e-Newsletter: June 2007

IN THIS ISSUE
Intensive Week Wrap-Up
Gender Groups at PSCS
Teaching Staff Opening!!
June - What's Happening

INTENSIVE WEEK WRAP-UP
The week of May 14th marked the final installment of the four PSCS “intensive” weeks of the year. As before, each facilitator had the opportunity to spend five school days immersed in a topic with a small group of students interested in it. The themes, American Culture Through TV, the Human Brain, Backpacking, and Shakespeare, were determined based on student input and staff feedback.

*Ladies and gentlemen, the stories you are about to read are true. Staff members eager to share their experiences have provided them, one even in rhyme! The names have not been changed as at this point in the school year there are no innocents to protect.

Andy:
Over the years I've brought in to school various vintage TV shows, programs like Dragnet and a spoof called Police Squad (remember the Naked Gun movies?), others like Kung Fu and one called Fishing With John, to show as light-hearted entertainment. One year we even had a room in the school named Room 222 after the old show by that name. So when Kaitlin suggested "Andy's Favorite TV Shows" as a theme for an intensive I thought she was joking.  Turned out she wasn't and several students signed up, eager to see how I might construct such a week.  I did a fair amount of research in advance and ultimately crafted a study I called "American Culture Through TV."  Yes, we watched a lot of video, from an early Superman cartoon to Beavis & Butthead, from the cheesy "Duck & Cover" educational short from the 50's on how to prepare for a nuclear war to the classic episode from the sit-com Taxi ("What does a yellow light mean?"), and did a lot of talking.  How do the TV shows we watch impact our culture?  How is our culture influenced by the TV shows we watch?  And, yes, perhaps we all emerged a little blurry-eyed on Friday afternoon, but I think we also emerged with a greater understanding of the influence of TV.  Well, that and knowing references like, "We can re-build him.  We have the technology to make the world's first bionic man."  Cue music and sound effects...

Anoo:
This intensive came from a student wanting to earn high school level science credit, combined with an interest in learning about the Human Brain. I decided to create a plan for the week that provided some basic structure that would encourage spontaneous topics as well as student-driven research and questioning, the structure coming from the NOVA series "Secret Life of the Brain." As we watched episodes on human brain development across ages, some of the topics that generated the greatest discussion were those on brain differences between genders, whether humans are inherently monogamous (the class concluded against that notion), impact on the brain due to drug addiction, and, a mind-bending discussion on the nature of consciousness. We visited the neuroscience lab of University of Washington professor Dr. Eric Chudler where we got to see the brains of a rat, bird, sheep and a human. We were also graced by the presence of former PSCS parent Bridget Thompson, a Feldenkrais practioner. She led us through simple exercises that revealed the patterned nature of our brains and how brain plasticity allows for changing the patterns. Two other sessions that got a lot of interest were based on videos, the first called "Secrets of the Mind" in which renowned researcher V.S. Ramachandran presents cases of phantom limbs that hurt and a man who believes he is God. We closed the week by watching the movie "Silence of the Lambs" and building a profile of Dr. Lecter, then comparing it to the commonly understood psyche of serial killers.

Matt:
Five days of hiking the Hoh River Trail on the western side of Olympic National Park, and not a drop of rain! PSCS parent Charles Wenig and I ventured into the rainforest with 5 PSCS students and the gods of nature smiled on us. Surrounded by lush ferns, mosses, tiny wildflowers, and enormous spruce, cedar, and fir trees, with views of snowcapped Mt. Tom and Mt. Carrie in the distance, we walked and walked and walked some more, soaked in the green of the forest, basked in the sunshine, feasted on trail mix and mac & cheese, roasted marshmallows over the campfire, befriended stone guinea pigs, watched the stars appear one by one after sunset, took refuge from the chilly evening air in our snug tents and sleeping bags, and then got to do it all over again the next day. Glorious.

Nic:
Iago's green-eyed monster ate the Moor;
Andronicus did Rome's sons grisly slay;
Cruel daughters showed Lear and his fool the door –
Now that's the way to write a tragic play!

