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Ms. Moriarty’s sixth grade science class uses eclipse glasses to observe the daytime sky during a recent “planet walk” exercise.
Message from Head of School
Don’t Forget to Breathe
Brendan Largay, Head of School
Post Date: January 11, 2019
You can find this week’s Blue Handprint Studios audio below:
Happy New Year everyone! I hope you enjoyed the winter break. As I have checked in with various folks—teachers, parents, and students—the feedback has been uniformly positive, and a renewed joyfulness is evident. An important reminder of the value of taking pause, celebrating reconnection, and thoughtfully reflecting on another year gone by.
Reflection is a critical element of restoration, perhaps because it provides us with the bandwidth to achieve closure with thoughts or ideas that we weren’t quite done with, or because it allows the silt to sift through leaving only the golden nuggets visible. Whatever the reason, it is invaluable to me. Maybe this year more than most.
2018 has been a pretty busy run for Belmont Day, and it feels fitting that the year would end with the opening of the Barn as a signature moment of celebration, growth, and the conclusion of a significant chapter of work. As I reflected on the year, I found myself coming back to that again and again. All of the hard work. All of the community energy. The excitement. And ultimately, the opportunity it creates for us and our future.
January, named for the Roman god Janus, and the arrival of the new year invites us to look in two directions at once: back and forward. In that spirit, my look ahead is marked by three resolutions for our school and me. They are reminiscent of the lessons countless coaches tried to teach me growing up, and they continue to resonate for me as I look to 2019:
- Don’t forget to breathe. One look back at 2018 at BDS, and it’s hard not to feel the need for a good, deep breath. We’ve been busy. We need to take a moment, be present, and realize just how far we have come. In doing so, we will be better prepared to recognize the next set of opportunities for BDS. Breathing, finding balance, and restoring ourselves is critical to discover and seize the opportunities that 2019 is sure to present.
- Keep your head up. Embrace the optimism inherent in a community of learners to be ready to receive the opportunities that lie ahead. The future at Belmont Day has never been brighter. There’s plenty to be optimistic about around here: great faculty, excellent facilities, engaged students, and dedicated families.
- Simplify, simplify, simplify. Henry David Thoreau got it right. The siren calls of 2019—countless inputs that draw our attention in multiple directions at once, and a culture that promotes continually seeking the next best thing can get the very best of us. We become exhausted in a great tail-chasing exercise. In 2019, we should focus on that which we know best—excellence in teaching, caring about our community, treating one another with respect, and always finding joy—and the discoveries start to take care of themselves.
Happy New Year everyone. Welcome back.
Kindergartners follow along with an audio book, narrated by their teacher Ms. Pryor.
This Coming Week at BDS
January 14 through 18
All School
Monday, January 14
8–9:00 a.m., Strategic Planning Committee, Barn Conference Room
8:15–9:00 a.m., Grade 3 Parents’ Library Coffee, Erskine Library
6:30–7:30 p.m., Braiding Different Strands: Director of Equity and Inclusion Event, Erskine Library
Tuesday, January 15
8:15–9:15 a.m., Parent Book Group, Erskine Library
7–9:00 p.m., Board of Trustees
Wednesday, January 16
3:30 p.m., Wrestling at Fenn; Boys’ JV Basketball vs Meadowbrook; Girls’ JV Basketball vs Meadowbrook
6:30–7:30 p.m., Braiding Different Strands: Director of Equity and Inclusion Event, Erskine Library
Thursday, January 17
3:30 p.m., Boys’ JV Basketball at Cambridge Friends; Boys’ Varsity Basketball vs LCA; Fencing vs ISB; Girls’ Varsity Basketball vs LCA
5:30–6:30 p.m., Head of School Forum, Coolidge Hall
Friday, January 18
8–11:00 a.m., Middle School Parents’ Visiting Day
8:50–9:35 a.m., Lower School Sharing Assembly
8:50–9:35 a.m., Middle School Sharing Assembly
1–4:00 p.m., Prospective Student Visits – Grades 4 and 5
Head of School Forum
Thursday, January 17, 5:30–6:30 p.m.
Coolidge Hall
Our school environment is evolving, both inside and out. As we start 2019 and head into the second half of the school year, join Brendan Largay for a discussion on how our learning community is embracing the new normal and the many exciting opportunities ahead of us.
Keep Going With the Flow!
Thank you all for your patience and good will as we get accustomed to the new traffic and dismissal patterns. We understand that establishing new routines can be challenging.
The map of the new traffic pattern and description of the new dismissal guidelines are available for reference below. And if you need a tutorial (see video here) be sure to ask one of our pre-k students!
Dismissal Doors and Traffic Flow Map
The PAC Door:
- The right-hand lane will proceed to the stop sign and then turn right through the upper parking lot, past the Barn entrance and walkway to begin to pick up at the PAC doors.
- Students will be dismissed through the walkway doors in winter and through the PAC doors in fall and spring.
