At St. Francis, we are keenly aware of the importance of ongoing professional development for our talented collection of teachers and administrators. In the past two weeks, several opportunities converged for different faculty members who have been away at conferences learning and collaborating on the latest trends and developments in their respective fields.

 

Last week, Alexandra and Lower School music teacher Kim Aberle attended the annual ISACS Conference in St. Louis. While there, they took in numerous workshops and presentations and even squeezed in a visit to John Delautre's new school, Whitfield Academy! We are proud of Kim for also being a presenter at ISACS! Kim remarked to me afterwards that despite all the years of "public speaking" in front of classrooms and assemblies, it is still nerve-wracking to address a roomful of your teaching colleagues! By all accounts, however, Kim did a marvelous job with a presentation on "Music and Children's Literature" in front of a packed room of 150 classroom teachers and librarians. Her session taught teachers how they could bring books to life when accompanied with classical music.  She also shared classroom books made by our very own St. Francis students, giving teachers fun and innovative ways to bring their classes together with music and words. Bravo, Kim!

 

Also last week, we were fortunate that the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCTM) held their annual national conference here in Louisville! Math Department Chair Kelly Bailey, along with math teachers Sarah Wallace and Amy Koloff, attended two days, and I joined them for one. It is always invigorating to "talk shop" with fellow math instructors and get new ideas from the many presentations one gets to attend. Here are some comments from the SFS Math Department:

 

"It was a privilege to take part in the NCTM conference last week. One of the sessions was named 'Ours Is to Reason Why, When We Invert and Multiply.' Our speaker's discussion was on mathematical fluency. He spoke about what a student should be able to prove in order to be fluent in a skill. He reasoned that a student should be fast, accurate, and have thorough understanding of the problem and solution. In his example he spoke about the procedures followed when dividing fractions. He posed the question, 'Why do we invert the second fraction by the first?' This is a "math trick" or math procedure and has no effect on understanding the process or solution of the problem. Students may be able to perform many rote problems with accuracy on a timed test, which shows that they are fast and accurate. However, few of those students understand the question and solution thoroughly. Teaching a student the 'why' before the 'how' helps them to understand thoroughly." - Kelly Bailey

 

"Last Thursday and Friday, I had the privilege of attending my first NCTM conference.  I enjoyed all the sessions that I attended, but the session that was the most meaningful was entitled 'Number Talks'.  During a Number Talk, the teacher puts up an equation on the board. Students then solve the problem mentally.  After about 15-30 seconds, the teacher asks for answers to the equation and records all solutions on the board. Kids can then offer the strategies that they used to solve the equation.  The strategies are also recorded on the board.  Through this share time, students hear a variety of ways to solve a problem. "Number Talks" take anywhere between 5 and 15 minutes.  

 

I have begun Number Talks in my class and there have been quite a few 'Aha!' moments with the kids. They are learning different ways to solve problems, and it is amazing to hear them explain their different strategies! - Amy Koloff

 

As for myself, I was pleased to learn how to calculate square roots of any number in my head (within reason!) within one hundredth of the "calculator" answer! I shared this "trick" with Kelly's 8th grade Geometry students, who were eager to dissect and figure out the algorithm for themselves! (And they couldn't believe we didn't have calculators when I was in high school!) I also saw a demonstration on two-variable graphing that pairs algebra with.....dating! Will Middle School kids be interested in that real-life connection??

 

Of course, the overarching point is learning new methods to keep math (or any subject) fresh and relevant for our students while broadening our own knowledge base. We encourage all our teachers to take advantage of professional development opportunities and report back to their colleagues about their experiences (and in the coming weeks, Nita Duechle will have collaborated with art teachers and visited schools in South Carolina while Qianxin Zhu will attend Mandarin Chinese World Language conferences in both Memphis and Orlando!).

                                  

Join us at our Goshen Campus Open House on Tuesday, November 19 at 9:00-10:30 am.

 

There will be a panel comprised of current students and parents to introduce you to the Preschool (PS), Lower School (LS), and Middle School (MS), explain why they chose St. Francis School, and answer any questions you many have.

 

After the panel, we will be conducting PS, LS, and MS- specific tours so that you may see the facilities (including the cafeteria and PS natural playground), visit classrooms, and meet our teachers and coaches. We hope to see you there! 

 

If you have any questions, please contact Goshen Director of Admissions Richard Butcher.

Please join Head of School Alexandra Thurstone and me on Friday, November 22nd from 8:10-9:30 a.m. for the first installment of our Parent Education Series.  

 

We will be discussing the topic of progressive education and how these principles can translate to parenting.  

