Studying a language that they did not first learn as young children is an important part of every student’s education at Crossroads. It’s wonderful to listen to Spanish and French phrases coming from classrooms and to watch students start to decipher Latin. But even more than achieving verbal or written fluency, learning a language helps us reflect on just how words and ideas are put together to reflect values of a particular culture. This process of communication helps us understand the construction and nature of our native language.
But language, of course, comes in many forms. Codes, for example, communicate with computers by providing instruction for activities we want machines to perform, or it can help provide access to vast quantities of information. And of course, the study of music offers another exposure to a powerful method of communication.
Learning all these kinds of languages have their unique challenges and benefits, and neuroscientists are now pointing out correlations between learning more than one language and learning as a whole. If you have the chance to learn multiple languages as a young student, you may stimulate learning in many realms, no matter if you eventually choose to become a doctor, engineer, or artist.
These broad effects of language learning are just some of the reasons I’m delighted to support the Lower School teachers in their request to expose our youngest students to a variety of languages. Yes, we’ve emphasized reading and writing skills in English since the day Crossroads first opened its doors. But this year, with the help of generous Crossroads parents, I’m pleased to have initiated a strings program that teaches our kindergarten, first, and second grade students the violin. Earlier this month, teachers participated in a professional development workshop to introduce coding throughout our curriculum, beginning in kindergarten. And again, with the support of a generous Lower School family, we will be introducing Spanish and French in grades K-3 beginning the second week of February. After this language exposure, students will make a more informed decision about concentrating on one of those two foreign languages in grades 4-8.
How will an increased exposure to multiple languages change the way our current students learn and see the world? What sort of impact will it have on their high school, college, or future careers? It may take three, five, ten, or even twenty years to know. But even without answers to these important questions, we can already say that research supports this broad and deep exposure to all these important ways of thinking about, learning, and mastering a wide variety of languages.
—Yours truly, Brad
Follow me on Twitter @CrossroadsHead
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* Head’s Note: Introducing Spanish and French in Grades K-
* Crossroads Development Committee News
* Admissions Office News: Discover the Difference (1/28)
* Virtue for This Month: Courage
* School News
– Summer Programs 2016
– News From the Health Office
– Classroom Clips
* Parent Association News
– Lunch Program
– Occum Pond Snow Sculpture Contest (2/13)
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* CROSSROADS DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE NEWS
Now that the New Year is upon us, it’s time to take stock of how far we’ve come in the Crossroad ’15-’16 Annual Fund. We’ve currently reached 48% parent participation and 73% towards our Annual Fund goal.
For those of you who have already given, thank you so much. For those yet to give, please know that your active participation in the Annual Fund will support a range of programs, our superb faculty, and a variety of activities that allow the teaching to come alive.
As an added incentive, we have just received notice that a generous donor will give Crossroads Academy a $100 gift for EVERY family that donates to the Annual Fund. If every family participates, Crossroads will receive approximately $10,000 in additional funds toward our Annual Fund! As you can see, we have already secured almost half of this wonderful gift. Please help us reach our goal of 100%–which will be a first for Crossroads–and qualify for the maximum challenge gift of $10,000!
Thank you all!
Posie Taylor and Laurel Mackin
Co-chairs, Crossroads Development Committee
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* ADMISSIONS OFFICE NEWS
Greetings from the Admissions Office! Our first Discover the Difference Open House is this Thursday, January 28! Please invite your friends, neighbors, and colleagues who have young children to our lovely campus so that they may find out more about our incredible program and see our classrooms in action. The Open House will be held in the Lora Robins Library between 9:00–11:00 am. Pre-registration would be appreciated. If you would like to help greet and chat with our prospective families on January 28, please let me know. Thank you for helping to get the word out about our special school!
Reminder…
We have changed the Crossroads Brown Bag Café to once a month, rather than every Tuesday morning. Please bring a friend and join us for coffee and conversation at our next Café on Tuesday, February 9, between 8:00–9:00 am in the multi-purpose room in the Klee Building. We plan on discussing ideas for after-school activities that would encourage more physical movement for our students. Come and join in this important conversation!
Have a wonderful week! —Warmly, Marilyn
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VIRTUE FOR THIS MONTH
JANUARY: COURAGE
Courage is finding the strength to venture and persevere.
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* SCHOOL NEWS
* SUMMER PROGRAMS 2016
We are delighted to share course descriptions and registration information for the 2016 Crossroads Summer Programs. Taught by Crossroads faculty, other local teachers, or in collaboration with educational organizations in the Upper Valley, all of our programs are designed to be both engaging and fun. Most programs run from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm daily with a free extended-day option from 3:00-5:00 pm, but please see the program descriptions for the exact times. All programs are open to both Crossroads students and others in the area. Please click here to sign up.
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* FROM THE HEALTH OFFICE
As we begin the winter flu season, our goal is to keep our students as healthy as possible and to minimize the spread of infection. If your child has had a fever within the last twenty-four hours, a sore throat with a congested cough that has prevented sleep, excessive congestion from a cold, vomiting or diarrhea, please keep him/her home for an extra day or until he/she has improved. While cough medicine and analgesics provide comfort, they do not last through the day and resting at home will help your child to recover quickly.
Please encourage handwashing at home and in school. This is the best way to prevent the spread of infection! For more information please visit http://www.cdc.gov/handwashing/
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* CLASSROOM CLIPS
Classroom Clips is a weekly space for students and teachers to share their writing with the Crossroads community. Today’s entry is a series of essays written by the eighth grade class in response to Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Please click here to read more.
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* PARENT ASSOCIATION NEWS
* LUNCH PROGRAM
This week follows the “Week B” menu. Please be sure you are following the correct week. In addition, please consider sending in a set of silverware for your child to keep in his/her cubby; we are trying to avoid the waste of disposable silverware. Contact Deb Hoffer with any questions.
Also, by now you should all have received emails confirming your orders for the spring lunch program. If you have not already done so, please check them for errors and submit payment by check to the purple folder in the Klee entrance. The spring lunch menu starts Monday, February 1. Contact Deb Hoffer with any lunch program questions.
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* OCCOM POND PARTY SNOW SCULPTURE CONTEST (2/13)
This year’s Occom Pond Snow Sculpture theme is “Seuss on the Loose.” We’d love to have a crew of parents and kids design and create a Crossroads submission for this wonderful event. In order to do so, we will need another parent to join Christine Foley in coordinating the effort and a few more strong parents to work alongside the kids in the actual building. The Party is Saturday, February 13; building would begin the weekend before (February 6 or 7) and likely continue on Friday, the 12th. Please contact Christine Foley with any questions and to convey your interest in participating.
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KEY LINKS: http://www.crossroadsacademy.org/
