Tag: excellence

Categories
Learning and Leading

The Garden Of Life

By Patti Brooks
Lower School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School

I recently had an eye opening experience…I planted my first vegetable garden!  Many of you probably are thinking, “What? Your first garden at 68 years old?” Well, this old dog has proved she can learn some “new tricks” (or maybe just figure out some obvious analogies.)
The whole experience has showed me that gardening and teaching have a lot in common:
  • The soil has to be ready in the garden, just like the atmosphere in the classroom has to be conducive to growth.
  • The seed that is planted must be nurtured daily, just like a child’s family and teacher nurture and encourage daily.
  • The little sprout that pokes through the ground causes so much excitement, just like that first successful Spelling Test!
  • The chance of bad weather and hungry bugs threaten the safety,  but can successfully be dealt with just like the occasional recess disputes are settled.
  • The mature plant is so proud to display its edible root, leaf, or stalk, just as the proud child beams on Awards Day each Spring.
In planting my first round of vegetables, I learned that growing a successful garden is very similar to nurturing and helping a class of second graders achieve success. And much to my own delight, both of these experiences are extremely rewarding!
Categories
Learning and Leading

In Praise of Latin

By Victoria John
Latin Teacher, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Friends, Romans, Metroplex, lend me your ears;

I come to praise Latin, not to bury it.

The good that Latin does lives after it…

For Latin is an honorable language.

Teaching Latin allows me to fulfill the goal of the ancient philosopher Plato, “Do not train a child to learn by force or harshness; but direct them to it by what amuses their minds, so that you may be better able to discover with accuracy the peculiar bent of the genius of each.” For the past 13 years, by making Latin relevant and fun at Lakehill Preparatory School, I have been rewarded by the gift of perceiving the “peculiar bent of the genius of each” and every student and class.

People ask me, “Why teach Latin? It’s a dead language.” I respond, “Why not? Why label it ‘dead’ just because it’s not spoken? It’s the basis of over 60 percent of English words.” If you pay attention, you will see Latin’s ubiquitous heritage.

Latin is the basis of the modern Romance languages including French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, and Romanian. Over the years I’ve taught students who speak one or more of these languages.

Students feel empowered when their vocabulary suddenly becomes an integral connection to learning a new language. It is this empowerment that ignites their curiosity, nurtures their motivation, and develops leadership skills.

It’s also interesting that those students who don’t excel in other academics shine in Latin. After a week, they are amazed at what they’ve learned. At the end of the first semester, they are translating entire pages of Latin into English. Students discover Latin outside of class and are excited to bring their finds to share with classmates and display on a bulletin board, located centrally in the Middle School hallway.

Students find Latin in restaurants with the advertisement inviting the public to, “seize the burrito” with the words, carpe burrito. They find Latin on street signs, in scientific names for plants and animals, history, geography and legal terminology. A student learned that the Romans called the Mediterranean Sea, mare nostrum, translated as “our sea.” Another figured out Mediterranean derives from two Latin words: media, in the middle, and terra, land.

Latin has made a comeback in the last 20 years, as seen in the growing number of classes taught in American public and private schools. The number of students taking the National Latin Exam has increased to more than 150,000 worldwide. Latin is a required academic course in seventh and eighth grades at Lakehill, with about 40 percent of Lakehill students earning awards on the annual National Latin Exam over the last 10 years.

Every time my students use the words export, import, and report they are using Latin. Every time they sing or play the piano and note the Italian words fortissimo and crescendo, they are seeing the Italian version of Latin. When students study tessellation in math, they are using Latin.

Old is not bad. A classical education is exemplary. In history, we study the past to understand and explain the present. In art, we examine frescoes of Giotto to rediscover the classics and study humanism. In geography and philosophy, we review ancient explorers and philosophers to understand our roots as well as ourselves.

It makes perfect sense that we study Latin for its own virtue and as a basis for other languages. By teaching Latin, I am able to discover “the peculiar bent of the genius of each” student.

And for the record, I’ve been told that some of the people in San Marino, Italy, still speak a form of Latin.

Latin is an honorable language.

Mirabile dictu!