 

Click here for an article by James H. Nehring on progressive education that can be read to prior to our discussion. [Nehring, J. (2006) Progressive vs. Traditional: Reframing an Old Debate. Education Week].  

 

We hope to see many of you there! 

1st grade and JK students (with help from some 8th grade friends) created clay ornaments that are being donated to the Festival of Trees and Lights in order to raise money for Kosair Children's Hospital.  

 

This year all of the proceeds will go to a new diabetes center for children. This is the first year that students were asked to create ornaments instead of decorating a wreath or tree, and these ornaments are being sold on a cash and carry system. The trees and wreaths that are for sale must be picked up at a later date.  

 

The festival is this coming weekend, November 15th-17th at Slugger Field. Friday hours are 10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday hours are 10:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m. There are also special night events on Friday and Saturday.  

 

Click here for more info! 

Basketball Updates 

Boys' 7th/8th Grade Basketball
The Wyverns made their season debut this week with games against Depaul and Our Savior Lutheran.  In the Depaul match up, Clay Smedley and Angus Middleton got the team back in contention with timely three-point shots to make it a close game, before surrendering the lead late. In the OSL contest the team was blistering cold from the outside but pumped up their defensive intensity to get easier buckets, before dropping the game as well.  The team will be in action this weekend in the Summit Academy Invitational tournament, seeking their first victory of the season.

Girls' 7th/8th Grade Basketball
In their very first game of the season, the Wyverns faced a feisty Depaul team that limited them to 16 total points as they were defeated. The team received huge scoring contributions from Deliah McMahan and Sydney Lattis. The ladies have a short break in their schedule due to some cancellations, but will definitely improve with the practice time they will have in the coming weeks.

Boys' 6th Grade Basketball
Before heading off on their annual Pine Mountain class trip, the 6th grade boys' took on Anchorage and were able to earn a hard earned 35 - 31 victory. The boys were able to reel off 8 straight points late in the game to capture the win after Anchorage took a late 4th quarter lead.  

Girls' 3rd-6th Grade Basketball
The young Wyverns had two games back-to-back on Saturday against Collegiate.  Coaches Saborsky and Ragland were very pleased with the effort, determination and wit the girls displayed. Competing against a more mature and better team, the girls never quit after getting behind early. The team will become much better as time passes.

Boys' 4th & 5th Grade Basketball
In the first of two games, the 4/5 team took on Whitefield (5th grade). The team was without a few players and their presence was definitely missed as the Wildcats won the game. The second game Lake Mackin scored the game winning basket to knock off Meredith Dunn. Tyler King scored the final two points for insurance as the Wyverns won a nail-bitter, 19 to 14.  

  

If you have any questions, please contact Shavar Cowherd.   

Monday Nov. 25th

Multi-Purpose Room

JK-3rd Grade Performances 9:00-10:00 a.m.

4th-8th Grade Performances 10:00-11:00 a.m.

Tuesday Nov. 26th

Multi-Purpose Room

JK-3rd Grade Schedule 12:30-1:15 p.m.
Student Performances

1:20-2:00 p.m.
Classroom Visits

4th-8th Grade Schedule 1:00-1:130 p.m.
Classroom Visits

1:45-2:30 p.m.
Student Performances

Please contact Kim Aberle or Bob Bertke if you know your child will not be at school on Parent Preview or Grandparents' Day. 

Invitations have been mailed. If your child's grandparent did not receive one, please contact Natalie and provide the necessary information.

Informational flyers were sent home today. Click here to view it.

Thank you!

Due to the rescheduling of the Big South Fork trip for the 8th grade class to the first week of March (the 3rd through the 7th), we have also had to shift our Parent Teacher Conferences to the following week on March 13th-14th! Please make a note of this in your calendars too!

Also, interim reports for Quarter 2 will be emailed out next Friday, November 15th for students who are having difficulties academically or in the areas of effort and behavior.

Barbara Perry, a senior fellow and associate professor in the University of Virginia's Miller Center's Presidential Oral History Program will be speaking at St. Francis - Downtown Campus on November 21st at 6:00 p.m. The subject will be on Rose Kennedy, matriach of the Kennedy family. A reception with hors d'oeuvres will follow.

Click here for more information about the event.

Make-up/Retake Portraits have been posted online, and as a special courtesy, Stephanie has decided to extend the discount period until NOVEMBER 30, 2013 so everyone can take advantage of the offer.

To access your child's images click here and then and click on the VIEW & ORDER link on the upper right hand corner.

Choose your gallery and enter the access code (SFS2014). If you have children on multiple campuses, you will still be able to place one order.

EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT!!
All orders placed before NOVEMBER 30, 2013 will receive 15% off

EARLY BIRD E-CERTIFICATE CODE:   QGRDYJP