The Spring Independent 2023

The Independent

Cardinal Chatter

In conjunction with Black History Month and the Service Learning Projects, students explored and considered ways they could make the world a better, kinder and more just place.

What does it mean to you, to “be the change you want to see in the world?”

“Setting an example for those who are younger than you, like our Buddy Classes!”

ELIZABETH, GRADE 7

“Working actively to be the change I want to see throughout my life and within myself – it’s about being your best self. And teaching kids this at a young age is so important!”

ELLIE, GRADE 7

“Making a contribution to society.”

MILLA, GRADE 7

“It’s about giving to others.”

LUCY, GRADE 7

“If other people see you doing what you think is right for the community and earth – it’s a good example. You don’t need to wait to be told what to do – just do it, and others will follow.”

WOLFIE, GRADE 6

“Working together to solve problems.”

EMMELINE, GRADE 1

“Making a difference, making it better.

LUCA, GRADE 1

“Being kind to all types of people, because we’re all human.”

HARLAN, GRADE 4

“Actsthat are selfless,like donating canned goods or clothing to a shelter.

ROGUE, GRADE 8

“Helping out people around the world.”

ALESANDRA, GRADE 1

“Small things can have a large impact and also inspire others – like cleaning up the streets in your neighborhood.

JACK, GRADE 5

“Doing things so that the community and our environment can be safe.”

ADARA, GRADE 2

Black History Month & Service Learning Projects

Educating Students to be Generous and Committed Citizens of Their Communities and the World

Buddy Service Learning Projects

In an exercise designed to examine the ties the SPS community has to the greater Philadelphia community, Buddy Groups were charged with creating and executing a service project to benefit a particular group of Philadelphia residents in need. Students were guided by two questions: What/who do we want to be of service to in our community? How can we be of service to our community?

Through their active learning projects, students were educated on the importance of community and how small acts of service can help spread love and kindness throughout the world. Students learned the value of community organizing and became their own initiators of change.

• Preschool and Third Grade: Card making for nursing home residents

Black History Month Exhibit Tour

During Black History Month, our community explored the legacy of Black Americans whose power to lead, invent, create and resist have expanded the meaning and practice of American democracy. This year’s theme from the Association for the Study of African American Life and History was Black Resistance and we used this lens to explore ways to create positive change to make our world a more just place.

Each classroom was tasked with creating a display in the school to demonstrate what they studied and learned in relation to Black History. Afterwards, a “museum guide” was compiled to help grades explore the various exhibits around the school. Students gathered inspiration from resources provided by the Equity Committee, classroom history lessons, and the book Change Sings: A Child’s Anthem by Amanda Gorman. Exhibits produced by students include:

• Preschool: Illustrator Donald Crews Trucks Artwork

• Prekindergarten: Artist Tyree Guyton Heidelberg St. Project Houses

• Kindergarten: Poet Amanda Gorman and Artist Deborah Roberts Collage Project

• First Grade: Inventor Garrett Morgan Stoplight Exhibit and MLK Words Display

• Third Grade: Notable Black Inventors and Scientists Quilts

• Fourth Grade: Change Sings Character Trait Exhibit

• Fifth Grade: Change Sings Exhibit and Black History Month Study Summary

• Prekindergarten and Third Grade: Hot chocolate stand raising funds for Project HOME

• Kindergarten and The Sharks: Growing food using the Rise Gardens to donate to the community in partnership with Old Pine Community Center

• First Grade, Fourth Grade and The Wolverines: Decorating brown bags and placements for Old Pine’s food service program

• Second Grade, Fifth Grade and The Black Squirrels: Community trash pick up and niche recycling program participation

Upper Grade students were split into groups rather than grade levels for the purpose of Buddy activities and are represented by team names: The Black Squirrels, The Wolverines, and The Sharks

Third Grade Project Based Learning

A Respectful Approach to the Study of Indigenous Peoples

The guiding question that our Third Grade classes established as they embarked on their studies on the Lenni Lenape people was “how can we respectfully learn about Native Americans?” So before the unit even began, Ms. Kenny and Ms. Formoso led discussions with the students about the meaning of the words “culture” and “indigenous” and what it means to be culturally aware and respectful. With this understanding and framework in place, the Third Grade set out to learn about the Lenape people from a historical perspective, while also touching on stories and perspectives of present day Native American people. And while some lessons in particular were sad at times, the Third Graders learned about European colonization, and the hazards it brought upon the Indigenous Peoples, including attempts to dampen their culture.

