At our all-school assembly today, students from LEAP schools in South Africa performed songs, dances and led a Q & A about their personal experiences in South Africa. LEAP schools, located in Cape Town and Johannesburg, South Africa, is supported by San Francisco-based non-profit Teach With Africa. The LEAP students, along with students from six Bay Area schools, will participate in an all-day workshop this weekend hosted by The Marin School. The workshop seeks to address issues of equal access to education and race relations in S. Africa and the Bay Area.
Thank you to Teach With Africa and LEAP students for bringing an informative, engaging presentation to The Marin School!
The Marin School club Futsal team is in the midst of their first season and enjoying the fast-paced sport of indoor soccer.
They lost a tough match last night 5-9 to the 'Master Dragons,' one of four teams in the U19 category. Next game is this weekend at 7 pm at the Fairfax Pavilion.
TMS Futsalers include: Ashley Vidal, Nell Dosker, Ricardo Romero, Rodrigo Marcia, Emma Abinanti-Sena, Noah Levenson, and Katie Najjar.
If you or your son/daughter are interested in Futsal competition, please contact Jonah Weaver at jweaver@themarinschool.org or Frank Bonardi, the League director, at (415) 847-4154. Frank's email is e-mail: futsal4u@hotmail.com
College of the Week - Wesleyan University is a small, private, liberal arts university located in the small New England city of Middletown, Conn. Wesleyan offers students the opportunity to attend a top-notch research university with the intimate intellectual and social community of a liberal arts college. The highly selective school with 2800 undergraduates attracts a diverse student body from all over the world. Approximately 30 percent of undergraduates are students of color and 12 percent are first-generation college students. The university is committed to meeting the financial need of all students, and 100 percent of undergraduates’ financial need is fully met.
My Schedule this Week - I will be on campus Monday from 9:15-7, Wednesday from 9-3:30 and Thursday from 9-4:30.
Parent Volunteer needed for summer program and GAP year information - I have a file of summer programs for high school students and a file of GAP year programs. Is there a parent with a free morning who could organize the files and perhaps enter the information into Family Connection for others to see? If so, please let me know!
FOR JUNIORS
Should you take the ACT or the SAT? Click here for information that might help you decide. Eureka Review is providing us with a one hour test that will provide concrete information about which test might be better for you. Plan to stay after school on Wednesday February 3rd to take the test in the library. Please sign up on my door so I'm sure to have a test for you!
If you took the practice SAT on Saturday - Bring your parents and come to school on Monday January 25th at 6:30 (in the Library) to get your scores and help understanding what they mean. The folks from Eureka Review, who will be teaching the course offered after school, will be conducting the session.
SAT and ACT Registration Dates - The next SAT will be given on 3/13 (registration deadline is 2/4) and the next ACT on 4/10 (the registration deadline is 3/5). I recommend students take the SAT in May or June, the ACT in April or June and, if the student has over a 3.0 GPA, 2 subject tests in May or June.
FOR SENIORS Ask your parents for help with acceptance letters - Often times, in the joy of receiving an acceptance letter, the details contained in the letter can be forgotten. Ask your parents for help in understanding the next steps (deposits, placement tests, enrollment, housing) and completing all the things you are asked to do.
UC may keep you waiting - The University of California recently announced that this year they will be offering students a place on waiting lists for each campus. They have not used waiting lists in the past. If you find yourself on a waiting list, check in with me for help with strategy.
Don't forget to check you email and student portals - Make sure your application is complete and nothing is missing, including test scores which you must request be sent.
The Marin School held its annual Science Fair and Jazz band concert last night. Here are a few photos from the event: click on the pictures to enlarge.
The 2nd annual Poetry Out Loud competition was held today at TMS. Poetry Out Loud, sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts and The Poetry Foundation, is a nationwide program that involves student recitation of any poem offered on the Poetry Out Loud website.
The winner of today’s competition was Jeremy McNamara for his recitation of “Catch A Little Rhyme” by Eve Merriam. Jeremy will represent The Marin School at the Marin Country Poetry Out Loud Contest on February 6th. Last year, over 300,000 students nationwide competed in county and state contests for 1 of 12 spots in the national contest held in Washington D.C. The Poetry Out Loud national finalist receives a $20,000 award while all 12 finalists receive a monetary award as well.
Congratulations to all students who participated in today’s competition: Luca Tedesco Paola Garcia Jeremy McNamara Demetrius Borge Jake Jackson John Alba Cerritos Xaviour Beasley
And thanks to our staff and faculty judges for a great turnout!
The Marin School's Haiti fundraiser plan was announced today at an all-school presentation by Student Council president Noah Levinson, Assistant Head Steve Bileca, and history teacher Matt O'Donnell. The plan includes a raffle each day this week with proceeds going to Doctors Without Borders. Today's raffle prize was a gift certificate to In-N-Out Burger as well as a T-Shirt and a $25 iTunes gift certificate. Today's raffle gained $153 for Doctors Without Borders and with the bake sale on Friday the total raised is close to $300, not counting some very generous donations from parents. It is great to see the TMS community coming together for the people of Haiti.
