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SFS MS Tuesday Letter 2-10-15
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pa.msnewsletter@sidwell.edu
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2015-02-10 06:00:16
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R. Hunter Biden
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Tuesday - February 10, 2015 Principal's Letter NOTES FROM SALLY Announcements MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH ANNOUNCEMENTS 2015-16 ACADEMIC CALENDAR OPPORTUNITY TO MEET BRYAN GARMAN TODAY, FEB 10 AT 7 PM BSU'S BLACK HISTORY MONTH SHOW - FRIDAY, FEB 13 AT 7 PM NEW ROBOTICS CLASSES! ARTS COMMITTEE OPEN MEETING FOR ALL PARENTS 5TH GRADE PARENT PEER GROUP - TUESDAY, FEB 24 SPRING PARENT POTLUCKS SIDWELL FRIENDS SUMMER STUDIES 2015 THE PARENTS ASSOCIATION NEEDS YOU! Other COMMUNITY SERVICE CORNER QUAKER QUOTES MS NEWSLETTER INFORMATION News Around the School US NEWS MS NEWS Principal's Letter NOTES FROM SALLY This week’s query: How can we use the injustices taking place in the world around us to improve our Sidwell Community? Assembly: the Black Student Union (BSU) Show CTP testing wrapped up last week for most students. We will arrange make-ups this week for those who missed only a portion; generally students who missed all three days will not need to make up the testing. Parents will receive results in early March. We will be beginning our annual winter food drive soon. Look for “shopping lists” of preferred items that will come home with your son or daughter, and thank you in advance for your generosity! The linen and toiletries drives are ongoing – those will culminate with activities on the all-school service day in March and at Minimester. The SFS Middle School Debate team traveled to Herndon, Virginia on Saturday, February 7, to participate in the third DC Urban Debate League tournament of season. There were over 70 teams (210 debaters) from 14 different Middle Schools in attendance, and SFS sent 13 teams of three to the tournament. The Debate team fared very well, finishing with the first place trophy overall. There were several outstanding team and individual performances at the tournament. There were three undefeated teams that ranked in the top ten in the tournament: Sophie Horst, Rama Somborac and Nicholas Spasojevic received the third place trophy overall, Patrice McGloin, Evan Tarr and Elliot Woodwell placed sixth overall and Hugo Carney, Ben Fagell and Rem Katyal placed seventh overall. In individual speaker points, Sophie Horst placed sixth overall, Patrice McGloin placed seventh overall and Matthew Gunty placed eighth overall. It was an excellent performance for the entire Debate team as every three-person team won at least one round in the tournament. Congratulations to all of the debaters! Has your address, phone number, email information, or emergency contact information changed? Please update your information through the Parent Portal! We want to know how to reach you. All 6th, 7th, and 8th grade students will participate in the Maryland Math League contest next week. This half-hour written activity is a competition among students in both public and private schools in the area. Announcements MIDDLE SCHOOL MATH ANNOUNCEMENTS Congratulations to the 22 participants in last Wednesday's middle school math meet at St. Patrick's, who helped Sidwell Friends win first place as a team for the second straight meet in a row against 13 other private schools from the DC area. Special congratulations to 8th graders Arjun Sethi-Olowin, David Hacker, Theo Mitchell, and Nathan Shapiro, and 7th grader Etan Basser, all of whom had perfect or near-perfect scores. 2015-16 ACADEMIC CALENDAR This calendar is now posted on the web site http://www.sidwell.edu/calendars/list.aspx. It includes vacations, parent-teacher conference days and back-to-school nights. Events including morning coffees with administrators and parent association activities will begin to be added in the spring and summer. To navigate to the calendar go to the main page, click on calendar (top banner, left side), select academic calendar (maroon heading, under customize box), and look to the right for the 2015-16 calendar. OPPORTUNITY TO MEET BRYAN GARMAN TODAY, FEB 10 AT 7 PM As promised, Middle School parents have another opportunity to meet Head of School Bryan Garman today, Tuesday, February 10 at 7:00 p.m. in the Robert L. Smith Meeting Room. RSVP to events@sidwell.edu or 202-537-8110. If you couldn’t make the morning meeting in January, have more questions or want to share your thoughts with Bryan, please come. Bryan learned who he wanted to be in room 212, of the Harrison Upper School Building. Please visit room 212 tour to learn more about opportunities to meet Bryan. BSU'S BLACK HISTORY MONTH SHOW - FRIDAY, FEB 13 AT 7 PM The Black Student Union presents its Annual Black History Month Show on Friday, February 13 at 7:00 pm for parents, families, and friends in the Arts Center Theatre. A tradition that began in the 1980s, the program incorporates original student content with songs, poems, and other material from established authors. The cast is composed of students