As a way to honor and celebrate some aspects of the Lenape culture, students got to appreciate in small ways the time and effort that went into their daily life, by using Lenape craft skills to create baskets, looms, pottery, and beaded wampum belts. Students then delved deeper into specific

aspects of the Lenape daily life and traditions, from the clothing they wore, food they ate, and the social activities they participated in. The Third Graders conducted their own research using various media to learn about the given topic, completing info graphic organizers, then ultimately creating presentation slides. During their Indigenous Peoples Presentation in mid-March, the pairs proudly shared their findings and crafted items to an audience of their family and friends.

An Update on City Curriculum

Artifacts from World Cultures at the Penn Museum

Students continue to enjoy the rich educational resources located right in our own backyard and throughout Philadelphia. These learning experiences out in the city serve to both enhance classroom instruction and allow students to discover and connect to the world around them. This year, students from several grades had the opportunity to appreciate amazing artifacts and archaeological finds during their visits to the Penn Museum.

Fourth Grade Inca, Aztec, Mayan Cultures

Fourth Grade students took a trip to the Penn Museum at the beginning of their second term as part of their introduction to the origins of the Aztec, Inca, and Mayan cultures. Students toured the Mexico and Central American gallery, where they saw Aztec sculptures, learned more about Mayan legacy and culture by looking at beautiful woven textiles. This visit helped the students engage more deeply with the new unit and gave context as to why it is important to study world history and culture.

Second Grade PBL Unit on World Cultures

In preparation for their Children of the World presentation, which was the culmination of their PBL unit, Second Grade students visited the Penn Museum to learn more about countries around the world and specifically their food cultures. Students were able to see artifacts from countries in

Africa, Asia, the Americas, and the Mediterranean, learning the cultural significance of items found in specific regions as they toured the museum’s beautiful campus. The resulting presentations featured countries from all parts of the world including China, Italy, Egypt, and Spain and pairs of students presented a poster, hand-made pottery, and traditional homemade cuisine.

Creativity with Ms. Sacher

Weaving Together Music, Art and Drama for our Youngest Budding Talents

Located just off the main parlor on the first floor of the School, the “Creativity Lab” is the hub for all things artistic, dramatic and musical for students in Preschool – First Grade. And leading all of these creative endeavors for our youngest students is Faith Sacher, who is in her fifth year of teaching at St. Peter’s School. “I am extremely passionate about the arts and the importance of having an arts program in schools,” shares Ms. Sacher, adding, “it is my goal to share my passion with my students and hope that they find an outlet to express themselves through an art form.”

Ms. Sacher creates an environment where students feel encouraged to explore new materials, collaborate with one another, express their unique individuality, and let their imaginations run wild.

Working closely with the students across a variety of artistic, musical and theatrical mediums, Ms. Sacher is able to guide students to develop their skills and deepen their appreciation in the areas they may gravitate towards more naturally, while also encouraging exploration and increasing confidence in creative outlets they may feel is beyond their current abilities. “It is so exciting for me to see how much our students are growing and developing, even from the beginning to the end of just one project!” remarks Faith.

Through collaboration with the Grade level teachers, Ms. Sacher is able to further enhance and reinforce the classroom learning, from math and language arts to SEL and the Racial Literacy Curriculum, by drawing relevant ties between these studies and the students’ creative explorations.

Preschoolers have been acting out Pete the Cat stories, adding their own flair with the incorporation of musical instruments. In the Art Show, Preschoolers created colorful and expressive penguins and a Monet-inspired water lilies painting showcasing color blending and sponge painting techniques.

PreKindergarteners engaged with drawing and painting exercises that explore primary colors and various shapes.

Ms. Sacher guided storytelling activities inspired by fables and fairy tales such as Three Little Pigs and introduced the musical element of tempo through The Tortoise and the Hare. And, after delving into the classic children’s storybook, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, students crafted lovable caterpillar characters with model magic that were on display at the Art Show.

characters with model magic that were

new skills and

how to

Kindergartners learned about mixing primary colors to create secondary colors, then discussed the categorization into warm and cool colors. Kindergarteners parlayed these skills and knowledge into a piece inspired by the artist Alma Thomas and a project illustrating the sun and moon. Students began working on music fundamentals, including to keep a steady beat, and were introduced to orchestra instrument families woodwinds, percussion, brass, and string.

First The and movement, and mediums with a rabbit Year achieved learned the French composer story

Graders created dances and acted out the story of Nutcracker as an introduction to the concept of a ballet, where performers tell the story through emotions movement, not dialogue. They combined techniques mediums including weaving, collage, watercolors, and shading to produce whimsical Owls for the Art Show, along rabbit project inspired by the Chinese Lunar New achieved using an ink printing technique. Students also about the musical suite Carnival of the Animals by French composer Camille Saint-Saëns and told their own inspired by the musical elements in the songs.

