First XI

Soccer is much on my mind these days, since we have been playing in PE, so I thought I'd kick off (hem hem) the year with a First XI. The world's game is eleven-a-side, so writers frequently muse over best elevens, or, as they're usually designated, First XIs. In that spirit, here we go, here we go, here we go.

I. Every morning, the kids check in by going to one of our many whiteboards and filling in: Jonathan is _________ (each to her or his own name). Mike usually writes 'first'; Denali's is often weather-related; on Friday, Saul wrote, 'wearing a V-neck--SO WHAT?'

II. We have had numerous writing prompts on the theme of explorers. One of the first was to define the term, based on a specific reading from our Explorers coursepack (see VIII, below). From Mike: An explorer is someone who is brave enough to travel to the dark spots on the map, and patient enough to illuminate what he finds there.

III. I also like Danny's: An explorer is happy to find a new place.

IV. We took a fruitful trip to the University Museum of Art, and to the Kelsey across the street, an archaeological museum. Monica Wilson, our new middle school art teacher, accompanied us to the first stop. The kids wandered thoughtfully, even purposefully--if one can be said to wander that way--writing and sketching, keeping the theme of exploration weaving through their work.

V. There is great enthusiasm for Monica, and equally so for Josh Grekin, our new music teacher, who had the kids singing Lean On Me and has continued to stoke their enthusiasm and talent.

VI. The upstairs digs are wonderful and fabulous. Please continue to visit as the space evolves--don't wait for Curriculum Night. We have a huge cork board, with some communal space and a four-by-four space reserved for each student; two comfortable chairs and two couches for informal gathering; a quiet project break-out room with a fish tank; a workroom soon to be stocked with art supplies; a classroom soon to be stocked with tables; two floor-to-ceiling whiteboards; two dozen stools awaiting only the eight tables that will enable us to set up two formal classroom spaces; a library room featuring all 2,000 books from last year's collection along with cushions for everyone; enough space to hold indoor PE, including a three-a-side soccer tournament, with the proviso that the ball can never leave the ground (Denali and Lily were prominent players, though Denali had a hard time keeping the ball down).

VII. The final standings of that tournament: England, Romania, Australia, Scotland.

VIII. Humanities is built on the 140-page coursepack for this theme, entitled Explorers of the World. The coursepack comprises twenty-two readings from eighteen different authors, beginning with material from Richard Feynman and closing with an exercise from Keri Smith's book. This past week we conducted a free-market assignment, in which the students exchanged information on ten different readings from the coursepack.

IX. If you haven't done so yet, ask the kids about the eight-foot crossword puzzle.

X. We will begin reading The Odyssey this week.

XI. Friday afternoon--Friday afternoon--was spent in quiet reading, contemplation, and writing on three prompts inspired by two readings in the coursepack. One was a broad account of the centuries preceding the Age of Exploration in Europe, taken from Jean Fritz' book Around the World in a Hundred Years, the other a now-and-then account of the Norse exploration of Newfoundland, taken from Tony Horwitz' amazing A Voyage Long and Strange. We spent about two hours on that. Did I mention that it was quiet? And that it was Friday afternoon?

The students are a year older, and it shows. They are making rapid and happy progress.