Inspiring Every Action Matters in Upper Elementary

The Albrook School 361 Somerville Road ● Basking Ridge, NJ 07920 ● 908-580-0661 ● www.albrookschool.org

JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2021

The Albrook Almanac Inspiring Every Action Matters in Upper Elementary By Ms. Vazaios and Mrs. Lipman

“If we are among the men of good will who yearn for peace, we must lay the foundation for peace ourselves, by working for the social world of the child.” —International Montessori Congress, 1937 Dr. Montessori was a passionate advocate for peace edu-cation who aimed to change society one child at a time. In Education for Peace, she envisioned “The child is both a hope and a promise for mankind.” With this goal in mind, we have reflected on our annual goal of Every Ac-tion Matters and have taken time to better frame out and expand our SEL/anti-bias curriculum with a goal of im-proving the social world of children within our upper ele-mentary class communities. Research on the benefits of SEL (Social/Emotional Learn-ing) programs is well documented. Students who are for-tunate to be at school with dedicated SEL programs dis-play better social emotional skills, attitudes and behavior; additionally, they are more academically engaged and test better. The Anti-Defamation League, signifies that this transformation can happen through education, re-marking that “anti-bias education engages students in the exploration of social problems and empowers them to take active steps to create a more just and peaceful world, where all groups share equal access to opportunity and every person can flourish ( ADL, 2016, p. 12). Empowered by these ideas, we have created weekly les-sons and experiences based on the 5 CASEL competen-cies: self- awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and decision making. We felt that these competencies beautifully complemented Montessori phi-

losophy and both our school’s mission and vision state-ments.

Albrook’s Mission Statement The Albrook School, guided by Montessori philoso-phy, cultivates the joy of learning in a caring, peaceful environment. We partner with parents to empower each child to be independent, responsible, respectful, confi-dent and intellectually curious. Our focus is to develop the whole child intellectu-ally, socially, emotionally and physically. We value independent thinking, creative problem solving and collaboration. We challenge each child to be innovative, globally aware and technologically capable. We support and inspire our teachers to continual-ly evolve professionally. Albrook’s Vision Statement The Albrook School is dedicated to cultivating a learning environment where each student is aca-demically engaged and develops self-confidence, resilience, empathy, integrity, and independent thinking resulting in respectful global citizens who work collaboratively and love to learn.

At the beginning of the year, students worked to better identify and express their emotions based on a curricu-lum from Zones of Regulation. Developing empathy and recognizing others’ feelings is a key skill that is developed through this curriculum, too. Students also have had the opportunity to strengthen their executive functioning

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skills through lessons and activities related to metacognition, plan-ning, flexibility, self-regulation, impulse control and attention. By recognizing their strengths and areas to improve, students were able to improve their self-awareness and self-management. These lessons, in turn, helped to build self-esteem and improve relation-ships with others. We have also implemented lessons related to our anti-bias curricu-lum including large group discussions on racism. These lessons often involve a spectrogram activity in which each student physical-ly shares his or her point of view on a statement. One can stand up tall to show agreement, sit on the ground for disagreement, or place his/her body somewhere in between (on a spectrum). Stu-dents are then invited to explain their points of view. Through these activities, we have evaluated numerous situations and ac-tions, questioning whether or not they should be considered racist. We have also used the spectrogram to evaluate statements on rac-ism in general and help gain a better understanding of the topic. One of the Upper Elementary classroom highlights is our annual December tradition of “Secret Friend”. This beloved week includes students performing kind deeds, speaking thoughtful words and making a homemade gift that the recipient will appreciate. Stu-dents really appreciated having a chance to see how “Every Action Matters” during the holiday season! An integral part of Montessori education is for students to have self-directed learning experiences. This past month, students were able to explore a topic of interest to them. It was a pleasure to observe multiple students create service projects as part of their free choice project, clearly demonstrating their desire to help make the world a better place through their actions. Selected topics included global issues such as climate change. Projects included: raising money for the Backpack Program by hosting a 5 K unicycle race, improving the school’s butterfly garden, creating a singing workshop for younger peers and designing a fundraiser for the Antarctic Science Founda-tion. This year, students have mourned the loss of the Reading Buddy program; however, they have taken great delight in helping peers within the class and around the school when able. Recently some of our sixth-year students performed some community service by helping to set-up new computer carts. Please enjoy viewing pictures of how we guide the UE students to recognize that “Every Action Matters”.

