December 13, 2024
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Having fun building and creating in pre-kindergarten!
Opening Message
The Need for Music to Brighten Our Darkest Days
Brendan Largay, Head of School
Post Date: December 13, 2024
“If music be the food of love, play on.” – Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare
Excuse the Shakespearean allusion right off the top. I am in the thick of teaching Shakespeare to our seventh graders, and nothing speaks more to the season and how winter, music, food, and love are connected than the Bard of Avon’s Twelfth Night. On the afternoon of our annual Winter Concert, the time feels right to consider how this connection is more than coincidence; it is hard-wired in us all.
Two elements of winter in New England drive us toward introspective and reflective music: the length of our days and the gathering of community. These are now the shortest days of the year. In a study by psychologist Terry Pettijohn, featured in Psychology Today, he and his team found that we are drawn toward “more complex and serious music during the harsher and more threatening seasons of fall and winter, and more lively, active energetic and rhythmic music during the less burdensome spring and summer seasons, that are rife with social activity.” Pettijohn refers to this phenomenon as the Environmental Security Hypothesis, where the music we seek helps to comfort or soothe us depending on the season. So, if you are inclined to somber or complex music in these winter months, there’s more than just your musical taste at work.
The winter season also moves us to seek community and warmth. Centuries ago, in New England and other northern places, winter meant gathering together by a fire to keep warm. While this gathering was a byproduct of a fundamental need for warmth and safety, it resulted in a particular closeness within a family or broader community. Music played a fundamental role in connection and entertainment in those darkest days.
A time-honored school tradition and the ‘food of love,’ our Winter Concert celebrated the excellence of our music and ensembles program. In the warmth of the Downing, we gathered to come in from the cold, to be in community together, and to revel in the joys of the season through music.
I hope this morning’s beautiful songs brought you as much good cheer as they did for me and that joyous music continues to play on through your holiday season.
Upcoming Events
Coming Up This Week
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Monthly Calendar
April 2025
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School Closure for Winter Break
Parent Book Group
The next gathering of the parents’ association book group will be on Tuesday, December 17, at 7:15 p.m. at Menotomy Grill and Tavern in Arlington. The group will discuss The Souvenir Museum by Elizabeth McCracken. All parents are welcome to join. If you have any questions or would like to be added to the group’s mailing list, please contact Karla Bays.
Check the Lost & Found Before Winter Break
Please check the Lost & Found for your students’ missing items as soon as possible. All unclaimed items will be donated soon.
The Lost & Found is located in the hallway between Liz Parfit’s office at the front of the Schoolhouse and the sixth grade classrooms. Check in at the front desk, and you will be directed right to it.
Click the button below for a photo gallery of found items. If you see an item and are not able to make it to school to retrieve it, or if you have any questions, please contact Becca Doyle at becca@macdoyle.com or 617-416-6390.
Lunch & Snack Menu
December 16 to December 20
Monday
Snack: applesauce: Goldfish
Lunch: chicken dumplings; vegan dumplings; gluten-free dumplings; veggie fried rice; stir-fried vegetables; mixed green salad with shredded carrots and balsamic
Tuesday
Snack: bananas; pretzels
Lunch: turkey tacos with corn and flour tortillas; vegan quinoa and squash tacos; sour cream; salsa; guacamole; cheese; fiesta corn blend; taco salad with Romaine lettuce, tomato, corn, and chipotle ranch dressing
Wednesday
Snack: apples; Cheeto cheese puffs
Lunch: crispy cheesy chicken; herb-roasted tofu; gluten-free herb-roasted chicken; roasted potatoes; seasoned green beans with roasted shallots; arugula salad goat cheese, pumpkin seeds, cranberries, and sherry vinaigrette
Thursday
Snack: assorted fruits; Fritos
Lunch: cheese and pepperoni pizzas; vegan cheese pizza; gluten-free cheese pizza; chef’s choice vegetable; Caesar salad
Friday
Snack: assorted fruits and snacks
Faculty Lunch
Please click the button below for a more detailed and updated weekly menu.
BDS News
DEVELOPMENT NEWS
Thank You for an Incredible, Record-Breaking Giving Day!
It’s Giving … a wildly successful 2024 GIVING DAY! Congratulations, Belmont Day. On Tuesday, December 10, we raised more than $470,000 with over 380 gifts and pledges (and still counting), surpassing our ambitious goal of 300 gifts. What an incredible twenty-four hours!
Our entire community was in it to win it. Here are some notable highlights:
Classroom camaraderie – Nine grades shattered the participation goal of 85%, earning a class prize! Two grades—pre-kindergarten and second grade—reached 100% class participation. Way to go!
Annual fund achievement – In twenty-four hours, we increased parent participation in the 2024-25 annual fund to 87%. Thank you, parents!
Community connection – Our greater community also came through in a big way! Grandparents, aunts, uncles, alumni families, and faculty gave 33% of all gifts and pledges on Giving Day. We are so grateful!
We went the extra mile! – With over 380 gifts, we unlocked a generous match of $100,000. Thank you to an anonymous donor for making this possible!
