SEPTEMBER 30, 2021

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ELEMENTARY SCHOOL NEWS

From the Elementary School Principal

Hello Churchill Community,

I am thrilled to announce that the 2021-2022 school year is off to an incredible start! Laughter, friendships, curiosity, and learning are thoroughly underway. 

In a short time, the Elementary School has: celebrated our first Community Meeting, learned the names of our new friends and teachers, had experiences riding the school bus for the first time, celebrated Fall birthdays, and begun to dive deep into learning! We've also discussed, defined, and celebrated our 5 core values of: Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Kindness, and Perseverance, which we will continue to embody as a community throughout the entire school year. We are surely on the path for a school year filled with learning and growth. This year, we are very much looking forward to reinstating our elementary school club program, which will begin on Friday, October 1st. We are ready for tons of fun, lots of learning, and ready for some twists and turns along the way!

Warmest Regards,
Sara L. Cohen


Welcome to the Faces of 225!

As a class read aloud we read "The Colors of Us" By Karen Katz and students identified their own unique skin colors and created self portraits to showcase their special attributes and differences!


Elementary School Decoding & Literacy Classes

Our school year is full swing, and our elementary students have hit the ground running in their Decoding and Literacy classes. Check out the photos to see our students engaging in some fun, multisensory activities!

MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWS

From the Middle School Principal

Dear Middle School Community,

Hello and welcome to the 2021-2022 school year!

We would like to extend a warm welcome to the new students, families, and professionals who have joined the Churchill family this year.  The school year is off to a great start. It has been wonderful to see and hear all of our students back in the building. 

Middle School professionals are committed to the academic and social emotional growth of our students and were thrilled to see so many of our families at our Meet the Faculty night on September 21st. These middle school years are a time of unbelievable growth, and we look forward to collaborating with you on this journey!

All my best,

Gina Manes & the Middle School Team


Upcoming Middle School Events

  • October 11th - Indigenous Peoples Day - No School for Students
  • October 12th - Professional Development Day - No School for Students
  • October 21st -  Parent Teacher Conferences - No School for Students
  • October 22nd - Middle School Student Council Information Session for Students

Studying the Wage Gap

To start off the year, some of the 7th and 8th grade math classes have been working on a project related to the wage gap between people of different races and genders in the United States.

Students researched the annual salary of various groups of people and graphed these values on a number line.

They then explored different data sets represented in tables, charts and graphs, and were asked to analyze this data by recording information that they noticed and questions that the data sets sparked. The project culminated in groups of students creating and presenting their own visual representations of the wage gap data they researched.


Commemoration of 9/11

In commemoration of the 20th anniversary of 9/11, Middle School students took a virtual tour of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum in our Churchill auditorium.

The Zoom tour included an in-depth exploration of artifacts inside the museum led by a skilled member of their education staff. To prepare for this experience, students in 6th, 7th, and 8th grades learned about the events of 9/11, explored the concept of memorialization, and discussed what it means to “Never Forget.”


Recess on the Roof


Hispanic Heritage Month

From September 15th to October 15th, the Middle School will be celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month! Students are learning about the origins of the month and the people that it celebrates, including various Hispanic and Latinx American athletes, authors and entertainers. Classes will explore the ways in which Hispanic and Latinx cultures have influenced the cuisine, music and baseball tradition in the United States. Some classes are also reading, watching and creating artwork inspired by Hispanic and Latinx authors, filmmakers and artists. Together, we hope to honor and celebrate the many contributions, diverse cultures and extensive histories of the Hispanic and Latinx American community.

HIGH SCHOOL NEWS

From the High School Principal

Dear High School Families,

Welcome back! It has been such a joy to see the students back in the hallways and excited to be here. The energy level has been absolutely wonderful and it seems that everyone is looking forward to getting back to the normal rhythms of the high school experience. 

As always there have been a variety of activities taking place across each grade and students are doing their best to find a place that feels right for them and speaks to who they are. For some that means participating in their honors courses, for others it’s joining a sports team, or participating in student council. Students also recently signed up for clubs and will have an opportunity to join one or more of the school’s several affinity groups. It is especially exciting to see our seniors grace the hallways with their presence. This is their big year! I know it’s only September, but we are all looking forward to June when we can watch them walk across that stage! 

Please don’t forget that our virtual  “Meet the Faculty Night” tonight. You should have received an email with all of the links for the evening. We are looking forward to seeing all of the parents tonight. Let’s keep our collective fingers crossed for a great year!

Best,
Jason Wallin


Peer Mentors

At the beginning of the school year, 9th graders and new students enjoyed lunch with their Peer Mentors in the garden. Peer mentors are seniors who serve as a friendly face and resource to help students who are new to Churchill’s upper school adjust to HS life. Peer mentors will be meeting in their small mentee groups and organizing fun activities throughout the year. We have a wonderful group of seniors this year, who are all eager to welcome their mentees to HS and share their infinite wisdom with them!


10th Grade Biology

10th Grade students are starting the year off with a hands-on scientific method activity! Students are learning to follow the steps of a controlled experiment by planting a variety of dried beans to see what will and won't allow them to grow successfully. We have quite a few healthy sprouts so far and some supported (and refuted) hypotheses.


College Counseling

12th Grade students have been busy meeting with college admissions representatives who visit Churchill (in-person and virtually) throughout the fall! These visits are a great opportunity for students to learn more about different colleges and for the college representatives to get to know more about Churchill and our students. This year, we have over 35 colleges visits scheduled - including Syracuse University, SUNY New Paltz, University of Richmond, Kenyon College, and George Washington University.