from the Lower, Middle, and Upper School. The entire Sidwell Friends Community is invited to see the show. Parents with younger children should be advised that some of the content in this powerful performance is written to reflect current events, and the program, in its entirety, may not be appropriate for younger students. NEW ROBOTICS CLASSES! Two new sections of Robotics (Robotics with LittleBits and Arduino, and LEGO Robotics with EV3 and ROBOT-C) will start on February 18 & 19. Check the SPARC after school website or talk with Ms. Yorke for more information. ARTS COMMITTEE OPEN MEETING FOR ALL PARENTS The PA Arts Committee invites you to a meeting on Thursday, February 19 from 6:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m. to celebrate another successful Artrageous, gather structured feedback, and brainstorm for next year. A light supper and adult refreshments will be served. If you helped with Artrageous, have ideas about other arts initiatives, or just want to connect with friendly parent volunteers who enjoy supporting the arts at Sidwell Friends, please come. If you're already involved, bring someone new to SFS! Please RSVP to Jane Legg if you would like to attend so that she can organize refreshments. If you need child care or have an older student who needs a place to study, please contact Kathi Webb. 5TH GRADE PARENT PEER GROUP - TUESDAY, FEB 24 Sidwell Friends has a longstanding unique tradition of offering parent peer groups for grades PK - 12th grade. On Tuesday, February 24, the 5th grade Parent Peer Group will be meeting in the MS Library from 7:30 - 9 pm. These groups are for parents and facilitated by parents of each respective grade with the agenda collectively determined by those attending. The intention of the peer groups is to foster a confidential, comfortable forum for parents to share and discuss issues, concerns, and perspectives. Calling on 5th Grade Parents to Facilitate Parent Peer Groups On a related note, we need parent peer group facilitators to facilitate the February 24 5th grade parent peer group! If you have participated in a parent peer group training and are available to volunteer as a trained facilitator, please email Susan Schwabacher or Lisa Horowitz. Thank you in advance! SPRING PARENT POTLUCKS Please join your fellow parents for an enduring and cherished Sidwell Friends tradition, the Grade Wide Potluck. These potlucks provide a great opportunity to spend some quality time with parents from your child’s grade in a relaxed, informal environment. Each grade’s potluck will be held at a parents’ home on one of the following dates: 5th Grade - Saturday, February 28 from 7-9 pm 6th Grade - date to be determined 7th Grade - Sunday, March 8 from 6-8 pm 8th Grade - Saturday, March 14 from 7-9 pm Be on the look out for an email from your Grade Reps with all of the details, including the name of the host and directions to their house, as well as the foods each guest may bring. Please come, eat, and enjoy! SIDWELL FRIENDS SUMMER STUDIES 2015 Sub-freezing temperatures may make it feel as though Summer 2015 is far away, but we have been busy planning a terrific Summer Studies Program, and it is definitely not too early to begin thinking about enrolling your child in one of our classes. Registration for summer classes is now open! Middle School Program We are offering a program for middle-school-aged students (grades 6 and 7) in need of additional review in math and language arts. This team-taught program models a middle-school morning, with students spending part of the morning in math class and part of the morning in language arts. Students also have the option of enrolling in a full-day program with recreational activities in the afternoon through the ExploreStar Program or by signing up for one of the two-week afternoon STEM workshops. Detailed descriptions for these offerings may be found on our website: www.sidwell.edu/summer. For rising 8th graders, we have course offerings in English enrichment (English Review) and Pre-Algebra. Applications may be submitted online or downloaded from the Summer Studies website: www.sidwell.edu/summer. Upper School Offerings Our upper school courses this year include credit courses in Algebra 1, Algebra 2, Geometry, Physics, and United States History, and non-credit courses in English and College Essay Writing. We are also offering SAT and ACT Preparation workshops. All courses are taught by highly experienced faculty. Detailed course descriptions, class meeting dates and times, tuition information, and applications are available on the Summer Studies website: www.sidwell.edu/summer. Students applying for upper school credit courses in math must obtain approval by the student’s current teacher, and students applying for U.S. History must have the approval of the Academic Dean. First priority for enrollment in U.S. History will be given to students applying to School Year Abroad and semester study-away programs such as CityTerm and China Fieldwork. After February 15, enrollment for U.S. History will be open to all students, and registration will be on a first-come, first-served basis. U.S. History tends to be a popular course, so you should get your application in early to reserve a space. Applications for non-credit courses may be submitted online. Online registration is not available for credit courses. Please use the paper application: http://www.sidwellsummer.