Is Latin Dead? A Contrario!by PETER FRUMKIN, Park Parent Editorial Board

volume 48 number 2

a publication

of the park

school parents’

association

WINTER 2015

in this issue:

learninG throuGh

plaY // 2

enGineerinG DesiGn

coach // 3

pa as Vc funD // 4

ask Dr. o // 9

arounD the

librarY // 10

The Park Parent

Katie Reardon just was entering middle school

when her father told her she had to study Latin.

She already spoke Spanish and didn’t think she

needed another language. “He was adamant,” Katie said. “He knew that it was beneficial

in so many ways between helping my English and expanding my language skills beyond the modern languages.” And he stressed that there was a lot of culture and history that comes with the study of this ancient tongue.

Katie fell in love with it. She studied Latin all the way through high school. In college she majored in Classics. Then she went

continued on page 6

In the 1930’s, when Park drawing

teacher Louise Ames Norman

designed the School’s logo, she

chose the image of a tree to exemplify

Park’s commitment to “Simplicity

and Sincerity.” In 1971 when The Park School moved to Goddard Avenue, Head of School Bob Hurlbut adopted the large tree near the main athletic field as a reflection of the School’s charter. So it’s no surprise earlier this year, when the front entrance to the School was being

redesigned, that the administration had the idea of somehow including a tree. In the hands of the Parents’

The Park Community Treeby HARLyN AIZLEy, Park Parent Editorial Board

continued on page 7

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 3The Park Parent // PAGE 2

As my child finishes up her ninth year at Park and heads off to high school next year, I can’t help but reminisce about those early years and how important they are

to navigating the older grades, getting along in the world, and learning how to make transitions in life. The wonderful journey that is The Park School begins with Pre-K and Kindergarten.

Park’s Pre-K teachers, Betsy Platt and Hilary Fabre, are respectively in their 27th and 28th years at Park. The four- and five-year olds they taught at the beginning of their careers are now in their early thirties! That’s a lot of early childhood education practice.

“This age is all about magical things,” Betsy, a former costume designer, reflects. “They love dressing up, finger painting, playing with dinosaurs. They have that sense of wonder and openness,” says Hilary, who worked at Harvard’s Child Care Center early in her career. “They’re absolutely joyful and our job is to protect that sacred state of wonder.”

Betsy and Hilary build a sense of community in Pre-K guided by the responsive classroom concept, a research-based approach to education that is associated with greater teacher effectiveness, higher student achievement, and improved school climate (https://www.responsiveclassroom.org). “It requires a lot of improvisation!” notes Hilary. From Pre-K plays to sing-a-longs in the “race around” with Pre-K Associate, Patricia Espinoza, there’s a lot of “behind-the-scenes teaching work” being done to make the community a cozy, smaller space within the larger Park School. Yet, the proximity to older students is a real benefit to these young children. As they interact with students in Grades I, III, and V, they learn to listen, respect others, give compliments, clean up, care for

each other, and use words to negotiate their world. To the passing eye, it may just look like a lot of play, yet teachers are consistently embedding math concepts, encouraging inventive spelling, and gently guiding childrens’ explorations.

Parents visit the classrooms to talk about what they do for work, which introduces children to a wide range of topics in social studies, science, and math. The children spend time outdoors as well, building fairy houses and exploring nature. A love of science and inquiry comes naturally at this age and teachers find many ways to give them tactile learning experiences as well as lots of decoding for reading.

While much of the process of teaching four- and five-year olds hasn’t changed over the past decades, diversity education stands out as a key component of the curriculum that has evolved and continues to be a work in progress. Along with the School becoming more self-aware, “mirrors” for children are used to explore socioeconomic, family formation, cultural, and race differences. Both Betsy and Hilary echo each other, “We all need to embrace this change and try to imbue some of that same sense of wonder that is wired in young children.”

As if by magic as I was writing this piece, I came across a post on Facebook by Kindergarten teacher Leah Dunn Rossi:

“Sometimes kids remind me of the most important things...Me(looking at our class picture) “I don’t like the way I look in this picture”Kid “It doesn’t matter how you look, it matters how you love.”

