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Every visit a Stanwich student makes to the fourth floor of the Upper School building brings them around the globe. Two rows of flags representing members of the United Nations now adorn the hallway ceiling from end to end, nearly fifty flags in all. As each flag was hung, Grade 10 students and their collective curiosity were taken to places they never knew existed. While some were up on ladders, others were looking at the oversized world map that spans part of the fourth floor wall to locate a flag’s geographical origins.

The school’s sophomores have begun weekly presentations highlighting the places the class will visit during Stanwich’s inaugural International Studies Program trip to London in March. Students are familiarizing themselves with the history, layout, cultures, and sights of London that will serve as their interactive classroom for seven days.

Being a fourth-grade student at Stanwich means getting to travel back in time to the Civil War era. Students learn about the Civil War in their history lessons, write a five-paragraph essay about the strengths of the North in writing, and read historical fiction novels, such as Shades of Gray, a biography on Abraham Lincoln, and Who Comes With Cannons in literature.

Teachers assign an historical figure from the era to each fourth-grader, and the student researches the person by completing an involved packet and they research information from the school’s library and on their own.

Using the information they gather, the students write a speech telling the person’s life story. Once the speeches are finalized with the help of the teachers, the students memorize them and prepare to perform their piece.

On the day of the wax museum, students are dressed in costumes that they have made with the help of their parents. The students come to life at the wax museum when a parent, grandparent or other visitor drops a chip in their cup to hear their speech.

This annual event is definitely a favorite of the Stanwich community, as the students look back on it fondly for years.

Students in Kindergarten through third grade at the Stanwich School traveled back over 2,000 years to tell the Hanukkah and Christmas stories. The children, who were dressed as Judeans, angels, sheep and cattle sang in English, French, Hebrew and Latin. Included in the program were renditions of “O Hanukkah,” “Henei Mah Tov,” “Angels We Have Heard on High” and “Joy to the World.”

The children’s performance began with the story of Hanukkah when Jews mark the victory over the Syrians and the rededication of the Jerusalem Temple. The program ended with the story of Christmas when Christians celebrate the birth of Jesus.

The Stanwich School hosted Michael Pavia, the Mayor of Stamford, marking an important day in the study of civics and politics for Stanwich’s sophomores, at the school’s Upper School campus on Strawberry Hill Avenue.

Mayor Pavia spoke to the tenth-grade class about his role as the leader of the state’s fourth-largest city, and the challenges of elected office. The student panel, made up of Ms. Pia’s Civic Pillars elective, included Caroline Drennen, Garsy Presumey-Leblanc, Randy Maldonado, and Gordon Ziegler. These students prepared questions and lead the discussion.

When asked by the student panel why he decided to go into politics, Mr. Pavia turned the question around and asked the students what the term “politics” means to them. In the end, he spoke about how politics was really all about public service.

“The most widely used four-letter word in the English language is ‘jobs,’ ” said the mayor. “It’s the word everyone uses now during tough times.” He went into detail about creating one job at a time, and how that has been one of his accomplishments as mayor of Stamford.

Mayor Pavia also spoke about how his schedule varied from day-to-day. For example, one day could start at 7:00am and end at 10:00pm with a dozen meetings in between, while on other days, he goes to speak at schools, such as Stanwich, and talks with his constituents. He added that if he wasn’t the mayor, he would most likely be a history teacher.

When asked about his accomplishments, Mayor Pavia said he was glad to have altered the perception of Stamford, making the city more customer- and business-friendly over the past two years. He also claimed that undisciplined spending has decreased during his tenure, thus far.

When the topic changed to the extra “perks” of being mayor, Mr. Pavia said that he enjoyed being recognized in public because it meant that people were paying attention. He jokingly added that preferential parking wasn’t a bad bonus, either.

“Meeting the mayor was a humbling experience,” said tenth-grade student David Rivera. “Knowing that he put in the time to visit with us shows me that he’s committed to improving and helping the community.”

—Story by Katrina Black and Sarah Alva, Grade 10

As part of the Grade 7 Life Sciences curriculum, Stanwich students are researching trout. To enhance student understanding of the project, the group traveled to Cold Spring Harbor Fish Hatchery and the Dolan DNA Learning Center, both on Long Island.

