers possess a toolkit of many research-based teaching moves that they use in the classroom every day. These strategies support students to engage in effective dialogue with each other, prove their thinking with evidence, use specific language to communicate, visualize their thinking for others to see, generate questions that lead to inquiry for themselves and others, and much more. This is what lifts a student’s understanding to the next level as they progress through the landscape of academic content in school.
How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   During lesson planning, a coach supports teachers to consider and envision how they will teach each part of the lesson. When will they ask an open-ended question versus a closed one? When and how will they record students’ ideas to be visible for all? Where in the lesson will they slow down because it centers on a key concept? When will they expect students to puzzle, and when will the teacher simply give them the information?

b.   During the teaching of a lesson, a coach can step into the lesson at strategic moments to model a teaching move.

c.    In their ongoing work, a coach and teacher work together to apply new teaching moves regularly in the classroom.

d.   Oftentimes, a coach and teacher will decide to videotape a lesson and/or create a transcript of it. This way they can closely study a moment from an actual lesson in order to strengthen specific teaching techniques.

 

  1. Inclusive, equitable, and just practices. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) cannot live in isolated pockets of the school day; it must infuse all that we do. Sometimes when people hear the phrase “DEIJ in the math classroom,” for instance, they might envision word problems that ask students to consider the inequities embedded in redlining or to understand the unique needs of communities based on their population density. They are not wrong, and these are highly valuable tasks. But our concept of DEIJ in the classroom also has as much to do with what we say and how we say it, how we structure discussions, whose voices are lifted up, and how all of us challenge our own biases in the midst of learning in any subject.
How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   Together, a coach and a teacher can consider the experience of each student in the learning community during a specific lesson or over time. If a student was especially quiet or reluctant, why? What might need to change in the environment to encourage them? Are all of the behaviors that we’re managing necessary to manage, or is disagreement productive?

b.   Using video or transcripts of a lesson inherently reduces bias, which all of us have. Together, a coach and teacher can look at what each student actually said, re-evaluate their assessments when necessary, and learn from the process of checking their own assumptions.

 

  1. Continuous assessment to inform teaching. Tests and quizzes (opportunities for students to perform) are distinct from assessments (opportunities for teachers to learn about students’ learning). And summative assessments (reflections of how everyone did this year) are distinct from ongoing, formative assessments (Black & Wiliam, 1998). All have their value, but this blog post is most focused on the latter: formative assessment. When effective teachers plan a lesson, they coordinate multiple layers: Where in the landscape of content does this lesson fit, and what other concepts are related to the one in this lesson? Where are each of my students in relation to this landscape right now? How does the design of this lesson support students’ learning? And what teacher strategies will I need to use in order for each student to achieve their goals? To be able to answer these questions on a regular basis, teachers need to update their assessments of student learning all the time.
How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   In addition to examining the data from periodic benchmark assessments, a coach can support teachers to closely examine artifacts of student learning on a regular basis. These might include written or visual work, collaborative group posters, and transcripts of class discussions.

b.   A coach supports teachers to translate their observations of student artifacts into plans for teaching. Together they answer the questions: If this is a goal for this student’s learning right now, how will I plan an activity that brings them into contact with that goal, what support will I give them, and how will I know when they understand it?

 

Sources

Black, P. and Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 5:1, 7-74.

Burroughs N. et al. (2019). A Review of the Literature on Teacher Effectiveness and Student Outcomes. In: Teaching for Excellence and Equity. IEA Research for Education (A Series of In-depth Analyses Based on Data of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)), vol 6.

Fosnot, CT. (2005). Constructivism: Theory, perspectives, and practice (2nd ed). Teachers College Press.

Galey, Sarah (2016) “The Evolving Role of Instructional Coaches in U.S. Policy Contexts,” The William & Mary Educational Review: Vol. 4 : Iss. 2 , Article 11.

Garet, et al. (2001). What Makes Professional Development Effective? Results from a National Sample of Teachers. American Educational Research Journal, Winter, 2001, Vol. 38, No. 4 (Winter, 2001), pp. 915-945.

Garet, M. S., Heppen, J. B., Walters, K., Parkinson, J., Smith, T. M., Song, M., Garrett, R., Yang, R., & Borman, G. D. (2016). Focusing on mathematical knowledge: The impact of content-intensive teacher professional development (NCEE 2016-4010). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Gregory, A. et al. (2017). Closing the racial discipline gap in classrooms by changing teacher practice. School Psych Review, 2016 Jun; 45(2): 171–191.

