Episcopal School of Baton Rouge hosted a reception at the home of Mr. Hugh McIntosh, Head of School, in honor of The Rev. Melissa Zuber Hollerith '80 on Friday, January 22. While Rev. Hollerith was unfortunately unable to travel due to inclement weather on the east coast, members of the Episcopal community were still able to gather in fellowship.
The night was a time to reflect on the mission of Episcopal and how it has shaped the lives of so many like Rev. Hollerith. The reception was also a time to learn about the progress being made in the effort to renovate The Lewis Memorial Chapel of the Good Shepard. Mr. Allen Penniman, Jr. shared stories about the school's early history and how the generosity of the A.C. Lewis family made the chapel, a campus landmark, possible. Those gathered celebrated how much this sacred space means to our institution. Thank you to all who made the evening so meaningful.
Honors Candidate Shares the Benefits of Music with "Moving Melodies"
​Mckenzie Dorris, Class of 2016 Honors Candidate, recently took her thesis project, "Moving Melodies," on the road. After over a year of research on how music interacts with the brain, Mckenzie wanted to do something with her scholarship that would directly benefit others. On Wednesday, Jan. 13, Mckenzie took fifteen Episcopal student volunteers to teach and perform for a crowd of over twenty residents of St. James Place Health and Wellness Center. The students played classics like "You Are My Sunshine" on hand-bells, with the residents before performing other songs including "Amazing Grace." According to Ed Picard, the Life Enrichment manager there, it was one of the most popularly attended activities he's seen, and one of the most successful.
By the end of the teaching and performing sessions, the residents were spontaneously singing along. "This is what it's all about," said Mr. Picard. This student-devised service contribution, while inspired by her thesis project, is something above and beyond the expectations for success in the Honors Diploma Program. Mckenzie hopes to continue to develop the service opportunity further for her peers at Episcopal and the residents of St. James Place.
For those interested in learning more about her research and this type of service opportunity, Mckenzie will be presenting her thesis project to the entire Upper School at LAUNCH Day on February 26.
Student volunteers included: Abby Castine, Hayden Cresson, Clayton Counts, Isabella Harlan, Lauren Hicks, Caroline Hixon, Angelina Leo, Emma Massengale, Aaron Miller, Jacob Murrey, Allison Nicolosi, Dru Powell, Megan Stauss and Richard Whitehurst.
Kwame Alexander, 2015 Newbery Medal Recipient ("Crossover") met with Lower School and Middle School students in Episcopal's Visual and Performing Arts Center on Friday, January 22. The lively discussion and reading of his book, "Acoustic Rooster," Illustrated by Tim Bowers, kept kids on the edges of their seats as they shared in the discovery of rhythms and poetry jam used to introduce students to notable poets and musicians.
The author's comfort with the students, and his passion for the subject ignited a high level of participation and engagement. Mr. Alexander shared personal stories that entertained the students and made real connections with them as he told of his creative journey, and encouraged them to do the follow their passions.
Thank you Mrs. Guarisco for inviting Mr. Alexander to Episcopal!
Last summer, Mrs. Guarisco, a middle school english teacher, attended the LSU's Young Adult Literature Conference, with the theme of African American Literature. Kwame Alexander did a Skype session with the participants, and in order to be prepared, Mrs. Guarisco read, "The Crossover," which was last year's Newbery recipient. "I knew right away that it was something my sports-minded readers, even the reluctant ones, would really like, so I offered it as an option for literature study to my 6th graders," said Mrs. Guarisco.
Mrs. Guarisco is currently expanding the research she did previously with Dr. Louise Freeman, which focuses on empathy development and fiction.
Bill Feig on the Advocate's website.
1st Grade "French Fries" and Seniors collaborate with "Les Trois Petits Cochons," "Mike Le Tigre" and Chiens!
This week, the 1st grade "French Fries" lesson was about pets and animals from the farm. The monthly language collaboration between lower school and seniors (who do the teaching), included the review of colours vocabulary and new words associated with animals! The students even learned about "Mike Le Tigre"!
Katherine Brumund station was "animals of the farm". She made a beautiful poster game "pin the animals. " The 1st graders were asked to pin the animals where they lived.
Lauren Hicks and Lexi Reese taught a sing-a-long, "C'est un chien" (It's a dog) with a video and poster of the lyrics.
John Harris and Hunter Wendt played a flashcard game which required students to match animals with the food they eat.
Chris Beckman and Maddie Luscy taught the animal names using a PPT they created and played recognition games from the PPT.
Hannah Hargroder and Sarah Nguyen told the story of the three little pigs, "Les Trois Petits Cochons."
On Saturday, January 16, five middle school students attended an Envirothon training to help prepare for their competition in April. Lucy Silverman, Ellie Sim, Emily Lynch, Arohi Gopal and Jillian Grace Eskew attended a day-long training session at Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality Headquarters. Students rotated through each of the four stations on environmental topics including Aquatics, Soil/Land Use, Forestry, and Wildlife and networked with other outstanding young scientists as they shared their project. ​These students will be one of twelve teams to go to the Envirothon Competition on April 16.
​Best wishes to these young scientists!