February 2010 - MARYMOUNT International School Rome

MARYMOUNT
INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL ROME
Greetings from the Headmistress
Recent weeks have been filled
with heartwarming events and
activities as members of the
Marymount community give of
their best in a variety of
pursuits.
I must start by mentioning the
Second Grade Mass on
January 27. This really was
one of the most inspirational
masses I have witnessed,
bearing testament to the
dedicated teaching and
preparation of our faculty
members and the openheartedness and enthusiasm of
our children. I had a spring in
my step for the rest of the day
as I’m sure did the parents who
were able to attend! I look
forward to sharing in the
celebration of First Holy
Communion with the Second
Graders later in the year.
The Haiti Appeal spearheaded
by Mr. Sweeney was another of
Continued on Page 2
NEWS
February
2010
Inside this Issue
Visiting Performers / 6
Insight into Disabilities / 3
Community Days / 7
RSHM Network Conference / 8
Parents Organization / 12
Above: Elementary students
Chiara and Oce'ane participate
in an activity about blindness.
Full story on page 3.
(Photo: J. Dunn)
2
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
FEBRUARY 2010
Kindergarten Students Learn the ABC’s of
Recycling
he Kindergarten classes
have embarked on a
mission to save the
planet! Since the beginning of
January they have been
learning about reusing,
reducing, and recycling
materials at school and at
home.
T
A wonderful morning was had
by all on January 22, when the
Kindergarten children and their
teachers visited the Explorer
Children’s Museum in Rome.
At the museum, the children
make recycled paper, learned
about solar energy and played
Above right: Ms. Green helps
students Gabriel and Shan make
paper at the Explorer Children’s
Museum. Right: Kindergarten
students recycle on campus.
F r o m
t h e
those occasions when the
Marymount community
responded generously and
rapidly to express their concern
and support for the needy and
suffering Haitians after this
terrible disaster.
Students in both the
Elementary and Secondary
schools acted quickly to
organize fundraising activities
in the aftermath of the
earthquake and within just a
few days raised more than
€5,500, which they donated to
the World Food Programme’s
Help Haiti Now initiative. Even
students who were home sick
in the museum’s fully-functional
mini-supermarket all while
gaining a deeper
understanding of all matters
ecological!
At school, the children have
been learning to sort rubbish
into categories and make good
use of the on-campus recycling
facilities. Additionally, the Early
Childhood program has been
transformed by the students’
fabulous “Recycled Art”
displays, made from all manner
of used materials, as well as
their rather frightening monster
recycling bins!
We invite all of the Marymount
Community to join us in our
mission!
Ms. Stephanie Green
Kindergarten Teacher’s Aide
H e a d m i s t r e s s
sent in their donations. Yet
again, our students have
demonstrated their
commitment to the Marymount
mission “That All May Have
Life.”
I was then fortunate to fit in two
visits to the Secondary School
Community Days held at
Fraterna Domus in Sacrofano,
where I witnessed the very
thoughtful interaction among
students in Grades 6 through
11 as well as several faculty
members as they considered a
variety of issues, problems,
and resolutions and took part in
activities and discussions that
(Cont. from Page 1)
helped them express their
thoughts and ideas. I
commend Marie Catherine
Letendre of our Campus
Ministry, whose article appears
on page 7, for so thoughtfully
organizing these excellent
retreats.
Marymount offers so many
opportunities and experiences,
and it is up to all of us, faculty
and parents, to ensure that
students take full advantage of
them and “live life to the full.”
Ms. Maire McNamara
Headmistress
FEBRUARY 2010
Grade
4
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
Students
Gain
Insight
3
into
Disabilities
Students learned how the ear works and the
challenges that confront people who are blind
during a Grade 4 unit on disabilities. Their
comments reveal a new insight into things many of
us take for granted.
W
e read Helen Keller and
Louis Braille’s
biographies and learned
that people with disabilities can
still achieve a lot during their
lifetimes. In fact, although
Louis Braille was blind and
Helen Keller was deaf, blind,
and could not speak, they both
accomplished amazing things
in during their lives. I liked
studying about them and it was
interesting to learn at the same
time how sound travels as we
explored an ear’s anatomy in
science!!
Oce’ane B.
I
n science, we learned
about sound and
discovered that
vibrations travel through the
ear canal to the eardrum in the
outer ear, and then to the anvil,
stirrup, and hammer in the
middle ear. This in turn sends
vibrations to the cochlea.
Later, the vibrations are
transformed into nerve
impulses in the auditory nerve
and are interpreted as different
sounds in the brain. I really
enjoyed making a model of the
ear with clay. My favourite part
of the ear was the cochlea
because it looks like a snail!