Out of the mouths of babes…

Early Childhood Education at Park by ANNE HARVEy KILbURN, Park Parent Editorial Board

LEARNING THROUGH PLAY

Pre-Kindergarteners with teachers Hilary Fabre, Betsy Platt and Pre-K Associates Elizabeth Jansen and Patricia Espinosa on a recent fall day

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 3The Park Parent // PAGE 2

In her article, Making Sense of the World, teacher-scientist-author Shirley Malcom writes,

“If people are shaped by their experiences—and I believe they are—then all of my experiences as a scientist and as a parent have convinced me that science, mathematics, and technology matter for young children because they matter to young children. As children set the table, match their socks, or reach for their jackets, boots, and mittens on a snowy day; as they learn to cook or play with bath toys, they amass experiences that set them up for the punch line. And the punch line is this: We live in a world that is governed by rules, where some outcomes are predictable, where knowledge can be uncovered, where questions can be asked and answered.” Citing decades of research and curriculum work conducted

by the National Council on Science and Technology Education, Malcom asserts that to thrive and contribute to our increasingly scientific and technological world, children will need a solid understanding of how the world works and how we humans have come to know what we know. Just as important as the ability to acquire useful knowledge is the ability and inclination to apply that knowledge in new contexts to solve problems.

With this as the backdrop, I am very pleased to announce the creation of a new position at The Park School, the Engineering Design Coach. Having successfully completed the Science Challenge in 2014—a fundraising drive under the umbrella of the Park21 strategic plan—funds were very generously given by the Lynch Foundation and matched by a group of equally generous donors to support and grow Park’s science curriculum. The end result was an initiative to bring a strong applied science and engineering arc to Park’s already strong science curriculum. Over the past two years, robotics was introduced in nearly all grades, in short but impactful units. Now, I am proud to announce the creation of the Engineering Design Coach position to further realize these ambitious and exciting goals.

What is “engineering design,” you may ask? While many of us think of “design” as belonging to the visual or decorative arts, it actually describes a very important movement in education, as well as in many different fields including business. Design in the educational world encompasses engineering (how things work),

organization (how things are structured), presentation (how things are organized visually and presented technologically), and interdisciplinary composition (how different subject areas work together and feed off one another.) Design as a concept forms the basis for the innovation labs which are sprouting up in classrooms from Kindergartens to universities. Engineering design focuses specifically on applied science curriculum, creating synergy among disciplines, perhaps most obviously between math and an ever-expanding palette of technological tools. We are excited to be leaning into this interdisciplinary realm, providing a more connected way for our students to use and absorb what they are learning in math, science, and technology.

Innovative engineering design experiences are authentic, real-world challenges designed for creative problem-solving. At Park, we will steer the students’ design challenges toward the realm of social responsibility, solving problems that help others, and fostering empathy in our students as citizens of a larger world. Age-appropriate design challenges will target effective communication, interpersonal intelligence, self-management of both time and materials, original problem-solving, various technologies, and grit. Grit and determination will be especially important as students move through the process of identifying a challenge, generating potential solutions, designing and testing their hypotheses, and most importantly, working through failures and refinements. Engineering design work is empowering for both students and teachers. While it places teachers in a facilitative role where answers are often unknown, it also positions students to become confident innovators who can work and think critically, creatively, and collaboratively. In addition, the powerful connections students make through the design thinking process engages them both mentally and physically in their own learning, leading to a greater ability to retain and apply newly-developed

Science Challenge Results in Creation of Engineering Design Coach at Park by MICHAEL RObINSON, Head of School

continued on page 8

HEAD’S LINES

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 5The Park Parent // PAGE 4

Many of us contribute hours helping the Park School Parents’ Association (PA)—a vibrant community of volunteers made up of 22 committees dedicated to

helping make Park a better place for students, teachers, and parents. We are often asked “Where do the funds we raise in the PA go and how do they help the School?” Funds are thoughtfully allocated across four broad initiatives that are aligned with the PA mission: 1) Student Support; 2) Faculty Support; 3) Parent Support; 4) Community Building.

STUDENT SUPPORTAt 38 percent of the PA’s overall budget, funding for Student Support is the largest category of PA expenditures and supports new and exciting initiatives that enrich students’ experiences at Park. There are three types of grants for Student Support, for which Faculty are required to apply:

Leaf Grants are small, one-time support for ideas and/or materials for an individual classroom, an event, an extracurricular activity or the community.

Acorn Grants support a “seed” of an idea and/or an innovation that a faculty/staff member would like to try. These grants are meant to be exploratory in nature.

Branch Grants support innovations that “branch out” across classrooms, grades, divisions and/or departments to create powerful collaborations and learning. Some acorn grants may grow into branch grants.

Faculty at Park value having a source of flexible funding to support their new ideas to enrich teaching and learning. Often, these ideas pop up mid-year, and if not for PA funding, would not be considered until the Administration’s next annual budgeting cycle. The PA funding enables more flexibility and quick adjustments to opportunities that benefit students that can make a big difference in the classroom. If these new initiatives have measured impact, they may subsequently be rolled into Park’s administrative budget, given the PA does not fund ongoing classroom programs.

