Category: school
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Graduation Celebration – Pandemic Style
We had a high school senior last year, and graduation in June happened virtually, as it did for so many others. The school did its best by having the high school administrative team personally deliver our son’s diploma and by putting on a lovely virtual graduation. But we were determined to have some kind of…
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Halloween Week Festivities at Sidwell Friends School
Our son goes to a private high school in Washington, DC where the academics are excellent, the kids are (mostly) affluent, and the pressure can sometimes be intense. This is especially true during the last week of October when the seniors have Early Action college applications due (November 1 is the actual due date).Marcus (on…
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Book review: The Political Classroom by Diana Hess & Paula McAvoy
The Political Classroom: Evidence and Ethics in Democratic Education by Diana E. Hess My rating: 4 of 5 stars I sit on the board of a pre-K through 12 school, and this book was recommended to me by a faculty member. I thoroughly enjoyed the book, which uses philosophical thinking and empirical science to frame…
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China Trip Preparation (and irony)
Our 16 year old son is going to rural China (Yunnan Province) for 6 weeks as part of a school program called China Fieldwork Summer. He is very excited about the trip (which makes him a better person than me). There was a meeting the other night regarding the trip with parents and many of…
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Graduation 2017!
We celebrated the graduation of our daughter from Sidwell Friends School last Friday. The day was perfect—sunny but not too hot and with low humidity. Jim’s mom, brother, and (brother’s) girlfriend attended, as did my parents. It was a joyous occasion, with lovely speeches given by Bryan Garman, the Head of School; Margaret Plank, the…
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Prom 2017
As we move ever more rapidly into the bittersweet final moments of our daughter’s senior year of high school, prom was the highlight of the week. A group of her friends met up for a pre-prom get together where several parents were on the verge of tears contemplating the fact that their children would soon…
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Dance Ensemble Recital
For three years, our daughter has participated in the Sidwell Friends Upper School dance ensemble. Dance ensemble was her first ever dance experience. It has been the place she has found the most serenity and peace during high school. (Her only regret is that she didn’t start in 9th grade and avoid the trauma of…
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“Running of the Bulls”
Friday, April 28 was the last day of classes for the Class of 2017 at Sidwell Friends School. The seniors traditionally celebrate by running through the hallways of the Upper School. Here is their run (courtesy of Marcus):
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8th grade graduation
Our son graduated from 8th grade a few weeks ago in a lovely ceremony held at the school. Being a 14 year old boy with only an embryonic frontal lobe (at best), he neglected to mention that he was part of an ensemble that was singing as part of the ceremony. (If you knew the…
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Life on the International Space Station (interview with Dan Tani)
As part of his 8th grade science project, our son had to do a podcast about life on the International Space Station. Fortunately, a friend of ours, Dan Tani, is a former astronaut who actually spent significant time on the space station. Dan very kindly came over to our house to be interviewed for this…