Alex P.
M
y favourite part of this
unit was the activity
where we were
blindfolded and guided by a
friend through an obstacle
course. We had to go down a
slide, put an object in a cup,
write our name, and read a
sentence in Braille…all while
not being able to see!!
As I went through the obstacle
course, I was afraid of bumping
into things. Although I was
nervous, I tried to use my
sense of touch and hearing to
help guide me. I stretched my
hands out and that helped me
from bumping into things. I
also followed voices, to help
me understand where to go
next. I now understand how
courageous you need to be
when you are blind. I really
liked doing this and hope we
will try it again!
Marco C.
A
speech and language
pathologist named
Colleen Stella visited our
class and explained how the
ear works and what causes
hearing loss. I thought it was
interesting when she said that
most children can hear better
than adults. We learned that
the small nerve endings in
people’s inner ear break off
when they are exposed to loud
sounds. As people get older,
their hearing gets worse
because of this. We learned
that is why it is important to
listen to a television and iPods
at a low volume.
Beatrice L.
W
e discovered that we
could change pitch by
changing the thickness
or length of a vibrating object
as we made different musical
instruments. Later, we
performed a song with the
instruments we made with Mr.
Williams as our conductor! I will
admit that we did not sound
like a professional orchestra,
but we did manage to make
some funny music! It was a
blast!
Justin H.
Above: Students in Mrs.
Zaparolli’s class try to read using
Braille and write their names
without the benefit of sight. At left:
the students with a display of their
research projects on different
disabilities ranging from autism to
Down syndrome.
4
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
FEBRUARY 2010
In January, three Elementary School students
took it upon themselves to get to know their
new principal better by interviewing her for
their ESL class. They learned that she loves
children, hip hop, and the color red.
An Interview with
Ms. Castelluccio
Sebastian: Where do you
come from?
Ms.Castelluccio: I come from
Connecticut in the United
States.
Karoline: When is your
birthday?
M.C.: My birthday is on
January 9th.
Karoline: Do you like
children?
M.C.: I love children!
Karoline: Have you got any
children of your own?
M.C.: Yes, I have four children
two boys and two girls.
Sebastian: Where did you
work before you came to
Marymount?
M.C.: I worked at a school
called King’s Highway
Connecticut.
Karoline: Do you like to work?
M.C.: I do like to work
because I love what I do. I love
working in a school.
Sebastian: Do you think you
will like working in Marymount?
M.C.: I do think I will like it
very much.
Sebastian: What languages
do you speak?
M.C.: I speak English and I’m
trying to learn Italian but for
now I speak mostly English.
Karoline: Do you like snow?
M.C.: I love snow. I really like
winter.
Pin – Jung: What is your
favourite book?
M.C.: My favourite book is A
Tree grows in Brooklyn.
Karoline: Do you like parties?
M.C.: I LOVE parties!
Pin – Jung: What is your
favourite music?
M.C.: I like so many kinds of
music but I really like music
you can dance to like hip hop
and rhythm and blues.
Sebastian: Where were you
born?
M.C.: I was born in the Bronx
in New York.
FEBRUARY 2010
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
Elementary School students Sebastian, Karoline, and Pin – Jung with Ms. Castelluccio during their recent interview. (Illustrations by Sebastian,
Karoline, and Pin – Jung.)
Sebastian: Have you got any
brothers or sisters?
M.C.: I have four sisters and
one brother.
Sebastian: Have you got any
pets?
M.C.: Yes, I have a dog back
in the U.S. His name is Chino.
Pin- Jung: What is your
favourite food?
M.C.: Since I’ve been in Rome
I’ve been loving pizza and
gelato.
Karoline: What is your
favourite colour?
M.C.: I love red.
It kind of depends on how hard
it’s raining and how wet the
fields are.
Karoline: What are your
hobbies?
M.C.: I like to read and walk
and play sports.
Sebastian: Do you miss
Westport Connecticut?
M.C.: I miss mostly the
children that I worked with
there.
Pin – Jung: What is your
favourite sport?
M.C.: My favorite sport is
basketball, but I think I better
start liking soccer!
Sebastian: Will you let us play
soccer even when it’s raining?
M.C.: That’s a tough question.
Sebastian: Do you think you
will feel at home here at
Marymount?
M.C.: I think I’m really going to
like it here at Marymount.
5
6
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
o
Several of Shakespeare’s wellknown protagonists figured
prominently in the production,
including Juliet (right) and Ophelia
and Hamlet (below). Bottom
photo: The entire cast of Romeo,
Hamlet, Helena, and Juliet.
