February Newsletter from FSS

Fourth and Twelfth Graders Share the Art of Memoir Writing

You might assume that the typical nine- or ten-year-old has not had enough life experience to write a memoir. You would be wrong. The carefully observed lives of fourth and 12th graders were the subject of an intergenerational partnership this fall, orchestrated by teachers Betsy Lamitina and Wendy Buckingham. Read more

Head's Message

Walk Cheerfully
by Rose Hagan, Head of School

Note: This is the second in a series on the inherent and unique value of a Friends Select education.

George Fox's advice to the earliest Quakers-"walk cheerfully over the world answering that of God in every one"*-was articulated in mid-17th century England in an environment of religious rigidity and intolerance. Yet his words remain remarkably cogent, even centuries later, and help guide community life at Friends Select School. Read more.

Lower School

Where the Wild Things Are
Have you met Romeo, Connie, Pokey, Button and Howard-aka a Mexican red-kneed tarantula, boa constrictor, red-eared slide turtle, painted turtle and ball python? Teacher Bob McCarthy would be happy to introduce you to the lower school science center's menagerie and tell you how the animals came to call Friends Select home. Read more

February Lower School Events

GR 4 and 5 ERBs, Feb. 1-3

GR 3,4,5 Parents Visit MS, Feb. 10

LS Swim and Potluck, Feb. 12

Mid-Winter Break, Feb. 18, Vacation Care Open; Feb. 21, Vacation Care Closed

More Events Parent Information

Middle School

Inoculating Middle Schoolers Against Cyberbullying

by Maureen Haurin, Middle/Upper School Librarian

If you are the parent of a middle schooler, the following should come as no surprise:

Teens continue to be avid users of social networking Web sites - as of September 2009, 73% of online American teens ages 12 to 17 used an online social network Web site.
Text messaging has become the primary way that teens reach their friends, surpassing face-to-face contact, email, instant messaging and voice calling as the go-to daily communication tool for this age group.
Almost half (47%) of teen cell phone owners reported regret over a text message they have sent. Read more.

February Middle School Events

MS Boys Basketball Tournament, Feb. 5

MS Service, Feb. 7

MS Director Coffee, Feb. 11, 8 a.m.

FSL Swim Championships, Feb. 12

MS Play, The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe, Feb. 24-25, 6 p.m.

Mid-Winter Break, Feb. 18, Vacation Care Open; Feb. 21, Vacation Care Closed

MS/US Spring Sports Begin, Feb. 28

More Events Parent Information

Upper School

Friends Select Students Practice "NOH8" (No Hate)

If you were to have walked the hallways at Friends Select on December 9, you would have spotted about 20 upper school students and some faculty wearing white shirts, duct tape taped over their mouths, and the characters NOH8 ("No Hate") scrawled on their cheeks. It was all part of the NOH8 campaign, a photographic silent protest against discrimination.