Self-Management & Mindfulness: Walking the

Labyrinth

Relationship Skills & Civic Engagement and

Mindfulness: Making Chinese Watercolor Painting

for Classmate

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Self-Awareness: Physical Brain Breaks

Self-Awareness: I Am Poems

Self-Management: Discussions on Planning

Self-Awareness: Happiness Lesson

Social Awareness: Civic Engagement-Computer Cart Set-up

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Social Awareness: Civic Engagement Butterfly

Relationship Skills: Secret Friend Handmade Gift Relationship Skills: Racism Spectrogram Activity


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Social Awareness: Diversity Appreciation-Pin Maps,

Social Awareness: Project on How to Stop Global Warming

Global Stewardship: Every Action Matters By the Yeats Lower Elementary Classroom

T his year we continue to focus on our school goal of Global Stewardship. As Montessorians we believe that our children

are the hope of mankind. To be true to Montessori Philosophy is to facilitate each child in their natural appreciation of their envi-ronment far and near. We strive to place before each one the majesty and mysteries of the life that surrounds them. In this regard we allow them to delve deeply into the natural world which is at their very fingertips. This is no small mission, since ultimately this is a starting point not only for the study of botany, zoology and other sciences, but of a realization of ownership and stewardship of our very planet. These might be considered to be lofty goals indeed. But these ideas of Global Stewardship and conservation are a natural pro-gression from what Montessori observed in children. Each child passes through a sensitive period during which they notice the minute aspects of nature. These may be tiny insects, seeds or leaves. Theirs is a facility which notes detailed characteristics of what is before them. Theirs is a sense of wonder at the work of the ant as it carts away crumbs which far outweigh their own body weight. They appreciate the various barks and compare their roughness. They note the moisture of the soil and its likeli-hood of harboring earthworms close to the surface. They learn of food webs and chains and begin to formulate a sense of the in-terconnectedness of all living things. To whom should we turn as we strive towards supporting a plan-et under duress? In Montessori terms, our children are truly the hope for all mankind. It is incumbent upon us to facilitate their natural urge towards exploration and protection of the natural world. The Yeats class has been reinforcing our goal of not just main-taining our ‘green’ environmentally friendly practices of reduc-ing, reusing and recycling, and composting, but also stressing, in developmentally appropriate ways, that our planets resources; it’s water, land and air are things that we have to share. We have been highlighting that just as we like to drink clean water and breathe clean air, so too do children everywhere. We are encour-aging all of our students to take ownership in small ways of our environment far and near. Every action matters!

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Here are some of the comments from our children as they reflect on books such as The Lorax and Dear Children of the Earth. Ethan: I would like to get a lot of seeds and plant them. I would give them lots of water and let the sun shine on them.

Abigail: More trees would help us to breathe better. One person can make a difference.

Aditya: I will write a speech explaining how much damage people are doing. They don’t know. They don’t understand.

Daniel: I would stop people from cutting down trees and plant more. Trees help stop pollution. More trees means more homes for animals.

Vyas: We should try to use cars less.

Lillian: We could use less electricity and save water. We should recycle and reuse. I also have sung in nursing homes and donated food to food banks. If we donate used clothes to charities we are throwing out less.

Helena: We should walk or bike more and improve air quality.

Angelina: We could help people clean up messes that they make by accident and clean up garbage.

Amalia: I would not chop trees down- just take small parts of the trees once in a while.

Arya: We should take care of animals. They use their noses to find food and water. The water needs to be clean.

Anna: I cleaned up trash from around the trees. We should learn more about animals and what they need. Bees need more flowers.

Simran: When you cut down trees you should plant more in their place.

Brantley: Animals and people need water. They have to share it. Don’t pollute it.

Artem: When I grow up I will make inventions like Elon Musk, Thomas Edison and Leonardo Da Vinci. I will invent wings and clean cars.