Hamlet
Rome
FEBRUARY 2010
&
Helena Juliet
Caulfield Grammar School
from Australia Presents
Shakespeare Collage
group of talented
performers from
Caulfield Grammar
School in Victoria, Australia
returned to the Marymount
campus on January 15 to
present a Romeo, Hamlet,
Helena and Juliet, a wildly
inventive and sumptuously
visual work of theater.
A
As the title would indicate, the
play combined characters,
plots, and dialogue from
several Shakespeare
plays to form an evening
length commentary on
love, relationships,
courage, and jealousy.
Presented in a postmodern, circus-like
atmosphere, the play
incorporated many
contemporary references into
a script that drew nearly 80%
of its dialogue directly from
Shakespeare’s own texts.
The production touched on
themes also taken directly from
Shakepeare’s plays, including
the dynamic between parents
and children (Romeo and
Juliet), the relationship of
young people to society (A
Midsummer Night’s Dream),
and gender change (Twelfth
Night). The young actors, in
elaborately funky costumes,
wigs, and make-up,
demonstrated considerable
dramatic skill, vocal power, and
comedic flair in this
impressively polished
production.
The visit to Marymount was
part of a larger European tour
for the group, which also
included stops in Lisbon,
Geneva, and Nice, among
others. The production itself
was endorsed by the Royal
Shakespeare Company, which
also provided support for the
tour.
FEBRUARY 2010
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
7
“That all May Have Life”
is Focus of Marymount
Community Days
Students in Grade 9 create posters with the theme, “What we receive and what we give” as part of a week-long series of class retreats in the Secondary
School known as Marymount Community Days.
raditionally, the second
semester opens with an
important event for
students in Grades 6 to 10,
known as Marymount
Community Days. RSHM
schools aim to educate the
heart, the mind, the body, and
the soul of each student. This
year’s goal, number 6 among
the Goals and Criteria of
RSHM schools, is “That all may
have life,” so naturally this
theme became the central
focus of activities for these offcampus community days.
T
Each day, students traveled to
Fraterna Domus in Sacrofano,
spent the day together in four
different community-building
activities, and received
encouragement along with
assistance from three or four
teachers.
Each grade level focused on a
different aspect of the idea:
“That all may have life.” On
Monday, Grade 7 students
reflected on identifying lifegiving behaviors. Their posters
featured a heart design with an
array of what they considered
to be life-giving. On Tuesday,
Grade 8 students investigated
the idea of the “who is in the
Marymount community and
who is out.”
Wednesday, Grade 6 students
brainstormed ideas about
“building community and
finding common ground.” Their
colorful and creative posters
listed what we hold in common
and in what we differ
discovering that we have more
in common. On Thursday,
Grade 9 students designed
their own posters featuring
“what we receive “and “what
we give.” On Friday, Grade 10
students’ posters artistically
represented a comparison
between “what is the greatest
impact on their lives” as
members of the Marymount
community and “what has the
least impact.”
This year, we also had the
Circle of Faith experience.
Prayers representative of
Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam,
Sikh, Judaism, and Christianity
all centered on a call for peace.
The partner exercise
underscored the notion of
getting to know others, sharing
information with others but also
having the partner’s permission
to reveal the information to the
whole group. Both Mass in the
Chapel and lunch in the dining
room were communal events.
The final activity included
drama and acting. Groups of 5
to 6 students worked together
on situation skits preparing the
dialogue and the action. Each
skit had a real-life conflict to
resolve. We discovered great
acting ability and clever
problem solving ingenuity
among our students.
The importance of Marymount
Community Days cannot be
exaggerated. We are very
grateful to the students in each
grade level who participated
and also to their parents who
encourage them to be full
members of the Marymount
Community.
Marie-Catherine Letendre, PhD
Campus Ministry
8
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
FEBRUARY 2010
Marymount to Serve as
C o - H o s t f o r t h i s Ye a r ’ s
RSHM Network of
Schools Conference
It is with great joy that our school will
welcome to our campus staff, faculty, and
students from Marymount schools all over
the globe for the 11th annual RSHM
Network of Schools Conference on
June 26 -30 , 2010.
he first Network of
Schools Conference took
place in 1999 in Fiuggi,
Italy, and at that time only four
schools made up the Network.
During that first conference,
participants drafted the Goals
and Criteria of our school
mission and formed an
Implementation Committee for
each school to ensure that
these goals remain at the heart
of all that we do at Marymount.
T
Every year since then, the
number of Marymount schools
that make up the Network has
steadily grown and each takes
a turn, as we are doing this
year, in hosting the Network
conference.
