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TOTALLY AWESOME MUSICAL
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Audience Has a Blast at Back to the '80s
 Last weekend, Upper School Musical Theater students took audiences on a journey--a journey back to a time when Michael Jackson and Rick Astley were the kings of pop, when the Atari was cutting-edge technology, and when bubble skirts and blue eye shadow were oh-so-cool.
From the era that brought us Max Headroom, the Rubik's Cube, and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, this "totally awesome" musical followed the graduating class of William Ocean High School as they lived through their senior year--and the fun, heartbreak, loves, and loneliness that is a part of growing up...all set to the biggest hits of the '80s.
Despite the fact that injuries plagued the cast and that none of the cast members were even alive during the '80s, the cast were inspired, inspiring, and obviously having "the time of their lives." Crowd pleasers like "Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go," "Material Girl," and "Kids in America" had audience members clapping and singing along. Although most Lakehill students knew nothing of this era prior to the musical, audience members of all ages clearly had a "blast."
Lakehill's Dallas premier of Neil Gooding's Back to the '80s featured musical direction by Tracy Herron and stage direction by Elizabeth
Schmitt. Schmitt explains, "It is rare to find a
musical where the majority of the cast gets to play characters their own age. Our
cast embraced the opportunity, and despite injuries, were determined to give
their best performances. I was so impressed with the
results." Audience members were clearly impressed as well.
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HOMEWARD BOUND
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Exchange Student Returns Home to Germany
 Each year, thousands of students travel to the United
States to participate in exchange programs.
On their departure, they typically report that they enjoyed learning about America,
making new friends, and sharing their own cultures with their hosts. Sofya
Aleynikova is no exception. Sofya, a freshman, returns home to Germany
on Sunday, after finishing her fall semester at Lakehill.
Sofya's mother and her mother's dear friend, Lakehill parent Irina
Plumlee, attended University together in Russia. The two women stayed in touch when Ms. Plumlee moved to Dallas,
and the families remain close friends. Sofya decided to take advantage of the opportunity to
stay with the Plumlees and study in the United States.
Sofya says the biggest surprise was how challenging Lakehill is. While it was difficult for her initially, she now says she is used to it. She misses her family, but says she has been so busy that there has
been little time to miss much else. Her days have been filled with spending time with new friends, studying, and enjoying her time here. She says that she has particularly enjoyed the school spirit at Lakehill and is impressed by the students' involvement in school activities.
Sofya says the first order of business when she returns to Germany will be to unpack all the clothes she bought while she was in Dallas. "The
malls are so huge here; I couldn't resist," she explains. "I bought lots of clothes."
Sofya says she will definitely keep in touch with the friends she made at Lakehill. Although many tried to convince her to stay longer, it was not part of her plan. "I came with the intention of staying one semester, so that's what I will do." Sofya plans to spend a
semester in France next year
and hopes to attend
college in the United States after she graduates.
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ANNUAL FUND CLOSES IN ON GOAL
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End of Year Gifts Still Coming
 Many of you
may have seen the large Lakehill sign as you entered the main entrance and
thought to yourself, "Why are the last two L's missing?" Instead of using a traditional fundraising
thermometer to measure the progress of the Annual Fund, the school has been
adding a letter for each $20,000 in donations. With Lakehill's largest and most ambitious goal ever set at $160,000,
the school wanted to make sure everyone was aware of the importance and
progress of this year's campaign.
On Friday
December 12, Lakehill passed the $140,000 mark and has only the final "L" left
before completing LAKEHILL. Reid Parker,
Director of Development, added, "The early success of the Annual Fund is a true
testament to our parents, grandparents, alumni, and friends. We increased our goal 35% over last year and knew
that we would have to work hard to reach it. The response has been tremendous."
With year-end
giving in full swing, the prospects for reaching this year's goal look good, but support
is still needed. "We are close to
reaching our target, but the last little bit is always the hardest," explained Parker. Headmaster
Roger Perry adds, "On behalf of the students, faculty, parents, and Board of
Directors, we sincerely appreciate your support of Lakehill Preparatory School.
I am confident that together we can surpass this year's goal."
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MEDIA MENTIONS
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 See Who's in the News
Lakehill junior Rosie McCoskey was recently named the Good Kid of the Week by the Dallas Morning News. To read more about Rosie, click here.
Links to this story and more are now available on the Lakehill website.
To check out the Warrior Weekly archives, click here.
To find external news articles published about Lakehill, click here.
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CLASSROOM CONNECTIONS
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The Tasty Word Project
 Students in Ms. Julie Riggs' fifth grade English class won't soon forget the meaning of their vocabulary words. Their recent Tasty Word Project was based on scenes from the children's novel, The Phantom Tollbooth. Each child selected a word from
the vocabulary units that have been studied so far.
In the book, the character Milo finds that he literally DOES have to
eat his words and he wishes he had chosen tastier ones. What if WE had to
eat our words? Which ones would be delicious? Which would taste awful? Which
would be healthy? Which would be fattening? If we purchased these words in the
word market, what would they look like? What kinds of colors, textures,
dimensions, smells, and flavors would they exhibit?
Students could base their reasoning on meaning, sound, or association of a word. Riggs had "scour"
apples and "ingenious" cauliflower, which looked like a brain. "Reverie" was depicted as cotton candy. "Illusion" was a meal that looked like a hamburger, fries, and green beans, but was
actually all made of candy and cookies. "Keepsake" was a box filled with and
surrounded by Hershey's kisses.
Riggs created this project and has been doing it for eight of her nine years at Lakehill. She says she always enjoys seeing what the students come up with, and found this group's projects to be extremely creative. The projects are currently on display outside the library.
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SPORTS SNIPPETS
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Varsity Boys' Basketball
December 19Lakehill at Prince of Peace; 4:30pm December 29-30
Lakehill at Arlington Pantego Tournament
January 3
Lakehill vs. Brook Hill; 3:30pm January 6
Lakehill at Shelton; 7:30pm
Varsity Girls' BasketballDecember 19Lakehill at Prince of Peace; 3:00pm December 27-30
Lakehill at Oakridge Tournament January 3
Lakehill vs. Brook Hill; 2:00pm January 6
Lakehill at Shelton; 6:00pm
JV Boys' BasketballDecember 19Lakehill at Prince of Peace; 2:00pm January 3
Lakehill vs. Brook Hill; 12:30pm January 6
Lakehill at Shelton; 4:30pm Middle School BasketballJanuary 8Lakehill (blue) boys vs. Providence - 5:00pm
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WHAT'S HAPPENING
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Happy Holidays! Enjoy your winter break!
December 18 5th and 6th grade dismiss for Holiday December 19 K - 4th grade dismiss for Holiday 7th - 12th dismiss per exam schedule
December 19; 11:00am
Elementary Choir Performs at NorthPark December 22-January 5
Holiday Break January 5
Teacher In-Service |
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