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Summer-Studies-Application1.pdf If you have any questions about our course offerings, please contact Min Kim, Director of Summer Studies and Interim Academic Dean/Assistant Principal of the Upper School at kimm@sidwell.edu. THE PARENTS ASSOCIATION NEEDS YOU! We are Seeking Volunteers to Fill Middle School Positions for Next Year: If you enjoy community building and would like to make an important contribution to the School and your child's experience at Sidwell, please volunteer as a vice-clerk or grade representative. We are looking to fill positions in all grades in the Middle School. If you are interested in serving, would like to suggest someone else, or simply would like more information, please e-mail Lisa Gunty, MS nominating clerk, at lgunty@aol.com; Renee Fried, MS co-vice clerk, at reneefriedzone@gmail.com, or Beth Zeugin, MS co-vice clerk, at bczeugin@comcast.net. Thank you! It feels great to get involved and help out at SFS. Other COMMUNITY SERVICE CORNER Winter Canned Food Drive Begins - Collection Bins in Lobby Our winter food drive is underway. Please help us collect food to send to area food banks with our Helping Hands Minimester! Linen Drive - Got fleece? Actually, any old linen will do! Please bring bed linens, towels, comforters or blankets to Middle School ASAP. Usable items will find an immediate home with humans at A Wider Circle. Shabby fleece blankets and towels will head to our furry friends at Washington Animal Rescue League. Our “Paws and Claws” Minimester group can use even badly tattered blankets in March to make toys for the cuties in cages. Collection bins are inside the M.S. lobby and in the 5th grade hallway. See Susanne Saunders or Michael Salmon if you have questions. Ongoing Toiletries Collection - Bins in Lobby for AWC February 15 - 5th and 6th grade service club at A Wider Circle: ongoing project to manage the Kids' Corner. Contact Dana.Milbank@washpost.com for additional information. February 20 - 8th Grade hangout February 27 - 5th Grade hangout Contact MS Community Service Co-clerks Eva Xanthos at eva.xanthos@verizon.net or Lisa Arrington at arringtonlp@hotmail.com or your Grade Reps for volunteer opportunities. QUAKER QUOTES "As I think about the challenges that face us as Friends, I remember the mentors and teachers who have shaped my life, and the generations of giants on whose shoulders we all stand: the George Foxes and Margaret Fells; the John Woolmans and the Lucretia Motts; the Bayard Rustins; the Steeres, the Brintons, the Bouldings...Sometimes I worry for our future, wondering where the next leaders will come from. Then I remember the words of Diane Nash, the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee organizer from Fisk University and youthful architect of the freedom struggle, which involved generations and thousands of unheralded heroes. Nash is quoted at the close of David Garrow's Bearing the Cross, a biography of Martin Luther King Jr.: 'If people think that it was Martin Luther King's movement, then today they - young people - are more likely to say, 'Gosh, I wish we had a Martin Luther King here today to lead us.'...If people knew how that movement started, then the question they would ask themselves is, 'What can I do?'" - Alexander Levering Kern, SFS class of 1989, Friends Journal, April 2014 Quaker quotes are intended to deepen the understanding of Quakerism in the Sidwell Friends School community. Questions and suggestions may be addressed to Cynthia Richie Terrell. MS NEWSLETTER INFORMATION How to Submit an Article to Tuesday Letter: Please send submissions, in the body of the email, to PA.MSNewsletter@sidwell.edu by 2:00 p.m. on Monday. Please reference "Newsletter Submission" and the publish date(s) in the subject line. Do not include any formatting such as indents, bullets, boldface or all-caps and keep submissions succinct. If you have a form or flyer to include with your submission, send it as a PDF attachment. Receipt of your submissions will be confirmed as soon as possible. Submissions may not run for more than three weeks. How to Modify an existing Submission: Please send a redline or otherwise clearly indicate the change to be made in a second email. School Calendar: Calendar entries that appear in the right column of each Newsletter are automatically generated by the school, not by the Tuesday newsletter editors. Any changes to the school calendar are made through the school scheduling office at scheduling@sidwell.edu. US NewsQuaker Meeting House, Arts Center achieves Platinum LEED certification The building’s design, materials, energy use, and more earned it the award from the U.S. Green Building Council. Read More"Learning in order to love": GLSBT Club sponsors Love Week Students enlist faculty, a guest, and each other to present an informative look at the many faces of the gay community. Read MoreAlex Myers, author of "Revolutionary," presents