Intellectual Growth, Curiosity, and Character Development
As I reflect on my past three and a half years at George School, I recognize that its impact on my intellectual growth, curiosity, and character development has been indelible.
Finding an Academically Friendly and Thoughtful Community
Over the last two years, I have grown to love our George School community both academically and socially. A few of my passions are musical theater, science (medicine), and hanging out with my friends. The friendships I have made are sure to last a lifetime.
Grading for Equity (Part 2)
When we move to more accurate grading processes that describe a student’s level of academic performance, we break the feedback loop of taking resource disparities and perpetuating them by turning them into achievement disparities. We begin to foster intrinsic motivation in students as we allow space for failure.
Math Team Competitions Expand Collaboration and Skill Sets
The Math Team is very inclusive to all who want to join: you are free to choose the level of your involvement. Our competitions and practice sessions nurture individual excellence and team collaboration.
Joining a New Family on the Athletic Fields
While incredibly physically challenging, the preseason program was one of the most amazing experiences I have had with sports, and convinced me, once again, that George School is where I belonged. The team became my new family and made my transition into a new school practically seamless.
Grading for Equity (Part 1)
When everything is worth points, then it’s never safe for students to make mistakes, even though we know that making mistakes is essential to learning. Instead of asking “Why did I lose points for this?” students now ask, “Can you help me understand why x concept works this way?
Woodworking: Learning to Solve Problems
Woodworking has helped me have an outlet that I am able to turn to when I am feeling stressed. I would have never known that this really is something that I enjoy until I took the class and figured out that I want to have this art be a part of me for the rest of my life.
The IB Program Challenges Dancers
Throughout my time in the program, we have learned about different dance cultures as well as notable choreographers and dancers. This has allowed me to appreciate dance as a whole, not just the physical aspects, and see the beauty of the art.
New Great Reads for April
Ellen Labrecque shares new great reads available in the Mollie Dodd Anderson Library.
Digital Notebooks in the Arts Studio
Using digital notebooks has become an absolute necessity for my painting and drawing classes. Their use has allowed for better documentation, reflection, communication, and development. The possibilities are endless and I am constantly looking for ways to improve the delivery of my course content.
Making Politics Personal
Politics is indeed personal, and it is my hope that our students’ learning isn’t just relegated to complex terms and theories, but the idea that politics requires their participation and their passion.
How Do We Know What We Know?
This year TOK tudents will exhibit their artifacts in an online virtual reality gallery, where exhibition patrons will be digitally immersed in a 3D art gallery and free to interact with all the artifacts in the collection, entirely from the comfort of their phones or computers
Creating Community at the Quaker Youth Leadership Conference
On Thursday, February 4, 2021, 150 students and teachers from 25 Friends high schools from the US and Canada gathered virtually to participate in the 2021 Quaker Youth Leadership Conference. After the event, we asked the six George School students about their experiences.
Learning at the Student Diversity Leadership Conference
Approximately 65 faculty from a variety of independent schools, colleges, and other educational institutions were chosen via a rigorous application and training process to attend the annual Student Diversity Leadership Conference.
Encouraging Student-Generated Learning
As a teacher, my duty is not just to teach mathematical concepts, but to inspire curiosity and demonstrate how what we are learning inside the classroom has application outside of the classroom and outside of my discipline. Programming can be a way of making mathematics come to life, and it is a joy to see students take the initiative in this way.
Creating Structures for Successful Independent Learning
Using the Modules system in Canvas, Environmental Science and Systems teacher Becky Hutchins created new learning structures that allow students to take control of their own education and to thrive while doing so.
Introducing AP Art History with a George School Twist
Next year, George School will offer another academic option for students wishing to use their interest in arts to deepen their academic portfolio—AP Art History. The new course will help develop students’ analytical and critical thinking skills.
Prying with a Purpose: IB and the Extended Essay
The Extended Essay is a prolonged adventure, one much like the one experienced by Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland who finds it “curiouser and curiouser” as she grows, “opening out like the largest telescope that ever was” just as our George School students grow, too, their vision expanding purposefully outward yet also turning self-reflectively within.
The Value of Many Perspectives
Amedeo Salamoni brings at least four to six speakers into his classroom every year to expose students to a broad spectrum of voices in his field. For example, though he can offer students expertise in clay, he might bring a glassblower into his sculpture class to explore other mediums students may be interested in learning.
College Application Tips from a College Counselor
As a College Counselor, students often tell me they feel overwhelmed by the college application process. While it can feel overwhelming, there are some ways students can help themselves make sure the process goes smoothly. Here are my best tips for applying to college!
Coming Full Circle
The first week of school is always my favorite week of the year, hands down. While my children think I am crazy (they think the last day of summer vacation is the worst!), I know I am right. So, why is that week always the best? I mean, the start
New Great Reads for April
Ellen Labrecque shares new great reads available in the Mollie Dodd Anderson Library.
Diving and Learning in Bonaire
In Bonaire, it was really amazing to think about how everyone else is living their lives on land, while the fish and the corals are living separately in a different world underwater. The fish and other marine life that amaze us are just normal, daily life for everything that is living subaqueously.
Intellectual Growth, Curiosity, and Character Development
As I reflect on my past three and a half years at George School, I recognize that its impact on my intellectual growth, curiosity, and character development has been indelible.
Woodworking: Learning to Solve Problems
Woodworking has helped me have an outlet that I am able to turn to when I am feeling stressed. I would have never known that this really is something that I enjoy until I took the class and figured out that I want to have this art be a part of me for the rest of my life.
The IB Program Challenges Dancers
Throughout my time in the program, we have learned about different dance cultures as well as notable choreographers and dancers. This has allowed me to appreciate dance as a whole, not just the physical aspects, and see the beauty of the art.
Lessons Learned in Arts at George School
My experience with art at George School is amazing. George School has so many options for me to try and explore what I like. If I am not into performing arts, I can find something I like in one of the visual arts.
Track and Field Provides Endless Possibilities to Succeed
The opportunities are endless in track. No matter what your skill level is, you will find the events that best suit your abilities.
Launching the Psychology Club
I came to George School with a strong interest in psychology and with my friends, started the Psychology Club during my sophomore year.
Planning for College with a Friend
My college counselor helped me feel confident about my choices and preparation. I would describe the relationship with my college counselor as not only a partnership but also a friendship.
Growing as a Writer at George School
George School provided many challenges and opportunities for creative expression, and I’ve grown tremendously as a writer during my time here. One of the ways I grow as a writer is through reading, and I’ve been exposed to a myriad of excellent literature in my time at George School.
Prefects Help Make George School Feel Like Home
Prefects are student mentors who live in each residence hall and set examples as strong leaders and role models. They help with check-in times and study hall, providing advice and wisdom. They also create and lead community-building activities.
Creating Community at the Quaker Youth Leadership Conference
On Thursday, February 4, 2021, 150 students and teachers from 25 Friends high schools from the US and Canada gathered virtually to participate in the 2021 Quaker Youth Leadership Conference. After the event, we asked the six George School students about their experiences.