Student Paintings at The Evergreen

Although the calendar now says "March," we are bound to have continued chilly weather. Why not warm up with a cup of coffee and a delicious muffin at The Evergreen at 501 W. Coldspring Lane? While you are there, you can relax and enjoy "Acrylic Paintings on Canvas" by Calvert 8th grade art students. The paintings will be on display through March 26, so you have plenty of time to swing by The Evergreen and see some terrific student artwork.

As a follow up to my last post, the remainder of International Week proved to be a big success last week. After French Day, students enjoyed Chinese, Arabic, Latin, and Spanish language, food, and culture.

International Week Comes to Calvert

The atmosphere is quite festive on campus as we celebrate International Week! Each day, a different culture and language will be celebrated through food and activities. Today, we focused on France, French culture, and French-speaking countries. In the Lower School lobby (which was draped with flags from all over the world), Tenth Agers passed out small flags from French-speaking countries to the students as they arrived. All over the building, objects were labeled in French as well. Dr. Trusty and I greeted the students with a "Bonjour" rather than our typical "Good Morning." The festivities provided a terrific boost of energy during a chilly, snowy stretch of winter. Enjoy the pictures below.

Back in School...finally!

Yes, we made it back into school today! After being closed for five school days--and a total of eleven days when you factor in weekends, a Professional Day (that we had to cancel) and Presidents' Day--we were in session. We opened an hour late, but we were open. Everyone seemed happy, upbeat and energetic. Everyone was "ready" to come back. Yes, one or two snow days can be rejuvenating, but a week and half is too long, even for the students. It took many employees and parents over an hour to get to campus, primarily because of the condition of City streets, many of which were reduced from two lanes to one lane in each direction. Also, there was a utility problem on York Road, which added to the congestion. We are hoping for a smoother morning commute for the rest of the week! This is a certainly a week to take your time and focus on safety and caution on the roads. That goes for all my readers, too--please drive safely!

More Snow!

Welcome to the North Pole, also known as Calvert School! We have been buried by not one but two blizzards this week. Our maintenance crew worked incredibly hard Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday to dig us out after the first big storm...and then the second blizzard started Tuesday afternoon and is still going strong as I write this post on Wednesday evening. We have been closed all week and decided earlier today to announce a closure until Tuesday, February 16. Our crew will have five days to get us ready for Tuesday, and I suspect we will need all five days, especially since another storm is expected for Monday into Tuesday! I hope that all my readers in the Mid-Atlantic region are safe and warm. On an ironic note, I heard that Vancouver, home of the 2010 Winter Olympics, is experiencing a (relative) heat wave and is having to manufacture snow for their venues. I know where Vancouver can get some real snow...they can send a convoy of trucks to Baltimore and we can load them up for free! Take care and be safe as we all dig out from the blizzards of 2010.

Snow!

During the winter months, a hot (no pun intended) topic of conversation is snow. As soon as even a dusting of snow is forecast, students (and teachers!) start to lobby for a snow day. Yes, that decision is part of my duties. It is strange that I have to rely on the not-always-right weather forecast to make a decision for Calvert, but that is the way it goes! We typically close less often than other schools or have shorter delays, i.e. we are open one hour late while they are open two hours late. Why? There are several reasons, including the following: 1) we have no student drivers; 2) although our 15 acre campus is spacious, we have a limited area of sidewalks and roadways to clear; 3) once our students are on campus, they can remain inside the Lower School or Middle School building all day without having to go outside. We have dodged several weekend snowstorm bullets this winter, and it appears another weekend storm is on the way! We shall see what happens...

On an unrelated note, the Zoomobile visited Calvert today, which may be a first for us!

Writing Discussion in 10-A

I was invited by one of our Tenth Age girls' homerooms, 10-A, to discuss the importance of writing in my career. The girls were a great audience and made numerous insightful comments. I stressed several points: 1) know your audience 2) follow a process (brainstorming, organizing, writing, proofreading, and revising); 3) use descriptive, non-repetitive vocabulary. I also emphasized that reading extensively and proofreading others' work will improve their own writing. In addition, I shared that asking for help is really important. In fact, I told the girls that I still ask my mother for help with grammatical and style questions! My own Calvert education gave me an excellent writing foundation, and I am very grateful.

The Big Apple

I was in New York City from Sunday to Tuesday for a fundraising conference as well as our annual New York City alumni event, so graciously hosted each year by Mr. Bill Carey '42 and Mr. Frank Carey '38. We had a record attendance of 60 alumni and friends at the dinner! Again, as I shared after my Florida alumni trip, the passion of the alumni was palpable. The alumni ranged from the classes of 1935 to 1998 and everywhere in between. They shared stories of their Calvert years, asked about teachers, and inquired about the future challenges and opportunities for Calvert. It was a wonderful evening; I am already looking forward to next year's event!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

On Wednesday, I sat down to have a quick lunch with a table of 8th Age girls in the Lower School Cafeteria. As we ate, we talked about what was happening at school that day. It was a pleasant, normal conversation. After about five minutes, I had to leave for my next appointment. I said, "Goodbye, girls, have a nice afternoon," to which one girl replied enthusiastically, with a big smile, "See you later, big fella." She said her words with affection, and I had to summon all my powers not to burst out laughing. I contained myself, chuckled, smiled, and walked away. I have since recounted the story at prospective parents' night and at our faculty and staff meeting later that week, and on both occasions, the audience roared with laughter. At Calvert, we obviously do teach our students to speak confidently with their peers and to adults! :)