CANDLE LIGHTING BC celebrated a successful first semester and the start of Winter Break at our annual Candle Lighting ceremonies this morning! Students from each grade, as well as representatives from the Parent Association, faculty, staff, and alumni joined Head of School Dr. Waller to light the candles. Photos.
Middle School World Languages Chair Elizabeth Luscombe gave a moving speech about how holidays remind her of her family's traditions which are often based around cooking and delicious food. A proud Tejana, she shared how her great-grandparents emigrated from Jalisco, Mexico to America so her great-grandfather could work in Arizona's coal mines and how her U.S.-born grandfather who was so proud to serve his country and gave his life on D-day at the Battle of Normandy. "Share what you have and offer it with joy. Be devoted to your loved ones for they truly are what matters most." (Transcript)
The 4th Grade Chorus sang "The Holiday Swing" and "Ode to Joy." The 2nd & 3rd Grade Chorus sang "All Through the Night" and "Rockin' Robin." The Upper School and Middle School Combined Choir sang "I Dream a World," composed by André C. Thomas, text by Langston Hughes. SPEECH & DEBATE NEWS Alice E. '23 and Carly S. '22 recently qualified for the State Tournament after placed 1st and 2nd, respectively, in Declamation at a recent NYC tournament where the team of Hannah W. '23 and Margot S. '22 won 1st place in Public Forum. At Princeton University's Invitational, Noa B. '22 took 5th place in Dramatic Oratory and Jake P. '20 took 2nd place in Original Oratory!
Additionally Casper M. '25 and John P. '25 competed in their first Public Forum debate, competing with 90 other teams in the Novice Division of the Middle School Urban Debate League tournament where Casper placed in the top 40. BC FACULTY CHOSEN TO HELP LEAD NY STATE CONFERENCE Congratulations to Lower School Science Teacher Becky Blumenthal and Lower School Language Arts Coordinator Heather McKay who were selected to help lead the NYSAIS Beginning Teachers Institute! The conference is designed to support first and second year teachers across NY State in their professional growth. ATHLETICS Read Athletics Director Carmine Giovino's last Athletic Update for 2019 here. PHOTO GALLERY: WINTER CONCERT Check out this photo gallery from the concert which featured performances by our Fourth Grade Chorus, Upper School Orchestra, Philharmonia, Orchestra, Choir and Jazz Band. BC ALUM HONORED BY TRINITY COLLEGE BC Alum Courtney Roach '12, who was just named to Trinity College's "50 for the Next 50"! Honorees have to be nominated by the Trinity community and recognizes alumni who have had and will have a lasting impact on the future of the college. MIDDLE SCHOOL ROBOTICS TEAM HAS STRONG SHOWING The Middle School Robotics Team, "The Inventables," had another strong showing at their recent NYC Tech Challenge! The team of Aravind B. '24, Moss B. '24, and Leo K. '26 competed against 30 teams from across the city and are excited for their next qualifier in January. SENIOR SPEAKERS Congratulations to the last Senior Speakers of 2019! (L-R King S. '20, Kyra M. '20, Renate B. '20, and Lucas D. '20) King is known around BC for his speed walking. He told the audience that he is always in a rush because he wants to make the most of this unique time that he called a capstone to his youth. Kyra has had a lot of obsessions over the years, from favorite musicians to Harry Potter. She told the audience she's proud of them all because these fascinations have made her who she is today.
Renate talked about female representation in anime, a subject she is exploring as part of her Senior Scholar research this year. Lucas shared a series of short stories rather than just one long one because he told the audience he's learned to enjoy life's little moments since you never know what you'll get out of them. LOWER SCHOOL STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN NATIONAL "HOUR OF CODE" Lower School Students in 1st through 4th grades took part in the annual Hour of Code! Obviously BC students spend a lot more than just one hour each year learning to code, but this event brings together 100 million+ students worldwide to inspire creativity and recognize the importance of coding to 21st century skills.
Students participated in a variety of programming activities, with 3rd and 4th graders learning about machine learning to train a robot to help clean the ocean, while younger students used programs like Osmo Coding and the LightBot Jr. app to learn logic skills and problem solving! Dr. Waller even joined students to learn how to code their own dance party! 4TH GRADERS COMMUNICATE THEIR IDENTITY USING ART As part of the Lower School's anti-bias curriculum, 4th graders study identity. To grow the connection between personal identity and how art can be used as a tool to communicate identity, students have embarked on a Brand Identity and Package Design unit.
To guide their thinking, Brooklyn ceramic artist Stephanie Shih visited with the class to talk about her Chinese Grocery Project where she creates sculptures and vessels that explore her Chinese and Taiwanese-American identity. She also shared with students some tips and tricks for painting and sculpting with clay that will help them in making their own sculptures! CHECK OUT THE UPPER SCHOOL STUDENT NEWSPAPER New articles on The Blotter include "BC's Spirit Week" and "A Nail-Biter at Barclays"! HAPPY HOLIDAYS, BC— SEE YOU IN 2020! Enjoy this selection from the Winter Concert, Danzón, performed by the BC Philharmonia (or watch the full concert).
DON'T MISS
Dec. 23-Jan. 3: School Closed for Winter Break Jan. 6: No Classes for Students (Faculty Development Day) Jan. 7: Classes Resume Jan. 9: Info Session on National Spanish Exam for 6th-8th Grade Families Jan. 9: College Office Speaker: Mark Hatch Jan. 14: 5th Grade Trip to Metropolitan Museum Jan. 14: Lower School Parent Coffee on Self-Reliance (PA Event) Jan. 16: 7th Grade Parent Coffee Jan. 23: Meeting on HPV Vaccine for MS Parents (PA Event) Jan. 30: 8th Grade Parent Coffee Jan. 30: Ice Skating Party (PA Event) Feb. 3: 8th Grade Wax Museum Feb. 6: Rising 11th Graders Curriculum Night Feb. 7: Rising 12th Graders Curriculum Night Feb. 7: Middle & Upper School Choir Concert (Facebook Live) Feb. 11: Middle & Upper School "Evening of Jazz" (Facebook Live) Feb. 13: Upper School Instrumental Concert (Facebook Live) Feb. 17: President's Day (School Closed) Feb. 18: Rising 10th Grade Curriculum Night Feb. 26-28: Upper School Musical "Pippin" Feb. 27 & 28: Parent Teacher Conferences (No classes) Feb. 29: UnityFest (PA Event) March 2-13: Spring Intensives March 3: 5th Grade Debut Concert March 4: Lower School Parent Coffee on School Safety (PA Event) March 6: Benefit for Berkeley Carroll March 16-27: Spring Break (School Closed)
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