Corlyn: We have to care more and take care of the planet.

Suhana: Everybody has to act. Everyone can help.

(Continued from page 5)

Giving Tree By Lisa Perez

“Have a heart, take a heart and make a difference in someone’s holiday” was once again the theme for our 27th Annual Giving Tree. Starting Thursday, Decem-ber 3, 2020, the labeled hearts were available for students to come to the recep-tion area and pick one off our tree and make a child’s Christmas wish come true. Each heart listed an age and either a toy or book. Over 50 items were collected as we supported the Greater Somerset County YMCA in conjunction with the Bernards Township PBA #357.


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Winter Concert By Mrs. Mulvihill

The winter concert is a beloved tradition where the elementary students share holiday cheer through music's international language. This year, The Albrook School's winter concert looked a little different. As so many things have been changed this year due to the pandemic, we felt it was especially important to keep this tradition going. How were we going to keep the spirit of the holidays alive and well? Make it virtual! Mrs. Crawford led the program opening with the lower elementary stu-dents. The children learned holiday songs on the Glockenspiel and Xylo-phone, which are very similar but produce different pitches. The Upper Elementary students were able to work with these instruments and even add in the gorgeous additions of a cello and a drum. All elementary students enjoyed learning the songs and hearing the dulcet tones of the melody and harmonies working together. The preschool students were delighted to join in this year for a sing-along portion of the program. Each class learned a holiday favorite and shared their voices. For some, this was the first time they were on a stage to perform, and they did so beautifully. Music, historically, is a medium that brings all people together. We are so thankful that we were able to share our joy. We hope that you en-joyed the holiday cheer!

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Holidays around the World

By Mrs. Fritsch

T he Van Gogh class has been exploring holidays celebrated around the world. We have enjoyed studying the differ-ent customs that people celebrate in their culture.

The children discussed Diwali at our morning circle, and then we went to see the beautiful Rangolis displayed in the office that others had made to celebrate the Festival of Lights in the Indian culture.

We also read about St. Nicholas Day, a story about a man who wanted to help a family in need. He put gifts into their stockings hanging out to dry above the fireplace. Children around the world celebrate by putting shoes out on Decem-ber 6th to receive gifts. The children made St. Nicholas from cotton and googly eyes and paper. The Van Gogh class listened to stories about Hanukkah from a few children who shared at circle how they celebrate with their families. We read a book and made a paper Menorah. For Christmas we learned the origin of the Christmas tree. Every other country displays smaller trees but the United States showcases larger ones. Many years ago, someone was walking home and saw pretty glistening trees. He cut off a little part and took it home and put candles on it. This idea became very popular. However, when the lightbulb was invented someone chose to use them instead of can-dles for safety reasons. We also learned a popular treat in the 1600’s was gingerbread. The children decorated hous-es made out of graham crackers. We are studying Africa in our class in Geography. We learned about the holiday that African Americans celebrate in December, Kwanza. We discussed Kwanza and the first fruits they use to celebrate the holiday. We made a mkeka mat by weaving red and green papers on a black paper loom. The latest holiday, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day we learned

that there was a time that everyone was not treated equally and fairly. We read a book about Martin Luther King, Jr. and that he had a dream and he was a peacemaker. We made a class poem that hangs on our door to remind us how we share peace. Some chil-dren said peace is being with family or friends, but it is always important to respect each other’s differences. In February, we hope to learn more about Groundhog Day, Valentine’s Day, Chinese New Year and President’s Day.

Christmas

St. Nicholas Day

Kwanza

Diwali

Hanukkah

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

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T he Albrook School students cele-brated their Spirit Day by do-

nating needed food items to support the Somerset Foodbank Backpack program. The Albrook students were invited to do extra jobs at home to earn money to purchase the much-needed food. After the donations had been collected, the Upper Ele-mentary students assembled the food bags before the food was trans-ported to the Somerset Foodbank. This was a beautiful and powerful lesson for our students in under-standing the difference one person can make. The students were also encouraged to carry out random acts of kindness throughout the week. These beauti-ful acts of kindness were written on “peace doves” and hung on our Peace Tree in the reception area. It was a beautiful sight to see the im-pact of the theme

“No act of kindness is too small. The gift of kindness may start as a small ripple that over time can turn into a tid-al wave, affecting the lives of many.”