 

Categories
Family and Community

There’s a First Time for Everything

By Ray Dent
Director of Development and Alumni Relations
Lakehill Preparatory School 

For the first time in my life I participated in a mob… a Flash Mob. The Lakehill faculty and staff “flashed” at a Pep Rally to help boost school spirit for the Warriors. As I reflect on my first six months here, I think of numerous first time life experiences Lakehill Prep has given me.

For example, within 72 hours of starting this job I saw a teacher on her hands and knees painting bright colors on the asphalt of an outdoor parking spot. (The oddest part to me was that everyone acted as though it was a perfectly normal thing to witness.) I asked, of course, and was told, “Oh, that’s Ms. Livengood. She’s decorating a special spot for a student to park.”

Some weeks later I went to find the Headmaster and was told he was playing “hooky” at the drag races with one of our students and a parent. Not long after that the Assistant Headmaster took several students horseback riding one afternoon.

Ultimately, I learned that to raise money for the school and our students an organization called the Parent Faculty Club (PFC) had auctioned all these unusual things the faculty were doing.

I’ve worked in education for many years. However, an institution where the parents, faculty, and students all work together doing such fun and interesting things to support their school is a very refreshing new life experience, indeed!

Categories
Service Learning

Hope in Good Hearts

By Jennifer Warder
Upper School Mathematics Teacher, Lakehill Preparatory School
Freshman Class Sponsor

As adults, we often wonder what the future holds when the young people of today will become our leaders. Sometimes what we witness here and now can cause us to be doubtful and even fearful. Thankfully, at Lakehill we have solid, reliable young people in every class who give us hope. Rarely, however, do you find an entire class with hearts like our current Freshman class.

Although we started this year with no one wanting to take a leadership role in the Freshman class, we have since been blessed with four good officers who work well together and a class of students all willing to do their part. During our first class project as part of Lakehill’s annual Holiday Luncheon, every member of the class played an important role in the weeks leading up to the Luncheon and on the day of the actual event.  In addition to our amazing officers, we had other students who stepped up and took on leadership roles. There were also the “thinkers,” who proactively thought out every possible stumbling block we could encounter and took action to prevent issues. On the day of the event, we had the “doers,” who kept the elderly supplied with water and coffee, wrapped silverware for the luncheon, and ran to get help when we encountered issues. Those comfortable with strangers sat and spoke with the elderly, holding their hands, and showing compassion well beyond their years. All were positive; all played to their strengths.  All made their class sponsors incredibly proud.

Freshmen are typically (and understandably) the most immature of the Upper School classes. However, this group has a maturity of spirit that is rare, in addition to positive attitudes that accompany a wit and sense of fun that I cherish.

They have themselves shared with me that they are not the most academic-minded of students.  But, they have a heart for people and a sense of empathy that I find rare for their age.  As teachers, we can work with them on the academic front.  But, we cannot coach them into having a heart for others.  I see a promise in all of our futures because of the incredible hearts of our Freshmen.

 

Categories
Spirit Student Perspectives

The Warrior Family

By Carly Chester
Junior, Lakehill Preparatory School 

The junior class having fun at the Holiday Luncheon.

Lakehill Preparatory has a unique system of friendship; our small school allows everyone to know each other’s names and personalities. I love being able to treat all of my peers like individual friends; I spend more time with my fellow students in the day than I get to spend with my family at home.

Waking up and going to school to the same people everyday puts a smile on my face because, we can all depend on each other for security. The typical high school experience is very stressful, dramatic, and awkward, but somehow my peers and I have managed to escape this scary thought.

Lakehill is unlike most schools, everyone gets along very well, and having a peaceful school environment is very important to me. Spending time with the faculty means a lot to the students too because, I always know I can be open and comfortable with my teachers which has bettered my education. Going to school with trustworthy people has helped me grow as a person, I couldn’t be more thankful.

Categories
Learning and Leading

Dramatic Moments

By Julie Riggs
English Chair K-7, Lakehill Preparatory School 

The first time I ever directed a play with eleven and twelve year-old stars, I was sure it would be my last. The children seemed so unruly and unprepared that I was envisioning total humiliation when the audience arrived. An hour before show-time in a last minute rehearsal, I was losing my voice and my patience as the actors broke character, missed cues, and horsed around. Then something magical happened. The parents took their seats, and the cast became a unified machine, staying in character, responding to cues, and making the audience love them.