Hammond, Z. L. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain. Corwin Press.

TNTP. (2015). The mirage: Confronting the hard truth about our quest for teacher development. Retrieved from: https://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP-Mirage_2015.pdf.

Five Reasons Why Instructional Coaching Is Essential in an Elementary School Setting

Tyler Jennings, Lower School Dean of Teaching and Learning

Research is conclusive that the most important factor in children’s learning is the quality of their teachers (Burroughs et al., 2019), and increasingly, substantial bodies of research demonstrate that the most effective professional development is instructional coaching (Garet et al., 2016; Gregory, 2017).

What is instructional coaching? It’s a job-embedded type of professional development in which a trained coach works one-on-one with a teacher over time to plan and teach lessons and assess student learning.

It is not surprising that this type of professional development has been proven to be more effective than others (such as workshops and conferences) (Garet, 2001; TNTP, 2015): It’s the only one that enables the professional developer to deeply know the teacher and students, work with them amidst the action of teaching and learning, and support them consistently.

For the past 20 years, many public school districts have invested intensively in coaching (Galey, 2016). Interestingly, the independent school world has not responded to the research in the same way. It is still fairly rare to find a role focused solely on teacher development in elementary divisions and even more so in secondary ones. Historically, independent schools have created organizational cultures that live up to their name: employees, including teachers, have expected a great deal of independence. But is that what’s best for our students? In Milton’s Lower School, by investing in coaching, we are investing in the power of learning together.

Our investment in coaching is based on the assumption that effective teaching is highly complex, demanding work. So if the most important factor in student learning is teacher quality, what factors into the quality of a teacher, and how does a coach work with a teacher in those zones of growth? Here are our top five:

  1. Intentional care and love. Profound warmth and kindness are key, but there is also much more that goes into the care and love of students. A student’s belief in their own efficacy is a prerequisite for successful learning. A student’s self-efficacy only becomes possible when a teacher creates an inclusive, equitable, and just environment; continually updates their understanding of their students so that each learner feels known; expects those learners to struggle productively with worthy tasks; and shares meaningful feedback about their successes (Hammond, 2015). That is how a great teacher says, “I see you, I believe in you, and I won’t give up on you,” without needing to say it.
How does an instructional coach support this?a.   A coach supports teachers to create updated portraits of each learner in their classes, so that teachers can deliver a carefully calibrated level of challenge to each of them.

b.   A coach supports teachers to recognize productive struggle, as well as “errors” as signs of risk-taking, approximation, and growth.

c.    A coach supports teachers as they develop specific feedback for students related to the content.

 

  1. Content knowledge. Academic content and curriculum are not at all the same thing. Effective teachers use curriculum as a tool and situate it within a far more vast context of content knowledge. An analogy might be that curriculum is what shows up on a well-designed website, but content knowledge is all of the back-end coding that the average visitor doesn’t see. For instance, a second-grader doesn’t need to know how a missing addend problem relates to algebraic problems later that year, next year, and in middle school, but a teacher needs to know how algebraic thinking works holistically in order to guide that child across a continuum of increasingly sophisticated, interrelated problems. To be responsive to the learners in our classes, to be prepared to follow their lines of inquiry and their individual journey through content learning, we must know how academic concepts work and how they interconnect with and build upon one another.
How does an instructional coach support this?a.   A trained coach possesses expert knowledge of the immense realm of content underlying academic subjects in elementary school. This means that they also “see” the whole interconnected picture of academic concepts through the grades. A coach supports teachers to envision the horizon toward which they are guiding individual students and the class (Fosnot, 2005).

b.   A coach supports teachers to unearth the academic content that is often implicit in an academic task or problem, and to identify when students are demonstrating an understanding of that deeper content.

