Al-Jazeera executive editor and long-time journalist Stacey Samuel spoke Thursday via Zoom as part of the Distinguished Speaker Series. She has reported on politics, national security and the Supreme Court for CBS, CNN, HBO and the Daily Beast. She was part of the CNN team that won an Emmy for the coverage of the 2012 U.S. presidential elections. She spoke about some of the complicated conflicts within journalistic ethics, censorship and keeping the public informed. Students joined in to ask questions about the responsibilities of journalists. Parents also asked about engaging children in journalism.

Pippin performances began this week, with shows continuing over the weekend on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. The musical, directed by theater teachers Mr. Baldwin, showcases the musical talents of upper and middle school students. The roles of the Leading Players are being performed by sophomore Devyn Scott and junior Genaba Diallo. The part of Pippin is being played by senior Cameron Parker. Several middle school students also took part including sixth grader Henry Freed. The play is being performed in the MPR, with the audience on risers and the students onstage.

Students throughout the school took the National Latin Exam on Thursday in the morning. The exam includes language and culture questions in Latin, our favorite subject! The Latin department has worked hard throughout the year to share with students aspects of Roman life, the Latin language, and the grammar that underlies it.

Eighth graders are hard at working presenting maternal and projects on extreme weather. Students in Ms. Barlev and Ms. Goldstein’s class studied the different causes of extreme weather, like monsoons, hurricanes, and tornadoes, and shared their research with their classmates, using various styles of presentation, from posters to slide shows, to reenactments. The project-based model of learning science which Latin utilizes helps students think beyond standardized testing and utilize multiple intelligences to dig deeper into their understanding of scientific principles. 

Ninth graders in Mr. Baum and Ms. Alston’s classes are reading the play Antigone by Sophocles. The play is the third in a series of tragedies in the story of Oedipus, who married his mother Jocasta unknowingly, and the reverberating sorrows of his family. His daughter Antigone works to bury her brother Polynices, who has been killed in battle with her other brother Eteocles. Despite Polynices betraying the laws of his community of Thebes, Antigone feels that she must properly bury her brother to please the Gods. This results in further tragedy, when her angry uncle Creon decides to punish her. Students are enjoying a taste of classical Greek Theater, including the rhyming Greek Chorus. This has also been a great chance for students to boost their vocabulary and practice Greek roots of language.