A Letter from Michelle Edwards, Head of School |
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The days are longer, the sky a little brighter, and the evidence of the thawing earth is caked on the children’s boots after recess. We are feeling the spirit of renewal that springtime brings. I truly believe that only when you live in a climate with the long, cold winters do you truly experience the exhilaration of spring fever.
This particular winter was longer and darker than most for reasons completely unrelated to the weather. For me, the children at school provided the much needed light and hope. This week the elementary children showcased their experience during the pandemic with their learning fair projects. The Lower Elementary students each curated their own history museum exhibit featuring pictures and writing about their most poignant memories from the past year. The results were a powerful display of love, resilience, and the natural tendency of children to find the good and hold onto it. The Upper Elementary students each created a time capsule filled with concrete representations of their own journey through the COVID-19 crisis. After sharing with their classes, the capsules were sealed with instructions to open in 25 years, 2046. The chosen objects were varied and the stories behind them were moving, personal, and often funny!
The invitation to remember and reflect is another step on our path through the pandemic, walking beside our children with the confidence that better times are ahead while appreciating all for which we are grateful.
In partnership,
Michelle
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Standing with the Asian American Community |
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“Everyone talks about peace but few educate for peace. In this world, they educate for competition and competition is the beginning of any war. When educating to cooperate and to owe each other solidarity, that day we will truly be educating for peace.” -Maria Montessori
Here at Woodland Hill, it is essential to our mission as a Montessori school that with our words and actions we provide an environment that is safe for all children and their families. We stand in solidarity with members of the Asian American community and we condemn all physical, verbal, and psychological acts of racially-motivated violence.
The murders in Atlanta of eight people, with six Asian women among the victims, have deeply saddened us all. It is not lost on us that the frequency and severity of attacks towards the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community has been heightened during the course of the pandemic as this study demonstrates a rise of hate-crimes against AAPI of almost 150%.
It is our most important goal to embody anti-bias and anti-racism in the very fabric of our preparations as a school, our interactions with one another, and our curriculum explorations as we work to foster healthy identities and support difficult conversations at each stage of our students’ development.
We will address the unfairness and injustice in our nation with our students and we will continue to Follow The Children in each of our classrooms as we respond to the harm of these events. We know our community is made stronger by the unique family histories and identities that we represent.
We also remember that there are women, girls, and people of Asian and Pacific Islander descent in schools across the country, facing these challenges, prejudices, and threats daily. We commit to the work of providing both a safe educational foundation for our faculty, students, and parents while being agents of proactive change against bias, racism, and violence.
Additional resources:
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Diversity Committee Caucus Conversation |
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Tanu Kumar and Tony Park will host a conversation with parents that identify with the Asian or Asian American experience, including Asian parents and parents raising Asian children in the Woodland Hill community.
The conversation will be held on March 25th from 7:00 - 8:00 p.m. Please contact Tanu Kumar, tanushrik@gmail.com, to receive the Zoom invitation or to get more information.
What is a caucus?
A caucus is an opportunity for those who share a common identity to meet separately to gather, connect, and learn. It is a safe and confidential space for conversations about shared experiences that are often unspoken in mixed groups.
At Woodland Hill, these caucus conversations, led by members of the Diversity Committee, are focused on ways the collective experience of each affinity group may impact the entire learning community. They are intended to provide necessary feedback to WHMS faculty and staff as they seek to incorporate anti-bias and anti-racist practices into their work.
This is the second of a series of caucus conversations facilitated by the Diversity Committee.
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As we celebrate the 150th anniversary of Maria Montessori's birth this year, we also want to highlight our own Montessorians. Throughout the school year, we will highlight a WHMS teacher in each Messenger with five facts about them, totaling 150 facts throughout the year.
This week's facts are from Lower El Teacher Sandy Blakeman.
- Sandy’s favorite activities are reading, walking in the forest, floating in water, and talking with friends and family.
- As a child, Sandy decided to become a teacher after reading a biography of Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller’s first teacher.
- When she lived in Ontario, Sandy performed with a women’s Morris dancing group. The women wore long dresses and wooden clogs with metal horseshoes on the bottom. They were all strong women who made a big noise in the public streets!
- Sandy is the proud mama of three WHMS alumni, David, Elyssa, and Carrie, and is happily married to Montessorian, Andrew McClain.
Favorite quote
“Establishing lasting peace is the work of education…” Maria Montessori
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Students in the Upper Elementary learned about Black American Changemakers during Black History Month. Each child then chose a Changemaker they were interested in learning more about and painted these beautiful portraits with a snippet of their impact on American life.
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Black Lives Matter
By Lyra in LE
Down at the bottom is fear
hurtful
pain
sadness
anger.
Unequal and unfair.
To get to the top we have to be brace
be strong
and have courage.
We protest and work to get to the top.
When we get to the top we will look around
We will see how far we have come
and be proud.
We aim to be better people.
We aim to change the world.
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In honor of Black History Month MS students studied the ceramics of contemporary Atlanta based artist Kimmy Cantrell. They made masks in his style using cardboard, paint and oil pastels.
For Black History Month UE students learned about Kente cloth, a weaving process that originated in Ghana centuries ago. It is traditionally made from cotton and silk and is typically reserved for special occasions. Students then created their own Kente cloth from strips of colored construction paper.
LE students learned about the interesting characteristics of the platypus, native to Australia. They drew and painted a platypus perched on a rock.
Primary students celebrated the hints of spring we've been feeling outside by making watercolor paintings of vibrant butterflies.
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Zhi Luncheon-Lowie, Class of 2019 Class Speaker was recently inducted into the National Chinese Honor Society.
Please share any alumni news with Kris Gernert-Dott to highlight their accomplishments! |
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The Summer Program is seeking donations of Legos! Any donations can be sent in with your child and bought to the front office. |
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Music and Movement with Susie! |
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Upcoming Events
Saturday, March 20
WHMS Sequins and Slippers Gala, 8:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Thursday, March 25th
Diversity Committee Caucus, 7:00 - 8:00 p.m
Friday, April 2 - Sunday, April 11
Spring Break - No School
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The WHMS Sequins and Slippers eGala21 is tomorrow!
Get your cozy, fuzzy, silly, or silk and sparkling slippers out, and show us what you've got!
Grab the whole family (including pets!) and snap a pic of all your feet in your fav slippers. Then, post it to Instagram or Facebook tagging us at #WHMSeGala21 and you will be entered to win WHMS swag and goodies.
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