during GLSBT Club's Love Week The writer, teacher, and distant relative of his book’s inspiring subject was welcomed to campus on Trans Day, the second day in a week’s worth of lunchtime programming geared toward increasing understanding among students of all sexual and gender orientations. Read More MS NewsVertical Voices creates tension to foster discussion about diversity Middle School Playback Theatre Troupe performs at the East Ed Diversity Conference at Sandy Spring Friends School. Read More The Parents Association newsletters are a forum for communication among parents and provide announcements concerning School or PA events or information related to a School or PA event. MS newsletter submissions should be sent to PA.MSnewsletter@sidwell.edu. Calendar Tue, Feb 10th BSU Show Rehearsal AC Theater 6:00pm - 9:00pm Meet the Head of School - MS Parents Robert L. Smith Meeting Room 7:00pm - 8:30pm Wed, Feb 11th 5th Grade Conversation with Sally Rosenberg Theater 8:00am - 9:15am Fri, Feb 13th BSU Show AC Theater 7:00pm - 9:00pm Mon, Feb 16th Presidents' Day - Potential school make-up day Tue, Feb 17th Maryland Math League Test US Dining Room 8:00am - 9:00am Thu, Feb 19th All MS Meeting for Worship - Parents Invited Robert L. Smith Mtg Rm 8:00am - 8:45am PA Arts Committee meeting Zartman Drawing Rm 6:30pm - 8:00pm Fri, Feb 20th 8th Gr. Hangout Wannan Gym and MS Courtyard 3:30pm - 5:00pm Sat, Feb 21st 6th Gr. Parent Potluck Off Campus 7:00pm - 9:00pm Mon, Feb 23rd 7th Grade Conversation with Sally Rosenberg Theater 8:00am - 9:15am Tue, Feb 24th MS France Minimester meeting MS Drama Studio 7:00pm - 8:30pm 5th Gr. Parent Peer Group Meeting MS Library 7:30pm - 8:30pm Wed, Feb 25th 6th Grade Conversation with Sally Rosenberg Theater 8:00am - 9:15am Fri, Feb 27th 5th Gr. Hangout Wannan Gym and MS Courtyard 3:30pm - 5:00pm Sat, Feb 28th 5th Gr. Parent Potluck Off Campus 7:00pm - 9:00pm Mon, Mar 2nd MS PA Steering Comm. Mtg Rusch Team Rm 8:00am - 9:00am More Athletics Tue, Feb 10th Indoor Track - P.E. Class (Coed) vs. Georgetown Preparatory Run & Gun Squash - P.E. Class (Co-Ed) - Madeira (@ Regency Sport & Health) 4:00pm Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. Potomac School 4:15pm Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity at Madeira 4:15pm Basketball - Boys Freshman vs. Flint Hill 4:30pm Basketball - Girls Varsity at Madeira 5:45pm Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. Potomac School 6:00pm Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. Meet vs. GDS & Potomac 7:30pm Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. Meet vs. GDS & Potomac 7:30pm Wed, Feb 11th Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. St. Albans 2:30pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 B at St. Albans 2:30pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 C at St. Albans 2:30pm Basketball - Girls 7/8 B at Sheridan School 3:15pm Swimming & Diving - Girls Varsity vs. National Cathedral School 4:00pm Swimming & Diving - Boys Varsity vs. St. Albans 4:00pm Thu, Feb 12th Basketball - Girls 7/8 B vs. Georgetown Day 2:30pm Basketball - Girls 7/8 C vs. Georgetown Day 2:30pm Basketball - Girls Varsity at Flint Hill 4:30pm Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity - Flint Hill (Lower School Campus) 4:30pm Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. JP Great 5:00pm Basketball - Boys Freshman vs. JP Great 5:00pm Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. JP Great 6:45pm Fri, Feb 13th Wrestling - Varsity - St. Alban's Tournament 2/14/2015 Basketball - Boys Freshman at Episcopal High School 4:30pm Sat, Feb 14th Basketball - Boys Varsity at St. Andrew's School 2:00pm Tue, Feb 17th Basketball - Boys Junior Varsity vs. St. James School 5:00pm Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. St. James School 5:00pm Basketball - Girls Varsity at St. Andrew's School 5:45pm Wed, Feb 18th Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at National Cathedral School 2:45pm Basketball - Girls 7/8 B vs. National Cathedral School 2:45pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes 2:45pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes 2:45pm Basketball - Girls Junior Varsity vs. Episcopal High School 4:15pm Basketball - Boys Freshman at Landon 4:30pm Thu, Feb 19th Wrestling - 7/8 vs. St. Andrew's School 2:45pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 C at St. Stephen's & St. Agnes 2:45pm Basketball - Girls 7/8 A at Holy Child 2:45pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 A vs. St. Andrew's School 2:45pm Basketball - Boys 7/8 B vs. St. Andrew's School 2:45pm Basketball - Girls 7/8 C vs. St. Stephen's & St. Agnes 2:45pm Fri, Feb 20th Basketball - Girls Varsity - ISL Tournament 2/20 - 2/22 2/22/2015 Basketball - Boys Varsity vs. MAC Tournament: 2/20 - 2/22 2/22/2015 Sat, Feb 21st Wrestling - Varsity - DC Classic Indoor Track - P.E. Class (Coed) - Hoxton Meet Fri, Feb 27th Wrestling - Varsity - National Preps 2/28/2015 Sat, Feb 28th Lacrosse - Girls Varsity - Bullis Play Day More 3825 Wisconsin Avenue NW Washington, DC 20016 Tel: 202-537-8100 Fax: 202-537-8499
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