Headmaster's Blog

Right before spring break our second graders took to the stage with their rousing production of Huzzah! Huzzah! The original show, written by a former Saint David's faculty member, is an account of the Continental Congress's adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. The boys played famous American figures such as Thomas Jefferson, John Hancock and Patrick Henry, and the representatives' animated deliberations were interspersed with the singing of American classics like "Yankee Doodle Dandy" and "You're a Grand Old Flag." It was a grand old time, and a great way to bring to life the boys' study of the Revolutionary Period in America.

The following reflections on this year's school-wide theme, by three alumni from the Class of 2007, appeared in the winter 2016 issue of Saint David's Magazine. Bobby Hausen '07 Bobby Hausen ’07: The practice of deliberate moral introspection began for me within my first years at 12 East 89th Street, most clearly through the daily Chapel talks. By watching our teachers engage in a process of self-examination and detailed reflection, we were encouraged to do the same. From these rituals, certain anecdotes are burned into the minds of all Saint David’s graduates. I can still hear the sound of Ms. Warwick tearing a sheet of paper in two before mending it together to demonstrate the irreparable scar caused by a breach of trust in a friendship. I can see the troubled look on Mr. Hughes’s face as he discussed the ethical dilemma he once faced when he considered taking a small keychain from a supermarket without paying to avoid waiting in a long line (for the record, Mr. H...

While many parents may be taking their children to places domestic or abroad this spring break, this week our sixth graders took their parents to the far reaches of the universe and beyond. The boys presented their own original space research multimedia presentations, which they wrote, designed, narrated, and navigated, in the Dome of the Hayden Planetarium to an audience of parents, faculty and staff. Through our  one-of-a-kind partnership with the American Museum of Natural History - Hayden Planetarium, the boys were taught to "fly through" the Digital Universe as a means of studying the cosmos during a series of extended field study visits to the AMNH that began in December. The boys were able to use the Plantetarium's software to explore topics of interest to them and turn these into arresting creative audio-visual experiences. The culminating projects were spectacular, both visually and in terms of the content mastered and the questions posed!

Hungry!

After touring the Uffizi, the boys learn from Coach Murphy of a gamed played in the Piazza Santa Croce where they are standing--a game Michelangelo is known to have played. Like speed ball, the ancient Romans followed by the Florentines played this game--a mix of soccer, rugby and wrestling called Calcio Istorico. Crazy. Still today, once a year the tradition is continued.

Sketching either of the David's (Donatello or Verrocchio) concluded the academic portion of our day, then it was off to lunch and now the boys are at sports for the remainder of the afternoon. What a spectacular day!

After viewing Michelangelo's David the boys are in the courtyard of the old gaol preparing to see the other two David's of their studies, their school's patron--Verrocchio and Donatello. This makes it all four when we include Bernini's from the Borghese. Michelangelo's Bacchus