Kevin Heath

Random Acts of Kindness at The Albrook School By Lisa Perez

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Albrook Spirit Day

“If you can't feed a hundred people, then feed one" Mother Teresa The center of the Montessori philosophy is the development of empa-thy. Our students learn to balance their own needs against the needs of others. They learn to recognize that they have rights and responsibili-ties as they take ownership of their classroom environment. In essence, they learn to step into another's shoes to view the World from another perspective. Albrook School Spirit Days provides us with opportunities to reflect on this. January's Spirit Day's theme was "Spread a Little Kindness," and our goal was to see the difference one person can make! The school project was to support the Somerset Foodbank with their Backpack Lunch Kit Program. This project aids schools in the county to provide satisfying meals over the weekends to students in need. During the week leading up to Spirit Day, Albrook' s older students were invited to do extra jobs at home to earn money to purchase some of the much needed food items to support the Somerset Foodbank Backpack program. On Monday, February 18, while practicing social distancing, each class-room brought various non-perishable food items down to the Albers Hall to be placed in individual packages for distribution. This exercise was demonstrated to the young students while they carried their dona-tions to the Albers Hall and observed the total amount of food donat-ed. No matter how small, every action matters, leading to a much larg-er effect for the greater good. After all the food items were collected, the elementary students con-tinued to support the Somerset Foodbank by assembling the lunch bags. We appreciated and were proud of the students' efforts to coor-dinate and create the Backpack Lunch Program's lunch kits. In the end, the students were pleased with the outcome. They filled over two hun-dred meal bags, and the additional food items leftover were donated to the Somerset Foodbank. This was indeed a beautiful and powerful les-son for our students in understanding the difference one person can make. In addition to the project mentioned above, the students were invited in the week leading up to January 18, to carry out extra acts of kindness and note these beautiful kind acts on paper "peace doves" to decorate our Random Act of Kindness Tree placed in the reception area. The tree was quickly covered in a sea of colored doves of kind deeds carried out in class and at home

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Our Spirit Day happened to fall on a very special day, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. It was a perfect opportunity for all of our community to reflect on the difference one person can make in another's life. The students celebrated this event within their classrooms due to health and safety protocols. In the Yeats and Kandinsky room, friends observed Spirit Day by re-viewing every action counts/matters school goal. They noted acts of kindness in writing and gathered together to sing peace songs. They also read a biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and discussed other leaders who worked for peaceful change, such as Mahatma Gandhi. Also, they highlighted our community service actions in gathering food items for the Somerset County Foodbank. Later they read Last Stop on Market Street, a story about a young child taking a bus to a soup kitch-en with his grandmother. Their Spirit Day activities will provide a springboard for highlighting other community service projects under-taken and their Black History Month studies. The Miro children read the book The World Needs Who You Were Made to Be, by Joanna Gaines. The reading was followed by a class dis-cussion and the decorating of balloons as experienced in the story. This lesson sends a strong message that we all look different; the World NEEDS all of us to be different. Because of our differences, the World is so beautiful (as is the sky when all of the hot air balloons are different). For Spirit Day, the Upper Elementary classes created an assignment related to the topic of food insecurity. The students researched statis-tics on food insecurity globally and locally and the role the food bank plays in helping with this issue. They explored more information about the backpack program and researched additional ways to contribute to this cause. Along with singing peace songs, The Homer class wrote positive feel-ings and shared them on Spirit Day. The Van Gogh class read a book about Martin Luther King, Jr. and composed a class peace poem. The children also drew pictures on paper doves of their favorite peaceful activity. In conclusion, the children shared reflective time in the peace garden. Even our toddlers celebrated this special day by reading the book How Kind, by Mary Murphy and discussed why they brought in the juice box-es and where they were going. This Spirit Day brought home the importance of every action which leads to a much larger effect for the greater good. A strong message of

