| Upcoming Events
Thursday, Oct. 31
Half Day - dismissal at 11:30 (320 Washington St) and 11:45 (25 Arlington St.)
Monday, Nov. 4 - Friday, Nov. 8
BookFair at 25 Arlington St.
Wednesday, Nov. 6
Picture Day at 320 Washington St
Thursday, Nov. 7
Picture Day at 25 Arlington St
Tuesday, Dec. 10
Winter Concert I - K1, K2, Abreu and Bernstein Orchestras
Thursday, Dec. 19
Winter Concert II - Ives Winds, Abbado and Dudamel Orchestras
Both held at the Benjamin Franklin Institute, 3:30 PM
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| Conservatory Lab
Grades 3 - 7
25 Arlington Street
Brighton, MA 02315
617.254.8904 Grades K1 - 2 320 Washington Street Brighton, MA 02315
617.208.6200
www.conservatorylab.org |
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| Family Notes
October 25, 2013
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Dear Families,
Having the word "Lab" as part of the school's name expresses our commitment to disseminate best practices and create resources for other schools. This week has been a showcase for that. Teachers, administrators and students were out in the greater community demonstrating what we mean by saying that at our school with the unique blend of two remarkable programs - Expeditionary Learning and El Sistema - our students are demonstrating that they can justifiably be called citizens, artists and scholars.
Production of two more examples of outstanding student products were completed this week - a true or false book about the universe entitled "What's Out There?" prepared by last year's 4 th grade class and a groundbreaking audio e-book on snakes prepared and narrated by last year's 2nd grade class. Also the music videos of our students playing at the various concerts which are on YouTube, several of which were presented to national audiences this week, continue to have hundreds of viewers and to receive high critical acclaim.
These activities make my heart burst with joy because Conservatory Lab has the ability and responsibility to be a resource center for other schools, beyond the greater Boston area, who are choosing an arts based curriculum - indeed, this is included in the school's mission. Many thanks to all of you who work so hard and so effectively to make this happen.
Have a wonderful week-end.
Warmly,
Diana Lam
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Fifth Graders Climb the Blue Hills
On Friday, 5th graders climbed to the summit of the Blue Hills to visit the oldest continuously operated weather observatory in the nation. This is the first stop as part of their Heating Up, Chilling Out Expedition. This fall, they will explore the most pressing environmental issue of our time: climate change. Students are investigating how atmospheric scientists measure and track weather over time to determine whether, how, and why our climate is changing. Once they are familiar with the science concepts and the types of work involved in climate change, the students will work in teams to take on the roles of real life scientists and activists as part of a Climate Summit.
The class, along with several parent and teacher chaperones, first received a presentation about the weather instruments at the Observatory and learned how observers record and analyze the weather. They took notes using a study guide to help prepare them to make their own weather instruments back at school.
Next, the 5th graders participated in a kite making workshop. They learned the history of kites and their use at the Observatory. The students were able to bring their kites home/back to school. The visit ended with a tour of the facility and students were able to see old and new instruments including thermometers, barometers and other tools to measure humidity, precipitation and snow fall. For several students, the best part was the view from the top. "We could see New Hampshire!" exclaimed Emmanuel DeJeanlouis.
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The Abbado Orchestra, led by Resident Artist Josh Garver, is a string orchestra comprised of students in the 3rd through the 6th grade. As an orchestra, the group focuses on reinforcing instrumental fundamentals as well as creating a culture within the rehearsal space that inspires their best work. These musicians have recently been working on how they hold their instrument and use their bow in order to create the best sound possible with a variety of different bow strokes and dynamic levels. They have been directly applying these concepts to their repertoire this semester: Apollo Suite, a multi-movement work by Merle J. Isaac and Burst! by Brian Balmages. The Abbado Orchestra is a group that aims to perform their music confidently and at a high level and looks forward to demonstrating all they have learned in their first performance in December!
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Take Back the Kitchen: Breakfast Edition
On Wednesday, 7th graders along with ELA teacher Mr. Gentile and Science teacher Ms. Dwyer travelled to Haley House Soup Kitchen and Food Pantry in the South End to participate in the first of three planned "Take Back The Kitchen", classes designed by chef educators to empower students with culinary skills and health education, enabling them to make healthy and sustainable food decisions that combat health disparities in urban communities.
