Tomorrow is the Winter solstice, the shortest day and the longest night of the year. Nature has a way of telling us that this is a time for quiet, for introspection and for reflection. It is a time to think of all we have done, why we have done it and to reflect on how those activities have moved us forward on our journey to be the best that we can be. How closely did we come to fulfilling all that of which we are capable?

Life can be filled with so many moving parts - people, things, activities, noise (some of it discordant) and lots of related emotions - which make it seem like a hurly-burly rumpus and we can lose focus and clarity. Who are we, what are our values, what do we do and why?

So a period of time to stop and reflect, to identify what is really important to us is critical to our peace of mind and self-direction. We need to sift through what we could have done better, to know who we love and for whom we wish to show love and respect, and what we want to celebrate doing so we can gather energy during this quiet, peaceful time to continue to go forward in our quest to achieve excellence.

This quiet time is like the silence between the notes, the still moment in a dance, the white space in a painting; it helps us to hear the music, see the dance and understand the image on the canvas.

My best wishes to you for happy and harmonious holidays!

Warmly,

Ms. Lam

Diana Lam

Winter Concert II - a Standing Ovation

On Thursday, we again filled the South End with the sounds of beautiful music. This time our student musicians in grades 3 to 7 showed off their skills and their hard work in an astonishing array of ensembles.

The Dudamel Brass led by Resident Artist Chris Schroeder set the seasonal stage with a specially arranged Deck the Halls Fanfare played across the top of the hall from balcony to balcony. Not to be outdone, the younger, Abbado Wind players answered with a Heroes March.

Our intermediate Abbado String Orchestra led by Resident Artist Josh Garver then took the stage. They played the Scherzo from M.J. Isaac's Apollo Suite and then the traditional English folk tune, Greensleeves demonstrating their expressive playing and their smooth bow strokes. The orchestra finished with Burst! by Brian Balmages. Just as the name suggests, we saw fireworks while the students played.

Following the strings, we brought out two new ensembles. Led by Resident Artist Juan Ruiz, our newly created Goodman Ensemble, made up of all our clarinetists played Mozart's Eine kleine Nachtmusik K.525 and a piece written by Mr. Ruiz, One More Time. Great acclaim for all!

Next, our new middle schoolers, under the direction of band leader and Resident Artist Clayton DeWalt, played Simple Gifts and When the Saints Go Marching In. The audience clapped along and then clapped some more as Mr. DeWalt reminded us that these were all beginning musicians. We are so proud of their progress!

Following these groups, we heard from our experienced Winds musicians as the Dudamel Winds played the beautiful Motet No. 6 by Titcomb. They were joined onstage by the Percussion Ensemble and then rocked the house with the Theme from I Dream of Jeannie, a great new addition to our repetoire and inspired by our Resident Artists' trip to Venezuela last April. Our combined Percussion Ensemble, led by Resident Artist Tess Plotkin, kept up the beat with Cadence 4.0 by Campanelli.

Last, but not least, the Dudamel Orchestra, led by El Sistema Co-Director Adrian Anantawan, took the stage to play Pachelbel's Canon in D and then ended the afternoon with the dynamic Raiders March, John Williams' theme from The Raiders of the Lost Ark. This song was dedicated to our departing middle school principal, Andres Cruz Torres. For this piece, almost all of our Resident Artists joined the orchestra as they performed without a conductor, demonstrating the advanced level of musicianship of our top group.

These musicians (and their directors) have earned their two week rest. We are so proud of all our student musicians!

Neighbor to Neighbor

As part of their Neighbor to Neighbor Expedition, 1st graders have been conducting Community Worker interviews all throughout Brighton. Earlier this fall they took a community walk and identified the places and people they wanted to include in their final product, a Welcome to the Neighborhood Class Book which will feature photographs and descriptions of how each helper contributes to the Brighton neighborhood.

In small groups, students became experts in their chosen neighborhood helper. Some chose to study firefighters, some chose the police or the librarians. There were groups focussing on doctors and nurses at St. Elizabeth's Hospital and some focussing on postal workers and restaurant workers. Last Thursday they began their interviews, armed with a list of questions specific to their subject and an iPad with which to record the interview so they could make sure not to forget any details.

Many groups were invited behind the scenes. For example, Liam and Johnathan got to see where mail carrier Matthew Robinson sorts the mail before he goes out to deliver it and Sarah and Joey got to feel how heavy a fire fighter's helmut really is. Every group learned at least one or two unexpected details of their subject's work such as how most bank managers work their way up from being a teller and what Jim does to take care of people with food allergies at his restaurant.

