Dear Families,

Congrats to all on a busy and successful Trimester II!  Grades and comments for Trimester II will be available online on Podium on Tuesday, March 29, by 5PM. Please check to make sure you can log on to the system successfully. If you have any problems logging on, please contact help@lrei.org, which can assist you. If you would like your child’s grades or comments mailed, please send an email to Adria Maynor, amaynor@lrei.org.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding a grade or comment, please contact the teacher directly, the student’s advisor, and/or class dean. Please note, teachers, advisors and class deans will be on vacation starting on Friday, March 18 at 12 noon, so a response may not come until after April 4, 2011.

If you are a parent of an 11th grade student,  you should have received an email regarding the college trip this year which takes place the week we return from break.  This year, 11th graders will visit Bard College, Sarah Lawrence College, Connecticut College and Brown University on April 6 and 7.  If you have any questions, please contact the College Office at ext. 324.

I wish you and your family a safe, restful, wonderful spring break.

All the best,

Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  Several of our art students have been inspired by our Studio Art  Instructor James French to participate in this year’s Single Fare show, a “show of small works on used metrocards.”  This show which began last year is called “Single Fare 2: Please Swipe Again.”  Come and see the fantastic work (all of which will be on sale, one price for all of the works, $100) of Grace Tobin ‘12, Lidor Foguel ‘11, Lucas Renique-Poole ‘11, Olu Odubiro ‘11, Zoe Lubin-Fosha ‘11, Tiffany Ramos ‘12, and many more.

Opening Reception: TONIGHT!  Thursday, March 17th, from 5 to 9 pm
Exhibition: Friday, March 18 through Saturday, March 26, 2011
Gallery Hours: Noon to 6pm – Closed Monday & Tuesday

Sloan Fine Art, 128 Rivington Street, New York, NY.

2.  From Phil–”Congratulations to Jesse Karp, LREI ‘87, and one of our librarians, on the publication of his first novel, Those That Wake, hitting the shelves in a bookstore near you on Monday, March 21st.  I was so engrossed as I read Jesse’s compelling prose on the ride home tonight that I almost missed my stop. More info atwww.beyondwhereyoustand.com“.  From the PA Literary Committee

3.  Did you ever wonder what that book was that had your child so enthralled, or why everyone is suddenly so gaga over teenage vampires? Then come to Well-REaD, a children’s and young adult book discussion event for parents, sponsored by the LREI Literary Committee. It will be held on Thursday, April 7th, from 6-8pm, in the Sixth Avenue building. Sign up for one of four book discussions led by our LREI librarians featuring titles that your children have read and enjoyed.

Like all good book discussions, wine and cheese will be served along with lots of lively discussion on some of the most popular titles published for youth today. Books will be made available for order through the LREI Literary Committee, and make great additions to your child’s bookshelf. Click here for the list of books/order form and credit card authorization form.

Following is a list of the groups and the books that will be discussed:

SUBTLE SOCIAL JUSTICE (Grades 1-4) led by Stacy Dillon
A Beach Tail by Karen Lynn William
Cameron and His Dinosaurs by Scott Christian Sava
The Popularity Papers by Amy Ignatow, (hardcover only)

GRAPHIC NOVELS (Grades 4-8) led by Jesse Karp
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

SOLID MIDDLE SCHOOL (Grades 5-8) led by Jennifer Hubert Swan
The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman (5-6th gr)
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (7-8 gr)

TEEN DYSTOPIAS & PARANORMAL ROMANCE (Grades 9-12) led by Karyn Silverman
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Please sign up for one of the four book discussions and purchase books at our table in the Sixth Avenue Lobby, Friday (March 4) or Tuesday to Thursday (March 8-10), from 8-9am.  RSVP forms will also be available at the reception desk if you are unable to sign up at our table by next week, or you may e-mail us at LiteraryCommittee@LREI.org.

Childcare will be available for those attending Well-REaD ($15 per child, $5 for siblings). Sign-up for childcare at the Sixth Avenue reception desk (or you may e-mail Mary Shea, at mshea@LREI.org) by Monday, April 4.

We’re looking forward to a night of interesting and informative discussions. Hope to see you there!

4. Save the Date.  April 20th, 6-8pm.  During “Earth Week” at LREI, Jamie Cloud of the Cloud Institute for Sustainability Education (and LREI parent) will be giving a presentation/workshop for parents, teachers and students (5th grade and older).  Jamie has worked with several schools to advance sustainability in the classroom.  She will lead a hands-on workshop that will help participants develop an awareness of sustainability and how to apply it to every day living and learning. If you want to attend, please email Red is Green at RedisGreen@lrei.org.

5. NYSTEA NYC Student Theatre Conference

Our Director of Drama and Performing Arts Chair, Meghan Farley Astrachan is curating a Student Theatre Conference for NYC public and private schools, hosted here at the High School on April 9th from 10am-4pm. As NYC region chair for the New York State Theatre Education Association (NYSTEA), Meghan and her theatre company are bringing together theatre educators and arts professionals in the field to teach a rich variety of workshops to 7-12th grade students.

A broad range of workshops are available from introductory to advanced levels. A sample of offerings include: Theatre Sports, Improvisation, Playwriting, Shakespeare, Juggling, Textual Analysis, Computer Visualization in Theatre, Acting, Directing, Theatre Tech, and Musical Theatre production, just to name a few…

Only $5.00 entrance fee. Sign up with Meghan! Remind your children to save the date! It is the Saturday we get back from break-4/9/11!

For more information contact Meghan Farley Astrachan, mastrachan@lrei.org  212-477-5316

Dear Families,

Tomorrow is our second annual Pi Day, a day of math workshops that provide a wonderful, thoughtful, transition between the second and third trimesters.  Workshops for this year’s event include:

PROBABILITY AND GAMES OF CHANCE

The house always wins – but why. In this workshop students explore the math behind casino games like Roulette, Craps, Black Jack, and more.

GIFTS FROM THE GREEKS

Did Pythagoras worship numbers? What does Plato have to do with the Platonic solids? Did Euclid cut corners when he invented Geometry? Was Archimedes’ bath water just too hot? In this workshop, students take a trip back in time to the days before algebra (but also before calculators) to explore some of the ideas that helped give birth to mathematics as we know it.