At the hatchery, students witnessed one of the most fascinating aspects of aquaculture, as the staff demonstrated the centuries-old technique of fish breeding. A discussion of trout development, from sac fry to adult and a comparison of hatchery breeding and spawning in the wild, followed the live demonstration.

Prior to the afternoon at the hatchery, the seventh-graders traveled to the Dolan DNA Learning Center, where they participated in two hands-on labs inside a fully functional genetics research laboratory. The first lab, DNA extraction, took students through the step-by-step process of extracting DNA from harmless bacteria. Next, they investigated Glowing Genes. In this lab, students genetically engineered bacteria with a “glow” gene. Students took home their genes so that they can watch them grow and glow.

This educational initiative will allow students to continue their life science studies through an interdisciplinary approach.

A Broadway classic has arrived at Stanwich East, as the Intermediate House’s production of the classic hit “Annie” premiered this weekend.

More than 80 Stanwich students performed, worked backstage, worked lights and effects and served as crew on this production. Their commitment helped bring this production, which was performed on Friday, December 2, to life. Thirteen songs were performed by 23 6th graders, 22 students from 5th graders, and 19 students in the 4th grade. The title character was played by Alice Belshaw and Oliver “Daddy” Warbucks was played by Sam Goldberg.

Many Intermediate House students also helped with the set, costumes and props to help bring New York City of the 1930’s to life at the Upper School theater. Several faculty members from the Upper School assisted, as did all of the teachers in the IH. Parents also helped out — dozens of helpers made the production a success.

More than a dozen Upper School students worked crew. Cami Lavoie, a 7th grader who worked as stage crew, backstage and make-up and hair said it was a lot of fun.“The play is really good, “ she said. “The IH-ers are really nice and talented and it was fun to work with them. It was cool to see them all again after being in the same house for a long time.”

A total team effort, and wonderfully directed by Kreg Gotschall and musical director Caroline Worra, “Annie” tells the story of a Depression-era orphan who befriends and changes the heart of a millionaire. Kerry Gotschall choreographed and Sean Jackson served as an assistant.

Also known as “Little Orphan Annie,” with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan, the musical which opened in 1977 has spawned feature films, stage plays, student productions, comics, and made-for-TV movies.

With two shows performed on December 2, Stanwich joined the legacy of this musical classic.

— Story by Caroline Drennen, Grade 10

Much to the delight of Intermediate House students and faculty, the Junior House students have produced two editions of the new Stanwich newscast, Live From Stanwich East.

The production includes news stories, interviews and tours of the Upper School campus, and has been broadcast during morning assembly at the Intermediate House.

As part of an annual tradition, students in each grade of the Stanwich School’s Intermediate House (Grades 4 through 6) perform a special play each year.

This year, in the fourth grade, students put on a spectacular musical performance of The American Revolution: 1763-1789.

The play is told from the point of view of Betsy Ross as she explains how the United States of America was formed. Students learned about the Declaration of Independence, the Electoral College, the Founding Fathers and the war with the “Red Coats.”

At Stanwich, an essential part of the school’s mission is to “promote awareness of and service to others.” For two weeks in October, students at the school’s Primary House collected gently used coats to donate to Neighbor to Neighbor.

“Instilling a commitment to volunteerism among our students is an integral part of our mission,” said Julie Colligan, Head of Primary House. “It truly warms the heart to see the children so excited to bring in warm winter coats that they know will go to good use in the local community.”

Since its inception, the school has pro-actively reached out to and established meaningful relationships with numerous organizations in Greenwich, Stamford, New York City and other neighboring communities.

Recently, Stanwich School tenth-grade students taking electives in Chinese Language and Culture, Civic Pillars, and Media came together to stage a debate on China’s one-child policy. Students took positions on the issue, and a jury was formed consisting of nine voting members. Students researched the history of the policy, as well as the arguments for and against. The debate format included opening statements, cross examinations, and questions from the judges, who also researched the issues involved.

The debate lasted an hour, and included tense exchanges between the sides, as they used moral, social, and legal arguments for their respective positions. The judges voted 5-4 for the negative side, which opposed China’s one-child policy. Upon reflection, the students learned how quickly they need to think and react to questions and points made by the opposition.