Whether you braved Tuesday’s chilly weather to energize our community under our Giving Day tent, inspired and challenged fellow families to give, or gave yourself, YOU made a difference. Thank you for continuing to prioritize the future of BDS–we feel the love and generosity! Want to see more Giving Day photos? Visit the Giving Day page on our website.
We wish you a joyous, healthy, and peaceful winter break with your family and friends.
– Kyle Beatty, assistant director of development
SUMMER & VACATION CAMPS
Registration Now Open for BDS Families
Camp registration for Summer 2025 is now open for all Belmont Day families. We are opening the registration early so you can secure spots in the general and specialty camp programs that tend to fill up quickly. Registration for returning non-BDS families will open on January 7 at 9:00 a.m.
As a BDS family, you get access to priority spots in our summer camp programs and our swim & tennis membership. Our registration period is extremely competitive due to the high volume of interested families and the limited space we have on campus. Spots are always available (through February vacation week) in our general day camp, while our specialty, sports, and Journeys camps have limited spaces and are subject to first-come, first-served availability, even for BDS families.
If you have any questions, please reach out to us at summer@belmontday.org.
Summer Camp Registration Process
Directions for summer camp registration differ depending on whether you are a new or returning family.
Families who have attended camp before can either email us to register or register themselves starting on January 7 at 9 a.m., using the account on CampMinder they’ve used in previous years. To register before January 7, send us what sessions your child is interested in. We will then confirm the payment information we have on file. If you are going to register yourself on or after January 7, we recommend you log back in to make sure you remember your password and will have no issues on the morning of.
Families new to camp may register through the camp office until January 20, 2025, when registration opens to the public, and you can create your account. If you’d like to register during the BDS priority registration period, email us at summer@belmontday.org, and we will help you register. We will need the following information to register your camper, and then we will send you a link to log in and add a payment method:
- Name of student
- Date of birth
- Current grade
- Home address
- Daytime phone number
Summer camp spots are available for Belmont Day families through February 14, 2025. After that, space is subject to availability.
February & April Vacation Camps
You can also register for our school year vacation week programs during this time. These are four-day programs (Tuesday-Friday) during the vacation weeks. As of now, we have extended day care available for February. We may have extended day for April, pending staffing. The After School team runs these programs. Each week has a theme. Camp themes and more information are in the dropdowns below.
February Camp
Space: The Final Frontier
Dates: Tuesday, February 18 to Friday, February 21
Cost: $625
This space odyssey-themed program will explore planets, spaceships, aliens, and NASA with fun, engaging, and educational adventures. Limited space for extended day is available at the rate of $35 per day.
April Camp
Zootopia: The Wild World of Animals
Dates: Tuesday, April 22 to Friday, April 25
Cost: $625
In Zootopia, children will learn about creatures large and small, discover extinct ecosystems, make an animal foot cast, build like an army ant, and more. They will also enjoy a visit from some real-life animal friends. At this time, extended day is not available, but we hope to offer it if we are able.
Vacation Camp Registration
For children who have previously attended camp:
- Email summer@belmontday.org with the child’s name, which vacation week camp you would like to enroll in, and whether you need extended day.
- We will process the enrollment in CampMinder and confirm your payment information.
For children who have not attended camp:
- Email summer@belmontday.org with the following information:
– Child’s name, current grade, and date of birth
– Home address
– Phone number to reach you during camp hours
– The vacation week camp you would like to enroll in - We will create an account for you, register your child, and send you a login link.
- Use the login link to set a password.
- Add payment information under “Financial Management.” We will then process your payment.
Please email summer@belmontday.org with registration questions. If you have questions about the programs offered, please contact Blair Fross, director of school-year auxiliary and specialty programs, at bfross@belmontday.org.
COMMUNITY NEWS
State of the School 2024
Thank you to everyone who attended the 2024 State of the School. A big thank you to the parents’ association, which hosted the presentation as the main feature of their December meeting. If you could not attend, a recording of the address and Q&A, as well as the presented slides, are available by using the links below. The beginning of the video is the business portion of the PA meeting, followed by the State of the School, starting at 19:30.
The monthly PA meetings are open to all families. Dates for future meetings and video recordings of past meetings are available on the Parents’ Association page of the Parent Portal.
Learning Updates
Third Grade Visits Belmont Center to Study Communities
Third graders are exploring communities, local government, citizenship, and economics. A lesson led by innovation coach Brit Conroy and associate teacher Tim Gore examined the differences between rural, suburban, and urban communities. Third graders participated in a See, Think, Wonder exercise using Google Earth, providing a unique bird’s eye view of these communities. Following the digital exploration, students prepared for a site visit to study Belmont Center. The visit included Town Hall, where students met with the treasurer collector, Leslie Davidson, the assistant treasurer collector, Odalys Torres, the administrative coordinator, James Goudie, and the director of community services, Brandon Fitts. Students learned more about the functions of local government and how they impact the communities we live in. They asked many thoughtful questions and acted as excellent ambassadors for Belmont Day.