“THE FISH GAME” SIMULATION

This simulation engages participants in an interactive, interdisciplinary game that applies systems thinking tools and game theory to real world challenges.

MATH IN SOHO

Students put on their favorite pair of sneakers to walk the neighborhood math trail.  Students will experience Spring Street through the eyes of a mathematician.

PERSPECTIVE DRAWING

As art moved into the Renaissance period, many artists were also architects and engineers. Geometry was a tool for them to make objects look realistic even though they were painted on a flat surface.  They began to pay attention to the viewer’s perspective.  Have you ever wanted to draw a realistic picture of a solid (three-dimensional) object on a flat (two-dimensional) piece of paper? In this workshop, with the aid of Geometer Sketchpad, students will study two ways of making such drawings.

STRATEGIC GAMING

These games will seem simple at first, with just a few pieces and a simple board – who wins and who loses may appear almost random. Once students begin to develop a strategy, they become almost impossible to lose. Join this workshop to play these games and develop winning moves.

REALITIES OF ECONOMY

Can you analyze or predict stock market trends? Are there any patterns there? How to manage your credit cards and other financial investments efficiently? Use math and simulation exercises to answer these and similar questions.

The schedule for the day:

8:30-8:50 – Assembly, “Pi” contest

9:00-10:30 – First round of workshops

10:30-10:45 – Break

10:45-12:15 – Second round of workshops

12:15-12:30- Closing assembly

12:30-1:30 – Lunch with pie (of course!)

We hope your child/ren will be here to participate.  Students will be dismissed at 12:30 but we encourage all to stay for lunch.

Speaking of special programs, this coming Wednesday, March 16, we will be taking the 9th and 10th grade drama classes for Trimester III and the entire 11th grade to see “The Comedy of Errors” at BAM.

Monday, March 14, Trimester III begins.  Grades and Comments for Trimester II will be posted for all families March 29, 2011 on Podium.

All the best, Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  Several of our art students have been inspired by our Studio Art  Instructor James French to participate in this year’s Single Fare show, a “show of small works on used metrocards.”  This show which began last year is called “Single Fare 2: Please Swipe Again.”  Come and see the fantastic work (all of which will be on sale, one price for all of the works, $100) of Grace Tobin ’12, Lidor Foguel ’11, Lucas Renique-Poole ’11, Olu Odubiro ’11, Zoe Lubin-Fosha ’11, Tiffany Ramos ’12, and many more.
Opening Reception: Thursday, March 17th, from 5 to 9 pm
Exhibition: Friday, March 18 through Saturday, March 26, 2011
Gallery Hours: Noon to 6pm – Closed Monday & Tuesday

Sloan Fine Art, 128 Rivington Street, New York, NY.

2. Honors Project Proposals for Trimester III are due to Ruth by March 16, 2011.

3.  From the PA Literary Committee

Did you ever wonder what that book was that had your child so enthralled, or why everyone is suddenly so gaga over teenage vampires? Then come to Well-REaD, a children’s and young adult book discussion event for parents, sponsored by the LREI Literary Committee. It will be held on Thursday, April 7th, from 6-8pm, in the Sixth Avenue building. Sign up for one of four book discussions led by our LREI librarians featuring titles that your children have read and enjoyed.

Like all good book discussions, wine and cheese will be served along with lots of lively discussion on some of the most popular titles published for youth today. Books will be made available for order through the LREI Literary Committee, and make great additions to your child’s bookshelf. Click here for the list of books/order form and credit card authorization form.

Following is a list of the groups and the books that will be discussed:

SUBTLE SOCIAL JUSTICE (Grades 1-4) led by Stacy Dillon
A Beach Tail by Karen Lynn William
Cameron and His Dinosaurs by Scott Christian Sava
The Popularity Papers by Amy Ignatow, (hardcover only)

GRAPHIC NOVELS (Grades 4-8) led by Jesse Karp
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

SOLID MIDDLE SCHOOL (Grades 5-8) led by Jennifer Hubert Swan
The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman (5-6th gr)
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (7-8 gr)

TEEN DYSTOPIAS & PARANORMAL ROMANCE (Grades 9-12) led by Karyn Silverman
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Please sign up for one of the four book discussions and purchase books at our table in the Sixth Avenue Lobby, Friday (March 4) or Tuesday to Thursday (March 8-10), from 8-9am.  RSVP forms will also be available at the reception desk if you are unable to sign up at our table by next week, or you may e-mail us at LiteraryCommittee@LREI.org.

Childcare will be available for those attending Well-REaD ($15 per child, $5 for siblings). Sign-up for childcare at the Sixth Avenue reception desk (or you may e-mail Mary Shea, at mshea@LREI.org) by Monday, April 4.

We’re looking forward to a night of interesting and informative discussions. Hope to see you there!

5. Save the Date.  April 20th, 6-8pm.  During “Earth Week” at LREI, Jamie Cloud of the Cloud Institute for Sustainability Education (and LREI parent) will be giving a presentation/workshop for parents, teachers and students (5th grade and older).  Jamie has worked with several schools to advance sustainability in the classroom.  She will lead a hands-on workshop that will help participants develop an awareness of sustainability and how to apply it to every day living and learning. If you want to attend, please email Red is Green at RedisGreen@lrei.org

Hard Work and Excellence

Congratulations to the scores of students and faculty whose talent, and seemingly limitless energy, created the spectacular that was LREI’s production of Hairspray!  We are so proud of your hard work.  Along these same lines, please join me in congratulating our 7^th-12^th grade basketball teams—all of which had fantastic seasons. Special congratulations to the players and coaches of the 7^th/8^th grade and varsity girls’ teams who won league championships! The 7^th/8^th grade team had an undefeated season. What an achievement! For those who have not had enough of exciting LREI roundball, the last two games of the middle school intramural basketball league will be played on Friday (tomorrow) at 3:30 and 4:15 in the Thompson Street Athletic Center.  Come on out and cheer for your student athletes.   Whether actors or athletes, or both, our students work hard in the classroom and in so many other ways in the community.  We congratulate you and thank you!