A terrific example of a “Branch Grant” that the PA recently approved is to purchase Kibo Robotics Kits for the lower and middle divisions. Lower Division Head Kimberly Formisano remarks, “The PA funding allowed us to provide developmentally appropriate opportunities for students to use coding skills while incorporating the concepts of Design Thinking into the curriculum.”

ExAmPLES Of fY 2015 PA-fUNDED GRANTS fOR STUDENT SUPPORT

Grant Students Benefited Funding Provided

Fly Guy Performance

at Berklee School of

Music

Grade I $530

First Lego League Grades IV-VIII $2,400

“Physical Changes in

Matter” classroom

program

Grade IV $860

French class trip to

the MFA

Grade VII $540

Math Department

Speaker Jo Boaler

from Stanford/

YouCubed

All grades $3,200

….and many more!

fACULTY SUPPORTAt 22 percent of the PA’s overall budget, funding for Faculty Support is the next largest category of expenditures and is designed to help support professional development for Faculty, and to ensure community appreciation and celebration of our incredibly talented Faculty and Staff.

Each year, a Faculty member at Park is awarded the Horizon Grant, which is a professional development award that the PA and Park co-fund every year. Last year, Kathy Coen, an Upper Division English Teacher, used the grant to finance her “literary pilgrimage” to England. Kathy said, “I went to rediscover and further explore

The Park PA: A Mini “VC Fund” for Great School Initiativesby LAURA bARKAN, PA President-elect and JEN EIELSON , PA Treasurer

PARENTS’ ASSOCIATION

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 5The Park Parent // PAGE 4

the land and culture of the writers’ lives and their roots in terms of London as a city of ideas and traditions. Highlights for me were my explorations of archives, portraiture, house museums, and the modern literary scene.”

A wonderful PA tradition is to fund and host the Faculty & Staff Luncheon every May Day in the Dining Room. Committee members choose a theme, and Faculty are treated to an inspired celebration in their honor. Last year’s team created a Cinco de Mayo experience complete with a Mariachi Band! Additionally, Faculty are treated to monthly breakfasts and recognized for important milestones.

PARENT SUPPORTThe PA also contributes six percent of its overall budget toward enriching the Parent body in two primary ways—via the PA Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee (DE&I) and the All School Evenings and Parent Forums. The PA is offering two DE&I programs this Fall—Color Brave Parenting in November, and Parenting in the Age of Gender Fluidity in December.

Every year, we consider new ways to support parents. This year, for example, as part of the evening Parent forums to meet Liza Talusan (Park’s new Director of DE&I) the PA paid for babysitting to enable more parents to attend the evening discussion. During the 2014-2015 academic year, the PA sponsored speaker Catherine Steiner-Adair, EdD to join us for an All School Evening and discussion on stress and anxiety in our kids. Most recently, the PA funded the Middle Division’s Digital Citizenship Curriculum by purchasing the book The Big Disconnect: Protecting Childhood and Family Relationships in the Digital Age by Catherine Steiner-Adair

for every Middle Division family. COMMUNITY BUILDING Fifteen percent of the PA budget goes to important community building activities such as the New Parent Dinners, hosted at the Robinson’s home, Grade-specific parent dinners (often called

“winter warm-ups”), and hospitality during school events (such as Grandparents’ Day and Yule Festival).

Of course, community building work also represents the largest “chunk” of how we as PA volunteers spend our time. In other words—it’s the “sweat equity” that we all put in to hosting great events that make the Park community feel connected, supportive and a great place to be. There are two “categories” of community building activities that the PA organizes:

• Fundraising: The largest community building event and fundraiser at Park is Springfest, Park’s Community Day of Play, featuring the Springfest Auction. During the past two years, we have added fun new events funded by the Springfest Auction, including Bingo Night (MC’d by Michael Robinson himself ) and the Skating Night at Larz Anderson. Thanks to the incredible dedication of Park parents and their generous participation in Springfest and the auction, the PA is able to host these events while raising funds for the PA.

• Community Service: Working with the administration to plan hands-on service projects for students, this PA committee coordinates the annual Chop-a-Thon and Birthday-in-a-Box events as well as the Cradles to Crayons clothing drive and the Pine Street Inn food drive, to name a few.

AH, YES WE HAVE OPERATIONAL EXPENSES!Of course, to help us achieve these four primary funding goals of the PA, we do incur operational and outreach expenses. For example, the PA funds a portion of The Park Parent, the school newsletter that highlights academic, extracurricular, social, and fundraising activities at The Park School.

