The Enduring Empanada

Many years ago, Señora Horn was a Spanish teacher at The Beech Hill School that revolutionized the curriculum.  She instituted an entirely new assessment system and introduced several texts.  While the assessment system did not stand the test of time, many of the texts that she introduced are still being enjoyed to this day.  Her most enduring initiative, however, was Empanada Day.  Sra. Horn was not only a fan of Spanish, but she was also a fan of the Food Network.  The pairing of these interests led to the introduction of a student cooking contest based on the type of empanadas that they could create.

Many years have passed, and several different teachers have taught Spanish at BHS, but the student demand has insured that Empanada Day is not and will not go away.  In fact, the current tandem of Señora Fortier and Señor Vazquez have only strengthened the tradition.  This year, the teachers gave the fifth grade a much more active role in the judging and required the competing students to present to the judges. 

In my experience, the strength of a tradition is revealed in the way that a similar experience is shared through the years.  I would imagine that in years to come, there will be additional changes, but at the core, the Empanada Day experience is one that will persist!

An April Roadtrip

My wife’s birthday is in February, and I was stumped when it came to getting her a gift.  Then it hit me – neither of our children have April Break – I could take her away for a trip - just the two of us!  This was a stroke of genius; especially considering that it has been many years since we have gone on a trip that was just the two of us.  In the last ten years or so especially, it seems that the bulk of our travel has been centered on our children – a baseball tournament here, a lacrosse showcase there, and hockey everywhere else!  Not this time, instead, Sharon and I would be off for a few days to Healdsburg, California, in the heart of wine country.

This great trip never materialized, as like many of the best plans of mice and men, this went awry.  No, it was not a last-minute sporting event for the kids, but it was a child based reason for the change. Based on several factors, my wife and I realized that it was really important that we accompany our son on some college visits, as his junior year of high school is drawing to a close.  So, instead of a getaway for two to wine country in California, our trip became a road trip for three to Central New York and Western Massachusetts, visiting 6 schools in 3 days.

I am still trying to process all that I witnessed on the trip – the beautiful campuses, the single digit acceptance rates, the multiple digit price tags, and the entire process of schooling that stretches from BHS through higher ed.  There is no doubt fodder for future blogs in the college price and higher ed in general.  This week rather, my message is simple, trite even – but one that parents of middle school students must consider: the transformation from child to young adult that happens in the 8 years from 5th Grade to High School graduate is both remarkable and rapid.  Not only does it seem to happen in a blink of an eye, but more than ever, I am convinced that the middle school years are critical in setting the trajectory for all that follows.

Now that the trip has come and gone, I am happy to have shared the time with my son, as it is now so obvious that road trips like this will soon be drawing to a close.  Of course, new adventures will unfold, and before I know it, my wife and I will finally visit wine country – and when I am there, I will no doubt be wondering how the kids grew up so fast.

A Time to Shine!

This past Wednesday, The Beech Hill School hosted the Greater Concord Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Greater Concord cohort for their education day.  The cohort consists of 30 leaders from a wide range of industries in the Greater Concord area.  The focus of the day was education in the Greater Concord area, and the cohort started their day at BHS.  As soon as the participants entered the school, they were greeted by BHS students, who offered participants a tour for the school.  Following the tours the cohort went about their work, and eventually moved on to several different locations around the city.  The day concluded back at BHS, where Commissioner of Education Frank Edelblut addressed the cohort.  Throughout his remarks, he spoke glowingly of BHS, our innovative programs and our exceptional faculty.

To say that I was proud of the students, faculty, and the school itself would be an understatement.  The students were so excited to welcome our guests and they represented themselves and our community with distinction.  At the very end of the day, I had the opportunity to introduce Commissioner Edleblut to one of the members of the 7th Grade.  That student wowed Commissioner Edelblut with his knowledge of history and his ability to speak so well.

It is not every day that we get to showcase our students outside The Beech Hill School community, but when we do, they always impress!

Return of The Knoll

It is remarkable how quickly the temperatures can change this time of year.  Last Friday afternoon, I was standing on the sidelines of my daughter’s lacrosse game and it was frigid.  This week, the sun was out in full force and temperatures were mild, to say the least.

This week, we have officially started to hold Community in The Knoll again.  Starting each day outside really does wonders.  Especially when we take our moment of intention, which is when we pause to set an intention for the day.  Even the squirmiest of middle schoolers takes this seriously, and the sounds of birds, neighboring farm animals and even the wind, make the moment that much more special.

Twice this week, I was able to hold class in The Knoll.  While I could have just as easily conducted my lesson in the history class, the change of setting made it seem like it was a treat to have class in The Knoll.  We did the same work, but the novelty of class outside following a long winter made it all seem more special.

Throughout the winter, The Knoll sat dormant.  Mother Nature has, once again, given us the green light to begin using the space, and I can’t wait to see the new and exciting ways that The Knoll will become a part of our community!

Pleasant Surprises

Inevitably, adolescents will make decisions without fully considering what it is that they are doing.  Quite simply, this is not a case of kids being good or bad, so to speak, they just don’t have the capacity to fully consider the impact of their actions.  Despite this fact, there is always the question of how one deals with something when it goes askew.  Such was the case this week, when I received a text from Audrey, the woman that cleans The Beech Hill School, that informed me that kids were messing around with the toilet paper in the boys’ bathroom, resulting in at least one unused roll being thrown out because it was soaked.

As the Head of School, I had a choice about how to handle this situation.  Of course, I know how hard Audrey works and I would hate to think that students at BHS would be disrespecting her or the school.  At the same time, I really did not think that this was the result malicious behavior.  As such, I decided that I was not going to make a federal case out of this but would still address the matter at Community.

The morning after the text from Audrey, I shared with the students a story of when I had made a poor decision in fifth grade.  I embellished a bit, and got quite theatric, but the point of the story was that it is possible for adolescents to do foolish things without really understanding that how they might be impacting others.  I then shared with the students that Audrey notified me about the state of the bathroom, and that it needs to stop immediately. I had figured that should at least make the individuals think twice about their actions.

Later that morning, three students asked to see me.  I brought them in my office, and they proceeded to tell me that it was their fault that the bathroom was in disarray and that they were playing volleyball with the extra roll of toilet paper and owned up to everything.  I did not ask them to, nor did I expect this.  They, however, felt so bad about what they did, because they assumed that they were involved in victimless shenanigans.

The students felt incredibly guilty and without my asking, wrote a letter of apology to Audrey.  So, while it is certainly true that adolescents are likely to make poor choices, often times, when given the opportunity to reconsider their actions, they can amaze you with their desire to atone and to learn from their mistakes.