The ever-popular "Hamlet Trial" has become something of a rite of passage for senior English students at The Marin School. The extended project assignment, devised and guided by English IV teacher and department chair Kieran Ridge, asks students to play out a hypothetical trial in which the younger Hamlet tries to pin his father's murder on his uncle-cum-stepfather, Claudius. Students must form teams of characters from the play. For instance, Hamlet, Ophelia, Horatio and the grave-digger might comprise the prosecution, with Claudius, Gertrude and Polonius as the defense. Their pre-trial preparations involve close study of the text in order to gather evidence, which they present to a jury of faculty members in a mock trial. The overall exercise fosters not only detailed textual work, but also teamwork, time management and presentational skills.
Most prosecuting teams are unable to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Claudius was indeed the killer, because most of the evidence against him is ultimately circumstantial. Could you read the text and find the key to a conviction?
Led principally by Student Council president Noah Levenson, who came to school the day after Haiti's devastating earthquake determined to help its victims, the TMS community has initiated efforts to raise emergency aid funds. $138 was raised through a bake sale on Friday, and every day next week will see a school-wide raffle to raise even more support. Please contact the School to find out how you might support our efforts.
The Marin School is participating in a project with Teach With Africa, a San Francisco-based non-profit that supports three secondary schools (named LEAP Schools) in South Africa.LEAP students are visiting the Bay Area for two weeks starting today, 1/14; they will perform at TMS on Monday, January 25th, and their time will culminate in a TMS-hosted workshop on January 30th entitled “Celebrate, Collaborate.”The workshop seeks to address issues of equal access to education and race relations in S. Africa and the Bay Area.A pre-workshop meeting was held on Tuesday in the TMS Hawk’s Nest with students and educators from the following schools: The Marin School, Lick-Wilmerding, Redwood, Branson, Drew, and Ralph A. Bunche Academy.
The January 30th workshop will be led by English teacher Jonah Weaver and the following volunteer TMS students: Tej Poonian, Becky Kliman, Demetrius Borge, Paola Garcia, Sabrina Schroeder-Dammann, and John Alba Cerritos.In addition, the parents of Becky and Tej will each be hosting a LEAP student for the duration of their stay in the Bay Area.
A big thank you to all participating students and parents!
R E M I N D E R F O R J U N I O R S & P A R E N T S College Admission Testing Night is Wednesday 1/13 at 6:30 in the Hawk's Nest - Parents and students are welcomed to this informative evening presentation about the various college admission tests and how to prepare for them. I'll cover topics such as the differences between the tests, when to take them and how to prepare for them. There will be information regarding the class that will be offered here at school as well as other prep options. To prepare for the evening, watch this short video in which admissions officers talk about the role of standardized tests in the admission process. FOR EVERYONE
College of the Week - At Emory, top faculty are accessible and committed to teaching and fostering undergraduate research. The seven to one student/faculty ratio encourages meaningful interaction between professors and students, and ninety percent of undergraduate classes have fewer than forty students. Emory students may explore their interests and talents in the classroom and in the field; Emory students are twice as likely to do research outside of the classroom as their peers. First-year students can attend Emory College, the innovative liberal arts division at the heart of this major research university in Atlanta, Georgia, or they can choose Oxford College, site of Emory’s original campus, and spend their first two years in a small-college setting offering innovative teaching and unique opportunities for leadership. As juniors, all undergraduates may choose from more than 70 majors at Emory College or apply to Goizueta Business School or Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing.
My Schedule this Week - I will be on campus Monday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9-4 and Wednesday evening.
FOR JUNIORS SAT prep course to be held after school - The course will be taught by Eureka Review, a company I have worked with before and for which I've received strong student recommendations. Students who participate in the class must take the practice test being offered at school on Saturday, January 16th (see below for more information). The class will be held on Wednesday afternoons, generally from 2:45-4:45, throughout March and April and is designed to prepare students for the May 1st SAT test date. The cost will be $250 per student. I am hoping to have final details for Wednesday's meeting.
SAT or ACT practice test on Saturday, January 16th at 8:00 AM at TMS - The practice test is open to all students but those who are planning to take the Eureka Review prep class must take this SAT practice test. The SAT practice test will be scored by Eureka Review and they will then return to school to distribute and explain scores to students and parents on Monday, January 25th at 6:30. Students who opt to take an ACT practice test will score their tests with me on the 16th. Students who have been approved for testing accommodations will be able to use those accommodations during the practice test.
SAT and ACT Registration Dates - While I will be giving much more information next Wednesday regarding testing, I do want you to know that there is an SAT given on 1/23 and students can still take the test on a standby basis. The next SAT will be given on 3/13 (registration deadline is 2/4) and the next ACT on 2/6 (the late registration deadline is 1/15). I recommend students take the SAT in May or June, the ACT in April or June and, if the student has over a 3.0 GPA, 2 subject tests in May or June.
FOR SENIORS
UC Application Status Website - Click here to check up on that UC application you submitted so long ago.
Check your student portals at UC and CSU campuses for application status and admission decisions. If you are confused about how to do this, stop by and we'll figure it out. Remember that you are responsible for checking these sites and responding to any requests for information or clarification. Don't put your acceptance in jeopardy by avoiding the portals!