Just as producing a play or a championship basketball season requires practice, so to does excellent teaching.  Your LREI faculty is dedicated to on-going professional development.  This focus on teaching practice can take many forms. Weekly faculty meetings are essential to our examination of what is happening in classrooms.  At times these gatherings are focused on the students and their participation in the community. Sometimes the discussion is about procedures and protocols. Often, faculty share strategies, ask for input, review resources and engage in activities that allow the adults to better understand the students’ learning. At times these are informal conversations while often there is a more formal presentation and feedback process. The middle school teachers, for example, participate in a practice called “Critical Friends Groups” that requires structured classroom observations and feedback.  The majority of faculty meetings happen by division, though full school faculty meetings happen throughout the year, as do the academic departments.  I spent a terrific hour with the lower school faculty earlier this week in a math workshop led by Rose Reilly, lower school math specialist, and Ana Chaney, middle school math teacher and math department chair. The adults grappled with sophisticated math concepts embedded in an elementary math challenge and discussed how best to open these up to our students.  A great afternoon.  There is a lot of conversation about practice at the meetings of the committee that is looking ahead 10 years at the future requirements for the high school program. (To hear more about this, join me for a discussion on March 8^th at 8:45AM in the Sixth Avenue building.)

In addition to in-house opportunities, there are many offerings in the wider educational community.  Among the conferences and workshops that LREI faculty members have participated this year include:

• We sent 13 teachers and students to the National Association of Independent School’s People of Color Conference.
• Ana Chaney, math department chair, and Rose Reilly, LS Math Specialist, attended a national math leadership conference.
• Four early childhood teachers attended the 92^nd Street Y’s Wonderplay Preschool Conference, at which LS librarian Stacy Dillon was a presenter.
• High School teachers Mark Bledstein and Amy Chang attended a workshop at the China Institute.
• Teachers from all three divisions attended a conference focused on educating girls. High school English teacher Ileana Jimenez (currently on a Fulbright scholarship in Mexico) was a presenter.
• A number of middle school teachers attended workshops on literature and history offered through the New York Public Library.
• The New York Association of Independent Schools hosts dozens of workshops throughout the year.  Our teachers attend many of these, including the annual diversity conference organized by Chap, our Director of Diversity and Community.
• The senior administrators attend their statewide affinity conferences—gatherings of people in similar positions from around NY State.  Namita Tolia, Ruth Jurgensen, Michel de Konkoly Thege and I are members of the planning bodies for our conferences.
• Cari Kosins, Director of Afterschool and Summer Programs, Clara Campos, Associate Director of Afterschool, attended the National Association of Independent Schools’ Annual Conference, where I was a panelist discussing the head of school’s role in a school’s diversity efforts.

Combine all of these experiences with ongoing school-wide conversations about our diversity themes and progressive education, the topic of our two full day professional days, and you have a rich educational experience for LREI’s faculty and staff.  Our faculty is dedicated to ongoing reflection and discussion of how best to serve LREI’s 600 students. Asking questions such as, “How can we provide the most intellectually challenging progressive education, each and every day,” or “How best to respond to new challenges and possibilities?” is an essential to our success.  A faculty focused on growth, as ours is, is indispensible.  I am continually impressed with the thought, creativity and sharp thinking that come out in these discussions.  Thank you teachers!

Finally, two opportunities for the wider LREI community to experience the faculty’s expertise:

• The third term of our adult classes, Adult r(ED), begins after Spring Break. Click here to see a listing for these courses.  I highly encourage you to participate.  Whichever class you choose, you will have a terrific experience.

• Participate in a book discussion with one of our four nationally recognized librarians by attending Well-REaD, on Thursday, April 7^th from 6:00PM-8:00PM.  Choose a book, read it, attend the discussion.  This is an adult event.  Learn what it is that makes your children love the books they read (and the librarians who help to choose them.) All four books are fantastic; the discussions will be as well.  If you want to participate and have not ordered a book, stop by the Well-REaD table in the Sixth Avenue lobby on Friday, March 4^th and Tuesday, March 8^th-Thursday, March 10^th.  Here is a letter from Librarian Stacy on the event.

Updates and Announcements:

THIS SATURDAY!  LREI Coffeehouse, a benefit for Haiti, “Now, and a Year from Now”  (as promised) will be March 5, PAC, 40 Charlton Street, 7PM.  If your child would like to help or perform, he or she should see Micah!

1. Senior Class Families!  Please email Adria Maynor, amaynor@lrei.org, with your invitations total for graduation and your two guests for the Senior Banquet.  This information was due on March 1.

2. Honors Project Proposals for Trimester III are due to Ruth by March 16, 2011.

3. Remember, next week is Exam Week!  Please take a look at last week’s blog for the schedule.  On Friday, March 11, we will have the second annual Pi Day, a day of math workshops, beginning at 8:30 AM.

4.  Red is Green: In February the Red is Green Committee will be recycling plastic bottle caps.  We are collecting rigid plastic caps such as caps on shampoo, water, milk and other beverage bottles. Also, pharmaceutical lids, flip top caps on tubes and food product bottles (such as ketchup and mayonnaise), and laundry detergents.  When these caps are thrown away, they often end up in rivers and oceans with drastic consequences for both wildlife and the environment. The caps will be recycled through the Aveda plastic bottle cap recycling program. Caps can be dropped off in the collection bin in the 6th avenue lobby.

5.  Please participate in the annual Room to Grow drive for babies born into poverty.  Donations accepted at 6th Ave.

6.  From the PA Literary Committee

Did you ever wonder what that book was that had your child so enthralled, or why everyone is suddenly so gaga over teenage vampires? Then come to Well-REaD, a children’s and young adult book discussion event for parents, sponsored by the LREI Literary Committee. It will be held on Thursday, April 7th, from 6-8pm, in the Sixth Avenue building. Sign up for one of four book discussions led by our LREI librarians featuring titles that your children have read and enjoyed.

Like all good book discussions, wine and cheese will be served along with lots of lively discussion on some of the most popular titles published for youth today. Books will be made available for order through the LREI Literary Committee, and make great additions to your child’s bookshelf. Click here for the list of books/order form and credit card authorization form.

