December 17, 2021

Photo: An out-time group decorates campus for the holidays.

Smiling faces and cheer could be found all across the North Country School campus this week, as we look to bid farewell to the year and head off for our winter break. In academic classes we watched our students give thoughtful presentations, participate in dynamic activities, and work together on engaging cross-curricular projects, while the outdoors provided the opportunity for both play and hands-on learning. We ended the week with beloved NCS holiday traditions, joining together to sing seasonal songs, and savoring a festive meal featuring dishes from around the world. It was a great way to end the first half of the school year! We are excited to see all of the wonderful work, play, and adventure to come in 2022.

We wish all of you a safe, happy, and healthy holiday season spent with loved ones. The #ThisWeekAtNCS blog will return with more updates from our mountain campus in January, 2022.

ACADEMICS

Top: Claire talks with 9th-grade Global Issues students . Middle 1: Global Issues students discuss their research topics. Middle 2: Judge Lilly holds court in 8th-grade history class’s mock trial. Bottom: The defense questions witnesses.

In our 9th-grade Global Issues class, students have been working throughout the term on individual research projects related to pressing human and environmental concerns in today’s global climate. This past week the class met in groups to discuss their findings and to engage in critical dialogue about their research topics, which included women’s rights in Afghanistan; the Venezuelan immigrant crisis; and technological innovations for cleaning and combating water pollution. We are so proud of our students for listening to one another and sharing their opinions on these complicated real-world topics.

Our 8th-graders looked to important moments in our country’s history during a mock trial about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire of 1911. Over the course of the past few weeks, the class has been learning about the historic fire, which led to many preventable deaths and inspired new workplace safety laws. Adults in our community served as the trial jury, while students acted as the attorneys, witnesses, and defendants. The jury ultimately ruled in favor of the defense based on the evidence presented, which highlighted to the class the ways in which a persuasive argument can shape a legal outcome.

Top: Meredith talks to Edible Schoolyard class and Japanese class. Middle: Liz and Lily make taiyaki batter. Bottom: Joseph removes the taiyaki from a mold.

At North Country School, interdisciplinary learning is a core aspect of our academic philosophy. This week we were excited to see a collaborative lesson between one of our Edible Schoolyard (ESY) classes and our Japanese class. In 8th- and 9th-grade ESY elective, students have been learning about the Three Sisters crops of corn, beans, and squash as part of their local-food curriculum. The crops were grown together by the Indigenous people of the Adirondack region, the Haudenosaunee, and each plant helps the other two thrive and produce a strong harvest. Meanwhile, students in Japanese class have been learning verbs including “mix,” mazeru, and “fry,” yaku, while reviewing food vocabulary, like “eggs,” tamago, and “milk,” gyuunyuu.

The ESY students began the week by cooking local pinto beans into a sweet bean paste similar to Japanese red bean paste, or anko. They were then joined by the Japanese class to cook up taiyaki, which is a fish-shaped pastry filled with the sweet paste. The lesson allowed Japanese students to teach their ESY peers some Japanese terms, while our ESY students did a great job helping their fellow students work together in our Teaching and Learning Kitchen. The cross-curricular project was a delicious success!

OUTDOORS

Top: Emily and Grace build a snowman. Middle 1: Jonas, Joel, and David go sledding. Middle 2: Ryan and Wyatt sled during out-time. Middle 3: Jess teaches an Outdoor Leadership lesson. Bottom: Outdoor Leadership students with their campfire.

At North Country School, calling the Adirondack Park home means that nature is both our playground and our classroom. This week we saw plenty of fun and silliness, as well as engaged learning and skill-building, in the outdoors.

Out-times were filled with plenty of our favorite snow activities, and our students were all smiles as they created friendly snowmen, skied around campus trails, and raced each other down the Lake Hill on sleds. Meanwhile, students in the Outdoor Leadership class practiced starting a fire in adverse weather conditions during a lesson taught by 9th-grader Alejandro. Alejandro demonstrated different fire-building techniques to use in the winter, and the class talked through the importance of these potentially life-saving skills for those who recreate in our cold and snowy region. Each student in the course will take a turn teaching a winter-preparedness lesson during the Winter Term. Alejandro did a great job starting things off with his thoughtful and well-executed lesson.