April 2012 Newsletter

Speakeasy & Auction

Spring has officially arrived and with it brings our annual benefit and auction, which celebrates our vibrant Washington Market School community. This year we have a fun and exciting celebration planned with THE MARKET – A 1920s SPEAKEASY & AUCTION, which will be held at City Winery on Monday, April 23 – in just 18 days!

By now, you have received your invitation with a link to the benefit website at www.wmsbenefit.org. On it, not only will you find the event’s signature flapper and gentleman dancers, but details of the benefit from purchasing your tickets, to learning more about the amazing Raffle Prizes.

Don’t forget to mark your calendars for Monday, April 16, as the Online Auction will open on the benefit website. You can start bidding on this year’s exciting items ranging from gift certificates donated by community merchants to gorgeous jewelry and, of course, fun play dates for your child with our school’s wonderful and dedicated teachers. You will also get a sneak peek of the fabulous items that will be featured during the evening’s Live Auction.

Most importantly, be on the lookout for your signature membership card and password that will provide your exclusive entry into the benefit. This is a speakeasy after all!

So, pull out your dancing shoes, follow the red light and we look forward to seeing you for a spectacular evening on April 23!

Calendar of Events

What’s happening in April...

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April 6th (Friday)

Good Friday – School Closed 

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April 10th (Tuesday) 

Duane Class Photo Day – Classes 1,2,3 & 6 only

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April 11th (Wednesday)

Summer Program Applications Due

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April 13th (Friday)

Mug n’ Muffin – Duane Street (9.30 – 10.30)

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April 16th (Monday)

WMS Annual Online Auction Begins (wmsbenefit.org)

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April 23th (Monday)

WMS Annual Benefit – City Winery 6.30pm

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April 23th (Monday)

Summer Program Contracts Mailed

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And coming up in May...

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May 1st, 3rd, & 8th

Hudson Street Welcome Days
Returning & New Students to Hudson Street Only
(Schedule & information to follow in the coming weeks)

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May 2nd-9th

WMS Annual Room to Grow Collection

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May 22nd & 23rd

WMS Annual Art Show

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Note: Duane Street Welcom Day takes place June 2nd

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Welcome to the World

Congratulations to...

• Manavi Menon and Omar Karim on the birth of their daughter Ashna and to Zamir (Class 3) on becoming a big brother.
• Kathy Park and Andrew Jacobs on the birth of their son Richard Julian and to Sabine (Class 6) on becoming a big sister.
• Suzanne and Andrew Hudson on the birth of their son Lucien and to Beatrice (Class 1) on becoming a big sister.
• Melanie and David Whelan on the birth of their daughter Charlotte and to Lachlan (Class 1) on becoming a big brother. 
  
  

News & Events

WMS Big Kids Club
For the past 33 years, we have honored a tradition started by the school's children. Back in the spring of 1979 a group of 4's and 5's approached Ronnie and asked if they could get off their cots and be done with rest time. When asked what they would rather do instead of quiet time, the children wisely replied, "Study Something" (Of course it was dinosaurs!) Thus began Big Kids Club!
The full day children who are leaving WMS this fall to either Kindergarten or Grade 1 will no longer rest but join a club from 12.45 - 1.30pm (April 30 until Thursday, May 31) that will focus on a theme. Past themes have been Science, Chapter Club, Chess etc. Our other full day children will enjoy Story Club at this time. Look out for more information outside your classroom in the coming weeks.

WMS Summer Program
It's hard to believe, but summer is just around the corner - and that means now is the time to register for the WMS Summer Program! The program features arts & crafts, music, yoga, tennis, chess, cooking, field trips, picnics in the park, and many other fun activities. It's a great option to keep your children active during the long hot summer as well as to get to know our beloved teachers.

This year's seven-week program runs from Monday June 25 - Friday August 10 and we offer both full-day (9am - 3pm) and half-day (9am - 1pm) options. Enrollment in the Summer Program requires a three-week minimum commitment, but the three weeks do not need to be consecutive.

All current and newly-enrolled children are eligible to register as long as they are between 2-6 years old in July 2012. If you have already submitted your application but would like to make changes you must do so in writing and submit them to the Admissions Office – s.markel@wms-nyc.org

Summer Program Application Forms have already been emailed. They are also available at the front desks.

City Harvest
We held our annual City Harvest Food Drive in March. This year we collected an amazing 1000 pounds of food! This was our biggest collection yet. Thank you to all the families who gave so generously and for Jodi Zeitoun and parent volunteers for coordinating the effort. Well done!

Room to Grow
Collection for Room to Grow will be May 2nd - 8th – Are you Spring cleaning? Please hold on to all of your gently used adult & children’s clothing to donate to this effort.

Tuition 2012-2013
Please be reminded that your second tuition payment for 2012-2013 is due May 1st.