Following is a list of the groups and the books that will be discussed:

SUBTLE SOCIAL JUSTICE (Grades 1-4) led by Stacy Dillon
A Beach Tail by Karen Lynn William
Cameron and His Dinosaurs by Scott Christian Sava
The Popularity Papers by Amy Ignatow, (hardcover only)

GRAPHIC NOVELS (Grades 4-8) led by Jesse Karp
The Arrival by Shaun Tan
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

SOLID MIDDLE SCHOOL (Grades 5-8) led by Jennifer Hubert Swan
The Schwa Was Here by Neal Shusterman (5-6th gr)
Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer (7-8 gr)

TEEN DYSTOPIAS & PARANORMAL ROMANCE (Grades 9-12) led by Karyn Silverman
The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Please sign up for one of the four book discussions and purchase books at our table in the Sixth Avenue Lobby, Friday (March 4) or Tuesday to Thursday (March 8-10), from 8-9am.  RSVP forms will also be available at the reception desk if you are unable to sign up at our table by next week, or you may e-mail us at LiteraryCommittee@LREI.org.

Childcare will be available for those attending Well-REaD ($15 per child, $5 for siblings). Sign-up for childcare at the Sixth Avenue reception desk (or you may e-mail Mary Shea, atmshea@LREI.org) by Monday, April 4.

We’re looking forward to a night of interesting and informative discussions. Hope to see you there!

7.  Check out LREI’s middle schoolers on Good Morning America.

Dear Families,

Exam Week for Trimester II is the second week of March.  Attached, please find the exam schedule. The exam schedule may undergo a change or two in the next few days; the most current schedule will be posted at the high school. Below, please find what exam week will look like in case you have any questions, or need to make particular arrangements.

Monday, March 7:  Reading Day.  School open regular hours.

Reading Day is designed for students to prepare for exams, final papers and exhibitions. This is also an opportunity to catch up with outstanding work, work with groups for final presentations, use the Tech Center and printers around the school, etc. This is a quiet work day. Students may choose to work at school or at home. Students are not required to report to school, and it is not counted as an absence if they are not here. However, you may prefer your child to come to school for the full day to work. Please send him or her. School will be open. The Library will be open all day. All teachers will be at school regular school hours to provide the opportunity to meet with students.

No classes will meet so that all teachers are available. There will be review sessions held. If a student is in crisis, teachers may encourage that student to make a mandatory appointment.

Tuesday-Thursday,  March 8-10: Exams. Exam periods are 9 AM-11 AM and 1 PM-3 PM. Each day, students should come in plenty of time for their morning exam, and students may leave after their exams are complete. Again, the exam schedule is attached .

Finally, Friday, March 11 is our second annual PI Day, a day of math workshops for high school students.  Last year, this event was really fun and encourages students to apply math skills in a variety of ways and in some cases students learned new math skills. We will start regular time, at 8:30 but likely have an abbreviated school day.  As soon as I know the schedule, I will share it with families.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

All the best,

Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

Hairspray, the High School Musical is SOLD OUT all three nights and the matinee!   Congratulations to the Cast, Crew, and Director Joanne Magee on this fun, terrific show.  Over 40 students are participating this year!

The details:  February 24th, 25th and 26th at 7pm and 2pm on Saturday the 26th in the PAC at 40, Charlton Street.

In 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, plump teenager Tracy Turnblad’s dream is to dance on The Corny Collins Show, a local TV dance program. When Tracy wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight. She then launches a campaign to integrate the show. HAIRSPRAY is not only a social commentary on the injustices of parts of American society in the 1960s but also a story of how a single person can make a change within a community. Tracy is a tornado of positivity and open mindedness that we follow as she navigates through high school and beyond.

LREI’s high school students have been working hard in rehearsals through this tough winter to bring you a spectacular show. We guarantee to warm you up and blast away the winter blues! This huge production, with larger than life characters and up beat numbers featuring our fantastic students should not to be missed. HAIRSPRAY is for the whole family and we sincerely hope you will come and support the many high school students and faculty involved.

Directed by Joanne Magee and Lorna Jordan.

Musical Director: Matt McLean

Choreographer: Peggy Peloquin

Set Design: Jorge Dieppa

Costume Design: Mark Caswell

Vocal Coach: Susan Glass

1.  Red is Green: In February the Red is Green Committee will be recycling plastic bottle caps.  We are collecting rigid plastic caps such as caps on shampoo, water, milk and other beverage bottles. Also, pharmaceutical lids, flip top caps on tubes and food product bottles (such as ketchup and mayonnaise), and laundry detergents.  When these caps are thrown away, they often end up in rivers and oceans with drastic consequences for both wildlife and the environment. The caps will be recycled through the Aveda plastic bottle cap recycling program. Caps can be dropped off in the collection bin in the 6th avenue lobby.

2.  Please participate in the annual Room to Grow drive for babies born into poverty.  Donations accepted at 6th Ave.

3.  From the PA Literary Committee

Did you ever wonder what that book was that had your child so enthralled, or why everyone is suddenly so gaga over teenage vampires? Then come to Well-REaD, a children’s and young adult book discussion event for parents, sponsored by the LREI Literary Committee. It will be held on Thursday, April 7th, from 6-8pm, in the Sixth Avenue building. Sign up for one of four book discussions led by our LREI librarians featuring titles that your children have read and enjoyed.

Like all good book discussions, wine and cheese will be served along with lots of lively discussion on some of the most popular titles published for youth today. Books will be made available for order through the LREI Literary Committee, and make great additions to your child’s bookshelf. Click here for the list of books/order form and credit card authorization form.

Childcare will be available for those attending WELL REaD.  The cost will be $15 per child and $5 for siblings.  A sign-up sheet will be available at the front desk (you may also e-mail Mary Shea, at mshea@LREI.org).

We’re looking forward to a night of lively discussions. Hope to see you there!

4.  LREI’s next Coffeehouse, a benefit for Haiti, “Now, and a Year from Now”  (as promised) will be March 5, PAC, 40 Charlton Street, 7PM.  If your child would like to help or perform, he or she should see Micah!

Dear Families,

With tomorrow’s Spirit Day, we end this year’s Spirit Week.  We have had a lot of fun determining this year’s EI Idol (to be announced tomorrow), daily spirit and costume winners for such days as Wacky/Tacky day, 80’s Day, and Twin Day , and the class with the most spirit demonstrated all week wins a Ben and Jerry’s sundae party served by Director of LREI Phil Kassen and Associate Director Michel deKonkly Thege.  Seeing faculty and students participate in the fun has brightened these last (hopefully!) days of cold winter weather.   Take a look at more Spirit Week photos on Facebook.com/lreinyc.

