February 2012
3 posts
Monthly Assembly Highlights Talent
Today’s assembly featured outstanding performances by individuals and small groups as well as whole school singing. Three of our first graders set the bar high - Emma Sophia Guevara and Sarah Exilus on vocals and dance and Chansly Beauvoir on drums - in a piece they choreographed and rehearsed together. They rocked the house!
Next, five of our Resident Artists, led by brass...
On the Trail of Paul Revere
On Thursday, 22 third graders and their teachers dove into Paul Revere’s Boston. They met their guide, Ben Edwards at Faneuil Hall in front of the Sam Adams statue. From there, they walked to the site of the Boston Massacre and learned some of the real history behind that event.
After a quick snack at Quincy Market and a mini lesson on the bells of Paul Revere, they set off for his house...
K1 Launches 'Portrait of an Artist' Expedition...
When the K1 artists visited the Museum of Fine Art on Tuesday, it was more than a stroll through the gallery; they were on a mission. The young artists, who have just launched their Portrait of an Artist Expedition, were studying the medium of the painted portrait, exploring the ways an artist chooses what they want their audience to see.
Students examined several portraits from the National...
January 2012
3 posts
4th Graders Get The Blues
The 4th grade class welcomed three experts this week to guide them into the final phase of their expedition on The Great Migration. Under the guidance of collagist Ekua Holmes and resident artist musicians Levi Comstock and Christopher Schroeder, students explored the visual and musical art forms through which African Americans shared their stories in the early 20th century.
A Tapestry of...
This Land is Our Land: First Graders Explore...
The first grade class wowed friends, family and staff with their poise at the celebration of their This Land is Your Land Expedition on Wednesday afternoon. The students began the event by describing the process of the Expedition. They directed the audience to their research posters, the word wall and the pictures of the American symbols they studied.
The Expedition culminated in...
Conservatory Lab Goes to the A.R.T.
Hans Christian Andersen’s fable, The Snow Queen, came alive on December 20th for all students from K1 through 5th grade to provide a marvelous, seasonal, cultural adventure! Conservatory Lab students and chaperones filled the seats of the American Repertory Theater (A.R.T.) for this performance. The fun started well before the performance, however, as A.R.T. education staff and actors...
December 2011
2 posts
Conservatory Lab to Host Two Conferences in Arts...
Conservatory Lab Charter School is on the cutting edge of arts integration and a current leader in professional development for elementary school teachers in the northeast. We are currently preparing for two conferences designed to share our unique curricula with elementary school teachers on the regional and national levels.
The first, entitled Art and Music as Tools for Learning,...
K1 Thespians Take on Carle's 'Caterpillar'
The K1 class has made their dramatic debut last week with an original adaptation of Eric Carle’s “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” Having studied the text as a class, the students began by creating illustrations to represent the number patterns that drive the story. They studied the way the book’s illustrations use color and texture to bring the story to life. They then...
November 2011
5 posts
RedLine Quintet Brings Listening Project to Life
Last Friday, the RedLine Quintet, a horn ensemble from the New England Conservatory paid a visit to the Upper School at Conservatory Lab. They played several pieces to illustrate polyphony and dissonance to the 5th and 6th graders who are learning about classical music through their Listening Project this year.
In The House of Blues
On Tuesday, November 15th, the fourth grade class, along with seven helpful parent chaperones, attended an interactive musical performance at the House of Blues. The fieldwork was an absolute blast! The class attended this performance for two reasons. The first is that it connects with the Listening Project genre, Rhythm and Blues. The second is that the current Learning Through Music...
Wampanoag Dancer and A.R.T. Playwright Visit 3rd...
Have you ever heard of the giant Moshup? According to Wampanoag legend, he was a friendly giant who lived among the Wampanoag people on Martha’s Vineyard before the first European settlers arrived.
As part of their Learning Through Music expedition, Way Back When, 3rd graders are writing and producing a play about the good giant Moshup. This week, they welcomed two special experts to...
3rd Graders Visit Plimoth Plantation
On Thursday, November 4, third graders traveled back in time to 1627 on a visit to Plimoth Plantation. As part of their “Way Back When” Learning Through Music expedition on the Wampanoag and the Pilgrims, students conducted fieldwork at this living history museum where they explored recreations of a 17th-century Wampanoag homesite and a Pilgrim farming and maritime village. With...
K2 Brings Joy to the Library
On Wednesday, November 2, the K2 class continued their mission to bring joy to the Brighton community. On a beautiful fall morning, children walked one mile to Brighton’s Faneuil Library, where they performed a medley of songs for toddlers and their families. The smiles on everyone’s faces told children that their mission was accomplished.
Next month, the K2 class will be...
October 2011
4 posts
Anatomy of a Pumpkin
The savory aroma of toasted pumpkin seeds wafted through the corridors of Conservatory Lab last week, heralding the coming of autumn and the conclusion of a successful math lesson. Fourth graders spent time estimating, counting, and graphing the number of seeds in each pumpkin, not to mention scooping out pumpkin goo, separating the seeds, and roasting them with sugar and...
Young Readers Flock to Bookfair
The fall Bookfair has drawn crowds of students this week, from the smallest picture book connoisseurs to the young adult fiction enthusiasts. For weeks they have been tightening their belts and saving their allowance money in order to bring home a new volume of stories, characters, and ideas.
Felice Rutstein-Lee has been organizing bookfairs at Conservatory Lab for several years....
Studying Snakes in Second Grade
The second grade class spent Thursday morning at the Broadmoor Wildlife Sanctuary doing the work of herpatologists, scientists who study snakes. Guided by rangers from the reserve, students studied and looked for snakes in marsh and field habitats, and had the opportunity to hold and touch several different kinds of snakes. Favorite snakes included the milk snake and the hognose snake,...