In addition to visiting Town Hall, students separated into groups to study focus areas and conduct interviews at Belmont Books, Bellmont Caffé, Champion Sports, M&T Bank, and with the staff at the Belmont Voice newspaper. Students wrote thank you notes to all who took the time to meet with them. They discussed their findings and will review their site photos and begin designing their own communities, incorporating construction engineering techniques while building on their understanding of the Belmont community.
– The Third Grade Team
Athletics Update: Fencing Opens Season with Win
The fencing program traveled to Boston Fencing Club to take on the International School of Boston (ISB) in their first match of the season. With only a few days of practice under their belt, the team emerged with a tight 14-13 win over a more experienced team. First-year sabre fencers Ashwin Balakrishnan and Raphael Hsia won a bout in their inaugural match, while veterans Edwin Voiland (3-3) and Jordan Levine (2-3) combined for five wins for the Blue & Gold. The balance of young energy and veteran experience paid off for Belmont Day this week, and the team will look to keep things rolling next week when they square off against Beaver Country Day.
– John O’Neill, director of athletics
Athletics News
- The badminton & squash teams spent two days on Harvard’s squash courts this week. Classmates Bianca Yardemian and Marina Hubbard were quick studies on the hardwood. Henry Mallet and Ewan Wheeler showed strong shot placements.
- The wrestling team toppled Lexington Christian Academy in their first match of the season. Rookie wrestler Lee Piechota excelled in his first interscholastic match, earning a second round pin. Joshua Harriette also had a strong win for BDS.
- Kiernan Patel led a furious second half comeback, but boys’ varsity basketball came up 1 point short (41-40) in a dramatic OT thriller against Park in their season opener. Sam Rodriguez collected a remarkable 12 steals on the afternoon.
- The girls’ varsity basketball team got outplayed on both ends of the floor in their season opener against Park, losing 38-25. Violet Hancock and Sophie Cutie provided some strong minutes off the bench. Harper Treisman shined in her first game.
- The intramural basketball team has been working hard on their foundational skills. First year players Dalia DiCrescenzo and Jaya Patel are already showing notable improvement. Abigail Chang and Eden O’Sullivan are showing signs of leadership.
Pre-kindergarten Enjoys Lessons in Innovation
This year, pre-kindergarten has been trying out a new workshop series: Studio With Teacher Conroy! Inspired by design thinking principles and the incredible ateliers of Reggio Emilia, Italy, the pre-kindergarten team offered students a series of experiences that would cultivate their innate creativity, hone their problem-solving skills, and introduce them to various tools for art and innovation. Most recently, innovation coach Brit Conroy brought the Gif-O-Graf to our classroom studio, and students worked together to create a short stop-motion film. We are excited to see where our studio work will lead next!
– Kim Edwards, pre-kindergarten teacher
French Students Take to Drawing and Design
Last month, middle school students enjoyed a visit from author and cartoonist Dan Nott, who talked about his creative process and his latest book, Hidden Systems: Water, Electricity, the Internet, and the Secrets Behind the Systems We Use Every Day. Echoing the graphic design theme of Nott’s book, eighth grade French students worked on a learning activity that combined both design and vocabulary skills. After co-creating a class vocabulary list based on a short story they read, students created their own comic strips, incorporating those expressions. They engaged actively with the new vocabulary as they created inventive characters, situations, and drawings.
– Jennifer Friborg, French teacher
Parents’ Association News
PA Faculty Appreciation Fund
With the holiday season approaching, we know that many families are moved to show appreciation for the Belmont Day School faculty. The school respectfully asks that families not purchase gifts for individual faculty members. The PA is offering to help organize holiday faculty appreciation by distributing gift cards to local businesses to teaching and non-teaching faculty, per their request. If you would like to participate, contributions can be made to PA Treasurer Andy Stevenson’s Venmo account (@Andrew-Stevenson-49 or QR code below). Please note this is not a tax-deductible gift. The last day to contribute is Tuesday, December 17.
Contact the PA
Please feel free to reach out directly to any of the PA ambassador team or to email us at bdspa@belmontday.org:
President – Shanying Zhang
Vice President – Megan Akkina
Treasurer – Andy Stevenson
Clerk – Jeff Wang
Beyond BDS
COMMUNITY EDUCATION
Belmont High School to Host Screening of Screenagers
Parents and middle school students are invited to a Screenagers: Growing Up in the Digital Age screening on Tuesday, January 7, at 7 p.m. in the Belmont High School auditorium.
Screenagers (updated in 2024) is an award-winning documentary that looks at the impact of screen technology on children. Through interviews with parenting authors and brain scientists, the film offers ideas on how adults can help kids navigate the digital world in a healthy way.
The film runs for 60 minutes and will be followed by a discussion with the audience. Doors will open at 6:45 p.m. Click here for more information.
CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Clinical Study Looking for Participants
The BRIDGE (Brain Indicators Development Growth) Study from the Laboratories of Cognitive Neuroscience (LCN) at Boston Children’s Hospital is recruiting boys 2- to 5-year-olds for a language development study. The study will investigating how differences in brain activity affect learning, language, and behavior in children with and without neurodevelopmental disorders.
If you are interested in participating in or learning more about this study, please email bridgestudy@childrens.harvard.edu
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