Head of School's Blog
Jun 01, 2023
ARS Theater Program
The May 5th ARS production of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ was inspirational. Among other thoughts, it inspired contemplation of the enormous educational value of the performing arts. Below is the short list of...
May 01, 2023
AI: Where Angels Fear to Tread
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is in the general news and at the forefront of educational news for good reason. The leaders in the industry have recently appealed to the federal government to impose a s...
Apr 01, 2023
The One and Only Ivan
I seriously considered submitting a blank blog and claiming invisible ink for April Fool’s Day, but I read a book over the Spring break, at Blair Goodman’s sage suggestion, and was inspired to dash a ...
Mar 01, 2023
Assemblies
Written Feb 8, the morning after the 2023 State of the Union Address. ARS weekly Assemblies are designed to teach several skills and accomplish several goals: The entire school gathers as one, enhan...
Feb 01, 2023
Risking the Wrong Answer
Whether one is naturally drawn to risk or naturally avoidant of risk-taking, like so much else, a balanced approach is the most beneficial. Excessive risk is dangerous and excessive risk-avoidance is ...
Jan 01, 2023
Complementarity
Complementarity is what defines a paradox. It is when one thing considered from different perspectives can have contradictory properties. Rather like looking simultaneously through a microscope with o...
Dec 01, 2022
Anxiety
On November 15, ARS hosted a panel discussion organized by Sharon Thomas of MAIA Education Resource Center on the topic of childhood anxiety. The panelists were informed and interesting and audience q...
Nov 01, 2022
Bullying
Bullying I have an acquaintance who was recently hired by the city of New York to develop an entire anti-bullying curriculum, from Universal Pre-K though Grade 12. The fact this is even considered, l...
Oct 01, 2022
Routines and Ruts
My grandmother used to proclaim that the only difference between a rut and a grave was the depth. Nobody wants to be stuck in a rut, but routine is vital to children’s sense of order and their need fo...
Sep 01, 2022
Summer Reading
You may have noticed the recurring theme in these blogs of adults modeling the behaviors that they hope to encourage in children at home and at school. If you are new to ARS, please feel free to go to...
Jun 01, 2022
Attention Must Be Paid
In Journal of a Prairie Year , Paul Gruchow wrote about the nuanced sound of snow: "With proper attention, one can learn to tell the temperature of the air, the depth of snowfall on the ground, an...
May 01, 2022
In Praise of Our Parents Association
While still basking in the glow of the Spring Fling, it is most appropriate to pay tribute to the Parents Association. Parents Associations are an invaluable source of strength in a school community....
Apr 01, 2022
Rewards and Punishments
The only difference between an incentive and a bribe is the timing…but they say timing is everything. In an ideal world everyone would behave perfectly at all times due to an internal sense of motiva...
Mar 01, 2022
The Importance of Elementary School Years
School should be fun (see the former blog about play-based education) and children should love to come to school. One of my favorite statements about ARS is that we rarely have anyone cry on the first...
Feb 01, 2022
The Value of Mistakes
Last month, in presenting the inherent value of play, it occurred to me to follow up this month with the value of mistakes. If children’s work is play and mastery of skills through practice, the art o...
Jan 01, 2022
The Importance of Play
One of the most frequently asked questions during any admissions meeting at ARS is where the school falls on the curve between a traditional and progressive educational model. It is a highly loaded qu...
Dec 01, 2021
A Tale of Two Pities
It is the best of times and the worst of times… In conducting an interview with me for a graduate class, one of our faculty members asked me to comment on general differences and trends in elementar...
Nov 01, 2021
Our School Building
First and foremost, a most heartfelt thanks to Second Presbyterian Church (SPC) for allowing ARS the use of their space. Our building defines the very character of our school and contributes mightily...
Oct 01, 2021
Halloween
It is only fitting that on the first day of October there should be information about the last day of October. Halloween is certainly something that many children (and adults) enjoy celebrating. As ou...
Sep 01, 2021
September ’21 Blog
Music: Harvey Schmidt Lyrics: Tom Jones Book: Tom Jones Premiere: Tuesday, May 3, 1960 Try to remember the kind of September When life was slow and oh, so mellow. Try to remember the kind of Sep...
Jun 01, 2021
Ambiguity
Ambiguity is a large part of so many of life’s milestones, academic graduation among them. Regardless of the emotional feelings about the school one is leaving, there is genuine ambivalence about the ...
May 01, 2021
Morality
‘The Moral Judgment of the Child’ by Jean Piaget fascinatingly discusses the young child’s inability to distinguish intent from results. In other words, someone who breaks one item purposefully is not...
Apr 01, 2021
Social Grace and Courtesy
Standard wisdom espouses that education is the best means for self-improvement. Betterment through education cannot be denied, but one can get almost equally far in the world with simple good manners....
Mar 01, 2021
Imagination
Few adults are fortunate enough to have maintained the level of imagination that they had as children. Last year, one of our Professional Development Days was devoted entirely to increasing the level...
Feb 01, 2021
Love is in the Air
Love is a good topic for the month of February. It is the essential ingredient in bringing up and in teaching children. Unconditional love is the wellspring of openness to learning. Even more damaging...
Jan 01, 2021
Emotions Are Ageless
Unlike in Victorian England, emotions these days are openly discussed and publicly displayed. This trend spans everything from family conversations to media coverage. Nothing is sacred or private any ...
Dec 01, 2020
Philanthropy
In the minds of many children December is the month of receiving gifts, for any one of the many holidays we celebrate. It is a perfect month for teaching and modeling the act of giving. Philanthropy i...
Nov 01, 2020
Testing Stress
Simply utter the word ‘test’ and watch most people become tense with anxiety and discomfort. Our culture, especially in recent years, has placed undue pressure on children, in particular, to perform o...
Oct 01, 2020
Independence and Autonomy
The ideal trajectory of human development beginning at birth involves increasing degrees of independence and autonomy. Newborns snuggle facing inward, babies within a few months begin to show interest...
Sep 01, 2020
20/20 Vision, A Blog from our Head of School, Brinton Parson
Achieving social justice is an imperative for our civilization and for our quality of life – for every one of us. And like so many goals we cherish, the pursuit of fairness and harmony can be – and sh...
Social Grace and Courtesy
Standard wisdom espouses that education is the best means for self-improvement. Betterment through education cannot be denied, but one can get almost equally far in the world with simple good manners. There used to be entire schools devoted to nothing but etiquette. Thankfully, gone are the days when young women attend finishing schools whose sole purpose was developing social refinement, and believe me, the young women in attendance had already arrived at finishing schools with far more in the way of social training than any young women in today’s world ever receive.
Evidence shows that today’s families have largely abandoned teaching good manners at home and schools rarely even try to fill that gap. As a result, there are many after school and weekend classes for young children now comparable to the finishing schools of the past whose sole focus is the teaching of social skills, table manners, and the lost art of conversation.
Good manners are the foundation of morality, which, in turn, is the foundation of ethics and ethical behavior is the foundation of socially responsible action. In a true and visible pathway empathy leads to courtesy, courtesy and kindness lead to morals, personal morals generate ethical behavior and, if everyone were ethical, most all of society’s ills would diminish.
Children are naturally curious, hard-working and persistent, but they are not naturally well mannered. Manners must be taught, acquired and developed. Childhood is the time in which to learn and hone manners, instill morals, teach ethics and create citizens who will recognize, exemplify and personify all that is required to achieve social justice.