- During the winter term, pre-k to grade two students will be seated in the walkway hallway.
- During the winter term, students in grades three to five will be seated in the area outside the PAC.
- During the fall and spring terms, all students will be dismissed from the PAC stage.
- Buckling into car seats will be done by the adults picking up students, not by faculty or staff on duty.
- Cars will exit the PAC line, and on the instruction of the faculty/staff member on traffic duty, will drive straight and into the lower parking lot to exit onto Day School Lane at the top of the circle. Another faculty/staff member positioned at the top of the circle will direct traffic exiting from the lower lot and the front door.
The Front Door:
- The left-hand lane will proceed to the stop sign and then move straight through Coolidge Way towards the front door.
- Students will either wait inside or be seated on the benches outside the front door.
- Buckling into car seats will be done by the adults picking up the students, not by faculty or staff on duty.
- Cars will exit the front door line and proceed around the circle. On instruction from the faculty or staff member on traffic duty, they will exit the school heading down Day School Lane.
- Receptionist Barbara Carey will create new lists of students for each door over winter break and email new dismissal spots to families.
- Parking spaces facing the PAC will become partially restricted, with parking only from 7:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Friday.
- Please keep in mind that arriving at 3:35 p.m. rather than close to 3:00 p.m. often enables a faster pick up.
- Our campus is a no-idling zone.
- 4:30 p.m. dismissal will be from the front door for students in after school and from the PAC door for athletics. Parents picking up siblings from after school and athletics will in most cases default to the younger student’s location.
- BDS buses (Boston, Cambridge, Belmont) will continue to be dismissed from the
sixth grade classroom corner. - Visiting team buses will drop at the Barn and park beside the B&G garage.
- Friday dismissal will follow the same dismissal pattern as above.
Lunch & Snack Menu
January 14 to January 18
Monday
Snack: salt and vinegar chips; fruit cup
Lunch: penne pasta with creamy pesto sauce; wholegrain rolls; Italian salad
Tuesday
Snack: saltines; pears
Lunch: beef chili and vegetarian chili with cheese, guacamole, salsa and sour cream; chef’s choice vegetables; corn chips; taco salad
Wednesday
Snack: 88 Acre Oats and Cinnamon Bars; bananas
Lunch: roast turkey; mashed maple squash; corn; cranberry sauce; roast potato wedges; mixed greens with goat cheese and sherry vinaigrette
Thursday
Snack: Tostitos; raisins
Lunch: cheese pizza and pepperoni pizza; chocolate milk; chef’s choice vegetables; Caesar salad
Friday
Snack: cheese and apples
No Lunch
Looking Ahead
FAMILY FUN NIGHT!
Mark your calendar for Family Fun Night, sponsored by the parents’ association. This event is a great way to connect with fellow BDS families! Families will enjoy watching Incredibles 2 in the PAC followed by a meal of cheese pizza ($10 per pizza), crudité, and lemonade with bingo games and prizes in Coolidge Hall. Children are encouraged to bring sleeping bags to snuggle in during the movie. Feel free to contact Cathy Fullerton with any questions.
BDS News
ATHLETICS
Wrestling Takes Down Park
John O’Neill, Director of Athletics
Thursday marked yet another first for the Belmont Day athletics program, as the wrestling team hosted its first interscholastic meet. Only four weeks into their inaugural season, the Blue & Gold impressed the home crowd by winning six of seven matches and recording five pins against Park. Belmont Day received strong performances up and down their roster including a gutsy 3-2 decision by sixth grader Christopher McEvoy and a first-period takedown and half nelson pin by
More Athletics News
Athletics News
- Team captains, Jacob Gregor
and Henry Burnham combined for 50 points during boys’ varsity’s nine-point win over Rashi this week. - The girls’ JV hoops team came up two points short against DCD despite stellar play from team captain Ellie Kadnar.
- Paul Lyons won all three of his bouts as the fencing team avenged an early season loss with a dramatic 14-13 win over Beaver.
- Alexander Colangelo (10 points) and Jake Walsh (eight points, six rebounds) led the way during boys’ JV’s lopsided win over DCD.
- The girls’ varsity team lost by 11 to Rashi. Emi Biotti was tremendous defensively and Izzy Kim did a great job on the boards.
- Volleyball split a pair of intramural matches this week. Mina Cho’s aces sealed the win for the Gold, while Michelle Mejia-Levy served the Blue back from a 10-point deficit for their win.
- Classmates Ellora Roy and Clio Burger have been standout performers on the badminton team. Roy for her fierce backhand and competitive spirit, and Burger for solid footwork and overhead slam.
ARTS
Fifth Graders Prepare to Take the Stage
Susan Dempsey, Theater Arts Teacher
FAMILY FILM FESTIVAL
See Films from Around the World!