We are incredibly proud of our basketball teams!  Both Boys Varsity and Girls Varsity teams are headed to the semi-finals.  From Athletic Director and Boys Varsity Coach, Peter Fisher:

The LREI Varsity Basketball program has a problem… but don’t worry, it is a good problem to have. Both varsity teams have made it to the ISAL semi-final playoffs!  The problem is that both teams play their first round games at the same time, so the fans will have to decide which team to watch.

Varsity Boys:

The Varsity boys squad won their play-in playoff game against Churchill on Tuesday, Feb 15th in front of a huge home crowd 62-51.  They finished 2nd in their conference with a 7-3 conference record.  They will play at Columbia Prep in front of a very big and very loud audience.  Columbia Prep finished in first place again this season and are the reigning ISAL champions from a year ago.  The LREI Knights are looking to avenge their season ending defeat to Columbia Prep in a rematch of last year’s semi-final game.  Playing at Columbia Prep can be very intimidating as their fans are loud and unforgiving.  Our fans need to show up in huge numbers!!  If you choose to go to this game, I suggest you get there early as seats run out fairly quickly.

Varsity Girls:

The Varsity Girls team finished tied for first place in our conference with York Prep.  The #1 seed gave the girls an automatic place in the ISAL semi-finals.  They will host Columbia Prep who finished 2nd in their conference at the Churchill School.  The girls are looking to avenge an early season loss to Columbia Prep, when they played in the Tip-off tournament in December.  Seating is limited for this game as well, so try to get there early!

Varsity Boys ISAL Tournament:

LREI @ Columbia Prep Wednesday, Feb 23rd, 4PM (5 West 93rd, just off Central Park West)

Trevor Day @ York Prep Wednesday, Feb 23rd

Winners play at CCNY on Feb 25th, 6PM

Varsity Girls ISAL Tournament:

Columbia Prep @ LREI Wednesday, Feb 23rd (@ Churchill School, 301 East 29th @ 2nd Ave)

Brooklyn Friends/Churchill @ Loyola, Wednesday, Feb 23rd

Winners play at CCNY on Feb 25th, 4PM

Go Knights!

Finally, we are so proud of our Scholastic Key winners!  Over 110,000 works in writing and art were submitted for this year’s The Scholastic Art and Writing Awards.  Senior Margret Wiggins won a Gold Key for her writing portfolio of three pieces: Richard’s Day, Mr. Henry, and The Night They Shot The Raccoon. Also winning Gold Keys this year:  Senior Sonrisa Murray-Fox for Personal Essay, Junior Jesse Rubinstein for her The Great Gatsby essay and Junior Hannah Silverman for Memoir.  Junior Grace Tobin and Junior Hannah Rivkin both won two Silver Keys for photography, Junior Talia Feldberg won a Silver Key for writing, and Junior Lisa Remar won a Silver Key for painting.

Congratulations to all of our writers, artists and athletes!

Best, Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

HAIRSPRAY! February 24th, 25th and 26th at 7pm and 2pm on Saturday the 26th in the PAC at 40, Charlton Street. Tickets on sale Tuesday 16th at 8am in both school lobbies. $10 students and senior citizens, $12 for adults.

In 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, plump teenager Tracy Turnblad’s dream is to dance on The Corny Collins Show, a local TV dance program. When Tracy wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight. She then launches a campaign to integrate the show. HAIRSPRAY is not only a social commentary on the injustices of parts of American society in the 1960s but also a story of how a single person can make a change within a community. Tracy is a tornado of positivity and open mindedness that we follow as she navigates through high school and beyond.

LREI’s high school students have been working hard in rehearsals through this tough winter to bring you a spectacular show. We guarantee to warm you up and blast away the winter blues! This huge production, with larger than life characters and up beat numbers featuring our fantastic students should not to be missed. HAIRSPRAY is for the whole family and we sincerely hope you will come and support the many high school students and faculty involved.

Directed by Joanne Magee and Lorna Jordan.

Musical Director: Matt McLean

Choreographer: Peggy Peloquin

Set Design: Jorge Dieppa

Costume Design: Mark Caswell

Vocal Coach: Susan Glass

1.  Red is Green: In February the Red is Green Committee will be recycling plastic bottle caps.  We are collecting rigid plastic caps such as caps on shampoo, water, milk and other beverage bottles. Also, pharmaceutical lids, flip top caps on tubes and food product bottles (such as ketchup and mayonnaise), and laundry detergents.  When these caps are thrown away, they often end up in rivers and oceans with drastic consequences for both wildlife and the environment. The caps will be recycled through the Aveda plastic bottle cap recycling program. Caps can be dropped off in the collection bin in the 6th avenue lobby.

2.  Please participate in the annual Room to Grow drive for babies born into poverty.  Donations accepted at 6th Ave.  Please click here for details.

3.  From the PA Literary Committee

Did you ever wonder what that book was that had your child so enthralled, or why everyone is suddenly so gaga over teenage vampires? Then come to Well-REaD, a children’s and young adult book discussion event for parents, sponsored by the LREI Literary Committee. It will be held on Thursday, April 7th, from 6-8pm, in the Sixth Avenue building. Sign up for one of four book discussions led by our LREI librarians featuring titles that your children have read and enjoyed.

Like all good book discussions, wine and cheese will be served along with lots of lively discussion on some of the most popular titles published for youth today. Books will be made available for order through the LREI Literary Committee, and make great additions to your child’s bookshelf. Click here for the list of books/order form and credit card authorization form.

Childcare will be available for those attending WELL REaD.  The cost will be $15 per child and $5 for siblings.  A sign-up sheet will be available at the front desk (you may also e-mail Mary Shea, at mshea@LREI.org).

We’re looking forward to a night of lively discussions. Hope to see you there!

Dear Families,

This is the high school’s second year of having a robotics team and the team is such a great group with endless energy, I have asked captain Liam Cohen ’13 to give an update on how the team is doing this year.

