Headmaster's Blog

In the last week of October, 2013, an established fixture in the psyche of all Saint David's boys past and present, closed its doors.  The deli on the corner of 89th and Madison, not necessarily known for its Madison Avenue chic, but none-the-less a staple supplier of hearty food and other less healthy condiments, has become embedded over the decades, in the lore of the School. As with any loss there is an intangible sense of sadness around its closure, and yet, it's no surprise that it has come to this. In an effort to capture, reflect, celebrate, honor and maybe in a strange way glorify this fixture in the life of Saint David's boys, I penned a little ode in the style of the ancient poet Pindar.  He would often in his poems write of and honor youth and the things they valued.  I thought it fitting today to present this ode as my chapel talk for All-Saint's and Halloween. An Ode to Our GTD If ever a boy hungered or thirst With all his wits aside, spar...

This year, during the seventh grade's interdisciplinary week-long experience on Cape Cod, the boys participated in a STE(A)M related project.  The goal:  Construct a critter, using what they have learned about the environment, adaptation, evolution, art, and design. For this new project, created by teacher Gary Kessler and based on work he had done over the summer on spherical shapes, the boys worked in teams of two or four using paper plate spheres and other materials to create their unique creatures that met the criteria outlined. The boys discussed and proposed an appropriate environment for their creature and the special adaptations, or processes by which the critters would be fitted to that environment. As you can imagine the debates were quite spirited. Once the projects were completed, the teams prepared a presentation of their critter and their rationale for its existence.  The presentations were then video recorded. Boys were so engaged in this ...

With a day off from school, George, Coop, Tau,  and Hayden dropped by to visit yesterday.  All freshmen at their respective high schools, they were in great spirits. Hayden is making a name for himself running cross-country ... "raising more than a few marveling eyebrows at the season opening Choate Invitational ... turning heads ..." and Tau is busy working in Millbrook's zoo, George is enjoying activity on the lake, Coop is dealing with Loomis' recent "lesson" taught, according to Khalid, by Canterbury, with all the grace and humor of a true Saint David's boy! It was great to see them.

Second Graders at Inwood Yesterday, the second grade took their first field trip for this school year!   The boys traveled to Inwood Park’s   Natural Classroom to build  on their knowledge of the Lenape tribe, indigenous peoples to this area.   The boys have been studying the ways of the Lanape through our partnership with the New-York Historical Society for the past several weeks now. The trip was a planned chance to link their classroom studies to physically engaging experiences. To prepare for this trip, in addition to critiquing artifacts with N-YHS curators and studying texts, second graders built their own longhouses and wigwams in class (photo below),  and explored the various ways the Lenape were a resourceful people.   Making Wigwams Pre-trip On the trip, New York State Park Rangers escorted the boys through the Inwood Park 'living exhibit.' Rangers further explored with the boys how the Lenape’s life was heav...

On  the Cape today 7th grade boys explored the bay and coastal geography as part of their week-long trip to Cape Cod. Clearly the cooler, overcast day did not impede their efforts.  A few photos below. They are having a blast.

Monday was an exciting day.  Several grads visited on their first day off from high school.  Lucas from Choate, Giacomo from Deerfield, Hutch from Episcopal, and Khalid from Canterbury.  It was fun catching up with them.  They all seem very happy.  Khalid, starting safety and JV Captain of the football team, expressed great pleasure at "teaching Westminster a lesson," in a recent game.   That passion and pride was evident in all the boys. It doesn't surprise me that Khalid was wearing the shirt he was for the visit!

Boys Grouping Foods Last week first grade boys learned about good nutrition in an engaging way during an interdisciplinary athletics class at the 94th Street Gym. The boys enjoyed playing a variety of active healthy-eating themed games with their coaches including "Food Tag Frenzy" where the goal was to create healthy, balanced meals. The boys also participated in presentations about healthy eating by a registered dietician from Cater to You , which included discussion of the food groups, healthy eating habits, creating balanced "colorful" meals, and the importance of hydration. A delicious themed lunch that focused on balanced, colorful foods followed the special workshop session. Food Awaiting Grouping This new interdisciplinary unit in the first grade combines nutrition, athletics, and health; it is one part of a larger curricular strand that also includes a new unit in the sixth grade that I blogged about last month.  In line with our year-lon...

6th grade volunteers contributed to the greater good last night at Terence Cardinal Cooke.  After trekking up 5th Avenue, the boys spent an hour or so of their free time visiting with the residents. Making Halloween decorations, the boys helped the residents prepare for their big Halloween bash later this month.  The boys were, as always, charismatic, leaving the residents asking for more! I was proud of their efforts.  It's always gratifying to watch them interact with the residents, building relationships and experiences that transcend their "normal" day.

Yesterday, James G. Basker, President of the Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, visited Saint David's to meet with our sixth graders and their parents to discuss the value of primary source documents.  Professor Basker explained that when people closely examine original documents, they become historians themselves rather than merely passive recipients of information. During the session the professor elicited observations and inferences from the boys as they closely studied reproductions of several documents in the Gilder Lehrman Collection including, a Boston Massacre print by Paul Revere, a version of the Declaration of Independence believed to be the sole survivor of a Charleston, South Carolina printing, a letter from George Washington in which he expresses his misgivings about slavery, and a letter by abolitionist Frederick Douglass to his former owners in which he forgivingly declares, "I love you but hate slavery." In one activity, boys compared...

Our school-wide theme, "Critical Analysis" in action! An outgrowth of our multi-year Curriculum Initiative that concluded last year was the incorporation of more outside professional critiques of various aspects of our program.  Several years ago Saint David's Athletic Department partnered with the Positive Coaching Alliance to objectively provide on-going professional critique of our coaching practices and procedures; not to address any particular issue, rather to continually grow and improve professional practice. After visits by the Alliance staff earlier in the season, Saint David's coaches this past Saturday gathered at school for a follow-up workshop.  The workshop began with the question,“What is my legacy?” This led to a lively discussion on the value of creating a positive athletic culture. It also led to the question: Are we making sure the boys know and understand “The Way We Do Things Here?” The department then discussed the importance of creating a...

An Introductory Activity at Community Club This Morning Saint David's created a boys Community Club out of its strategic desire to build an even stronger, more supportive and inclusive community within the school.  As the program enters its second year, faculty and boys involved with the program are excited.  Their focus is to 'do,' engage in action that builds school community. During the Community Club’s first few sessions, the boys have participated in greetings and activities that help them get to know one another reports Amanda Rathbun, one of the club's leading faculty members. The Community Club’s first goal is to help build community within the club—help boys feel comfortable, confident, and included.  We have also had great conversations about how we can help make Saint David’s a stronger community. The boys brainstormed ideas such as: bring people together to learn about them, share our different interests with older boys, help boys make new friends,...

N-YHS Curator with the boys and a Lenape artifact from their collection Boys in Grade 2 began their year-long study of the evolution of New York City with an examination of artifacts used by the Lenape tribe of early Manhattan, or Mannahatta--"land of many hills. " Today's lesson was the first in a series of sessions conducted through our partnership with the New-York Historical Society, now in its third year. It involved the boys observing and then making inferences based on those observations about the purpose and use of a variety of artifacts. Boys worked in groups to examine the artifacts and presented their findings and reasoning to the class. Critical analysis, our school-wide theme this year, was in abundance as the boys thoughtfully and excitedly made connections about form, function, and what they have been learning about early Manhattan life. Our boys will have educators and curators from the N-YHS continue to visit their classrooms at specific time...