K2 to the Rescue! Bringing Joy to Brighton Seniors...
On Thursday, October 6th, the K2 class walked to the Veronica P. Smith Senior Center and took center stage in the activity center by performing a medley of songs for the assembled seniors. This jubilant performance was in response to an urgent missive brought to their classroom by messenger. The letter, specifically written to these K-2 students, called for assistance in meeting an obvious need in...
September 2011
5 posts
Students Sail the Ocean Blue Aboard the Roseway
On Monday, September 26, 2011, the entire 5th & 6th grades (28 students and 4 teachers) journeyed aboard the Roseway to participate in a full day curriculum with the World Ocean School. The Roseway, an original Grand Banks schooner, is a registered US National Historic Landmark.
The first task was to raise the enormous tanbark sails. The group sure worked hard to lift all of the...
Student Achievement Soars Across the Board
The recently released 2011 MCAS results confirm a continuing increase in student achievement, in the same year that our El Sistema music program added three hours of music to the students school day. Thanks to the hard work of students, teachers, and parents, the percentage of students proficient or advanced in math jumped by 23 points, putting us now 8 points above the state average. Science...
Head of School Signs Compact Uniting Boston...
Head of School Diana Lam sat down with Mayor Menino and Boston Public Schools Superintendant Carol Johnson on Tuesday to sign a compact that will lead to greater cooperation between charter and public schools in the Boston area. The compact, spurred forward through a campaign by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, marks a new era of cooperation, in which charter and public schools will share...
Families PAC the House at First Meeting
Approximately 75 people filled the 4th grade room on Wednesday night for the first meeting of the Parent Advisory Council. The meeting included time for getting to know one another, an introduction to the PAC for new families, a discussion of upcoming events, and a question and answer session from child psychologist Ken Barringer on children and the grieving process.
The PAC meets one Wednesday...
August 2011
1 post
Classroom Teachers Welcome New Students
Conservatory Lab teachers are eagerly preparing for a new year of learning, growing, and music-making. In their letters of welcome to students and families, classroom teachers share their excitement about the coming year:
Becca Iskric and Theresa Holland to the K1 families
K1 Getting-to-know-you Survey
Jean Corbo-Hudak and Mary Randolph to the K2 families
Jovanne...
January 2011
11 posts
Students Celebrate Approval of 15 Seats, Creation...
On Tuesday, March 22, 2011, the Board of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education unanimously voted to grant an additional 15 seats to Conservatory Lab Charter School. Not only does this allow present 5th graders to continue their musical studies next year, these fifteen seats give the school a tremendous opportunity for growth and development. This is a special...
Martin Luther King: The Rest of the Story by Diana...
This Saturday, we honor an American Baptist minister, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. We know him as a civil rights leader who was not only a keeper of peace, but also a maker of peace. His ancestors came from Africa and he was inspired by religious teachings that originated in the Middle East. Martin Luther King adapted the ways of active, dynamic non-violence pioneered by Mahatma Ghandi. As a great...
Conservtory Lab in the Christian Science Monitor
Please check out the recent article in the Christian Science Monitor entitled “El Sistema taps the power of classical music to help US children flourish” highlighting El Sistema at the Conservatory Lab.
Family Notes
Our weekly email “Family Notes” Have been archived online. Feel free to visit them here:
Happy New Year 1/7/11
Looking Ahead 12/17
Celebration 12/10
Preparing for Performance 12/3
Giving Thanks 11/19
Yoga 11/12
Young Readers 11/5
Professional Development 10/29
Tavis Smiley visits the Conservatory Lab
For his fourth primetime special, Tavis spent time at Boston’s New England Conservatory and the Conservatory Lab Charter school, and he hung out with the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Gustavo Dudamel as the young conductor met with colleagues and worked with youth orchestra members. See the entire show, as well as video clips and photos here.
December 2010
4 posts
The Conservatory Lab in the Boston Globe!
On Sunday, December 19th, there was a wonderful story on the Conservatory Lab and El Sistema called “Crescendo in Brighton” in the Boston Globe. Click here to read it.
Learning Through Music
Love That Clean Water! On Thursday, October 14, two scientists from the Charles River Watershed Association visited the 3rd grade classroom to tell students about the work they do to protect the Charles River and help it stay clean. With the use of a watershed model, scientists Julie Wood and Eivy Monroy demonstrated how what we do on land, such as using chemical fertilizer and driving cars that...
6 tags
Fall Quarterly Newsletter
Dear Friends of Conservatory Lab, El Sistema has arrived, bringing with it an affluence of spirit. Walk through the halls of Conservatory Lab and you will hear full orchestras playing Beethoven and Tallis, see fifth graders giving private viola lessons to younger students, and feel the joy that emanates from every chorus, percussion, string, and wind ensemble. Conservatory Lab Charter School is...
October 2010
2 posts
Shake, Rattle, and Estimate!
Second graders are becoming masters of place values and estimation through a mathematical and musical investigation of maracas. Over the course of a week, they learned to quickly count a large volume of beans using base-ten groupings, identify by sound whether a maraca is full or empty, and play along to jazz music with the instruments they created.
At the beginning of the week students were...
It’s Raining Coffee in Grade 4!
In their Learning Through Music Expedition, Here We Come, 4th graders are exploring the immigrant experience. The vibrant sounds of salsa, merengue, bachata, and tejano enliven the classroom as students learn how music helps immigrants keep their culture alive in a new land. At today’s assembly, 4th graders performed the song Ojalá que llueve café (If Only It Would Rain Coffee), a popular bachata...