Our bloody, brutal, Bardly week of fun
Was penanced by some more comedic sins:
Some sonnets that compared love to the sun,
And Twelfth Night with its gender-bending twins.

On metaphor and image did we feast,
Served on a plate of 'Lizabethan themes;
Poetic bread ris'n with iambic yeast
And washed down with familiar modern memes.

Intensive better never was designed,
Nor better poem ever better rhymed!

GENDER GROUPS AT PSCS
Years ago, PSCS began offering our students the opportunity to meet in "gender groups."  The idea began when one of the moms offered the enrolled girls the chance to meet at her house after school to discuss coming of age issues that women face.  They made each girl's 13th birthday into a rite of passage ceremony and started holding overnights and other celebrations together.  The boys sometimes met, too, with some groups gaining more momentum in certain years than others.

This year it was the boys who got things started.  Sensing a situation that would best be addressed in a boys-only setting, Andy suggested the boys get together.  And unlike any previous year, this year the boys bonded almost immediately and then insisted the opportunity to meet be a weekly one.  As a result, and given that the girls appreciate the chance to get together, too, gender groups are on the schedule for every Wednesday.

Meeting in the gender group setting provides students a unique forum for discussing issues that may be difficult to address in front of the entire school. Facilitated by members of the staff (Andy, Matt, Nic & Neal all meet with the boys with Andy doing the bulk of the facilitating; Anoo, who has completed training with the Teen Talking Circle Project, guides the girl group), dialogue proceeds through shared feelings, thoughts and beliefs. Staff help students work towards a clearer perception of how they relate to themselves and other people. Group members listen and learn, discovering the impact of their words and actions. Students give feedback to each other by expressing their own feelings about what someone says or does. This interaction gives students an opportunity to learn more about the way they interact with others.

What makes these groups unique is that it is a closed and safe system. The content of the gender group is confidential and there is mutual respect for the topics being discussed and the student participants. Topics are often very organic. They may include broad themes such as bullying, dating, love, and angst, or as has happened several times this year may simply be a student sharing “their story.”

Students are learning that commonalities are more frequent than rare, and discussing problem situations often helps to resolve them.  Hopefully, students begin to see that they are not alone. It is encouraging to hear that other people have similar difficulties, as well as achievements. In the atmosphere of trust provided by gender groups, students feel free to care about and help each other.

To learn more about the value of gender groups, consider visiting the Teen Talking Circle Project at http://www.daughters-sisters.org.

TEACHING STAFF OPENING!!
We have a relatively rare open teaching staff position for next year and ideally beyond. If you are interested in working as a member of a team in a nurturing, respectful and vibrant school setting, this might just be the teaching job for you. PSCS staff act as role models for our students and help them gain a sense of themselves and their role in the wider community. In hiring staff members, we first look for strength of character and personality as well as deep passions and a willingness to be open to experiencing whatever it is that life offers. It is our belief that people teach who they are. Applications are being accepted through June 30, 2007. To read the full job description, please visit http://www.pscs.org/jobopening/.

JUNE– WHAT'S HAPPENING

BOARD MEETING
Tuesday, 6/5, 7pm.

VISITATION DAY
Wednesday, 6/6, 8:45-10:45am. It is difficult to understand PSCS without coming to school and observing our activities and student life. Seeing the school in action can make the difference between having a basic appreciation of our philosophy and the aha! of really "getting" how it works. For more information visit http://www.pscs.org/admission/visiting.htm.

SUMMER REGISTRATION DUE
Monday, 6/11.

LAST DAY / GRADUATION
Friday, 6/15.

--------------------

You're receiving this private communication because you're a valued friend of PSCS or have requested more information from PSCS.

Don't miss your email from PSCS; add pscs@pscs.org to your address book.

If this email was forwarded to you by another email recipient and you would like to continue to receive the PSCS e-Newsletter, please let us know by emailing pscs@pscs.org.