When Character Counts!

I want to share with you an amazing example of one child’s courage and character at the end of the Orange Olympics, an annual athletic event which took place at High Plains on June 12, 2013.  But, first a little background. 

 

In education, as with many other fields, we tend to rely on catch phrases which are intended to resonate with the audience and make a complex concept more meaningful and memorable.  Sometimes, however, our jargon does the opposite because the phrase is wide open to a variety of interpretations.   ‘Whole child education’ is one of those terms.  What does it mean?  On the surface, it even seems a little silly – after all, who would teach half of a child?

Whole child education, however, refers to the idea that all children learn best when their academic, emotional, physical, and social understandings are addressed.  Yes, we write report cards and update you on the CMTs and other standardized tests as evidence of our students’ academic achievements.   In fact, for a while now, it has seemed as if educational thinking, practice, and policy have been singularly focused on academic achievement.   In Orange, that is not the case.  We all know that to be successful participating world citizens, our students must also be healthy, confident, self-motivated, considerate, and honest.  In other words, they need to be young people of character.   These attributes are, of course, treasured by our families; and we realize what we do in our schools supplements these same values you are teaching at home.  But, be assured, all of our schools do focus on these qualities through programs, such as ‘Character Counts,’ through planned philanthropic activities, and by capitalizing on ‘teachable moments’ when they occur.  Yesterday’s event at the Olympics illustrated the importance of ‘whole child’ character education perfectly; and hopefully, all of our students paid attention and learned something of value.

At the closing ceremonies of the Olympics, a young man was called up to podium to receive his gold medal for winning his event.  He took the stage, and in front of his peers and a crowd of parents found the courage to express, ‘I didn’t win this; it doesn’t belong to me; the person who actually won this event has the same first name as I do, but he’s the person who won.’   Imagine the nervousness he felt in front of a crowd; imagine the choices running through his head.   He could accept the medal and keep it.  He could accept the medal, for now, and then after the ceremony, give it back and explain it wasn’t his.  But, he took the least easy path available to him and chose ‘doing the right thing’ at the moment when doing the right thing was called for.  In front of everyone, he ensured that the medal and recognition went to the person to whom it belonged.

That’s character!

You're Never Too Old for the Prom!

On May 8th, I went to the Senior Prom. No fancy dress… or flowers… or boyfriend on my arm. But, this Senior Prom was memorable none-the-less.

That day, the Peck Place Student Council, with their teachers and parents hosted a Senior Prom for about 80 senior citizens from the local area. Rumor has it the kids invited everyone they could think of, and I was thrilled for them that so many people took them up on their invitation.  I had an interesting conversation with one senior who had brought his signed dance card, complete with its satin tassel; his wife’s name was written in it next to the dances she had promised him. (You have to go back a ways to remember this dance card tradition!)

The prom authenticated so many of the virtues of a ‘real’ prom – there were decorations, music, and so much good food. Several of the students worked as DJ’s, playing a variety of tunes from today and ‘back in the day’. Other students arranged a bench where you could pose with a ‘date’ and have your prom pictures taken. But, the greatest fun took place on the dance where the Peck Place students and the seniors danced in conga lines, did the Macarena and the Hustle, twisted, and just had a wonderful time together. It was a mystery as to who was teaching whom these dances.

Events such as these are so important in a school community for a variety of reasons. Certainly, a elementary school and senior citizen prom helps to close that ever-talked-about ‘generation gap’ which has widened over the past two decades as extended families have been affected by job relocations. But more importantly, an event such as this requires that students come out of their comfort zones and enjoy themselves by giving of their time, attention, and talents to others. You couldn’t have been in the gymnasium with them without recognizing they ended their day with a positive sense of self, the spirit of altruism, and a sense of responsibility for the happiness of someone else.

I’ll let pictures tell the rest of the story…

Colonial Day at Peck Place

Students in the fifth grade at Peck Place, along with their teachers and many volunteers, had the chance to experience a little bit of Colonial life on January 20th. The teachers planned eight 'stations' for them to visit throughout the day-long event, engaging students in activities which will help bring some aspects of colonial culture to life.


The students made grapevine wreaths decorated with flowers and played a colonial game they had made in which they caught a ball on a string in a cup. They seemed to enjoy finger knitting -- and were actually quite good at it, too. This was a relatively quick method for tying fishing nets. In colonial cooking, they made and had a chance to taste corn bread. They even hand-churned the butter to go on it in heavy crocks, just as Mrs. Ginny Reinhart, from the Orange Historical Society, taught them to do. This station was delicious and a favorite! The children made pomander balls with cloves and oranges and learned punch-tin patterning and stenciling.

The fifth graders and their teachers also had guests at this event, as 26 5th grade students from Hamden, CT, participating in Colonial Day with them. The collaboration is the main focus of a two-year ACES grant, in which Hamden teacher Jeff Bloomfield and our teacher Erica Campbell agree to 20 hours of webchats and two exchange activities between their classes. Hamden visited Peck Place on the 20th for Colonial Day. Mrs. Campbell’s class will go to Hamden in June for their Civil War enactment.

As it is with all of us, the units of study which come alive with hands-on activities, with socializing with our friends, with our opportunity to experiment with new textures, smells, and processes, those units are especially memorable and have lasting impact.