September 24, 2009

Dear Parker Families,

What a wonderful beginning! Everybody is buzzing about the new school year. Our school theme this year is Reduce. Reuse. Recycle. Students are weighing and tracking garbage and recycling with a goal to reduce our waste. They will educate families and others about the energy cycle and the issues around packaging and garbage, as well as visit a landfill and create a model landfill. We have applied for a $500 NYSERDA grant in support.

A faculty discussion this summer inspired some new programs to strengthen our daily practice of social responsibility.

• A mentoring and classroom helper program will give middle school students opportunities to make a difference for younger students by helping in art, science, and Pre K.
• MICE (Make it Clean Everywhere) Mixed-age K - 8 teams will care for and clean common areas of the school on a monthly basis. There will even be a MICE Commissioner with a cheese hat!

Our strategic goal to maximize a unique asset - the school property - is on the move. Summer camp's focus on hands-on sustainable energy doubled camp enrollment. Fabulous parent volunteers have been clearing trails to inaccessible areas of our woods. Each class will adopt a trail section to name, map, maintain, and study. And our cross- country runners now have 3 K of woodsy tracks! Teachers are working together to infuse sustainable energy science throughout the curriculum.

• Students planted vegetables and herbs in raised beds last spring that they are harvesting for soup. Summer vegetables were donated to a local food pantry.
• Our partnership with the Master Gardeners of Rensselaer County gives us a variety of gardens for observation and drawing. K-1's and Pre K 4's collected monarch caterpillars to hatch into butterflies.
• 6-7's are collecting water samples from our creeks for comparison with local waterways. They discovered newly hatched salamanders.
• 4-5's are adopting trees on Parker's property for yearlong observation and study, creating a tree guide.
• 6-7's will join the Junior Solar Sprint vehicle competition; 4-5's will experiment with wind turbine design in locations around the property; 2-3's will study hydro-electric power on our creeks; K-1's will explore "What is Energy?"

Science study encompasses life beyond our backyard, too.

• 6-7's and 2-3's will participate in "A Snapshot of the Hudson" photo project, an event designed to celebrate the Hudson River estuary.
• They will also undertake an intensive longitudinal study of one section of the Hudson for water, plant and animal analysis over this year and into the years to come with a local fishery biologist.
• Field trips are planned to cruise the Hudson and visit the State Museum, Albany Institute of History and Art, and other local sites in conjunction with Hudson River projects.

There's more:

• We are reaching out to local schools for sports competitions in soccer and other sports throughout the year. Watch for the game schedule.
• In November Parker is sponsoring a workshop for area science teachers on wind and solar energy through the Northeast Sustainable Energy Association.
• December 10 is the Oxfam Hunger Banquet, an annual hunger awareness event that eighth graders organize. Mark your calendars!
• Don't miss out on all that is going on at Parker! Make sure that Natalie has your email address for weekly updates. Get snapshots of school life via email by subscribing to Parker Perspectives, where you can also link to class blogs and websites. Get the latest news from around the school by following me on Twitter.

The dynamism of a school that challenges students to think and act for 21st Century success makes Parker an amazing place to be!

Fondly,

Meg Taylor
Head of School

Parker Perspectives
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