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Yes, I can and will make a difference in my World. We invite our staff, students, and fami-lies to continue to support the Somerset Food Bank by donating any of the food items listed below or give a cash dona-tion to the main pantry and warehouse at # 9 East Easy Street, Bridgewater, NJ 08807. The facility is open from 9:00AM - 2:30 PM Monday through Friday. Suggested food items: Canned Meats (Stews, Corned Beef,

Spam, Chicken, Turkey) Shelf Stable Milk (Parmalat, Borden,

etc.) Canned Fruit (regular & no sugar) Spaghetti sauce Canned Vegetables (regular & low

salt) Ravioli, Spaghetti O's Tuna Crackers Juice (plastic bottles, juice boxes &

powdered) Macaroni & Cheese Pasta (boxes,

mixes) Peanut Butter& Jelly White or Brown Rice (regular & mix-

es) Snacks (Bars, Pudding, Jell-O) Canned Soup Tomatoes (canned) Canned Gravy Cereal (hot & cold) Pancake Mix Syrup

Shadow Puppet Show in Lower Elementary

T his week, in drama classes, Lower Elementary students participated in the final filming of their shadow puppet shows. This performance

was the culmination of many weeks of work. In conjunction with their study of Asia, the children began with a study of various styles of Asian puppetry. They then focused specifically on shadow puppetry. Each child created his/her own set of shadow puppets in order to portray characters from Indonesian folktales. The children enjoyed performing various stories of the character, Mouse Deer, a popular trickster in the folklore of this coun-try. The children pre-recorded their lines and then brought their puppets to life on our puppet screen. Every-one worked very hard to make the perfor-mance a success.

Elementary Students Study Asian Theatrical Forms

I n conjunction with their study of the Asian continent, both Lower and Upper Elementary students explored forms of theater that originated

in Asia. Throughout the fall and early winter, in their drama classes, stu-dents studied Asian theater and created performances to be shared with family and friends via video. Lower Elementary students began with a study of various styles of Asian puppetry. They then focused specifically on shadow puppetry. Each child created his/her own set of shadow puppets in order to portray characters from Indonesian folktales. The children enjoyed performing various stories of the character, Mouse Deer, a popular trickster in the folklore of this country. The children pre recorded their lines and then brought their puppets to life on a puppet screen. Everyone worked very hard to make the performance a success. Upper Elementary created plays inspired by the Japanese Kabuki Thea-ter. The students began by studying the history and style of Kabuki and learning about key elements of this theatrical form. They then spent several weeks collaboratively writing their own scripts. In their writing, they incorporated their own sense of humor while keeping in mind some of the elements of traditional Kabuki. They also studied the


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makeup traditionally worn in Kabuki Theater and the meanings be-hind the colors and designs. The students created masks for their characters to represent this makeup. In addition to the makeup shown on the masks, they incorporated elements of Kabuki includ-ing: Stock characters, entry of each character down a central runway ("hanamichi"), the use of physicality in the acting, frozen poses ("mie") to highlight significant moments, and the instrumental ac-companiment of the movements.

The Albrook School Acknowledges Years of Service By Ms. MacNeill

T he Albrook School has strength in our staff's quality and dedication to our students, school, and the Montessori philosophy. The length of service at Albrook is referred to in decades rather than just years. We are so proud and

thrilled to share the recognition given during this year's Zoom holiday staff party in December. Mrs. Fritsch was acknowledged for twenty years of service to Albrook as a loving teacher. She also is our talented chef who expertly guided students over the years in the cooking clubs and Cooking Around the World program in summer camp. Cheers rang out for Mrs. Ferguson, Technology Coordinator/Teacher and the person who keeps us all connected, for cele-brating 25 years of love and dedication. Also, Mrs. Greb, who wore many impressive hats over the past twenty-five years, is known as the lady with the golden thimble! Mrs. Greb assisted in the classroom and designed and made many of Albrook' s costumes for the beautiful school plays and performances over the years. She continues to support our school in the role of Supply Coordinator and seamstress extraordinaire. We congratulated Mrs. Ponzio, who joined the Albrook family ten years ago as Director of Public Relations, bringing a unique skill set and a passion for education. She excelled in that role for seven years. Mrs. Ponzio was promoted to Assistant Head of School three years ago. We look forward to her continuing to support the school community with her deep love and compassion. We had the honor of congratulating her for ten wonderful years of service. What is it that keeps our faculty and staff working for decades at The Albrook School? Can the answer be found in our sense of community, dedication to the children, and how our school truly lives by the Montessori philosophy? Or is it because of the opportunities for growth founded in our mission statement? It may be one or all of those reasons. One thing we know for sure, it is both an honor and a privilege to work with these beautiful, talented, passionate col-leagues. Acknowledging and celebrating these impressive milestones and honoring these wonderful ladies for their constant love, loyalty, and passion not only to our students but to the whole community. What a fantastic way to end 2020. The Albrook School is indeed blessed and fortunate to have such a loyal and loving staff. "A teacher affects eternity; he can never tell where his influence stops.". – Henry Adams.