 The students worked with Chef Reva and her assistant Melanie to make a healthy breakfast from scratch. First they all worked together to make granola and discussed the relative (de)merits of different types of sugars including the honey and molasses used in the recipe. Next, they all got a lesson in knife skills in preparation for a massive fruit salad. To these two elements, they added plain greek yogurt for a healthy and delicious parfait. They put those knife skills back to work on tomatoes and other ingredients for a healthy version of a popular breakfast sandwich - eggs, tomato, kale, cheese and spinach on an english muffin. Students learned about food and kitchen safety while being encouraged to taste everything. They can't wait to go back in two weeks to make lunch!  This fieldwork experience is part of the first 7th grade Expedition, Time to Eat: Slowing Down the Fast Food Frenzy. Through a close reading of Eric Schlosser's Chew On This: Everything You Don't Want to Know About Fast Food, 7th graders learn about the history of the fast-food industry in the United States and how it both feeds and feeds off of young people. Topics include the effects of fast food on the human body, the working conditions of fast-food restaurant workers, and how industrial farming mass produces the animals used in fast-food meals. Through their cooking lessons and fieldwork at Haley House, students learn about efforts to counteract the impact of fast food on our communities. Students interview and interact with culinary experts to help create healthy alternatives to fast-food meals.
 In science, they are learning about the chemistry of food and will use their understanding of the science of nutrition, matter, and energy to determine the nutritional labels for the recipes they create. In humanities, students are looking at food through the lens of cultural anthropologists and exploring how spices and other food resources drove early explorations around the globe. For a final product, students will create a cookbook of healthy recipes that documents their experiences creating healthy foods and the benefits of taking time to prepare and to eat nutritious, homemade meals.
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First Spring Fling Organizational Meeting Coming Up
Plans are about to get underway for Conservatory Lab Charter School's most successful annual event.
What: The school's biggest concert and showcase of the year
Where: Likely The Strand Theater in Dorchester but perhaps another??
When: April or May date TBD
Why: To showcase our students and their music and raise money and awareness for the school.
Please join us in launching new committees. We need your help!
· Steering Committee
· Silent Auction Committee
· Solicitations Committee
· Event Production Committee
· Day-of-Event Volunteers Committee
The first planning meeting will take place at the KROC Center, 650 Dudley St. Boston, MA 02125 on Saturday, November 9th at 2 PM.
Please let us know if you can attend.
Enthusiastically yours,
Beth Greene beth.greene@comcast.net and Casimir Deronette cderonette@gmail.com
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Teachers and Administrators Present at Two National Conferences
 This week saw several of the Conservatory Lab members away from the school showing videos and sharing information on the exemplary work being done here. At the Art Schools Network's Annual Conference in New York City on Tuesday Head of School Diana Lam and Resident Artist Chris Schroeder presented: Starting and Sustaining an Arts School, Pre-K to 8th Models of Excellence.
Two days later, at the same conference, Director of External Relations, Marketing & Communications, Cecilia Soriano presented Communicating Academic Value - Aligning the Arts with the Common Core Standards.
At the Expeditionary Learning National Conference 2013 in Atlanta, Jenna Gampel, 2nd grade teacher, presented on the most recent product her students have prepared. It is a narrative non-fiction e-book which exemplifies how to teach the process of research and writing. The topic again is snakes, but presented in a most absorbing, impactful manner.
At both conferences the goal is to highlight the accomplishments made by the member schools and to provide dynamic examples of the kind of teaching and learning that is taking place out in the field. These conferences offer opportunities to meet other professional educators dedicated to breakthrough approaches in the Arts and in Expeditionary Learning and to share experiences and ideas. Timely issues are addressed by experts and teachers who are helping students achieve deeper learning outcomes: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and an artistic or academic mindset through the mastery of core content and skill in each discipline. It must be noted that now more than ever the focus is on rigor, character and performance, on students as leaders of their own learning and on the value of preparing excellent products or performances.
The participants at both conferences were very impressed with the caliber of work which our students are doing both in academics and in music.
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Get Ready for the Bookfair!
Our Fall Book Fair will be open from Monday, November 4th until Friday, November 8th from 8:30am-5:00pm at 25 Arlington Street, on the 2nd floor.
Parents can volunteer for a full shift or a portion:
Set up - Sunday, November 3rd @ 9:30am
Monday thru Friday
8:30-11 am
11 am-2:30 pm
2:30 pm-5 pm
Parents with students at 320 Washington Street may choose to chaperone their classroom field trip to the book fair. They should just check in with their teachers for the day/time they are coming to the fair.
Parents can sign up on Volunteer Spot or contact Felice Rutstein directly:
1. Click on this link to go to our invitation page on VolunteerSpot: http://vols.pt/kYCi37
2. Enter your email address: (You will NOT need to register an account on VolunteerSpot)
Thanks for supporting our school!!!
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