In addition, the PA is pleased to offer one-time funding for special expenses such as the beautiful Park Community Tree Installation in the front entrance, and gifts from Park Apparel to promote school spirit.

THANK YOU!The PA is deeply grateful for the contributions of the entire Park community that enable great initiatives benefiting the students, faculty, staff, and parents. The PA would also like to give a special thank you to Minnie Ames ’86, past PA Treasurer, who dedicated hours to helping us build a financially robust budget that fully aligns with the PA mission.

PA EXPENDITURES FY2016: $76,000

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 7The Park Parent // PAGE 6

Association that idea soon became the shimmering brass, bronze, and aluminum community tree greeting us in the front foyer.

The contribution is uniquely in keeping with the mission of the Parents’ Association whose goal is to foster and support parent and community engagement at Park. “The PA tries hard to create gestures of support and to be physically present in the building,” says Katie McWeeny former president of the PA. It was the dream of Katie and the PA to contribute something to the new front lobby that would welcome people to the school and let visitors know as soon as they approached Park the sense of community at the School’s core. Most importantly, the PA wanted to send a message to every staff and faculty member, every student and family, that once they walk through the doors of the School they are part of the Park community and that that community is very inclusive.

So what better symbol of inclusion than a tree and who better to create the tree than a member of the Park community? The Artist Blacksmith responsible for the spectacular hand-forged tree now at home in the front entranceway is none other than Dave Little, brother of current Park Athletic Director Bob Little, and the son, grandson, cousin, and nephew of several Park School alumni. Dave and his team at Winnipesaukee Forge had been making donor recognition trees for several years, but the Park School tree marked their first “family” tree, an all-inclusive tree designed to provide the most gracious of welcomes.

“Every staff and faculty member, every student family has a leaf with their name on it so they can walk in and see they’re a part of this community,” says Katie.

As with a real tree, each year some leaves will change as departing student families, faculty, and staff take their leaf with them as a memory of their time at Park, and every new student family, faculty, and staff adds their leaf to the tree.

That meant in the 2015-2016 academic year approximately 575 leaves would adorn the tree. And that meant the Park tree needed to be big. In fact, the Park tree needed to be the biggest tree Dave and Winnipesaukee Forge ever made.

With the new entrance still under construction, Dave and the PA worked together with Kimberly Boyd, Assistant Head of School for Finance & Operations, and the School’s architects to envision a place for a Park Community Tree. Several sites were discussed before the group settled on the inside of the vestibule, just left of the main entrance, a location large enough to hold the tree and also one that would allow visitors to see the tree from the outside. Time and consideration were given to the type and color

of tile for the wall to best make the tree stand out. That plus the choice of multi-colored leaves and the careful positioning of the tree, all contribute to the magical indoor/outdoor feel of the front entryway, where day and night, natural and indoor light reflect off the leaves with a twinkle.

The ever-changing leaves of the Park Community Tree resemble the lifescycle of a real tree. And like a natural tree, the Park Community Tree will require upkeep in the form of newly engraved leaves. Katie estimates each year about 100 leaves will change. The PA is committed to keeping the tree “alive” through PA fundraisers such as Springfest. Plans are being considered to formalize the presentation and removal of leaves with a ceremony, and a permanent plaque offering a brief explanation of the tree’s origins is being engraved.

If you haven’t yet found your leaf or the leaf of someone you care about, spend a moment in the front entryway. You won’t smell tree sap but you will likely be infused with the sense of community and belonging that inspired this tree.

Park Community Tree, continued from page 1

Yuletide UpdateThanks to the tremendous generosity of so many Park School families, parent participation in this year’s Annual Fund is now over 55%! Thank you for your enduring, generous support of The Park School.

If you have not yet had the opportunity to make an Annual Fund gift this year, please consider doing so this holiday season. Not only is your gift tax-deductible, it supports everything that makes Park exceptional – excellence in teaching and learning, vibrant diversity, robust financial aid, and a close-knit inclusive community that supports each and every child. As always, every single gift makes a tremendous difference and is important to our school. To make your contribution, you may talk with a parent volunteer, call Jessica Conaway, Associate Director of Development, at 617-274-6019, or go online at www.parkschool.org/give.

Thank you and happy holidays!

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 7The Park Parent // PAGE 6

to law school. But after a few years as a practicing lawyer and the birth of her daughter, she decided to come back to her first love. Now in her third year at the Park School she brings her enthusiasm for the ancient world to Park as it’s Latin teacher.