LREI Robotics has had and interesting year.  I have to say, when I was beginning Tenth Grade, and Robotics at the high school was entering it’s second year, I was not sure what direction Robotics would take.  This year’s turnout was much greater than last year.  Last year we had eleven kids.   This year, we have a few more members including some new members from the Class of 2014.  This year the members include:  Callie Richards ’13, Thomas Marin ’13, David White ’13, Leon Sukhram ’13, Khalil Brown ’13, Charles Simpson-Brown ’13, Ivo Ilic ’14, Cesar Siguencia ’14, Tolu Eleyinafe ’14, Bryce Council ’14, and Nathaniel Magloire ’14, and me.  We also invited a prodigal seventh grader on to the team as a special member, Zachary Feal (brother of Olivia Feal  ’11).  He has shown great promise in Robotics through Sherezada Acosta’s team and LREI summer programs, and has made many great contributions to the team.  Our coaches are Chris Udell and Arthur Lewis who helps out with programming and the computer aspect of the robot we are building.

There were many things that were done wrong last year with the robotics challenge, and we spent many of the first weeks reviewing our mistakes, making sure that we do not repeat them.  After that we began to throw around miscellaneous ideas on how to tackle and solve this year’s challenge, a terrain challenge,  for Robotics teams who participate in the USFirst competition.  Our robot must navigate difficult terrain such as, “mountains,” corrugated floor tiles, and bridges, trying to score six inch batons into free rolling and stationary goals.  The objective is to score as many points as possible.  After reviewing last year, we brainstormed ideas for this year and decided to start working on our chassis, or the main frame of the robot.

We had to design a chassis that would be fairly quick at moving around, but still be able to gracefully navigate the tough terrain.  The next challenge we had to wrestle with was securing our strategy, because that really is what dictates the design of our robot.  The strategy is such a large part of the challenge because one’s robot will change based on how well one wants to perform a specific task.  Our third major challenge was to create an actuator or a mechanism that scores our batons.  This went through many revisions for many reasons, one factor being weight and another being the effectiveness of the actuator.  Our fourth major challenge was our autonomous code.  There is a forty second period before the driver-controlled period, where our robot has to move entirely on its own without human interference.  This is called the autonomous period.  The most difficult part of this was making our robot score autonomously, especially with all of the tough terrain.  These are all of the challenges that we have faced so far, and many of the above challenges are not met yet and still need fine tuning, plus there will be plenty more challenges to come in the future.

Our robot is not yet finished, and honestly it probably never will be.  That is what robotics is all about, one is never done.  There are always improvements that can be made, that can make one’s robot do what it was designed to do even better.  However, we do believe that we will be ready enough for our first competition.  We plan to go to our first competition this month on the 19th, in Newark, New Jersey.  It is not a New York competition so there is no pressure and if we lose nothing happens, however if we win we get an invitation to the world championship in St. Louis, Missouri.  The next competition after that is on March 5th, in New Haven, Connecticut.  This tournament is similar to the last one, where there is nothing to lose but everything to win.  The final tournament, our last shot, is right here in New York at the Javits Center.  This is our final tournament and it takes place on the 12th of March.  That is that date when we put everything on the line, everything that we have worked for to the test.  I am confident in our robot and I believe that we have more than a fighting chance at success.

Thank you Liam, and good luck to the LREI HS Robotics team!

All the best, Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

HAIRSPRAY! February 24th, 25th and 26th at 7pm and 2pm on Saturday the 26th in the PAC at 40, Charlton Street. Tickets on sale Tuesday 16th at 8am in both school lobbies. $10 students and senior citizens, $12 for adults.

In 1962 Baltimore, Maryland, plump teenager Tracy Turnblad’s dream is to dance on The Corny Collins Show, a local TV dance program. When Tracy wins a role on the show, she becomes a celebrity overnight. She then launches a campaign to integrate the show. HAIRSPRAY is not only a social commentary on the injustices of parts of American society in the 1960s but also a story of how a single person can make a change within a community. Tracy is a tornado of positivity and open mindedness that we follow as she navigates through high school and beyond.

LREI’s high school students have been working hard in rehearsals through this tough winter to bring you a spectacular show. We guarantee to warm you up and blast away the winter blues! This huge production, with larger than life characters and up beat numbers featuring our fantastic students should not to be missed. HAIRSPRAY is for the whole family and we sincerely hope you will come and support the many high school students and faculty involved.

Directed by Joanne Magee and Lorna Jordan.

Musical Director: Matt McLean

Choreographer: Peggy Peloquin

Set Design: Jorge Dieppa

Costume Design: Mark Caswell

Vocal Coach: Susan Glass

1.  Red is Green: In February the Red is Green Committee will be recycling plastic bottle caps.  We are collecting rigid plastic caps such as caps on shampoo, water, milk and other beverage bottles. Also, pharmaceutical lids, flip top caps on tubes and food product bottles (such as ketchup and mayonnaise), and laundry detergents.  When these caps are thrown away, they often end up in rivers and oceans with drastic consequences for both wildlife and the environment. The caps will be recycled through the Aveda plastic bottle cap recycling program. Caps can be dropped off in the collection bin in the 6th avenue lobby.

2.  Please participate in the annual Room to Grow drive for babies born into poverty.  Donations accepted at 6th Ave.  Please click here for details.

Dear Families,

Trimester II interim grades are available now online on Podium on for all students earning B- and below in their classes, and for students who I have asked teachers to provide a comment for regardless of the running grade in a course. This occurs when a student is of concern or has joined the community mid-year. Please also note that some teachers will put a running grade up for every student in their class, but students earning B- and below will receive a comment.

If you do not see a link in the report card section of Podium, this means that your child does not have any interims for mid-Trimester.   Please use this opportunity to check to make sure you can log on to the system successfully. If you have any problems logging on, please contact help@lrei.org, which can assist you. If you would like your child’s interim grades or comments mailed, please send an email to Adria Maynor, amaynor@lrei.org.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding an interim grade or comment, please contact the instructor directly via phone extension or email (first initial, last name@lrei.org) or your child’s advisor. Please note, exam week for Trimester II begins with Reading Day, Monday, March 7. The end of Trimester II is March 10, with the last exams.  Our annual “PI day,” a day of math-based workshops provided by a variety of experts, will be on Friday, March 11.