Notes:

• Because of an incident earlier this week, we are reminding parents and caregivers not to leave any items (strollers, scooters etc. or tie your dog) at the entrance or entrance/railing of any of our adjoining railing of any of our adjoining buildings. These are private residences and their entrances cannot be blocked at any time. Thank you for your cooperation.
• Classroom G/H teacher Maria Haroen recently attended the American Montessori Society Annual Conference in San Francisco. It was a great opportunity to share experiences with other Montessori teachers from around the globe.

March 2012 Newsletter

A letter from Ronnie Moskowitz, Head of School

Dear WMS Families,
A column in the NY Times earlier this year by Nicholas Kristoff, entitled “How Mrs. Grady Transformed Olly Neal” brought home to me, once again, how central in the lives of our children and how critical to their success are our superb WMS teachers.

Kristoff writes about Olly Neal who was a poor black kid with a real attitude, one who was able to bring his English teacher, Mildred Grady to tears. He stole, he didn’t study, he mouthed off, he was clearly headed for trouble but, quite amazingly, one day he was in the library and saw a book that interested him (it had a risqué cover), a novel by Frank Yerby… so he stole it. Mildred Grady happened to be in the library and saw Olly take the book. She was going to confront him but then, in a true flash of understanding, she realized he was too macho to be found reading and would be terribly embarrassed at being seen checking out a book.

As Kristoff puts it, “After finishing the book, he sneaked it back into the library and there, on the shelf, he noticed another novel by Yerby. He stole that one as well. This book was also terrific. And, to Neal’s surprise, when he returned it to the shelf after finishing it, he found yet another by Yerby. Four times this happened, and he caught the book bug. ‘Reading got to be a thing I liked,’ he says. His trajectory changed, and he later graduated to harder novels, including those by Albert Camus, and he turned to newspapers and magazines as well. He went to college and later to law school.”

As it turns out, Mildred Grady quickly realized when she saw Olly take the first book that she might be able to reach him through a surreptitious path of providing him with additional books and it was she who found and placed the Yerby novels where Olly could find them.

Perhaps apocryphal, the story suggest show how a wonderful teacher, dedicated to helping a student, despite his animosity and hostility, can make a real difference in a student’s life.

Now, the situation at WMS is clearly very different, but what is the same is that we have wonderful dedicated teachers like Mildred Grady, teachers who treat each child as unique and are absolutely dedicated to bringing out his or her best. Our children are at a developmental stage where they are at their most impressionable, inquisitive and vulnerable; the teacher is probably their first authority figure outside of their families. It is our remarkable teachers who have the ability to love and guide them through this period of utmost importance. I know that each of you believes, as I do, that our teachers are the heart and soul of WMS.

You can see the Kristoff column here.

Ronnie

Calendar of Events

What’s happening in March...

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March 1st (Thursday)

Dr. Kate’s Workshop – “Discipline” - Duane Street (9.15 – 10.30)

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March 2nd (Friday)

Spring Parent/Teacher Conferences – School Closed for Students

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March 5th – 9th (Mon – Fri)

City Harvest Collection

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March 5th & 7th (Mon & Wed)

School Photos – Duane Street

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March 8th (Thursday)

School Photos – Hudson Street

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March 8th (Thursday)

Dr. Kate’s Workshop – “Playing alone & with others” - Duane St (9.15 – 10.30)

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March 9th (Friday)

Mug n’ Muffin – Duane Street (9.30 – 10.30)

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March 13th (Tuesday)

Ongoing Schools Information Session with Ronnie & Rachael
Duane Street (9.15 – 10.45)

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March 14th (Wednesday)

Summer Program Applications Mailed

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March 15th (Thursday)

Dr. Kate’s Workshop – “Observing your child’s development” - Duane Street (9.15 – 10.30)

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March 19th – 30th

Spring Break – School Closed

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April 2nd (Monday)

School Reopens

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Ongoing Schools Information Session with Ronnie & Rachael
Tuesday March 13th – Duane Street - 9.30 – 10.45

This session will give parents information about all public, public-gifted and independent ongoing school options. We will address the process for moving on, along with key dates and a discussion on the public school lottery. If you cannot make this meeting our last meeting of this kind will be in June.

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WMS Summer Program
Monday June 25 - Friday August 10

It's hard to believe, but summer is just around the corner - and that means it's almost time to register for the WMS Summer Program! The program features arts & crafts, music, yoga, tennis, chess, cooking, field trips, picnics in the park, and many other fun activities. It's a great option to keep your children active during the long hot summer.

This year's seven-week program runs from Monday June 25 - Friday August 10 and we offer both full-day (9am - 3pm) and half-day (9am - 1pm) options. Enrollment in the Summer Program requires a three-week minimum commitment, but the three weeks do not need to be consecutive.

All current and newly-enrolled children are eligible to register, as long as they meet the following age criteria: Half-Day children must be between 2 and 5 years old by June 30, 2012 (born between July 1, 2007 - June 30, 2010) and full-day children must be between 2 years, 6 months and 5 years old by June 30, 2012 (born between July 1, 2007 - Dec 31, 2009).