The purpose of these Network
conferences is to evaluate the
work that has been done
during the past year to
implement the Mission of the
RSHM in our school activities
and programs and to plan
activities for the year to come.
The atmosphere created at the
conference is almost one of a
family reunion as participants
discover how the RSHM roots,
on which all of our schools
were founded, sustain and
inspire the work and activities
of our schools. This yearly
opportunity to exchange ideas
and experiences is highly
valued and put into action
through a program of talks and
workshops geared towards
helping schools implement the
Mission.
Last year added another
dimension to the experience
when for the first time students
from the participating schools
came to partake in a parallel
Student Leadership
Conference. This idea was
such a success that it will be
repeated again this year.
The Program for the
Conference in June is still in
the planning stages, and will be
available on the school’s
website when it is finalized.
Please don’t hesitate to contact
Pamela Edmonds
(pedmonds@marymountrome.i
t) if you would like further
information about the
conference.
Ms. Pamela Edmonds
Implementation Committee
Chair
FEBRUARY 2010
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
9
The purpose of these Network conferences is
to evaluate the work that has been done during
the past year to implement the Mission of the
RSHM in our school activities and programs
and to plan activities for the year to come.
Marymount International School
will host this year’s RSHM Network
of Schools Conference. Bottom
photos: Participants at previous
network conferences.
11th RSHM Network of Schools Conference
June 26-30, 2010
Rome, Italy
Participating Schools
Marymount International School Rome – Italy
Istituto Marymount, Rome – Italy
Marymount, Paris – France
Marymount International School, London – UK
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Lisbon – Portugal
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Fatima – Portugal
Colégio de Nossa Senhora do Rosàrio, Oporto – Portugal
Marymount School, New York – USA
Marymount School, Los Angeles – USA
Cantwell Sacred Heart of Mary High School , Los Angeles – USA
Marymount Istituto Cultural Cuernavaca, AC – Mexico
Colegio Marymount, Medellin Antioquia – Colombia
Marymount School, Bogota – Colombia
Marymount School Barranquilla, Barranquilla – Colombia
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Belo Horizonte - Brazil
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Brasilia - Brazil
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Rio de Janeiro - Brazil
Colégio Sagrado Coracào de Maria, Ubà - Brazil
10
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
FEBRUARY 2010
Professional Development
f o r Te a c h e r s
Bilingual
Education
t our Professional
Development day on
January 7th.Dr Fred
Genesee one of the world’s
leading researchers in
bilingualism gave a talk to the
elementary school teachers
and then met with the school’s
Learning Resource and ESL
specialists.
A
Dr. Genesee is a Professor in
the Department of Psychology
at McGill University in
Montreal. He has carried out
research on some of the first
immersion programs
implemented in Canada and
has helped educators around
the world develop their own
programs.
Dr. Genesee is the author of
numerous professional and
scientific research reports and
books. He has served as a
consultant on second/foreign
language and bilingual
education in countries around
the world, including Japan,
Spain, Germany, Estonia,
Hong Kong, Italy, Latvia,
Switzerland, and Russia. His
inspiring talk was relevant to
our school population and has
made all of us even more
aware of both the benefits and
challenges of our
multicultural/multilingual
community. Some of the key
points of his talk are outlined
below.
(a) Children are able to learn
two languages simultaneously
as easily as one, provided they
are given continuous and
balanced exposure to both
languages over time.
(b) Parents raising children
bilingually (from birth) are
advised to focus on the
language that is not spoken in
the community at large in order
to ensure adequate exposure
to that language.
(c) Children with language
learning difficulties and even
impairment are able to become
bilingual within the limits of
their impairment, again
provided they are given
balanced, continuous and
extended exposure to both
languages.
(d) To identify students with
language learning impairment it
is recommended that both
languages be assessed;
students with language
impairment usually show signs
of difficulty in both languages,
whereas difficulties that are
typical of second language
learning usually show up in the
second language only.
(e) In school contexts,
students who do not speak the
language of instruction (e.g.,
English in Marymount) benefit
from strategic use of the native
language to promote their
Dr. Fred Genesee, a leading authority on bilingual education, speaks to
Elementary School teachers during a faculty in-service day at the
beginning of January.
acquisition of academic and
literacy skills in the language of
the school; in other words,
teachers are encouraged to
draw on the students’
knowledge of the native
language when teaching them
literacy skills or academic
content in the school language;
this should be done as support
for learning the second
language, not instead of
learning it.
(f) Bilingual code-mixing(the
mixing of two languages within
a sentence or across
sentences) is typical of
simultaneous bilinguals and
second language learners and
should not be discouraged; in
the case of second language
learners, it can represent areas
of the second language that
have not yet been fully
mastered and, thus, could be
the focus of instruction in
school.
