Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (March 18, 2014)

Greetings, GreenMount Community,

                Yesterday, spring was just three days away. Now, it looks like it’s really far away. Oh, I believe in yesterday.  Actually, can you believe yesterday?  That was one of the strangest winter storms we have had so far.  Unfortunately, it started just in time to mess up rush-hour traffic and then continued showering us with what looked like tiny salt crystals for much of the morning.  And then it was gone.  I hated to make the call to close school, but many accidents had been reported, and when I finally arrived here at school I could see that it would have been difficult for you and the staff to use 30^th Street and the walks.  Today, thanks to our stellar shoveling parents, the walks are clear and it was safe to open on time.

The bad news is that Monday took us into overtime and we have to make up that day somewhere.  As I mentioned in an earlier newsletter, we will be adding a day to the end of the year, making June 9 the last day for students.  That’s not great because it’s a Monday, but the alternative would have been Easter Monday.  If we took that day, parents might be rushing from hither and yon, quite possibly covering long distances to get back in time for school on Monday.  Additionally, if we had another snow day, we would then take Easter Monday and add June 9 to the calendar.  In that case, I feel it would be rather better to add June 10 to the calendar.  So, keep your fingers crossed that we don’t have to add another day!

            Tim Parmer addressed the students at this morning’s meeting and informed them about a unique theme project that you will be receiving at home today.  Each child in a homeroom class will be getting a piece of a painting and a wood block that Tim primed.  Each will paint his or her piece on the block by March 31, after which the pieces will be assembled to complete the puzzle and form the finished painting.  All six art pieces, representing the various movements from the Baroque to Modern periods, will be displayed.  The students were encouraged to interpret their piece of the puzzle and use any one of a variety of mediums.  Detailed directions will accompany the folder that you receive.

Cheers,

Steve

Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (March 4, 2014)

Greetings, GreenMount Community,

                At today’s morning meeting we all chanted, “Go away snow, go away snow.”  Students were also instructed to wear pajamas right-side out and to refrain from any more snow dances.  I think they all agreed.  And for children to want the snow to go away, you know that this has been a tough winter.  The good news is that we are four days into the meteorological spring.  Can you feel it?  Actually, the seasons are defined in three-month periods and spring turns out to be March, April, and May.  So rejoice - it’s spring! (Yeah, right.)

            I hope that you don’t mind that we were two hours late today.  I know that this can be inconvenient, but I wanted to make sure that the walks were clear and free from ice.  Thanks to our shoveling crew who came last night, all that needed to be done this morning was to scatter salt, which took some time to have any effect.  I am surely hoping that this is the last of it.  And in case you are counting, Monday was our last built-in snow day.  If we have to close any days from here on, we will add days to the school calendar beginning with June 9.

            This morning we also talked to the students about the spread of germs.  We have had many students fall ill due to the “thing” that is going around.  We reminded them about hand-washing and sharing things like Blistex (yes, they do that).  It would help if you also have these conversations at home (and please, do not send sick children to school).  The spring (which we are now in) can be especially germ-infested as temperatures fluctuate between warm and cold (warm?).

            Many of you, as well as visitors to the school, have enjoyed the portraits of families that are displayed on the bulletin board in the lobby.  These will have to come down to make room for theme-related information.  Please feel free to take photos of your family to keep before all of the photos are taken down by this Friday.

            Finally, as I am 118 days from “graduating” from GMS, I continue to enjoy every single moment with you, the staff and your children.  Winding down is exciting and yet sad for me.  So if I seem to hold onto you in conversation or problem-solving together, forgive me if I am over-attentive.  When we know the end is in sight, we tend to cherish each day more.  Believe me, I do.

           

Cheers,

Steve

Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (December 9, 2013)

Greetings, GreenMount Community,

            It has been an interesting week, and I expect that we will see similar weather circumstances as the school year progresses.  It appears that nearly everyone received notification about our delay on Monday and the closing yesterday.  So the system is working, thanks to you.  I hope that most of you took advantage of the app for your phone or the email capability with WBAL.  Remember, you can access this service on their web site.