We look forward to creating and sharing this new book with our neighbors!

Tis The Season To Be Healthy

Here are some important health items to keep in mind as we all work together to keep all our students sound of mind and body.

I Bundle Up!

It is definitely winter now and very cold!!! Since we go outside each day to play, please ensure that your children come to school each morning with hats, gloves, boots, a warm coat, and scarves. These are a must!

Plimoth Plantation

II Eating Right

At Conservatory Lab, we do NOT celebrate with cupcakes and cakes and junk food. Outlined below are some delightful choices for healthy celebration snacks, at school and throughout this Holiday Season.

*Strawberry and banana slice kebobs

*Popcorn tossed with cranberries and raisins

*Graham crackers spread with cream cheese and strawberry jam mixture

*Thin slices of apple, topped with a small piece of cheese and wrapped with a thin slice of ham.

*Small cups of specialty fruits such as kiwi, melon, cantaloupe, grapes and pineapple.

Enjoying this type of savory treat prepares our students for a healthy lifestyle.

Happy Holidays!

parfaits

School Report Card

Earlier this week, we sent home a two-page overview of our school's "report card". The complete report card can be found here. Report cards answer important questions about a school's overall performance and contain specific information about student enrollment and teacher qualifications, student achievement, accountability, how a school is performing relative to other schools in the district and the state, and the progress made toward narrowing proficiency gaps for different groups of students.

In this report you will find the following important information about our school:

Student enrollment and teacher quality: This section of the report card provides information about the students and teachers in our school as compared to the district (we are our own district) and the state. Since Conservatory Lab receives federal Title I, you also have the right to request the following information about the qualifications of your child's classroom teachers:

Whether your child's teacher is licensed in the grade levels and subject areas they teach
Whether your child's teacher is teaching under an emergency license or waiver
The college degree and major of your child's teacher
Whether your child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, their qualifications

Student assessment on MCAS and other tests: This section of the report shows how our students are performing on the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) tests as compared to the district and the state.

School and district accountability information: This section of the report contains three important pieces of information:

Accountability and Assistance Levels: Schools and districts are placed into one of five accountability and assistance levels (1-5), with the highest performing in Level 1 and lowest performing in Level 5. Our school has been placed into Level 1 because we succeeded in meeting our proficiency gap-narrowing goals.
School Percentiles: A school percentile between 1 and 99 is reported for most schools. This number shows the overall performance of our school relative to other schools that serve the same or similar grades. Our school percentile is 56. This means that our school is performing higher than 56 percent of the elementary schools in the state.
Progress and Performance Index (PPI): The PPI is a number that indicates our school's progress toward narrowing proficiency gaps, or, in other words, helping all students reach proficiency and be prepared for success after high school. Massachusetts has set a goal of reducing proficiency gaps by half between the years 2011 and 2017. For a group of students to be considered to be making sufficient progress toward narrowing proficiency gaps, its cumulative PPI must be 75 or higher.

We encourage you to become involved in helping us improve our school. Some of the ways you can become involved are:

Encouraging your child's learning at home
Attending parent-teacher meetings and other special meetings
Serving as a volunteer in our school or district
Encouraging other parents to become involved

For more information about our school's report card or to request information about the qualifications of your child's classroom teachers, please feel free to contact us at 617-254-8904.

School Calendars For Sale

Every year the school creates a calendar which serves as a reminder of the achievements and performances of the past year and as our Annual Report full of information about the school. This year's calendar is a beautiful testament to the power of education and music and is filled with the faces of our children.

The calendars will be for sale at $10 each at every school event: PAC meetings and concerts but you can also send your student in with money and a note any time (the orders can be brought to the front desk at each building) and we will send them home the next day with the number of calendars you would like.

Special Offer From the Blue Heron Renaissance Choir

Scott Metcalfe directs the renowned Boston-based ensemble Blue Heron in three concerts near the Solstice this weekend. "Christmas in Medieval England", a program of carols, motets & plainchant for Advent & Christmas from 15th-century England, begins dramatically, in candlelit darkness under the golden glow of First Church's domed chancel.

Location: First Church in Cambridge, 11 Garden St.

Harvard (Red Line) / FREE parking (with validation) is also available.

The church is fully handicap accessible

For more information, visit Blue Heron.

Free tickets are available to Conservatory Lab families for the matinee performance on December 21st at 2:30 PM. Simply mention "Conservatory Lab" and tickets will be held under your name at the door.

To reserve your FREE tickets (limit of 4), call 617-960-7956,

or email office@blueheronchoir.org