(g) Promoting use of and
appreciation of language
diversity in a multilingual
school, especially if this can be
done by comparing and
contrasting how languages are
the same or different with
respect to written forms and for
communication, can enhance
all students’ metalinguistic
(using language to describe
language; thinking about one’s
own language) awareness
which, in turn, can enhance all
students’ literacy development.
Ms. Eithne Gallagher
Elementary School ESL
FEBRUARY 2010
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
11
Marymount to Host the Annual
RISA Art Show
Marymount International School is pleased to host the annual Rome International Schools
Association (RISA) Art Show this year. A collaborative venture within the international school
community in Rome, the RISA Art Show features artwork in various media created by students
in Grades 6-12. Art teachers select a limited number of works from students in each grade level
to include in the show, and the level of artistry typically on view is extremely impressive. A
panel of judges will award special recognition to a number of works during a ceremony that will
take place on the opening day, March 2. The artwork will be on display in the Auditorium and
on view to the general public through out the week according to the schedule below.
Rome International Schools Association Art Show
March 2-7, 2010
Marymount International School Auditorium
March 2 (Tuesday)
March 3-5 (Wednesday – Friday)
March 6 (Saturday)
March 7 (Sunday)
15:30 – 18:00 (Awards ceremony at 17:00)
18:30 – 16:00
10:00 – 15:00
10:00 – 13:00
12
MARYMOUNT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL
The Marymount Parents
Organization presents
Teacher
Appreciation
Lunch
Friday, February 12, 2010
Lunch in the Faculty Lounge
Food! Flowers! Fun!
If you are interested in helping out,
please contact a member of the
Parents Organization or email
parents_org@marymount.it
The Parent's Organization is
proud to announce that we will
be celebrating our beloved
Marymount teachers on Friday,
February 12 with our annual
Teacher's Appreciation
Lunch. It is one small way in
which we are able to express
to them the gratitude we have
for all of their hard work, love,
and commitment to our
children and the community at
large.
The lunch, like last year’s, will
be prepared by the ever
delicious California Catering,
but we would like to ask that
parents and children please
bring baked goods to provide
as dessert. The cakes and
cookies can be delivered to the
teacher's lounge on Friday
morning.
In other news, we have started
initial plans for our Spring
events which include the ever
popular International Food
Day on April 17, so be on the
lookout for how you can get
involved!
The Parent's Club is also
moving along with great
success. The Italian language
course for beginners is in full
swing and on Monday,
February 1 you can join Miss
Carlotta Caruso for another Art
Walk, specifically focused on
Basilicas.
We hope that everyone has
enjoyed the return to calm after
the holiday season and is
excited about the upcoming
White Week!
FEBRUARY 2010
Parents Club
Activities
The Marymount Parents Club
offers an array of fun and
educational activities that allow
you to get to know other
parents better while improving
your mind, body, and soul.
Fees from this year’s Parents
Club activities are benefiting
Operation Smile, an
international children’s aid
organization that helps correct
cleft palates and other facial
deformities.
Upcoming Activities for
February include:
Italian Course for Beginners
taught by Secondary School
faculty member Giovanna Iorio.
Wednesday, Feb. 3, 10 & 24,
15:45-16:45. Residence
Building First Floor.
Art Walk: Basilicas
led by Miss Carlotta Caruso
Monday, Feb. 1, 10:00-13:00.
Piazza S. Maria Maggiore
Computer: Microsoft
Publisher
taught by Marymount’s
Curriculum Coordinator Maria
Sweeney. Wednesday, Feb.
24, 9:00-10:00.Villa
Conference Room.
Mark Your Calendar - February 2010
1 / Monday
9 / Tuesday
15-19 / Monday - Friday
Faculty Meeting at 3:45pm
No after-school activities and
no late buses
Coffee with the Headmistress
at 9am, EC & K
First Reconciliation Parent
Meeting, 7:00pm
White Week
NO CLASSES
10 / Wednesday
Coffee with the Headmistress
at 9am, Grades 6-12
2 / Tuesday
Birthday of RSHM Foundress
Mere St. Jean
5-6 / Friday - Saturday
Atlast Curriculum Planning Meeting
Coffee with the Headmistress
at 9am, Grades 1-5
12 / Friday
PO Teacher Appreciation
Lunch
25 / Thursday
Marymount
New Date!
CHANGE OF DATE:
Please note that the Faculty InService previously scheduled
for April 30 will take place
instead on April 16.
International School
Via di Villa Lauchli, 180
00191 Rome, Italy
(+39) 06 362 9101
www.marymountrome.org
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Please recycle.