For Katie the study of Latin is about much more than just language. “I can see the pattern of events in western history. And, you know, when I see either really good things or really tragic things that are happening, it’s nice to be able to draw connections and sort of see it as just an ongoing timeline rather than just this terrible moment or wonderful moment.”

But for Katie and her students the first task is language. “This class is a great place to be if you love words.” That perspective informs her four-year Latin program from day one. From very early on students study derivatives—where words come from.

“We’re really looking at… whether a word began in Latin or came through another language,” Katie says. When [students] understand where a word came from, they’re more likely to use it.”

“Derivatives are really fun,” according to one student. “It really helps me to understand English better.”

But isn’t the study of Latin all about repetition, and the endless study of arcane cases? “We do do endless repetition. The students will tell you that first,” Katie agreed. “But in addition to that, I put a lot of emphasis on language output. I want them creating in Latin.”

That’s what sets Katie apart from many other teachers of Latin. Her students write Latin in a variety of very creative outlets designed to bring the language to life. Students create scrolls on which they can tell stories or talk about their interests. The rule is: No English on the scrolls. There is also a class website with Latin blog posts.

“We begin by writing very simple sentences about ourselves,” one student said.

“But it gets much more complicated pretty fast.”

One student wrote in Latin about the Boston Marathon. Another wrote about soccer. Some have tried to translate lyrics to their favorite songs.

Students also do a special project each year that brings together the study of Latin language and Roman culture. In Grade VI they focus on archeology by studying a family that lived in Pompeii at the time Mount Vesuvius erupted. In Grade VII they study architecture by examining buildings in the Roman Forum.

In Grade VIII each student focuses on a key person in the monarchy, the republic, or the empire—perhaps Julius Caeser, or Horatius, who defended Rome against Etrustcan invaders. Toward the end of the year students create a social media project on which they post messages written in the voice of their chosen Roman. “If that person were alive today—what would they be tweeting?” Katie asks. “What would they have on their Facebook page?”

“It’s a nice way for them to kind of become that person and feel a little bit more connected to the story that they’re telling. But it’s also great from the perspective of life skills, using social media and what’s appropriate, and what’s my voice, what would this person’s voice be?”

The big prize for Katie’s students comes in Grade IX with a trip to Roman Italy—to Rome, Sorrento, Pompeii, and Capri. They spend an entire year preparing for the trip. When the trip is done, they create a webpage about the places they’ve visited.

For Katie this is a very satisfying way to teach. “I like the stories. I like the buildings. So I get to share what I’m interested in.”

But she also knows that the study of Latin is about even bigger things. “I want them to learn Latin and I want them to learn history, but ultimately, if there’s a connection to today, in real life skills or thinking deeper about what’s happening around them, then I think that’s a lot more beneficial than whether they can decline a noun.”

Her approach seems to be working. An informal survey of Katie’s students found that they love the class. One student had originally signed up for another language but was convinced to take Latin instead at the last minute. “I’m really glad,” he said.

“I’m in my third year and it’s one of my favorite subjects. It’s about more than just language and it’s always been interesting.”

Katie Reardon, continued from page 1

Grade VI scholars creating in Latin Grade IX students enjoyin a Roman holiday Katie Reardon displays a Latin scroll

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 9The Park Parent // PAGE 8

skills in a variety of authentic contexts.In short, design thinking asks students

to look for opportunities to improve the world around them, create prototypes, run experiments, collect data, and iterate until success is reached.

Over the past two years, Park has piloted design thinking in the humanities, thanks to Park21 and a Peter Amershadian Faculty Leadership Grant. Faculty members Kimberly Formisano and Elaine Hamilton teamed up and were selected to receive a grant to pilot “PSITE,” or the Park School Institute for Transformative Education. In these past two years, PSITE has been piloted successfully in three grades, showing us the power of design thinking and paving the way for this new movement to grow at Park.

• Grade II students engaged in solving challenges around aging for elderly friends at the Sophia Snow House. The students interviewed senior citizens to learn about various physical challenges they face. After learning more about tools that help those who are older, students improved those tools with prototypes and then revised their creations to best help their new friends.

• Grade IV students engaged in analyzing sustainability challenges for The Park School environmental footprint, and felt empowered to cause significant change. They learned about Park’s many green initiatives and then created prototypes to advance additional ways for Park to become even more sustainable.

• Grade V students engaged in understanding and communicating the varied stories of modern immigration to the United States, impressing upon their audience that no two stories are the same. Students interviewed Park parents who had immigrated to the United States and then retold their stories in interactive and engaging displays that all interviewees were shown.