On another  important note:

11th grade families, please take a look at the Trimester III course descriptions and  signup sheet.  11th graders have been given this information and their elective choice is due to Micah by next Wednesday, February 9.   As you may remember, we did not sign students up past Trimester I because Micah was on paternity leave last spring.   If a student is in our academic support program, that student needs to go over the options with a member of the support staff before turning in his or her sheet.

All the best,

Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  From School Nurse Sue Gower:  Students who must take medication during the school day must give it to the nurse for distribution. On days the school nurse is not here, Adria, the principal’s assistant, distributes medication as needed.  Most importantly, students may not carry prescription medication for any reason.

2.  Participate in LREI’s February Plastic Bottle Cap Recycling Program!  Click here for details!

U.S. Constitution, Article II, Section 3

“He shall from time to time give to Congress information of the State of the Union and recommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall judge necessary and expedient.”

I started writing this note earlier in the week just as President Obama was finishing his State of the Union address—a moment each year that requires a deft balance of leadership and politics. I was struck by two of the themes of this address, both of which, in my opinion, fit the “necessary and expedient” requirement—collaboration and preparation for an unknown and uncertain future. Hard to argue with the importance of these two goals yet also hard to understand why they are held out as so difficult to achieve.  You should expect us to foster these essential habits in your children each day.  We certainly expect to see them in the students’ behavior. I accept that our current two party system is inherently antagonistic—bringing together officials who represent a variety of viewpoints and beliefs, people who may strongly disagree with one another.  I accept that their work is hard and that sometimes compromise represents loss and, therefore, may be unwanted. I would suggest that, as we teach your children, there is often a larger purpose than the obvious “us vs. them” and that no matter how hard it is to get along, no matter how easy it is to get lost in the immediate details, no matter how much we may want to win the day, in order to be successful communities must find a way to communicate, to hear each other, to see the world for a moment through the experience of another whose life is quite different from your and to focus on the larger issues.  For many of us, in our personal and professional lives, there is no choice but to create alliances and to get along. I don’t know why our elective representatives allow themselves to opt out of this most reasonable of expectations.  I can’t imagine a discussion with the students, of any age, in which they counted sitting next to someone they disagreed with as a significant accomplishment.  We don’t call this a momentous achievement. We call it lunch.

We also watch your children preparing for an uncertain future. We see them making connections between various disciplines; between what is happening at home and what is happening in the classroom.  They solve complex problems. They are self-reflective and bold.  They are willing to take risks and are supportive of their classmates.  Not only do we expect these behaviors each day, we actually see them each day.  Very much the stuff of progressive education.  You should be proud of your children. Ultimately, what we need is more LREI graduates sitting in the hallowed halls of government.

On a different note, as many of you know our high school juniors and seniors are able to apply to take a class at New York University as part of the NYU College Preview Program.  These students take on the full workload of a college course in addition to their six major subjects at LREI and whatever extracurricular commitments they have made. The seniors are also in the thick of the college application process. Attendance and requirements for the NYU classes are the same as they are for “official” college students and only the professor knows that they are high school students. The LREI students who took courses at NYU last semester are:

• Lidor Foguel—Calculus II
• Rachard Kemp—Black Urban Studies
• Aaron Naves—Black Urban Studies
• Luca Schliemann—African Cultures
• Grace Tobin—History of Modern Ireland II
• Ian Tsang—Developmental Psychology Across the Lifespan

Each of these students earned an A or B in their course.  Congratulations on a job well done!

Finally, by now most of you have received your re-enrollment contract(s) for the 2011-2012 school year.  If you have not, you will quite soon. If you have, a reminder that these documents are due back to us by February 1^st, 2011, next Tuesday.  Please do not hesitate to contact Michel de Konkoly Thege, Associate Director, or me with questions.

Best,

Phil

Updates and Announcements:

1.  Our Knights are Red Hot!!
All teams are having a great season so far with exciting games both at home and away.
Come out to see them all in action as they face the faculty at the LREI Spirit Game!!
Tomorrow:

• Friday, 1/28 at 3:30pm: SPIRIT GAME — All are welcome to come and cheer as our 7th-12th grade basketball teams take on the LREI Faculty! Please see flyer for details.

2.  If your contact information—address, phone numbers, email addresses—has changed since we distributed the directory in September, please contact Mary Shea, mshea@lrei.org, as she is preparing an updated directory for distribution in the coming weeks.

3.  Our new community cookbook, Downtown Potluck, a compilation of recipes from our talented parents and teachers, has been garnering praise in the media, including Time Out New York Kids and Esquire. It will be on sale at upcoming school events. It will also be available through the school store, and in the Sixth Ave. lobby shortly before Valentine’s Day (perfect for gift-giving!). The book costs $25; supplies are limited. Email cookbook@LREI.org for information.

Dear Families,

This time every year, I take the opportunity to introduce to you or remind you all of the Senior Project Program which occurs every spring.

LREI’s mission statement reads, in part, Our goal is to educate students to become independent thinkers and lifelong learners and to pursue academic excellence and individual achievement, in a context of respect for others and service to the community.

The Senior Project sends Twelfth Grade students into the world to actively pursue and demonstrate lifelong learning outside of the classroom, beyond the four walls of high school, and to live the life of the mind. Specifically, the Senior Project at LREI is an opportunity for students to pursue a particular area of interest or passion in an independent format.   In keeping with the school’s mission statement and progressive philosophy, the Senior Project emphasizes experiential learning and real-world application of knowledge.

As last year, all seniors participate in a Senior Project preparation class with me in Trimester II because the Project is comprised of several components, each of which requires student to plan, research, write, and reflect.  By the end of the Project, students must demonstrate their new learning in multiple ways, including but not limited to: publishing (on a Google site), performance, and presentation.  Projects will be approved and evaluated by the Senior Project Committee, which is composed of high school faculty and administration.  Once the proposal is approved by the committee, a faculty mentor will be assigned.  The faculty mentor will personally advise and assist the senior through their experiential component, which runs from Wednesday, April 6 through Friday, May 13, 2011.

LREI encourages and teaches our students to probe, to challenge and to develop one’s own interests and passions, and certainly the goal of the experiential component is to express our educational experience to those in the world of work or service.