 

  1. Pedagogical content knowledge. One of the things that our society at large often misunderstands about elementary education is that it involves carefully studied technique. Effective teachers possess a toolkit of many research-based teaching moves that they use in the classroom every day. These strategies support students to engage in effective dialogue with each other, prove their thinking with evidence, use specific language to communicate, visualize their thinking for others to see, generate questions that lead to inquiry for themselves and others, and much more. This is what lifts a student’s understanding to the next level as they progress through the landscape of academic content in school.
How does an instructional coach support this?a.   During lesson planning, a coach supports teachers to consider and envision how they will teach each part of the lesson. When will they ask an open-ended question versus a closed one? When and how will they record students’ ideas to be visible for all? Where in the lesson will they slow down because it centers on a key concept? When will they expect students to puzzle, and when will the teacher simply give them the information?

b.   During the teaching of a lesson, a coach can step into the lesson at strategic moments to model a teaching move.

c.    In their ongoing work, a coach and teacher work together to apply new teaching moves regularly in the classroom.

d.   Oftentimes, a coach and teacher will decide to videotape a lesson and/or create a transcript of it. This way they can closely study a moment from an actual lesson in order to strengthen specific teaching techniques.

 

  1. Inclusive, equitable, and just practices. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) cannot live in isolated pockets of the school day; it must infuse all that we do. Sometimes when people hear the phrase “DEIJ in the math classroom,” for instance, they might envision word problems that ask students to consider the inequities embedded in redlining or to understand the unique needs of communities based on their population density. They are not wrong, and these are highly valuable tasks. But our concept of DEIJ in the classroom also has as much to do with what we say and how we say it, how we structure discussions, whose voices are lifted up, and how all of us challenge our own biases in the midst of learning in any subject.
How does an instructional coach support this?a.   Together, a coach and a teacher can consider the experience of each student in the learning community during a specific lesson or over time. If a student was especially quiet or reluctant, why? What might need to change in the environment to encourage them? Are all of the behaviors that we’re managing necessary to manage, or is disagreement productive?

b.   Using video or transcripts of a lesson inherently reduces bias, which all of us have. Together, a coach and teacher can look at what each student actually said, re-evaluate their assessments when necessary, and learn from the process of checking their own assumptions.

 

  1. Continuous assessment to inform teaching. Tests and quizzes (opportunities for students to perform) are distinct from assessments (opportunities for teachers to learn about students’ learning). And summative assessments (reflections of how everyone did this year) are distinct from ongoing, formative assessments (Black & Wiliam, 1998). All have their value, but this blog post is most focused on the latter: formative assessment. When effective teachers plan a lesson, they coordinate multiple layers: Where in the landscape of content does this lesson fit, and what other concepts are related to the one in this lesson? Where are each of my students in relation to this landscape right now? How does the design of this lesson support students’ learning? And what teacher strategies will I need to use in order for each student to achieve their goals? To be able to answer these questions on a regular basis, teachers need to update their assessments of student learning all the time.
How does an instructional coach support this?a.   In addition to examining the data from periodic benchmark assessments, a coach can support teachers to closely examine artifacts of student learning on a regular basis. These might include written or visual work, collaborative group posters, and transcripts of class discussions.

b.   A coach supports teachers to translate their observations of student artifacts into plans for teaching. Together they answer the questions: If this is a goal for this student’s learning right now, how will I plan an activity that brings them into contact with that goal, what support will I give them, and how will I know when they understand it?

 

Sources

Black, P. and Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 5:1, 7-74.

Burroughs N. et al. (2019). A Review of the Literature on Teacher Effectiveness and Student Outcomes. In: Teaching for Excellence and Equity. IEA Research for Education (A Series of In-depth Analyses Based on Data of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)), vol 6.

Fosnot, CT. (2005). Constructivism: Theory, perspectives, and practice (2nd ed). Teachers College Press.

Galey, Sarah (2016) “The Evolving Role of Instructional Coaches in U.S. Policy Contexts,” The William & Mary Educational Review: Vol. 4 : Iss. 2 , Article 11.

Garet, et al. (2001). What Makes Professional Development Effective? Results from a National Sample of Teachers. American Educational Research Journal, Winter, 2001, Vol. 38, No. 4 (Winter, 2001), pp. 915-945.

Garet, M. S., Heppen, J. B., Walters, K., Parkinson, J., Smith, T. M., Song, M., Garrett, R., Yang, R., & Borman, G. D. (2016). Focusing on mathematical knowledge: The impact of content-intensive teacher professional development (NCEE 2016-4010). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Gregory, A. et al. (2017). Closing the racial discipline gap in classrooms by changing teacher practice. School Psych Review, 2016 Jun; 45(2): 171–191.

Hammond, Z. L. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain. Corwin Press.