Through these three pilot experiences, lower and middle division Park students used design thinking principles to apply their critical thinking skills to people and places outside their classrooms. The success of these PSITE pilots will be extremely helpful in expanding design into engineering and science at Park.

I am very pleased to report that the position of Engineering Design Coach is being filled by our own Elaine Hamilton. True to the essence of Park21, we identified one of our best professionals at Park and are leveraging her considerable talent and supporting her growth. Her role will begin this January, where she will work closely with all of Park’s science teachers, plus with Director of Curriculum and Instruction Pamela Penna, to weave engineering design into the Pre-K to Grade IX science curriculum arc. It is envisioned that over time, as Elaine brings her strong background as a math teacher and current Math Department Head to the role, she will also increasingly draw math faculty members into the collaborative design process with science faculty.

Recently, Elaine and Kimberly gave

a presentation on their innovative PSITE work at the Summit for Transformative Learning, a conference in St. Louis. Upon her return, Elaine reflected on the conference presentations and on her new role as Park’s Engineering Design Coach. “As I listened to various presenters at the Summit, I heard again and again from school leaders who are changing the focus of their science classes. Students aren’t reading about science. They aren’t researching long-deceased scientists to find out about scientific laws and principles. Students are doing science to figure out that information on their own. Schools are leaning into interdisciplinary work as they combine math, science, and humanities. As Park creates this engineering design coaching role, we can say with confidence that this is the direction exemplary schools are taking and that Park is going to be on the leading edge of that wave.”

The creation of the Engineering Design Coach position is yet another remarkable, innovative benefit of the Park21 strategic initiatives. Those essential goals of Park21—teachers benefiting from coaching and collaboration; going outside of Park’s walls to learn best practices and bring them back to Park; finding and building teacher leaders within Park; and further strengthening our teaching of math, science and technology—are being achieved.

Engineering Design Coach, continued from page 3

Elaine Hamilton will assume the role of

Engineering Design Coach in January. She

will work closely with all of Park’s science

teachers, plus with Director of Curriculum

and Instruction Pamela Penna, to weave

engineering design into the Pre-K to Grade

IX science curriculum arc.

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 9The Park Parent // PAGE 8

I’m in a tricky situation that seems to require my help, but

I’m not sure what to do. When my “tween” daughter and her

friends have friendship problems during the day at school, I

experience the “fall out” of tears and angst at home. I know

that I’m only hearing her side of whatever has happened and

that misunderstandings in friendships are inevitable. How do

I help when this happens again?

you are right to anticipate that this will indeed happen again! For

many kids, one of the best parts of coming to school is spending time

with friends. When everyone is getting along, all is well. However,

when there are conflicts, the social waters can become murky and

require some navigation. It can be very difficult to see and hear your

daughter’s upset and not want to “fix it.”

As her parent, if she’s sharing all of this with you, it’s important that

you listen calmly, keeping in mind that most difficulties with friends

can and should be resolved by the children. Consider this practice

for the many complicated social situations that she will encounter

in the future. Listen to your daughter, offering feedback that helps

her think through the situation. Ask questions that demonstrate that

you are listening and seeking to understand both your daughter’s

perspective as well as the perspectives of the friend(s). be alert

for more serious concerns that might warrant some form of adult

intervention.

be aware that your daughter may not want your help with solving

the situation. Sometimes, listening is “just right” and can result in

just enough relief from venting the high emotions involved for your

daughter to determine the best path forward. Other times, it might

be helpful to nudge her thinking in one direction or another or to

ask how she might handle a similar situation differently in the future.

Know that it is less helpful for you to dictate a list of actual solutions.

you might also suggest that your child consider seeking out a teacher,

advisor, or other trusted adult at school if there are issues that might

be resolved in more “real time.” The goal is for your daughter to

emerge with increased confidence in her ability to problem solve and

to handle complicated social situations.

Keep the big picture in mind. you want your daughter to develop her

social acumen and to learn that building and maintaining friendships

require open communication, compromise, and risking that your

feelings might get hurt along the way. being a good friend also

requires that she be able to acknowledge if her words or actions

have hurt someone else. If so, the best salve for healing the hurt is

a sincere apology accompanied by behavior that reflects that she

meant what she said. Encourage your daughter to treat her friends as

she’d like to be treated. As a parent, urge your daughter to approach

relationships with friends with kindness, empathy, generosity, and

good humor. Even with the rough times, it’s worth it!

We’re a very busy family with two working parents.

Sometimes our work requires travel and this means some

adjustments for everyone. How do we handle this with our

children to make this more manageable? I'm noticing that

things can get really hectic and we're all a bit more frazzled!

