Spanish language and the visual arts blended beautifully in the Middle School (MS) for a cross-collaborative project facilitated by Ms. Junia Robinson, MS Spanish Teacher, and Ms. Lydia Scrivanich, P ’27, MS Art & Design Teacher. To conclude a unit on Spanish culture, Ms. Robinson’s sixth-grade Spanish class created a bulletin board on the art form of flamenco, which derives from southern Spain and combines song, dance, and guitar music. Movements are often accompanied by clapping and playing castanets. Each student presented their research on flamenco at the MS Building’s Segal Family Front Porch. Ms. Robinson said she felt lessons such as these should not be gate-kept. “We wanted to share a little bit of what we learned, which is why the facts on the board are written in English,” she noted. Ms. Scrivanich helped students fold, cut, and tie together three-dimensional tissue-paper flowers that they used to embellish a silhouette of a flamenco dancer amid the traditional colors of red, black, and yellow—creating a striking piece of visual art. Olé!

Mr. Fred Daly, longtime D-E English Department faculty member, will be presenting the 10th Annual Leggett-Umpleby Lecture, titled “The Problem of Shylock: Teaching ‘The Merchant of Venice’ in the 21st Century” on Monday, Nov. 10, at 7:00 PM. The discussion, which will be held in Hajjar Auditorium, will consider the implications of when books that have been taught for years are suddenly deemed unteachable. Admission is free; no RSVP is required. We hope you’ll come out to support Mr. Daly!

The annual Honey Harvest, which has become a sweet tradition at D-E, is a cross-divisional learning opportunity primarily for first and sixth graders that takes place in the Middle School (MS) Teaching Kitchen. Three interactive stations were set up for beekeepers Eric and Mary Hanan, along with their son, Simon, who oversee D-E’s  on-campus apiary, to explain the lifecycle of a bee, demonstrate how to uncap the individual cells of beeswax, and extract honey from the frames using a centrifuge. Middle and Upper School students as well as D-E faculty/staff were also invited to taste honey from the spring, summer, and fall harvests, each with its own flavor profile. Students who could correctly guess the weight and color of the honey released by the tap could take home a bottle of our home-grown honey. The event was facilitated by MS 6th Grade Class Dean and D-E In the Garden (“DIG”) Teacher Ms. Urbanowski, who asked her class to compile several things they learned from the experience. “Bees are very important for the environment,” said DIG student Kyle S. ’30. “The ecosystem would die without bees.” Classmate Ethan S. said he learned that bees can transfer pollen from bee to bee during the pollination process—a nice example of teamwork. Here’s to another successful Honey Harvest!