            Yesterday was tricky because the snow didn’t start until later in the morning (like you didn’t notice).  But I think it was a good call to close yesterday.  For one thing, I got so much grief from the students on Monday for not closing that I didn’t want to disappoint them again.  They had worked so hard doing snow dances and sleeping with their PJs inside out!  I tried to explain to them that by using our snow days up we would not be moving the end of school back from June 6.  I asked them if they would rather have an extra day of summer or a day off in the winter with slush and cold.  The outcry was unanimous – they want it now!  It must be that instant gratification thing.

            Speaking of snow days, we have built in five days this year and now we are left with four.  If we do not use all of those days we will roll back the end of the year using a complicated mathematical formula that only Mr. Luca can explain.  If we exceed our snow days, we will add days past June 6 using a similar algorithm. This process is necessary because we are required as an independent school to have 170 days of school, which can include half-days.

Evaluation Reports:

            Because of our weather events and some computer issues, our teachers have not had the appropriate time to complete the evaluation reports in time for adequate review and editing.  Therefore, the reports will be distributed on Monday.  We apologize for the wait.

Theme 2:

           

            We are well into our second theme, which focuses on history between1876 and 1917.  This was the period of international expansion for the United States and fits nicely with the theme just completed, since many islands and island groups were annexed by the U.S. during that time.  We will devote a lot of time to WWI and other events such as the women’s suffrage movement.  Ms. Catherine has some interesting original sheet music from the time that belonged to her grandmother.  The middle school students have selected some very interesting songs for the theme event.  Did you know that there are actually words to “Stars and Stripes Forever”?  Please make sure to mark your calendar for the theme event, which will take place on February 21 from 9:00 to noon.

Cheers, 

Steve

Weekly Message from Steve Warner, Head of School (March 4, 2013)

Greetings, GreenMount Community,

            It was April 12, 1958, long before most of you were born.  But I remember the date well.  It was the start of the blizzard of ’58, and it was APRIL!  Schools were closed for a week and the wet, heavy snowfall was nearly impossible to clear from streets.  True, my memory might have enhanced the facts surrounding this event (I was 14 at the time), but I do know that everyone was surprised that we had such a significant snowfall in what was supposed to be spring.  I suppose there was snow on the dogwood blossoms, although this is not something that a 14-year-old boy notices.  All I was interested in was getting to the hill at Conlon Field, near the Gwynn Oak golf course, with my sled and braving the steep slope that should have been serving as a natural bleacher for Little League baseball games that were scheduled for that weekend.

I was not interested in sitting home playing video games or endlessly texting my friends about what I was not doing.  This is obvious.  But nor was I interested in sitting home watching our 12-inch, black-and-white TV, selecting one of three channels which mostly consisted of those early soap operas in their infant years.  Besides, one had to actually get up from the couch to change the channels.  And as long as I had to move, I might as well have some fun in the snow.

            It sounds like our kids may have that opportunity on Wednesday.  Please remember to tune to WBAL-TV to find out if we are delayed or closed.  If you have not done so yet, now might be a good time to subscribe to WBAL’s automatic notification of closings for GreenMount.  You can find out how to do that on their web site. 

So, if we do get something significant, get the kids outside and let them get creative with the snow.  They could have a snowman contest in the neighborhood or play “Top the Snowman” by trying to throw a hat, Frisbee-style, onto the head of Frosty.  A tug-of-war is always fun in the snow, as is a game of football.  You can mark off the boundaries with a spray bottle with water and food coloring. How about making an obstacle course with snow mounds?  If kids must throw snowballs, try a game of snowball baseball.  Cans are stacked in a pyramid at each of the bases and each kid stands on the pitcher’s mound trying to knock over the cans at each base.

Another game involves tying a white cloth to the end of a short stick or around the bowl of a wooden spoon. Then, give each child a chance to hide it by staking it anywhere within a predetermined set of boundaries. Keep track of how long it takes for the rest of the group to find it. Whoever hid the flag that takes the longest time to spot wins the game.

Finally, the hill at Greenwood, the Baltimore County School headquarters on North Charles Street, is a great place for sledding.  But watch out, there is a nasty gully if you go too far.  Teach your kids the art of bailing out!

I used to be Snow White, but I drifted. – Mae West

Cheers,

Steve