Making family life work for everyone can require some "fancy

footwork." When there are lots of people, places and things involved,

a family calendar can become your best friend. It can also allow your

children to see what's coming and to have a good sense of what is

happening for each family member during the week.

Children love and thrive on routines and consistency. This doesn't

mean that life has to be totally the same and totally predictable all

the time. It does mean that life will be less stressful for them if it is

clear that there is enough of what they will need to make sure that

all is well. That means, when possible, let your children know when

you will be away and who will be responsible for taking care of

what they will need while you are away, e.g., getting to afterschool

activities, dinner time, bedtime routines. When possible, schedule

your work travel so that one of you is home when the other parent

must be away. Technology now makes it possible to be in touch in

virtual ways, so make use of FaceTime, Google Chat, Skype and other

such vehicles for being in touch.

Remember that children are generally quite resilient and will take

their cues from you. your calm reassurance that you are always

thinking about what they need and want to hear any concerns

that they may have about when you are away will help you to

better understand what will make these times easier. Creating

balance is easier said than done in all families. bypass the notion

that there is only one way to make life "good" and that you have

to be everywhere at once. you'll feel less stressed and so will your

children. When possible, engage your children in the planning,

looking over the calendar for the week ahead and thinking through

what everyone needs to be prepared, e.g., clothes and shoes for P.E.

or after school sports/activities. Plan for who will do the bedtime

routine and whether it will be in person or FaceTime. And, when

you're putting things on the calendar, don't forget to schedule

some fun times for everyone as well! Involving your children will

insure that they feel included in all of your plans and teach them an

important life skill at the same time.

What Do You Want To Know?

Ask Dr. O!By Olivia Moorehead-Slaughter, Psychologist

Have a question for Dr. O? Submit questions in the box in the

lobby or email MooreheadO@parkschool.org.

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 9

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 11The Park Parent // PAGE 10

Park librarians, Tory Lane and Christian Porter, joined a global community of learners for the 11th IBBY

Regional Conference in New York City. IBBY (International

Board on Books for Young People, ibby.org) is an organization

which represents an global network of people who are committed

to bringing books and children together. The organization’s mission

includes promoting international understanding through children’s

books, and giving children everywhere the opportunity to have

access to books with high literary and artistic standards.

Ms. Lane’s highlight: The first night of opening speeches included

a keynote address by IBBY president Wally de Doncker. His

welcoming remarks were actually a call to arms. He spoke pas-

sionately about the vital importance of literacy in our fractured

world and about how the right book in a child’s hand at the right

time can change everything. The IBBY Children in Crisis Fund

helps children affected by natural disasters, civil disorder or war by

replacing or creating libraries of appropriate children’s books. The

intersection of social justice and literacy is an interest of mine, and

Mr. de Doncker’s speech rekindled my passion. (See page 11 about

Park’s participation with The Mother Tongue book project)

Mr. Porter’s highlight: I met the great Brazilian children’s book

author and illustrator Roger Mello! Roger Mello is the most

recent winner of the Hans Christian Andersen Award, the most

distinguished prize in children’s literature, often referred to as the

“Little Nobel Prize” since winners are chosen from around the world.

Amazingly, the works of Roger Mello are not available in the U.S.,

nor have they been translated into English. I was lucky to acquire

one of his wordless picture books for the library—Selvagem. It is an

extraordinary book that I know children (and parents) will enjoy.

FOUND IN TRANSLATION

The USBBY Outstanding International Books List for Children

(usbby.org) is published yearly with the hope that “by highlighting

outstanding international literature, readers will demand more of it.”

Selection criteria include:

• Books that represent the best of children’s literature from

other countries

• Books that introduce readers in the United States to outstand-

ing authors and illustrators from other countries

• Books that help children in the United States see the world

from other points of view

Each year, the Park Library acquires many of the honored books.

Here are a few recent favorites:

Surprise by Mies van Hout

(The Netherlands)

A heart-warming picture

book that captures the universal tale of parenting

through vibrantly illustrated one-word spreads.

(PreK-Grade II)

Two Parrots by Rashin (Iran)

An outstanding illustrator from Iran brings her colorful

and lively art to this contemporary translation of a classic

tale from thirteenth-century poet and theologian Rumi.

(PreK-Grade II)

My Heart Is Laughing by Rose Lagercrantz

Illus. by Eva Eriksson. Trans. by Julia Marshall (Sweden)

This boisterous early chapter book confirms Sweden’s

international reputation for outstanding contributions to

children’s literature. (Grades I–III)

The Library

Around

WINTER 2015 // PAGE 11The Park Parent // PAGE 10

Macanudo by Liniers

trans. by Mara lethem (Argentina)

Liniers is the “Charles Schulz of Argentina,” and this

collection of comic strips finally brings the talented

humorist to English-speaking (and reading!) audiences.