George Washington Carver Science Fair

Seventh Graders Triumph in this Year’s Competition

ELLIE PAK

Pedigree Analysis: A Family Tree of Traits

1st Place, Medicine and Health

SETH KESSLER

Finding The Fastest

Speedsolving Method for a Rubik’s Cube

3rd Place, Mathematics

LUCY EWING

Are Fingerprint Patterns

Inherited?

3rd Place, Medicine and Health

Created to give Philadelphia students an opportunity to gain enriched learning experiences through scientific inquiry and discovery, the annual George Washington Carver Science Fair is one of the oldest and largest urban science fairs in the United States. Each year, 4th through 12th graders from various public, charter, Parochial, private, and home schools across Philadelphia participate in this fair, preparing and presenting projects for consideration by a panel of judges. The fair encourages students to explore their interests in the sciences as they compete in a variety of categories that pique their interests. Ms. Soriano guided our students throughout this entire process for the second year in a row, once again leading several students to claim accolades in their scientific category. Congratulations to our Seventh Graders for all of their hard work and dedication that went into this competition, which was held at Temple University on March 8. After winning in her category in the city-wide fair, Ellie Pak advanced to join the Delaware Valley Science Fair which was held on April 5, where she received an Honorable Mention for her project in the Medicine and Health Category!

The Seventh and Eighth Grade Play

This is a Test, by Stephen Gregg performed on March 23

Students in the Seventh and Eighth grades had the opportunity to explore the Arts Appreciation School Key in more depth this winter, as they embarked on preparations and a performance of the play, This is a Test, by Stephen Gregg.

The “mini course” is offered only to our most senior students to showcase their creative skills and drama techniques. Guided by Ms. Sacher, students worked on memorizing lines, collaborating as an ensemble, and character creation. By the time of their final performance in late March, students had learned important techniques in stage presence, body and voice control, and role play.

MILLA GEORGE

How Do Fears Change With Age?

ELIZABETH OLIVER

What Conflicting Mental Tasks Reveal About Thinking: The Stroop Effect

CLIVE SIMMONS

A Parent’s Favorite Game

ALEXANDROS MATSIKAS

Investigating the Speed of Balsa Wood Car vs Popsicle Stick Car vs Lego Car

Class of 2023 High School Matriculation

Congratulations to the graduating Eighth Grade Class, as they embark on the next chapter of their education, and the following secondary schools:

Ines Balti

Revolution School

Lola Bambe

Blair Academy

Mae Iannotti

The Agnes Irwin School

Mariah McBride

Timber Creek High School

Rogue McKinney

Friends Select School

Jacob Weisgold

Friends Select School

Class of 2005 Alumni Highlight

Jerome Bailey Brings His Passion and Perspective to the Classroom

Jerome Bailey knew that the Seventh Grade American History & Government class he was teaching at Episcopal Academy would have to change course following the murder of George Floyd in May of 2020. The class now takes a different approach to the study of American government, using a racial lens to show that not all people receive equal treatment by the government. “We discuss the experiences of marginalized people in America throughout history, and delve into how systemic government and societal issues have perpetuated these experiences,” explains Jerome. “I build in lots of time for reflection with the students, and it can get very emotional,” notes Jerome. It is through those reflective moments that he sees the impact and the benefit of this curriculum. Jerome’s hope is that more students in his classroom are able to see themselves and their experiences reflected in the curriculum, and based on the real time feedback from his students, he knows that goal is being achieved.

“Coming up through Independent Schools and often being one of only a few students of color, I feel that it is now my responsibility to help students understand that not everyone has the same experience in the classroom.” It was in part Jerome’s reflection on his own experience in school that led him to advocate for the pivot of the curriculum in his

history class, but moreover his passion for educating students on the African American experience in this country.

It was during college that Jerome was really struck by the fact that such a small percentage of educators were African American males. Looking back at his time spent in Independent Schools and not seeing himself reflected in the faculty, he made the decision to pursue a career as an educator.

Now in his tenth year as a teacher, and in his fifth school year at EA, Jerome also teaches a 12th Grade elective course on African American history and serves as a Middle School Diversity Coordinator.

During most summers, Jerome is involved in Horizons, a tuition-free academic and enrichment program serving students from under-resourced communities. He views this as another very important opportunity he is given to make an impact in the lives of young African American students. “I feel like I am needed in both places and take both of these responsibilities very seriously,” remarks Jerome of the work he is doing and the children he is able to work with during the school year and in the summer. “To me, this is an extremely rewarding profession.”

Not only are we proud to call Jerome Bailey an SPS Alum, but also honored to have him as part of the extended faculty family, as he is husband to Preschool teacher Raven Bailey!

Preschool (Age 3) through Eighth Grade 319 Lombard Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147 st-peters-school.org