January 18 to 21
Regent Theatre, Studio Cinema, Brattle Theatre
Belmont World Film 2019 Annual Family Festival is coming soon! Belmont Day is an annual sponsor of this wonderful array of animated and live action films from all over the world. Screenings are in Belmont, Arlington, and Cambridge. We have six sets of two complimentary tickets to raffle. Follow this link to enter your name into the drawing by Wednesday, January 16.
SUMMER CAMP
Plan Ahead for Summer And Register Today!
Registration for BDS Summer Camp and the Swim and Tennis Association (STA) are now open! Our website has extensive information about all our summer programs, including general camp, Journeys, specialty and sports offerings, as well as dates and rates. We hope to see you this summer! If you have any questions, please get in touch at summer@belmontday.org or (617) 932-3893.
FROM THE KITCHEN
Recipe for BDS Butternut Squash Soup
This hearty and delicious soup is a favorite of students and faculty and is perfect for the cold days ahead!
Makes 8 cups
Total cook time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 whole garlic cloves
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tsp. curry powder
1 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. dried basil
1-½ lbs. butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cubed, or 1 (20-ounce) package pre-cut squash
1 tart apple, cored and cubed
8 cups vegetable broth
Salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Toss the squash with onion, apple, celery, garlic, curry powder, brown sugar, and oil.
- Baked in oven at 350 degrees until it has a nice roasted color.
- Put the roasted mixture in a large pot with the vegetable stock.
- Bring to a boil and allow to simmer for 15-20 minutes.
- Use a blender or immersion blender to puree the soup.
- Serve immediately.
*Recipe was adapted from one featured in ChopChop Magazine
HIRING NEWS
Meet the Finalists for Equity & Inclusion Position
The hiring team for the position of Director of Equity and Inclusion hosted the first finalist at the school this past week. We hope you will join us on Monday, January 14, and Wednesday, January 16 at 6:30 p.m. in the Erskine Library to meet our next candidates.
Finalists will lead evening workshop sessions on issues of diversity, equity, and identity that will be open to the entire BDS community and we encourage you to attend. Childcare will be provided. Please contact Minna Ham to RSVP and to request childcare.
COMMUNITY SERVICE
Book It Forward Drive Continues
Today students worked in cross-graded partner groups to sort the book and CD/DVD donations received so far, and make bookmarks and decorate book bags to accompany them.
We are still collecting books for these two local organizations, More Than Words and Reach Out and Read at Children’s Hospital.
Donation notes: For Reach Out and Read, we can accept new and gently used books for children 6 months to middle school age in any language. No religious, racial, or political themes. For More Than Words, new and gently used books for children of all ages and adults are welcome. Other media must not be damaged. A donation box is in the Schoolhouse Gallery.
Thank you for your donations and support!
Parents’ Association News
Parent Book Club
Are you interested in reading and socializing? Join us for the next book club meeting on Tuesday, January 15. The book selection is A House for Mr. Biswas by V.S. Naipaul. All meetings will be held in the Erskine Library from 8:15 to 9:15 a.m. Refreshments will be provided. Please contact Nareeluck Stephenson with any questions.
Lunchroom Flowers
Thank you to the Kadnar family who supplied the lovely floral centerpieces in Coolidge Hall for our children to enjoy! We still have 5 open opportunities for others to support this effort. You can sign up here.
Upcoming Events
Family Fun Night, Saturday, February 2, 4:30–7:30 p.m., Palandjian Arts Center
PA Meeting, Friday, February 8, 8:30–9:30 a.m., Coolidge Hall
Shop at Wilson Farm Day, Thursday, February 28, Wilson Farm in Lexington
Auction
Donations Accepted Through January 25
There is still time to solicit a donation or donate an item or service to the auction. Donations will be accepted through January 25.
- Do you have an item you would like to donate or a special talent that you are willing to share with some students and or parents, such as sports tickets, vacation home, leading a baking class, knitting class, a private yoga session, etc.? Contact auction@belmontday.org
- Reach out to a potential donor and share with them how they can help support Belmont Day School. And be sure to highlight the benefits for their business by being seen by our vibrant community of over 300 attendees at the auction!
- Do you own a business, or have a friend that owns their own business and are looking to get some exposure to the BDS community? Visit our website for more information and to download a solicitation form!
Do you own or know a business who may be interested in sponsorship opportunities?
As a sponsor of Wonder, we will put your business in front of the Belmont Day community of families, faculty, and staff of more than 300 people who will learn of your commitment to support our school. Learn more about the support levels that are available.
Beyond BDS
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Breakfast
Monday, January 21, 8:45 to 11 a.m.
Belmont High School Cafeteria
Belmont Against Racism will host the annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Breakfast on Monday, January 21st from 8:45 to 11 a.m. in the Belmont High School cafeteria. Keynote speaker, Dr. Emmett Price, professor of worship, church and culture at the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, will present, “Re-imagining ‘We the People.'” Tickets are $5 per person and $10 per family and are available at the door or online at www.belmontagainstracism.org.
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