(Grades IV & up)

The Migrant by Jose Manuel Mateo

illus. by Javier Martinez pedro

trans. by emmy smith ready (Mexico)

A Mexican boy tells of his journey to the U.S. with

his family. The narrative is accompanied by strikingly

detailed illustrations, designed as an accordion-style

foldout frieze. (Grades V & up)

I Love I Hate I Miss My Sister

by amélie sarn. trans. by Y. Maudet (France)

Sarn adeptly explores contemporary cultural and reli-

gious issues in this novel about two Muslim sisters who

choose very different paths of self-expression.

(Grades VII & up)

PARK’S INTERNATIONAL OUTREACH THROUGH BOOKS

The Matenwa School in Haiti has developed a publish-

ing project called Mother Tongue books. Working with

schools (many in the boston area), Chris Low, co-founder

of the school, works to create a cross-cultural exchange

through books.

In 2012, Tory Lane and brian Cassie collaborated with

third graders to create four books about snow. Facili-

tated by a PA grant, these books were translated into

Creole and printed for the students of The Matenwa

School. In the spring of 2015, we learned that our books

were selected to be part of a wider distribution project

across Haiti.Tory Lane, brian Cassie, and Liza Talusan are

now planning another series of nonfiction books for the

Mother Tongue project.

students at the Matenwa school reading snow books

written by park Grade iii (class of 2018) students.

Parking sPace ads are free!Contact Kate LaPine by phone (617-274-6009), or e-mail (communications@parkschool.org). The deadline for the Spring issue is Friday, February 12th.

Volunteers needed!501c3 charity with mission to support orphaned and vulnerable children and their families in Tanzania is looking for individuals eager to help a beautiful cause. Opportunities for fundraising, event planning, grant writing, and directorship responsibilities. Visit www.foreverangelsusa.org or contact Caroline for more information: caroline@foreverangelsusa.org / 617.981.0986

The Park School

PARKING SPACE

Grandparents’ & Special Friends’ Day 2015

Videos Available Online Videos of Grandparents’ Day and Yule Festival

performances and school plays are available for free.

(Log into the Park website and search for the performance

on the “Featured News” tab. You can download it and

burn your own CD.) Questions? Please contact Carole

Carter. carterc@parkschool.org

Photos Available OnlinePlease visit our online photo gallery to view hundreds of

photos from the day: https://parkschool.smugmug.com/

Public-for-Park/Grandparents-Day-2015-/

You can also purchase prints from this site. If you have any

questions about ordering photographs, please contact the

Alumni Office at alumni@parkschool.org

The Park School171 Goddard Avenuebrookline, MA 02445617-277-2456

Winter 2015

The Park Parent

UPCOMING DATES OF NOTE

Read The Park Parent online at www.parkschool.org

The Park Parenteditor:

TC HALDI

editorial board chair:

STANLEy SHAW

Director of communcations:

KATE LaPINE

editorial board:

HARLyN AIZLEy, LAURA bARKAN,

CAROL bATCHELDER, CAROLINE bICKS,

PETER FRUMKIN, MARTHA GOLUb,

ANNE HARVEy KILbURN, TODD IDSON,

HAJAR LOGAN, EMILy RAVIOLA

president, parents’ association:

SHANNON FALKSON

chair, board of trustees:

VINNy CHIANG

head of school:

MICHAEL RObINSON

We Want to hear from you!

If you have a story idea or issue you’d like to see covered or thoughts about something you’ve read, please let us know.

theParkParent@parkschool.org

December 18 Friday Yule festival (Pre-K – IX Dress Day), 9:30 a.m.

11:30 a.m. dismissal – No ASP

Winter Vacation begins

January 4 Monday School Resumes

January 18 Monday Martin luther king, Jr. Day – no school

february 10 Wednesday Grade VI Play, 7 p.m.

february 15 Monday presidents’ Day – no school

february 16 Tuesday Winter Vacation Day – no school

february 26 Friday Grade VIII & IX Play, 7 p.m.

february 27 Saturday Grade VIII & IX Play, 7 p.m.

March 1 Tuesday Parent Conferences – pre-k–V no school

regular schedule VI-IX

March 11 Friday Spring Vacation begins, 3 p.m.

March 28 Monday School Resumes

Visit the calendar on the park school website for more dates!