TNTP. (2015). The mirage: Confronting the hard truth about our quest for teacher development. Retrieved from: https://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP-Mirage_2015.pdf.


Five Reasons Why Instructional Coaching Is Essential in an Elementary School Setting

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Five Reasons Why Instructional Coaching Is Essential in an Elementary School Setting

Tyler Jennings, Lower School Dean of Teaching and Learning

Research is conclusive that the most important factor in children’s learning is the quality of their teachers (Burroughs et al., 2019), and increasingly, substantial bodies of research demonstrate that the most effective professional development is instructional coaching (Garet et al., 2016; Gregory, 2017).

What is instructional coaching? It’s a job-embedded type of professional development in which a trained coach works one-on-one with a teacher over time to plan and teach lessons and assess student learning.

It is not surprising that this type of professional development has been proven to be more effective than others (such as workshops and conferences) (Garet, 2001; TNTP, 2015): It’s the only one that enables the professional developer to deeply know the teacher and students, work with them amidst the action of teaching and learning, and support them consistently.

For the past 20 years, many public school districts have invested intensively in coaching (Galey, 2016). Interestingly, the independent school world has not responded to the research in the same way. It is still fairly rare to find a role focused solely on teacher development in elementary divisions and even more so in secondary ones. Historically, independent schools have created organizational cultures that live up to their name: employees, including teachers, have expected a great deal of independence. But is that what’s best for our students? In Milton’s Lower School, by investing in coaching, we are investing in the power of learning together.

Our investment in coaching is based on the assumption that effective teaching is highly complex, demanding work. So if the most important factor in student learning is teacher quality, what factors into the quality of a teacher, and how does a coach work with a teacher in those zones of growth? Here are our top five:

Intentional care and love.

Profound warmth and kindness are key, but there is also much more that goes into the care and love of students. A student’s belief in their own efficacy is a prerequisite for successful learning. A student’s self-efficacy only becomes possible when a teacher creates an inclusive, equitable, and just environment; continually updates their understanding of their students so that each learner feels known; expects those learners to struggle productively with worthy tasks; and shares meaningful feedback about their successes (Hammond, 2015). That is how a great teacher says, “I see you, I believe in you, and I won’t give up on you,” without needing to say it.

How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   A coach supports teachers to create updated portraits of each learner in their classes, so that teachers can deliver a carefully calibrated level of challenge to each of them.
b.   A coach supports teachers to recognize productive struggle, as well as “errors” as signs of risk-taking, approximation, and growth.
c.   A coach supports teachers as they develop specific feedback for students related to the content.

Content knowledge.

Academic content and curriculum are not at all the same thing. Effective teachers use curriculum as a tool and situate it within a far more vast context of content knowledge. An analogy might be that curriculum is what shows up on a well-designed website, but content knowledge is all of the back-end coding that the average visitor doesn’t see. For instance, a second-grader doesn’t need to know how a missing addend problem relates to algebraic problems later that year, next year, and in middle school, but a teacher needs to know how algebraic thinking works holistically in order to guide that child across a continuum of increasingly sophisticated, interrelated problems. To be responsive to the learners in our classes, to be prepared to follow their lines of inquiry and their individual journey through content learning, we must know how academic concepts work and how they interconnect with and build upon one another.

How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   A trained coach possesses expert knowledge of the immense realm of content underlying academic subjects in elementary school. This means that they also “see” the whole interconnected picture of academic concepts through the grades. A coach supports teachers to envision the horizon toward which they are guiding individual students and the class (Fosnot, 2005).
b.   A coach supports teachers to unearth the academic content that is often implicit in an academic task or problem, and to identify when students are demonstrating an understanding of that deeper content.

Pedagogical content knowledge.

One of the things that our society at large often misunderstands about elementary education is that it involves carefully studied technique. Effective teachers possess a toolkit of many research-based teaching moves that they use in the classroom every day. These strategies support students to engage in effective dialogue with each other, prove their thinking with evidence, use specific language to communicate, visualize their thinking for others to see, generate questions that lead to inquiry for themselves and others, and much more. This is what lifts a student’s understanding to the next level as they progress through the landscape of academic content in school.

