Smooth Transit
In India, tenth-graders complete what Americans would consider high school. Indian teenagers make life choices at that point, their options framed by scores on the national exams. Choosing to attend college at home is a career focused direction that many take. Some choose an International Baccalaureate. Very few make the choice Tanya Panicker did. No cohort of her friends pretested the route Tanya pursued—attending a college preparatory boarding school in the United States. “It seemed like a more exciting, more unfamiliar choice that would give me international exposure, too,” Tanya...
Read MoreWhy Not? Finding Your Feet “Far from Home”
“But if these years have taught me anything it is this: you can never run away. Not ever. The only way out is in.” —Junot Díaz, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao Aylin Feliz has scripted this line from Junot Díaz into her email signature. “There’s something about me that’s ‘Why not?’” Aylin says. “I can put myself out there. I’ve lived that, and I know why it’s worth doing.” Aylin’s family is Dominican, and she grew up in Roslindale, Massachusetts. In her eighth-grade class at the Rafael Hernandez public school, 20 of her 28 classmates were also Dominican. The...
Read MoreOn Happiness
Recently, I have been weighed down by adolescence. The mood swings, erratic frustration, and chronic sarcasm were constant reminders of my growing up. I was complaining to my parents, nagging my brother, ranting to my friends. People say that these years define who we will be as adults: Is this who I will become? The more I struggled with finding myself, the more nostalgia I felt for my childhood innocence. To sort out my own happiness, I read Gretchen Rubin’s The Happiness Project. In her best-seller, the author pursues happiness through monthly goals. I chose three: Give hugs, anticipate...
Read MoreOn Making Things
When I was trying to figure out my Class IV Talk, one of my friends asked me what I like to do. After a fairly boring list, I announced that I like to make things, and break things. While I can assure you that breaking things can be a lot less frustrating and more fun than making things, people usually think of it as destructive, although I can’t imagine why. For that reason, my Talk is about making things—some interesting things that I’ve made, some famous inventors who have actually made important things, and what we can learn from them. What do I mean by “things”? All sorts of...
Read MoreFictional Characters Complicate the Lives of Fifth-Graders
Grappling with the experience of a fictional character often opens doors for readers. A close range, intimate look at a character’s challenges and decisions can aptly teach about perspective. Jenn Katsoulis’s fifth-graders not only consider writing styles and develop analytical skills as they study literature. Through the books that she and librarian Joan Eisenberg choose, Jenn aims to help students look at the world from another person’s point of view. “I choose books that force the reader to do that,” Jenn says. Book by book, her fifth-graders increase their sophistication and...
Read MorePritzker Science Center Dedication May 6, 2011
On May 6, 2011, Brad Bloom, president of the board of trustees, welcomed faculty and staff, students, donors and the Pritzker family at the dedication of the Pritzker Science Center. The ceremony honored those whose dedication and philanthropy made Milton’s exciting new building possible. Milton science students addressed how the building’s design inspires science teaching and learning. J.B. Pritzker ’82 noted that faculty-student relationships are the root of all great discovery at Milton. At a Thank You Celebration that evening, Milton honored those generous individuals whose gifts...
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