Spring Musical...Wizard of Oz!
The Peabody Spring Musical is back! We are excited to be starting preparations for this year's Spring Musical, The Wizard of Oz. Involvement is open to all students from 2nd-8th Grade.
As in past years, we will hold auditions for named parts, with open signup for chorus parts and design/technical/backstage roles. Please contact either Ms. Saunders or Ms. Colleen if your child is interested in chorus or backstage support. Any middle school students signed up for the Stage Design enrichment course will automatically be involved in the design process, although involvement backstage during the performances is optional.
Auditions will be held on Tuesday, January 11th, and Wednesday, January 12th after school in the Drama room from 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm in 10-minute blocks. Students interested in auditioning should sign up on the sheets which will be posted outside the Drama room after winter break. If students are not offered a part after auditioning they are very welcome to sign up for the chorus. Here is what you need for a successful audition:
- A partner - if a student cannot find an audition partner, that is fine, but they should do their best to sign up with a partner to read the scene with.
- An audition script - these will be left outside the Drama room after winter break for students to pick up. Please note that there is NO EXPECTATION that students memorize the scripts - it just helps for them to have a chance to familiarize themselves with it before the audition.
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Optional: a prepared song. Students are not required to sing a song for their audition but in order to audition for a role with a solo singing component (Dorothy, Scarecrow, etc.) they must sing at their audition. There are several parts in The Wizard of Oz that are speaking only, and if a student is confident that they would only like to audition for those parts, they do not need to sing. “Happy Birthday” is fine if a student cannot come up with another song to sing.
Rehearsals will be on Tuesdays and Wednesdays after school, and occasionally on weekends, and will start the week of January 24th. If your child is offered a part please let us know if there are times or dates they are unavailable. Students will not be required to attend all rehearsals - in general, Tuesday rehearsals will be for chorus members and Wednesday rehearsals for named roles. We will send out rehearsal schedules via email detailing what days your student will need to be at rehearsal. Please note that during the last week there may be additional rehearsals outside of regular times. The performance dates are the evening of Thursday, April 21st, and Friday, April 22nd during the school day.
We will be adhering to all the Peabody safety rules surrounding COVID, including requiring masks at all rehearsals. More details about safety protocols at the performances will be forthcoming.
Please do not hesitate to contact Ms. Saunders and Ms. Colleen with any questions!
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Announcing Peabody’s new Hiking Club!
Peabody’s Hiking Club, led by Peabody parent and environmental scientist Nicola McGoff, will have their first outing on January 29th. An enterprise for fairly hardy hikers, the first hike will circumnavigate the 7-mile perimeter of the Ragged Mountain Reservoir. The group will meet in the upper Ragged Mountain parking lot at 10:00 AM, and expects to complete the hike in about two hours. There is no age limit to participate, but any prospective participant under 8 years old should probably have hiking experience. If you plan to join, please RSVP to Nicola at [email protected] by 9:00 AM on the 28th. In case you’re interested but already booked on the 29th, the group does plan to hit the trails every last Saturday morning of each month: February 26th, March 26th, April 30th, and May 21st (due to the Memorial Day holiday).
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Join Us for Peabody Partners in Action during the Holiday Season
Come Join the Peabody Partners in Action During the Holiday Season
Meals on Wheels: And, anyone who would like to help deliver meals to homebound families over the break should email Hailey Peterson at [email protected], and she will contact you if they still have slots to fill.
Saturday, January 8th, 3:00-5:00 PM: Partners will meet at Rivanna River Company behind The Pie Chest on East High Street to help keep litter out of the rivers and oceans.
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Annual Fund
It is not too late to participate in the Annual Fund! Your participation in the Peabody Annual Fund provides essential operating support to Peabody. Income from tuition does not cover all of our operating expenses. The generosity of our community supports almost everything that keeps Peabody running, from salaries and classroom technology to arts and supplies. Lastly, the Fund supports financial aid as we ensure that any student can share in the Peabody experience. We hope that you will support Peabody in this area and that you will keep in mind that your Annual Fund gift, of any size, really matters to the school. Let's all MAKE AN IMPACT!
Thank you in advance for your consideration of a gift to Peabody School for the 2021-22 year and for being such strong supporters of our wonderful school! Please remember to keep us in your plans for the end of tax year giving.
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2022-23 Financial Aid
Returning families must notify Rob Orlando via email of their intent to apply for financial aid for the next academic year. Please send this notification directly to [email protected] by January 14th. Thank you!
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Sustainability Blip of the Week
To support our Peabody sustainability mission, our Earth Action Teams want to educate our community on the many ways you can help the environment. There will be a weekly feature in the newsletter that will educate you about a topic and give you ways you can take action!
Coral Reefs and Pristine Oceans: What are they?
Underwater structures that are usually made of coral are what make up coral reefs. These coral structures are composed of the skeletons of colonial marine invertebrates. Enric Sala created a project whose goal was to “explore and protect the ocean’s last wild places”. Our oceans are threatened by pollution and climate change and the goal is to keep our oceans healthy and safe from human impact. Check out this website to learn more: National Geographic Pristine Oceans Project
Interesting Facts:
- There are three different types of coral reefs, Fringing reefs, barrier reefs, and atolls.
- Fringing Reefs are reefs that grow very close to the shore on the mainland or high island.
- Barrier Reefs are reefs that are parallel to the shore and separated by other bodies of water.
- Atolls are ring-shaped reefs. (Shown on the right)
- Coral reefs need sunlight to grow which is why they are not going to grow more than 45 feet under the water.
- Some of the largest coral reefs are between 5,000 and 10,000 years old
What Can You Do?
When you are visiting a coral reef, try to be conscious of what you are bringing with you into the water. Even some sunscreens are harmful to coral reefs, so try to choose one that are safe for these special and important creatures. Also, just continue to practice your Earth-friendly habits like recycling, saving energy, etc.
Challenge of the Week:
Make sure that you are buying eco-friendly products like sustainable sunscreen and soaps. In general, just watch what you are using and be aware of what harms the ocean/environment.
What People are Doing:
Coral Bleaching is where corals are unhealthy and turn white. This is an example of the negative effects of warm waters from climate change and harmful substances in the water.
Sources:
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Youth in Action: Using Community Science to #MonitorWater |
On Wednesday, December 15, 2021, at 1:00 PM (ET), our 6th Grade presented during an EarthEco webinar! We presented what we do as a school for our water systems. We got to hear about water quality in Florida and present our water quality in the creek.
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Panther Ball...Save the Date!
We are excited to announce that we will be hosting the Panther Ball and Silent Auction on Saturday, March 26, 2022, at the Bradbury/Vault Virginia on Charlottesville’s Downtown Mall. This biennial event honors Peabody’s outstanding teachers, with all proceeds dedicated to supporting them, their professional development, and tangible classroom needs.
If you would like to make a donation or have any suggestions, please feel free to contact our event chairs Sarah Krishnaraj (parent of Priya and Nayan) or Kiran Chapman (parent of Hank). The Auction’s success relies upon donated goods, including specialized services (landscape design, personal training, tutoring); gift certificates/baskets; sports tickets or museum memberships; vacation home stays, etc.
If you are interested, please complete the Auction Donation Form and return it to the Front Office at your earliest convenience.
We will be sharing a lot more information over the coming weeks, including COVID-19 safety protocols which we will be carefully following.
Thank you in advance for your support and hope to see you there!
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Parent Information Center
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Here is a computer science winter camp opportunity offered by Squiggly, an indie game studio & EdTech startup building mixed-reality learning games for K-5 learners and was founded by amazing alumni of the University of Virginia. Please see the flyer HERE!
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