The third graders who led the pajama drive that resulted in 253
 Lower School donations, 253 PJ matches from Carters, Inc.
and 253 books from Scholastic!

Unsolicited Praise

Teachers enjoyed pajama
day too!

Hurricane Sandy almost scuttled the fourth-grade’s plan to go on their overnight to Plimouth Plantation in Plymouth, Massachusetts. We were fortunate to be able to reschedule the trip for the very last slot that was available before they closed for the season, for the fourth-graders had studied hard and worked to prepare their questions for the Pilgrims and the Wampanoag people. (Plimoth Plantation provides an experiential outdoor and indoor learning environment that allow visitors to explore the interwoven stories of two distinct cultures - English and Native.) The fourth graders returned happy and tired, grateful that they had been able go.

A violin student at the Lower School
String Recital

Just before leaving the office that day, I received a phone call from the director of education at Plimouth Plantation. She said that she just had to call to tell me about what a wonderful group of students we have, "the best she had ever seen!" They were so engaged, so prepared and so excited to be there. In fact she said that all the Dwight-Englewood groups that she has known over the years have been terrific. Wow, an unsolicited call like that is pretty special!

Then several days later I received a copy of personal letter from a “monitor” at the Metropolitan Opera addressed to  music teacher, Mary Heveran, who arranged for the fifth graders to visit the Met.  I learned that a monitor is a volunteer who works with visiting school groups, and that this gentleman had been a monitor for 25 year. He wrote, “I don't recall having monitored a school that is as great as your school... Your students were not only well prepared and well behaved and they were involved and enthusiastic about seeing the performance. They knew the story, they knew the music, they knew many things about the Met even though they had never been there before…. I was equally impressed with the children creating their own opera.”

Proud preschool 4 builders

We all should be very proud of this unsolicited praise of our students. 

The Lost Art of the Thank-You

A preschooler, with his 5th grade buddy,
make a gingerbread house.

A simple but sincere “thank you” is one of our most powerful human expressions. Most of us must realize that we are far less than we might otherwise be without the help and support of others. Reaching out to those on whom we have depended acknowledges our gratefulness and readies us to complete the circle by meeting the needs of others. Yet, in today’s busy society, the time often never gets made to thank others, the excuse being that thank-yous are “understood,” or we assume that, in a quid-pro-quo world, everything will balance out in the end.

Gingerbread buddies!

Every year one of our grades organizes an assembly to acknowledge and thank all of the non-faculty staff who make our school what it is. In the past, each student chooses an individual, draws a picture, writes a paragraph and presents the laminated “plaque” during the assembly. Later, one of the recipients confided to a teacher that the moment had been the most touching in his 10 years of working for the school!

A first-grader with his fourth grade buddy

In a previous professional life, I had the responsibility of reaching out to people and asking them to contribute to the school. Literally thousands of members of the community, past and present, helped out each year. Very quickly I learned that it was the personal handwritten notes that I scrawled at the bottom of each letter that people remembered and appreciated, not the carefully crafted, mail-merged letter above.

More 4th and 1st grade buddies.

A few years ago, our oldest son took the time to e-mail us a list of more than 80 reasons that he had to thank us. Believe me, even though we have had our differences, that gesture had a powerful impact. My wife remembers that our oldest daughter, when she was in preschool, thanked her for taking her to the dentist (for many years that was to be her chosen profession). For me, the highest compliment from my youngest son, when he was in the first grade, came when he thanked me by saying that I was “just as good as Mom.”

Even more 1st and 4th grade buddies.

We all need to help our children and our students understand about the power of thank-yous. But, as is the case with any of the elements of good manners, thank-yous can be perfunctory and superficial. Sincere and heartfelt were the two criteria my wife and I used as we “tortured” our children by making them write thank-you notes within a day of receiving a gift. We would like to think that they will similarly torture their own children and thus continue the art of the thank-you.

Third-grade scientists putting the pieces together
from their dig.

Without practice and the feedback it generates, the thank-you note could simply disappear with the next generation. This period between Thanksgiving and the December holidays is a great time to make a stand and enlist our children to do their part to ensure that the art of the thank-you lives on. A ready supply of thank-you notes will make it possible to acknowledge the receipt of seasonal gifts as well as to send unsolicited thank-yous to friends, relatives and others, as the urge surfaces. (Teachers are particularly appreciative of recognition for their efforts.)

The Great Third-Grade Grocery Challenge

by Ellen

We did something special in math this week. Each third grade student brought in two cans or boxes of food. We worked with a partner. We estimated what the weight of the food was. Then we used a triple balance scale to weigh the food. We added the weight of our foods. Then we combined into a group of four. We put all the food in a brown shopping bag. We held it and estimated the weight of the food from all four people. After we tried estimating, we added up our actual total. We are now going to donate the food we used to the Center for Food Action. 


We learned a lot from this activity. We learned how to use the triple balance scale. We practiced addition and subtraction with grams and kilograms. We also learned more about teamwork. It was fun!

Let's All Be Safe On Campus!

PLEASE, always  obey the posted speed limit while on campus roadways. 

Also driving and using your phone at the same time can lead to injury on a crowded campus. We are all in a hurry and have lots of things to take care of, but assuring the safety of everyone around us has to be our highest priority!

Donate Used Musical Instruments!

Upper School Student Sara Ragi has announced the 2nd Annual Musical Instrument Drive.  She says, "I work at Renaissance E.M.S., in Bronx, NY where the donated instruments will be used. Renaissance E.M.S. is a non-profit where at-risk youth take weekly music lessons,  receive tutoring and do SAT preparation. Many of these students do not have music programs in their school systems, and I was lucky enough to introduce a beginner violin class this year." 

Any gently used musical instruments and/or accessories would be greatly appreciated. All donations from last year went to great use at Renaissance.  If you want to donate an instrument, please drop it off with Mrs. Rullo.

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Senora Glass has two new posts on the third-fifth grade Spanish Blog!