Willow Room

Birch Room

This week our fifth years have been presenting their essays and hand-drawn portraits of their hero. The heroes include: Dian Fossey, Roberto Clemente, Malala Yousfezi, Richard Feynman, Dorothy Eustis, Jane Adams, Dorothy Day, Clara Barton, Henry Ford, Leonardo DaVinci, Paul Robeson, Jane Goodall.

Students also presented their skits on the three branches of government and the legislative process. While exploring themes such as whether new gun control legislation violates the U.S. Constitution, the skits focused on the responsibilities of each branch within the system of checks and balances. Recent lessons have introduced the Bill of Rights, with students evaluating historic Supreme Court decisions in their individual work.

The class is gearing up for our December Museum, in which they will share projects that reflect current topics of individual study. At this point, projects range from the history of the U.S. Capitol Building to the inner workings of the ear. Please join us for our Museum on Thursday, December 18th from 2-3PM or on Friday, December 19th from 8:30-9AM. 

Also on Friday the 19th, our last day before break, we have our annual Present Making Day. Parents are asked to help lead a small group in creating hand-made gifts. Let us know if you are interested and available. We have projects that could use leaders, so please see Tom if you can come in but you just need an idea.

Today marks the fifth Friday morning the middle school students have been making deeper connections with our broader community. A group of seventh graders made their way across the circle to be of service to both the Toddler Program and Lower El. Here is a selection of reflections from these connections:

"We read stories and played with the toddlers for a bit until some of them wanted to go outside. It was challenging for me to get them dressed (I didn't want to break them.)"  Rachel Reynolds

"One of the toddlers watched us with wide eyes and scrunched up face like he was a sumo wrestler. We got to know them by the minute and they became less scared of us."  Luke Williams

"It was nice to be able to help a younger person with work that they like to do."   Emma Risch

"When I think about the toddlers they seem older than they actually are. I think they have a better understanding of things because they are treated as an equal person instead of a mindless little kid. I like how they are taught to do things on their own and figure things out by themselves and how the teachers give them space to do what they want instead of hovering over them."  Elle Jamieson

While the seventh graders are connecting with younger people, the eighth graders are visiting their elderly companions. For many years, our eighth graders have been going to both Holton Home and Pine Heights building relationships and broadening their perspective of what it means to be human. Here are some recent reflections:

"Connie told me a little bit about her life.... but when she asked me about my life I almost didn't know what to say. I thought that since I have been on this earth thirteen years that anything I had to say would be insignificant. It made me realize that most of my life hasn't happened yet."  Archer Parks

"[S]he started talking about how...you never really know when death is going to come. I asked her if she felt like she was ready for death, and she said that she felt she could be ready to die. She asked me if I believed in God, and we had a really great conversation about spirituality and religion." Izzy Snyder

"Beverly shared stories with me and I shared mine with her. We talked about music and cows and Brattleboro among other things. It really was like getting to step into a time machine. It was like she led me through the journey of her life, making stops along the way."  Sophie Lurz

"I imagine having an extraordinary life, as she did, and then going to a nursing home where memories slip away. It would be so nice to be able to remind myself what things used to be like, and to share that with someone who still has a whole life in front of them."  Holden Hiler

"I have started to realize that Bernie has very strong opinions. I told him I played violin, he asked me if I read music, I said no and he told me that I do not play violin."  Aidan Murphy

"Kay smiled at me and motioned for me to sit in the chair across from her, apologizing for the stuffed dog that was draped over the back. We talked together as we played Rummy, which she had to teach me. Everything Kay talked about led back to her children or grandchildren.  She adores and cares deeply for them...The stories she told captivated me and took me to another place entirely."  Elery Loggia

Next Friday brings a close to this beautiful, moving, and important program for another year. It is not uncommon for the eighth graders to maintain a relationship with their elderly companion and we all enjoy watching the youngest members of the Hilltop community grow and prosper.

Josh scribes a math problem for the class.

Nora begins a math seminar.

Math minds