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C OVID 19 has and continues to impact our lives. Summer should be a time of joyous experiences for our young campers, but how do we achieve that during a pandemic? Last summer, we had to face many difficult challenges

when devising a plan to protect the campers' health and well-being while preserving that lighthearted and exuberant camp experience. It turned out all we needed to ease our mind was the children. The minute they arrived at our door, sheer delight oozed from every part of their being. They didn't care about their masks or any of the new protocols that were imposed. All they wanted was to be out of isolation, amongst their friends, and a part of something that felt good. Now that we have experienced hosting summer camp with all the safety protocols in place, we can wisely say…..all we need is the children. Sunshine, Swimming, Running, Playing Soccer, Exploring the Wonders of the World, Experimenting, Building, Estimating, Designing, Cooking….. Albrook Summer camp offers all of this and so much more. This year, The Albrook Summer Camp has a wide variety of programs that tap into creative, curious young minds and continue to ignite the excitement to learn. The children will have fun and discover in our beautiful air-conditioned classrooms, enjoy all our outdoor activities in a wide range of play-grounds, and participate in daily morning swim lessons. There will be plenty of oppor-tunities for our full-day campers to build fond memories while experiencing free time in the pool in the afternoon with friends. The Albrook Summer Camp has two beauti-ful in-ground swimming pools. One is a shallow confidence pool where our younger campers can stand with confidence while they learn to float and swim. The second pool is for the older students and swimmers to develop and refine various swim strokes and later diving techniques. Our staff has designed unique programs for ages ranging from 3 years to 10 years to engage their imagination while building confidence and self-esteem. Explore the World program provides opportunities for the older camper to have fun while exploring hands-on materials in the classroom, researching the unique biomes and the world's diverse cultures. This summer, the focus will be on countries on the continent of Africa. Projects and multi-media computers will en-hance their study of each country. Cooking around the World invites students to explore and learn about foods from countries and cultures around the world through hands-on chopping, mixing, kneading, and tasting.

Wonders of Nature encourages young campers to put on their naturalist hats and explore the wonders of nature while embracing and developing a better understand-ing of the natural world around them. Each session will have a fun, engaging theme to guide hands-on learning and projects. This year's themes include Animal Habitats, Wonders of the Rainforest, Wildlife in the Woods, Exploring Reptiles in our Wood-lands, Predators and Prey, Insects, and the wisdom of wings. Fun with Soccer will help the young student master basic soccer skills: dribbling, pass-ing, and shooting as they develop teamwork and sportsmanship while building friend-ships.

Albrook Summer Camp 2021

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STEAM- Chemistry class invites our young students to put on their Chemical Engineer hat on and have fun exploring the magic of chemistry in everyday life while tinkering with day-to-day items. Through hands-on games and experi-ments, the campers will develop an understanding of the incredible physical laws underlying our universe as they trans-form different states of matter into exotic compounds and mixtures. They will also become familiar with various branches of chemistry while playing with various solids and liquids. They witness first-hand how molecules transform into something magically different and understand the reasons and science behind it. All by exploring and experi-menting with basic household materials and letting the fantastic chemistry laws turn ordinary objects into extraordi-nary concoctions! Engineering Aerodynamics This program invites all of our space enthusiasts to have fun while exploring. How does an

