by Stacey Gauthier

Dear Renaissance Families:   

Renaissance is committed to providing your child with a well-rounded education which includes in addition to math, science, English language arts, social studies and physical education, comprehensive arts and foreign language programs.  We truly aspire to have our students be "Renaissance" learners - knowledgeable in a wide variety of subjects and creative in the ways they think about the world.

One subject that, unfortunately, has been lost in many schools or narrowed down in its focus is geography. I am pleased to say that Renaissance truly understands the importance of our students having a sound foundation in geographic concepts and we have implemented geographic units throughout our K-12 program. 

Why is geography education so critical?  The next generation of leaders (our students) will be living and working in a truly global environment.  They will need a broad understanding of the connectivity of the world around them.  They will need to be able to fully understand how the past impacts the present and ultimately can play a part in determining the future.  They will need to be innovative problem-solvers who can utilize the information available to them to address global issues both in our country and around the world.

We are so fortunate to have a resident geographer, Carol Gersmehl, working in our building with teachers across the grades.  Carol is a highly regarded cartographer and is also the Co-Coordinator for the New York Geographic Alliance.  She was instrumental in helping us launch our AP Human Geography class in the high school.  Additionally, we are very pleased that Rebekah Oakes, our Director of Development and Partnerships, is on the board of trustees for the New York Geographic Alliance where she works on projects to support and promote geographic education in all schools.

Our commitment to growing an interdisciplinary geography-infused curriculum is strong.  We will continue to keep you informed about these exciting learning opportunities for your child.

NYGA seeks to promote and improve geographic education from kindergarten through university throughout New York State. As a discipline, geography is disappearing in our schools, and more than ever, there is a need to revitalize geographic education in the state's classrooms.  GeoFest is held in upstate NY annually, and brings together Geography and Social Studies educators with teachers of all subjects to share model lessons, learn strategies for integrating geography into other curriculum, and this year, learn how the New York Common Core Learning Standards will impact teaching and learning.  

We are dedicated to working with teachers in providing geographic training and resources, to actively foster standard-based geographic learning, to infuse geography in other disciplines, and to promote geography training for pre-service teachers.

Carol and Rebekah joined the PTA Pasta Night and Carnival to promote Geography Awareness Week.  Students signed up for a raffle to win a globe beach ball and other prizes, and find out about "Mission: Explore!" which sends students on missions to find out fascinating facts about their communities.  "Pick and complete one of our missions to unlock points, earn rewards and see your world with new eyes."  Find out more at  http://www.missionexplore.net/.

The 2nd graders have just finished reading about Flat Stanley and Stanley is ready to travel!  In case you are unfamiliar, Flat Stanley is a book about a little boy who is flattened by a bulletin board while he is sleeping.  When his parents cannot afford a plane or train ticket to send him to visit a friend in California, they decided to mail him in an envelope!

Our 4th graders are working on their map-skills book, learning about how to read maps by doing projects while learning about the United States.  We just heard that the students are rehearsing a play about the Pilgrims and their journey from England to Amsterdam to America! 

The 6th grade will be doing our Nile River study where they make three- dimensional maps.  Students will be taking a virtual tour of the Silk Road and will document their learning through creating a detailed board game.

Our 9th and 10th graders take Global History and Geography, of course, as one of their Regents requirements.  9th graders get to study Global History through the lens of art, theater and literature, as part of their Humanities class taught by Jose Mane and supported by arts infusion.  Curtis Anderson looks at history from a theatrical stand, having students write mini-plays from the point of view of historical characters.  Jamie Kelty, teaching artist from the Children's Museum of the Arts, create artifacts from history, such as Egyptian mummy cases or Chinese shadow puppets. 10th graders cycle through a series of hands-on Global Labs, such as the study of Cultural Identity in Post-Colonial Literature, Film and Art with Robert; Self-Expression and Human Rights through Music and Poetry with Lisa; Pre-Hispanic Latin America with Girelle; Current Events and how the past connects to the present with Curtis; and The Greeks to The Renaissance with Harry.    

11th and 8th graders take U.S. History, and this year are happy to welcome Derrick Washington of the New York Historical Society into their classrooms, to look at primary documents and work with the resources of the museum to enrich their studies.  Seniors have a couple of new electives to choose from in social studies, including Jason's Global Issues, where they look at 20th & 21st Century problems and solutions, and AP Human Geography, taught by Maura Malarcher, Carol Gersmehl and Girelle Guzman. This course introduces students to the systematic study of patterns and processes that have shaped human understanding, use, and alteration of Earth's surface. Students employ spatial concepts and landscape analysis to examine human social organization and its environmental consequences.  

Did you know? We recently discovered that while U.S. History is taught in 659 high schools in New York, only 31 NY high schools offer AP Human Geography!  We are proud of our Seniors who are taking on this rigorous course that will most certainly stand out on their college applications!

 The 2011 TRCS Marathon Scholarship Fundraiser

A special thanks from our marathon runners:

"Thank you to all of the TRCS friends and families who donated to the scholarship fund and to all of you who came out to support us as we ran. The crowds were amazing, it was a perfect day to run and we both had a great time racing and raising money for the school.  

If you didn't get the chance to send in a donation, you can still leave a gift at the office.   And if anyone out there felt inspired to join in, why not think about being part of the team and running next year.  If you're interested, please email Arabella at arabs@mindspring.com

It's a marathon effort that our High School students are putting in to their education. Let's show them that we are behind them all the way so that they may.... Live Wise and Run Smart."

Arabella Powell  and Janna Pistiner Ostroff     

Janna Ostroff, after the race

Money raised by Arabella and Janna is used for scholarships to our graduating seniors.  Historically, we have given a $1,000 Humanities Scholarship and a $1,000 Math & Science Scholarship.  So far this year's marathon runners have raised approximately $975.  Please help us reach our goal of $2,000.  If you would like to make a donation, please make checks payable to Renaissance Charter, with "Marathon Scholarship" in the memo line.  Thank You!   

     by Nicholas Maniace  

The Seniors went to Zuccotti Park to interview Occupy Wall Street participants and observers, because our 12th grade class did a unit analyzing media coverage of the movement. We went there to get first-hand information from protesters to put in our op-eds. In English class we have been reading many news articles and op-eds about the movement from a wide range of perspectives. The reason for this was to expose possible biases and understand that writing is often opinionated.

riding the generator bike

One thing that I personally found interesting at Occupy Wall Street was how there was a wide range of people with very different political beliefs. In a class discussion after our trip, some students said that they were surprised by how small the group in the occupied area was that day (a large group had gone off to a protest in another area). Others said that they were surprised that there was not really one united message or agenda: some people were calling for minor reforms, others called for an end to the current wars, and others wanted a complete restructuring of economy as well as other side issues. Some students were very impressed with the organization at Zuccotti Park. There was a food station, library, first aid station and a pair of bicycles used and run by volunteers to generate electricity of the occupiers. One really beautiful thing that I noticed on the way back to school was that students who were previously not very political were discussing and debating many political issues on the train.  It was a great first-hand experience.

Dear Renaissance Family,

The Renaissance Charter School After School Program will be hosting a holiday/cultural awareness event on Wednesday, December 21st. We will have exhibitions of your child(ren)'s creations and invite you to see how the after school program has influenced the Renaissance population. Since it is a cultural event, I encourage the families of students to, not only attend, but to bring dishes and to wear clothing from their home countries. Our councilman, Daniel Dromm, will also be on hand as we recognize him for his continued generosity and support. We will have music and food at this event, as we celebrate the holidays and each other.  

We hope to see you there!

John Gardenhire, 

Program Director