On my next attempt, one of my actors was so severely dyslexic that he could not read the script, which was a cutting from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, but he burned with passion to perform. I recorded the whole scene on a cassette and gave him a part with few lines. He became that elven spirit, putting every cell of his body into the role, and his joy was palpable.

I long ago shifted my idea of success from a flawless performance to a fun one, and I have often modified or created a part to suit an actor rather than saying ‘no’ to an eager child. My scripts are unwieldy, my plots improbable, and rehearsals often chaotic. What we do is definitely not theater with a capital T. But the excitement and happiness of a drama club performance, could it be contained, could power the lights on Broadway.

I can’t think of a better reason for doing anything.

 

Categories
Family and Community

Crossing Paths

By Bob Yttredahl
Upper School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School

For the first 15 years of my career as an educator, I remember myself saying countless times to parents that my goal is to treat their child as if they were my own. Within the realm of my educational and coaching philosophy that essentially means that I care for each student and attempt to give them individual attention (providing them with what they need to be successful). I care for them in the utmost way and provide them with guidance and discipline along their educational journey. Philosophically speaking, the same way I would treat my own children. However, truth be told, I had no idea how I would raise my own children because I didn’t have any. Fortunately, five and a half years ago that changed. As my wife and I travel through our parenthood journey of trial and error, I quickly realized I didn’t have a full grasp of what it meant to “treat their child as if they were my own.”

There are many joys and sorrows in being a parent. It truly is one of the, if not the, most fulfilling experiences in life. To be able to guide and nurture a young person is a magical experience. It is also very humbling. When that young person displays a particular behavior that they picked up from mom or dad, it really is a reality check for that parent. As they get older, parents realize how much of an impact they have on the little one and in return are motivated to take corrective measures in their own lives. I am a firm believer that I have learned more from my five year old than I have taught him. This has led to a wonderful experience of sending him to kindergarten.

This year I have been able to come full circle as my fatherhood and educator paths have literally crossed and became one. What a joyful opportunity to have a “bring your son to work day” every day. It was on that first day of kindergarten that I truly came to realize what it means to “treat them like they are my own.” I am fortunate to work at a school where looking at things through the lens of a parent is not much different than looking at things through the lens of an administrator.

Even though there was a lot of trepidation as the first day of school approached (with me, not my son), we knew he was going to be in wonderful hands. So, as he went off to begin his educational journey, I had one wish–that was that his teacher would treat him like he was her own. After five years of parent education, I now know what that means…and I am so glad we are at Lakehill.

Categories
Learning and Leading

The Five Senses To The Rescue

By Patti Brooks
Lower School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School

Remember when you first learned about the Five Senses? Was it in your kindergarten, first, or second grade class?  Well, it doesn’t matter, really. You know them and probably take them for granted if they are working correctly!

Here is a different slant on those five senses. In my 40+ years in the classroom, the five senses had a crucial part in the success of my day, and they were never even mentioned.  I realized early in my teaching career that I had to “win kids over” and make learning fun for them. When I was able to accomplish that, they enjoyed the class more, learned more, remembered more, and were happier, thus, they were more successful.

Most of everything we know enters our brains through our senses. Most adults know whether they are auditory learners, visual learners, etc. Children don’t know this, though, so I had to keep trying all methods to teach them in the way they learned best. In so doing, I hit on a plan that made us all happy, and it was…..”The Five Senses to the Rescue”!

Here is how it worked:

Sound – A pleasant, calm, but energetic voice captured their attention. (Whispering directions is actually the best….try whispering at the dinner table and everyone will freeze and listen intently). Also, playing soft piano music during quiet work time is very relaxing and covers up the rustling sounds of a busy classroom almost like white noise.

Taste – Yes, I figured a little cereal snack in a small Dixie cup about mid-morning would be welcome. Sure enough, several said, “I was really hungry; we didn’t have time for breakfast.”  Sorry to say, I had to quit this after a few years as the ants kept finding our cereal box!

