BDS to Host ‘Parents’ University’ in May

Mark those calendars and plan to join us on Saturday, May 2 from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. for the first Parents’ University at Belmont Day. This new program, sponsored by the Ko Family and Wellesley Toyota Speaker Series, will feature keynote speaker Rosalind Wiseman, author, curriculum creator, and founder of Cultures of Dignity, as well as workshops led by BDS faculty. We promise an engaging morning of learning and inspiration on raising curious, confident, and resilient children.

The program is open to the public, so please invite your friends and neighbors. Advanced registration, at $5 per attendee, is required. Click here to register, and if you have any questions, contact Beth Sousa, associate director of development and annual giving. 

Recorders and Original Compositions

Students in the second grade music class completed the woodwind unit this week as they practiced basic resting and playing positions and the notes B, A, and G on the recorder. During this unit, students learned about the variety of woodwind instruments as part of the year-long instrumental curriculum. For the past few weeks, they have been rehearsing Hot Cross Buns and improvising melodic patterns on the three notes. By practicing aural skills, students have been able to recognize high and low notes. Furthermore, students have been working on identifying notes on the treble clef. Last week, we created whole class compositions, in which students came up with a melody and notated it on the staff. This week, students created individual original compositions using those three notes. Check out this clip of students rehearsing Hot Cross Buns!

– Yui Kitamura, music teacher, grades 2-8

Students Get Moving After Break

Our pre-kindergarten to grade four physical education students have been on a roll since February break, learning new games, using new materials, and getting into an athletic groove. To combat the cold-ish winter weather, students arrived to class and got right into a Tabata warm-up. Then they worked on their castle building (and castle destroying) skills leading up to castleball, a game played with a hula hoop structure comprised of six hoops. They also practiced throwing, passing, and communicating as a team in handball, and got into the mad dash spirit of gold rush. They incorporated the castles, throwing, and fitness work into some innovative obstacle courses, and spent the last week working on various net games on our badminton nets. You may think you’ve seen cooperation at its finest, but there’s nothing quite like observing a group of students try and keep a balloon in the air using pool noodles. It’s sometimes the lightest piece of equipment that can pose the greatest challenge!

– Alex Tzelnic and Abbey Nyland, physical education teachers

New Teaching Role for Julia Juster in 2020-21

We are delighted to announce that Julia Juster, current grade five English and social studies teacher, has been hired to join the middle school team as our new grades 6, 7, and 8 English teacher. Over her three years at Belmont Day, Julia has not only been teaching grade five, but also has served as a Capstone mentor and a mentor teacher to our associate teachers, and has been employed as a head teaching fellow at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, where she organizes and facilitates two graduate-level courses. With a keen eye on where middle school students have come from and a commitment to best practices in education, Julia joins the middle school team with great expertise and excitement to introduce sophisticated English language narratives and skills to our middle school students.

Book Order Available for Upcoming Workshop 

On March 19 at 6:30 p.m., BDS will host Devorah Heitner, Ph.D., author of Screenwise: Helping Kids Thrive and Survive in Their Digital World for a workshop with parents. If you are interested in ordering Dr. Heitner’s book, click here for directions. To ensure your book is available for you at the workshop, please place your order by next Thursday, March 10. 

Childcare will be provided during the evening workshop. To register your child, please contact Dolly Ryan no later than Tuesday, March 17. Children will enjoy activities and a pizza dinner in the Erskine Library. If your child cannot eat pizza, please provide an alternate meal for them.