ACADEMIC SPOTLIGHT

Spring at Manhattan Country School!

MCS is abuzz with energy during the spring when the sun is shining and the weather gets warmer. Below are just a few of the activities that capture the enthusiasm of students in the last few months of school.

Earth Week and the Rooftop Garden
During Earth Week, the Fifth Floor students kicked off their school-wide activism project, "Vamos Verde," educating other classes about the dangers of global warming, and planting vegetables and herbs for the rooftop garden. The garden, which contains basil, cilantro, and oregano, as well as carrots, lettuce, and radishes, is maintained daily by Lower School Director Mary Trowbridge along with the 5-6s, and the 7-8s.

Alternative Transportation for Alternative Energy
MCS received a big push towards its efforts to "Go Green" when we were awarded a grant to participate in the New York State Solar Electric Incentive Program in April. The grant, from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, will cover over $120,000 towards the installation of solar panels at the MCS farm. Fundraising efforts will continue throughout the spring and summer months to make up the difference between the grant and the projected cost of installation.

On Sunday, June 7th, the 7th and 8th graders of Manhattan Country School walked from 7 East 96th Street to Coney Island in an effort to both raise money and awareness for the project. The walk-a-thon, titled "Alternative Transportation for Alternative Energy" extended for 17 miles and included stops at Madison Square Park, Walk Whitman Park, and Prospect Park en route to Coney Island. The walk raised over $20,000 toward the installation of solar panels at the Farm.

Composting
Each spring, the 5-6s class hosts red wiggler worms in a compost bin. The students learn about the anatomy of their visitors as well as the power of the red wigglers to break down food scraps to reduce the amount of waste produced in their classroom. This year, the project has expanded to include the entire school. A second compost bin, located in the rooftop garden, decomposes raw fruits and vegetables collected from the classrooms after lunch and snack. Classes are taking turns adding the food and newspaper scraps to the bin and spinning it each afternoon to care for the worms and run the compost system (pictured above).

Spring Sing Along
The Spring Sing Along for 4-5s through 7-8s and their families featured MCS favorites such as The Dinosaur Song and We Will Sing. In addition, Lower School Music Teacher Susan Harris taught the children three songs about garbage, recycling, and composting to complement their spring science curriculum. Below is the chorus from one of the songs, It Isn't Really Garbage by Dan Einbender:

"It really isn’t garbage ‘til you mix it all together,
It really isn’t garbage ‘til you throw it away.
So separate your paper, plastic, compost, glass
and metal,
And then you get to use it all another day."