Smell – Well, everyone who REALLY knows me has heard of “Puppy Spray”.  Puppy Spray is a fragrance that smells sort of like cotton candy at the Fair!  After recess, most children have a sweaty puppy smell about them. The spray wafted out in the hall and even high school seniors would walk by on their way to Spanish or PE with a big grin saying, “We smell Puppy Spray!”  My students asked me two or three times a day to spray it in our room because it just made us happy.

Sight – Too obvious, but here goes. Lots of stickers on papers, charts with stars, silly Garfield posters, interesting Human Body posters…..one with the inside sinus cavities showing a sinus headache, ouch!  Sight is HUGE in a classroom and the room has to be welcoming and friendly looking. After all, we were in our classroom more hours during the day than we were in our homes.

Touch – An important component in learning. Many people learn by touch. Often, I let my kids stretch out on the cool tile (and take off their shoes) after recess while I read our novel aloud to them.  We learned all about characterization, plot, setting, voice inflection, and cause and effect during these casual, relaxed times. Several students would sit in our “soft spots” to just curl up and listen. I taught them that if you had trouble learning 7×9, just take off your shoes and socks and write 7×9=63 on the sole of your foot. (It tickles so much, you just remember it!)

So, the Five Senses don’t necessarily have to be a Science Lesson. They can be part of a happy classroom environment or “The Five Senses to the Rescue.”

Categories
Spirit

True Confessions of a Cheer Lover

By Kaye Hauschild
Middle School Coordinator, Lakehill Preparatory School 

Time for true confessions: I have been a cheer lover forever.  It is not a well-known fact, but I never achieved the rank of cheerleader as a student.  Oh, I tried out and have some very funny stories for my family to retell of my trials and errors.  Not being on the cheer squad did not lessen my cheer.  Instead, I became a member of the pep squad, drill team, spirit sign painting club, ribbon seller, and anything else that let my love of spirit shine.

One normally leaves cheer behind when formal education ends, but I was a lucky cheerer.  I got to cheer at work.  In my first school, I quickly joined the ranks of the cheer people, coaching a squad of ninth graders in my hometown.  When life moved me to Dallas and Lakehill, I followed the stomps, claps, and chants to my colleagues, Mrs. Harris and Mrs. Durbin, and asked for the chance to share the Lakehill love.  I have lived happily ever after since then.

Cheer has changed a lot since I first hit a megaphone on the ground while yelling, “Lakehill….Warriors!”  We used to have super strict try-outs for our squads that left other cheer lovers off the field.  When we realized that every other sport at Lakehill allowed every student to participate without try-outs, we happily joined in the fun.  Our squads have ranged in size from five to twenty-five in my twenty-something cheerful years at Lakehill.

For a cheer lover like me, life could not be better!  Whether Varsity or Middle School, Lakehill cheer brings me the joy and spirit that we share with our fans.

Along the way, I have been lucky enough to find others like me, those who love Lakehill and cheer alike.  And beginning this spring, I am passing the opportunity to lead our Varsity squad to the amazing and awesome Mrs. Becker and Mrs. Burt.  I will continue my stomp, clap, and cheer with the Middle School cheerleaders and look forward to those amazing times when we get together, two squads as one.  “Lakehill……Warriors!”

Categories
College Readiness

Studying The List

By Heather Dondis
Director of College Counseling, Lakehill Preparatory School

The college list is posted!

Each year the bulletin board outside of the Main Office is filled with the names of all of the colleges to which the members of Lakehill’s Senior Class have been accepted.  We don’t attach the names of students just yet as students have until the May 1 national reply date to make their final decisions.

I have seen so many parents looking at the board, wondering where their own children may go one day. I’ve seen faculty and staff looking at it, wondering which students were accepted into which schools. I’ve seen middle school students looking at, commenting on the schools they have heard of (and secretly learning about the schools they haven’t, as I make sure to post where each school is located).  But most importantly, I see the seniors looking at it, proud of their accomplishments and hopeful of all of the possibilities they will have in the next stage of their lives.