Disintermediation – one of those wonderful baggy words that only yields up any meaning after being dismembered into constituent parts, if at all. Or perhaps a word like a string of railway carriages shuttling along clanking and rattling over the rail bed. The word is most usually applied in the field of marketing and economics … Read more
Colleges that Change Lives is the title of Loren Pope’s very useful book for those planning for college. It’s also a website. If you are off to college soon, or know someone who is, then take a look. It is particularly useful in dispelling some of the myths of excellence. As with many things, it … Read more
Gnome update: See Gnome Eruptions or scroll for the original story and commentary There were no further eruptions reported yesterday at PDS. However, I received today the following photographic evidence of garden variety gnome eruptions in London:
Imagine a cleared space in the forest and a circle drawn with a rope; “This is your comfort zone – the space where you are confident and at ease. This you can already do. We all have our comfort zone. It takes many shapes and it is different for all of us.” Then another rope … Read more
They started appearing on campus last week. The gnomes. Peaceful gnomes presiding over the grounds and the walkway between the buildings.And now they are proliferating. Another appeared at my window this afternoon. Does he need to be brought inside? Any information you may have as to their origin and significance – or more importantly about … Read more
In honor of Don Fried and his three decades at Poughkeepsie Day School: Past and present colleagues, students, parents and trustees gathered from far and wide Sidereal sang Reminiscences were shared and new memories made Alumni brought their children to meet him and Don’s service to the school and its generations of students was recognized, … Read more
The world is moving at a tremendous rate. Going no one knows where. We must prepare our children, not for the world of the past. Not for our world. But for their world. The world of the future. – John Dewey (seen saying just that in the film below) Progressive education in the 1940s: I … Read more
We added Cross Country to the athletic choices this fall and the team is off and running and doing very well. Clearly we have some outstanding and enthusiastic runners in both middle and high school. The first meet was the Oakwood Friends invitational – the season opener for the Hudson Valley Athletic League. Here are … Read more
They came by bus, by van, by car, by foot, on bicycle and on crutches. They carried book bags and lunch boxes and precious objects. It was the first day of school yesterday and the energy was cranked up. Now the school has come alive again.
It was the first day of school for ninth grade, fifth grade and all students new to Poughkeepsie Day School. And the buildings were buzzing. The younger children found new toys and places to play and work. And all of them met their new teachers and learned more about what it means to be a … Read more
A tag cloud is a visual presentation of text. It uses word frequency to provide a blink-worthy read of information. It communicates a great deal in a few seconds and provides an instant take. I entered the text of our mission and description et voila! A poetic distillation of meaning. caring citizens collaborative committed community … Read more
Back in 1967 – the Observer newspaper in the UK organized an opportunity for children to write on the subject: “The school that I’d like”. The results became a Penguin book edited by Edward Blishen and a collection of opinions that provided a trenchant critique of school and school life. The students wrote with freshness, … Read more
These are words from our mission: Poughkeepsie Day School graduates students who: Know who they are and follow their own compass with optimism and courage Lead and inspire others through example, dedication and commitment to equity and justice This is a part of Tom Brokaw’s commencement address at Stanford University last year: “…welcome to a … Read more
The best parts about the Harry Potter books are all the reminders of the traditional British school story and a childhood spent haunting the children’s library. Hogwarts – like Greyfriars, St. Jim’s, Linley Court, St. Clare’s, Malory Towers and all the rest – is a direct descendant of the early Victorian Rugby School of Tom … Read more