How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   During lesson planning, a coach supports teachers to consider and envision how they will teach each part of the lesson. When will they ask an open-ended question versus a closed one? When and how will they record students’ ideas to be visible for all? Where in the lesson will they slow down because it centers on a key concept? When will they expect students to puzzle, and when will the teacher simply give them the information?
b.   During the teaching of a lesson, a coach can step into the lesson at strategic moments to model a teaching move.
c.    In their ongoing work, a coach and teacher work together to apply new teaching moves regularly in the classroom.
d.   Oftentimes, a coach and teacher will decide to videotape a lesson and/or create a transcript of it. This way they can closely study a moment from an actual lesson in order to strengthen specific teaching techniques.

Inclusive, equitable, and just practices.

Diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice (DEIJ) cannot live in isolated pockets of the school day; it must infuse all that we do. Sometimes when people hear the phrase “DEIJ in the math classroom,” for instance, they might envision word problems that ask students to consider the inequities embedded in redlining or to understand the unique needs of communities based on their population density. They are not wrong, and these are highly valuable tasks. But our concept of DEIJ in the classroom also has as much to do with what we say and how we say it, how we structure discussions, whose voices are lifted up, and how all of us challenge our own biases in the midst of learning in any subject.

How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   Together, a coach and a teacher can consider the experience of each student in the learning community during a specific lesson or over time. If a student was especially quiet or reluctant, why? What might need to change in the environment to encourage them? Are all of the behaviors that we’re managing necessary to manage, or is disagreement productive?
b.   Using video or transcripts of a lesson inherently reduces bias, which all of us have. Together, a coach and teacher can look at what each student actually said, re-evaluate their assessments when necessary, and learn from the process of checking their own assumptions.

Continuous assessment to inform teaching.

Tests and quizzes (opportunities for students to perform) are distinct from assessments (opportunities for teachers to learn about students’ learning). And summative assessments (reflections of how everyone did this year) are distinct from ongoing, formative assessments (Black & Wiliam, 1998). All have their value, but this blog post is most focused on the latter: formative assessment. When effective teachers plan a lesson, they coordinate multiple layers: Where in the landscape of content does this lesson fit, and what other concepts are related to the one in this lesson? Where are each of my students in relation to this landscape right now? How does the design of this lesson support students’ learning? And what teacher strategies will I need to use in order for each student to achieve their goals? To be able to answer these questions on a regular basis, teachers need to update their assessments of student learning all the time.

How does an instructional coach support this?

a.   In addition to examining the data from periodic benchmark assessments, a coach can support teachers to closely examine artifacts of student learning on a regular basis. These might include written or visual work, collaborative group posters, and transcripts of class discussions.
b.   A coach supports teachers to translate their observations of student artifacts into plans for teaching. Together they answer the questions: If this is a goal for this student’s learning right now, how will I plan an activity that brings them into contact with that goal, what support will I give them, and how will I know when they understand it?

Sources

Black, P. and Wiliam, D. (1998). Assessment and classroom learning. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 5:1, 7-74.

Burroughs N. et al. (2019). A Review of the Literature on Teacher Effectiveness and Student Outcomes. In: Teaching for Excellence and Equity. IEA Research for Education (A Series of In-depth Analyses Based on Data of the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA)), vol 6.

Fosnot, CT. (2005). Constructivism: Theory, perspectives, and practice (2nd ed). Teachers College Press.

Galey, Sarah (2016) “The Evolving Role of Instructional Coaches in U.S. Policy Contexts,” The William & Mary Educational Review: Vol. 4 : Iss. 2 , Article 11.

Garet, et al. (2001). What Makes Professional Development Effective? Results from a National Sample of Teachers. American Educational Research Journal, Winter, 2001, Vol. 38, No. 4 (Winter, 2001), pp. 915-945.

Garet, M. S., Heppen, J. B., Walters, K., Parkinson, J., Smith, T. M., Song, M., Garrett, R., Yang, R., & Borman, G. D. (2016). Focusing on mathematical knowledge: The impact of content-intensive teacher professional development (NCEE 2016-4010). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education.

Gregory, A. et al. (2017). Closing the racial discipline gap in classrooms by changing teacher practice. School Psych Review, 2016 Jun; 45(2): 171–191.

Hammond, Z. L. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain. Corwin Press.

TNTP. (2015). The mirage: Confronting the hard truth about our quest for teacher development. Retrieved from: https://tntp.org/assets/documents/TNTP-Mirage_2015.pdf.

Viewing all 256 articles
Browse latest View live