airplane fly? The answer is explained by the science of aerodynamics, the study of air in motion. Discover the four forces of flight that help an object move through the air with hands-on activities and experiments. Hydrodynamics: What do ships, submarines, and surfing have in common? They are examples of hydrodynamics, the branch of physics that deals with the motion of flu-ids. Explore and investigate the forces that affect an object when placed in water. Creative Writing Everyone has a story to tell! Our Creative Writing program gives the young authors a platform to share his/her story. Through brainstorming, mapping, character development, and sentence structure, the young authors will engage their imagination while strengthening writing skills. At the end of the session, they will proudly write and illustrate their masterpiece! Fun with Mathematics Let's put the fun back in mathematics! Our Campers will have a fantastic time as they explore math concepts with hands-on, concrete Montessori materials and technology to develop and enhance critical thinking skills. Topics of study will include geometry, measurement, mathematical operations, and problem-solving skills. Drama allows your budding actors and actresses to enjoy and express themselves on stage. In this two-week session, participants will have the chance to experience every theater aspect as they create and perform their original play. From scriptwriting and acting to costumes, props, and scenery, the children will learn what it takes to pro-duce a play. Family and friends will enjoy a culminating performance via video at the end of the session.

Learning should be fun! Our campers' will gain from all the enjoyable, challenging activities and age-appropriate sub-jects while building confidence and self-esteem. Having fun while making discoveries about themselves and the world around them is what summer is all about! It is important to look and move forward to the warmer weather and bright-er days; it is time to make summer plans! You can register for The Albrook Summer Camp online through either School Speak or our website at www.albrookschool.org under the tab, Summers at Albrook. Or, call the office at 908-580-0661 for more information. Ms. Kaniewski is only too happy to guide you through the registration process. Albrook Summer Camp is open to the public, so feel free to invite family and friends to register as well.

http://www.albrookschool.org

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What our summer camp parents had to say… My children had the best time at camp at Albrook. My daugh-ter came home and said, “Camp was the beginning of a new life for her!" My kids could not wait to go each and every day. The team provided a fun learning environment for my kids. I can't wait to send them again this year! Maureen D. My older son has been attending Albrook Summer Camp for years. The summer of 2020 presented unique challenges, but the Albrook School rose to the challenge and created the same great summer experience for children while maintain-ing strict safety protocols. My younger son joined Albrook Summer Camp for the first time during Summer 2020. He had a great experience and probably didn't even notice that things were adjusted from previous summers. We had the utmost confidence in the staff managing the camp and my children were able to have a safe, enjoyable, educational summer camp experience despite the pandemic challeng-es. This was especially critical after the children had been at home with no activities or interactions for months. We are forever grateful for Albrook Camp running their summer pro-gram last year. It was just what my children needed and I noticed they were happier and healthier and felt it was the first real normal thing they had done in months. It was also extremely helpful to us as working parents to know that our children could attend such an enriching program during chal-lenging times. I remember thinking every day at drop off that I wish I could hug the staff for everything they did for the chil-dren. Thank you Albrook Summer Camp!! Colleen Carter Rhys (and we!) loved summer camp last year! Two main high-lights for us: He gained more confidence in the pool having a daily

morning swim lesson. Some photos were shared with us of him in the pool with his friends, teachers and counse-lors and it helped reassure us how safe he was and how much fun he was having.

He was so proud (and we were impressed!) by his various artwork and projects - one which we still have up in our kitchen.

Amy Strutt

Welcoming Julie Kaniewski

Y ou may have noticed a new smiling face at The

Albrook front desk. Julie Kaniewski has joined us in the role of Administrative Assis-tant. She is learning the lay of the land quickly and will be happy to answer questions and direct your calls. Mrs. Kaniewski will be organizing the summer camp program as part of her new duties. The registered students will be contacted with guidance and details as the summer draws near.

Along with Mrs. Kwasniewski's arrival, we have to bid a fond farewell to Mrs. Perez. Mrs. Perez has decided to greet the next chapter of her life with a move to a warmer climate. She has been an upbeat presence at Albrook and will surely be missed.

Inspiring Every Action Matters in Upper Elementary

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