Summer Program Application Forms will be mailed on Wed March 14th and due back by Wed April 11th.

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Dear Parents,

Phoebe Kahanov, Tal's mother, has passed away. I enclose a letter from Learan, Ilan and Tal's father. It is a sad time for us all.

With heavy heart,
Ronnie

Our Dear Phoebe lost her 4 year battle with metastatic breast cancer on Friday Feb 17th, 2012. Those who knew her know there are no words to easily describe her. An amazing mother, wife and friend. A fighter through and through, opinionated, loving, giving and an unabashed brutal honesty about everything and everyone. She will be deeply missed and never forgotten. As her husband the father of her two boys Ilan and Tal, I feel blessed to have spent the last 17 years of my life with her and know she has taught me and the boys everything she could, so we can move on and be strong and prepared for the tough road ahead. No amount of words can describe my loss and grief as well as my happiness and experiences I have shared with her. As I have told many, Phoebe is an easy woman to love, just a hard woman to live with... And with that, I thank all our family and friends for their support now and over the last four years during her battle. I look forward to sharing Phoebe's life and memories with everyone.

Our family is humbled by the outpouring of love and support by all. Thank you all so very much.

Many have asked if there is a charity to make donations in her name. The family has decided that the education of her two children is what Phoebe felt most strongly about. If anyone would like to contribute financially, please contact me for more information at LKDP@me.com.

Learan

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Welcome to the World

Congratulations to…
Lirone and Robert Farber on the birth of their daughter Emmanuelle and to Shyli (Duane Class 5) on becoming a big sister.

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Notes:

Valentine’s Day Staff Breakfast
Thank you to the Armstrong Family for providing a delicious Valentine’s Day breakfast for the staff at Hudson Street.

City Harvest
Our annual City Harvest Food Drive will be March 5-9th. Collection boxes will be outside your classroom.

Congratulations to Oran on his Grammy win!

Quilting at Duane Street
During the month of February, Latisha (Duane 3 Teacher) started a Duane St. quilting project in honor of Black History month. Quilting is a tradition that is historically significant in African American culture. Each class at Duane was given a square of fabric to decorate with their children. Some classes painted their quilt squares, some teachers taught their children how to sew, and each one was unique. On February 23rd, Duane Street teachers and parent volunteers assembled the quilt sewing together the completed squares from each class. It was a wonderful community project that we all enjoyed taking part in. Thank you to our parent volunteers: Ashley Duncan, Lori Horsley, Jennifer Zicari, Elizabeth Anderson, Rachel Thebault, Makiko Nozaki and Shalini Panwar. And thank you to our teacher sewing volunteers, Latisha, Larry, Laurie, Rita and Isil.

Speakeasy & Auction 2012

During the past few months, the 2012 Gala Steering Committee has been working hard planning this year’s Benefit “The Market – A Speakeasy and Auction” but we still need your help to make it a fabulous success!

DONATIONS NEEDED
By now you will have received a donor solicitation letter and form. Please consider reaching out to EVERYONE you know – friends, family, business associates and others to see if they would be willing to donate to our Auctions and Raffle. We are open to any and all ideas, and the success of our auctions and raffle depend on these exciting and generous donations. With Spring Break just around the corner, the Donations Committee is requesting Donations Forms be turned in by Monday, March 12. Please submit the form to the front desks at Duane or Hudson, via fax at 212-240-0681, or simply email the Donations Committee co-chairs: Cheryl D’Hollander at ip1275@mac.com and Mona Dattilio at mona_dattilio@yahoo.com

EVENT
The Event Committee is still looking for trade discount leads to procure flowers for décor. If you or someone you know can assist, please contact Jodi Zeitoun at jobanze@yahoo.com or Cecilia Oh at cecilia.artacho@gmail.com as soon as possible as the committee will be putting its final touches on décor.
We are also still looking for day-of-event volunteers. If you are interested in helping with the benefit, but can only donate a few hours, this is the committee for you. Please sign-up online at http://tinyurl.com/67t5t87.

UNDERWRITING
Be the “bee’s knees” by becoming an Underwriter for this year's benefit. Your generous cash donation will make possible an evening that we know everyone will enjoy so that more revenue can be used to support ongoing teachers' development and financial aid grants to deserving families.
You may select the items you wish to underwrite - entertainment, décor or general expenses. Underwriting levels range from $500 to $10,000 and are 100% tax deductible. To be an underwriter, please contact the Benefit Co-Chairs Penny Armstrong, pennyarmstrong@ymail.com; Lisa Hill at lmoneill@yahoo.com or Ashley Stewart at ashwstewart@yahoo.com

BE ON THE LOOKOUT
In the next few weeks, you will be receiving a benefit invitation by email and a link to wmsbenefit.org where you can purchase tickets and more. Don’t forget to book your babysitter now, and we look forward to seeing you at City Winery on April 23 for an evening of fun!