In the past, our Seniors have enjoyed internship opportunities at Bleecker and Sullivan Advertising, Random House, Harlem Hospital, Mary Ellen Mark, DDC Lab, Democracy Now!, Public Theater, The Center for Constitutional Rights, Amnesty International, the UN Development Program, the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art (MoCCA), the Harlem Success Academy, NYU School of Medicine (Departments of Pathology, Dermatology and Cell Biology), Balthazar Restaurant, WNYC, and many, many more, thanks to the generosity of parents and friends of the school.

Even though we have been very successful in the past with placing our students in experiences that have matched their passion and interest and have made an impact to them, we could use your help!  Currently our seniors are expressing interest in the following fields:

• publishing
• journalism (print and other media)
• community service working with disadvantaged children
• education (specifically teaching ESL or related to older students or adults)
• animal rescue, animal behavior
• cultural studies
• graphic design, web design
• social justice
• theater, film, dramatic arts
• digital art
• food service, catering

Some seniors have already secured their spring project, but some have yet to find that opportunity.  Can you offer an internship in any of the above fields?  Do you know someone who could use an exceptional and engaged intern in any field, including those listed above?  Please email me, rjurgensen@lrei.org,  in the coming weeks as we work tirelessly to help provide assistance to those seniors still looking for an opportunity  from April 6-May 13, 2011, for at least 20 hours a week. Our students are interested in a wide range of things. Therefore no opportunity, whether it be in an office setting, participating in field work or community service, is too big or too small.

As we grow our list of opportunities for the Class of 2011, we will also accept offers of internships or community service opportunities for all of our students for the summer, winter or spring breaks, or after school.  If you would like to offer an opportunity to all of our high school students, please let me know.  Many thanks in advance!

All the best, Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  Our Knights are Red Hot!!
All teams are having a great season so far with exciting games both at home and away.
Come out to see them all in action next week as they face the faculty at the LREI Spirit Game!!
Also next week:

• Friday, 1/28 at 3:30pm: SPIRIT GAME — All are welcome to come and cheer as our 7th-12th grade basketball teams take on the LREI Faculty! Please see flyer for details.

2.   Karamu! is this Friday, January 21st… Karamu! is LREI’s annual multicultural event of music, dance, and food celebrating the diversity of our school and community. Tickets are on sale … Karamu! always sells out; get your tickets early (discounted tickets available – contact multiculturalcommittee@lrei.org). We need food and volunteers! …Sign up boards will be in the 6th Avenue Lobby – please volunteer and join this wonderful community building event!

3.  If your contact information—address, phone numbers, email addresses—has changed since we distributed the directory in September, please contact Mary Shea, mshea@lrei.org, as she is preparing an updated directory for distribution in the coming weeks.

4.  Our new community cookbook, Downtown Potluck, a compilation of recipes from our talented parents and teachers, has been garnering praise in the media, including Time Out New York Kids and Esquire. It will be on sale at Karamu! and other upcoming school events. It will also be available through the school store, and in the Sixth Ave. lobby shortly before Valentine’s Day (perfect for gift-giving!). The book costs $25; supplies are limited. Email cookbook@LREI.org for information.

Dear Families,

As you know, Monday’s holiday commemorates the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.  In honor of his service, we are encouraged to participate in a “day on” of service instead of taking a typical day off.  I personally am inspired by the work of Generation On, which is offering a service opportunities for teenagers and their families on Monday, as is New York Cares.

At LREI, our students never seem to take a day off from service work, and more and more, service is integrated into the curriculum.  From the service projects the Ninth Graders participate together, to the community opportunities that students are offered (such as volunteering to help with the cultural celebration event, Karamu, which is next Friday, January 21, here at Charlton Street–students can sign up to volunteer on my office door) to the important work of the community service roundtable and events like the coffeehouse (this Friday, tomorrow night from 7-9PM, the Eleventh Grade is sponsoring a coffeehouse to benefit Kids Walk for Kids with Cancer), students go beyond the 25 hour yearly requirement.

For inspiration for your own commitment to service, I hope that you will take a few minutes to watch two films made in our first trimester Media 11 class:  Advocacy Films.  The first, produced and directed by Simon Staples-Vangel ’12, Tiffany Ramos ’12, and Leon Sukrham ’12 of the critical need to fund research for treatment and cure possibilities for pediatric cancer can be seen here.   The second film, “The Public Issue,” produced and directed by Sam Irwin ’12 and Aaron Naves ’12  is about  “the current housing problems faced by those that cannot afford to live in middle to upper class housing developments [in New York City]. We saw this issue as relevant and pressing an issue that cannot be ignored. After hearing about the trillion dollars recently spent overseas on the Iraq and Afghanistan war and seized the opportunity to help spread awareness of the growing issue of homelessness and poor housing conditions that people suffer through.”  Their film can be seen here. Powerful work from students making an impact.  I hope you will consider taking the time to determine as a family something that you can do to make a difference in a cause that is important to you.  Enjoy your day ON!

All the best,

Ruth

Updates and Announcements:

1.  1/21 Save the Date for Karamu! Friday, January 21st… Karamu! is LREI’s annual multicultural event of music, dance, and food celebrating the diversity of our school and community. Tickets go on sale Tuesday, January 18th… Karamu! always sells out; get your tickets early (discounted tickets available – contact multiculturalcommittee@lrei.org). We need food and volunteers! …Sign up boards will be in the 6th Avenue Lobby – please volunteer and join this wonderful community building event!

2.  If your contact information—address, phone numbers, email addresses—has changed since we distributed the directory in September, please contact Mary Shea, mshea@lrei.org, as she is preparing an updated directory for distribution in the coming weeks. Thanks.

3.  Knights home game schedule for next week:

Tuesday 1/18   4pm Varsity Girls vs York Prep

Thursday 1/20  4pm Varsity Girls vs Brooklyn Friends

Friday 1/21   5th/6th Grade Intramurals  3:30 Green/Black  4:15 Tiedye/Blue

Also, save the date for our annual Spirit Game, Friday January 28th.

All are welcome to come and cheer as our 7th-12th grade basketball teams take on the LREI Faculty!!

Please see flyer for details.