Pumpkin cupcakes, skeleton brownies, and dirty mud pies were up for purchase during Stanwich School’s fifth-grade bake sale. The fifth-graders raised $646 dollars to support brother and sister, Louis and Pauline Pasteur, two Rwandan children that the school’s Intermediate House students sponsor through the World Vision Organization.

From working through a challenge course to learning to build a waterproof shelter, Grade 6 students spent three fun-filled days in picturesque Rhode Island. The trip, which was a true bonding experience for the class, is an annual tradition of the school’s which began in 2002.

This fall, the school’s sixth-graders traveled to the W. Alton Jones Campus in West Greenwich, R.I., where they spent three nights as pioneers enjoying the great outdoors.

One of the highlights of the trip was hiking in the woods at night with absolutely no flashlights, and the students had to use night vision to find their way back to camp. Another favorite activity was learning about the area’s wetland ecology. Students got muddy when were using nets to catch frogs, salamanders and other creatures from the ponds.

Additional activities included a challenge course, an outdoor skills course where students learned how to build a waterproof shelter and start a fire, and a night sky lesson where participants told stories about the constellations and then looked for them in the sky.

Standing on the edge of the school’s construction zone, Grade 3 students got to personally take part in the school’s building of a new synthetic turf athletic field. Students watched as a storage shed that houses some athletic equipment was relocated to a different part of the property by the use of a bulldozer.

As part of the Grade 3 science curriculum, students study simple machines, and were well prepared to receive a first-hand lesson on industrial size machines.

In class, students prepared a number of questions to ask the workers from Turner Construction, and became reporters following the relocation of the shed. Some of the questions students asked included, “If you didn’t have the help of the machines, how many men and how long would it take to do the work; About how much weight can these machines handle; and, Can you try to point out a pulley, lever, wedge, inclined plane, wheel and axle, and screw?”

Chatter, laughter and excitement filled the air as Stanwich School students in grades Pre-K to 10 gathered for the first day of school. On Tuesday, September 6, Pat Young, Headmistress of the Stanwich School, greeted the students and faculty members that belong to the Stanwich community for the school’s 14th annual Opening Ceremony.

“We have something very new to us this year,” Mrs. Young told Stanwich’s students and faculty during an all-school assembly. “We have a Grade 10 class - the beginning of our Senior House. Whenever we do something new, it seems appropriate to have a new tradition. We have this beautiful engraved leather book that each year as the Grade 10 students come into the Senior House, we will ask them to come forward and sign the Senior House book.”

The highlight of the ceremony was when Mrs. Young called each of the sixteen tenth-graders by name as they signed their names into Stanwich School history: Timothy Agro, Sarah Alva, Chantal Benavidez, Katrina Black, Caroline Drennen, Gregg Febbraio, Esther Hoekstra, John Lombardo, Randy Maldonado, Katherine Medina, Roderick Mullins, Garsy Presumey-Leblanc, David Rivera, Allyson Tracey, Gordon Ziegler and Juan Zumaeta.

Stanwich’s Head Elect, Paul Geise, closed the gathering in prayer by saying, “How grateful we are for the opportunities of this new school year, together, at the dawn of new possibilities, new beginnings. Help us elevate each other, and in so doing, elevate ourselves. Align our good minds with our compassionate hearts so that each day we can work to make Your world more like You would wish it to be like for us.”

Under the tutelage of Stanwich School math teacher Peter Abbott, the school’s seventh graders recently helped bring an abandoned garden back to life. The school’s Junior House students cleared the weed-covered plot of land, germinated plants from seed, and planted a new crop of fruits and vegetables.

Abbott and other faculty tended to the garden over the summer and offered green beans, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, carrots, and the like, to fellow Stanwich faculty as well as to Stamford-based St. Luke’s LifeWorks. There is also a patch of collard greens that are used to feed the school’s gecko. The pumpkin patch that was created adjacent to the garden is full of fruit that will soon be ready for harvesting.

“After some nuisance nibbling by the local deer residents, the fence was raised to keep the deer out, and the seedlings finally had a fair chance to thrive,” said Abbott. “I anticipate a steady and plentiful harvest right through into October, and I can’t wait for the students to return to help collect and distribute the produce.”