Summer 2017 Faculty Professional Development
Brimmer faculty participated in a wide range of professional development over the summer.
Middle & Upper School Art teacher Brent Ridge attended a photo etching workshop at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, MA, with Master Printer James Straud. This technique of etching uses a transfer process and photos or drawings are used as the basis for etching plates in printmaking. Using printed films or drawn films they learned to use a UV light process to expose photo-polymer prepared copper plates and developed them using a development and etching process using an aquatint. He reports that “the results were fast, spectacular, and impressive.” The use of etching allowed them to connect technology from the digital, to the analogue, to the hand-made. The center organized an open studio evening at the end of the workshop where students could view work produced by other fellow artists.
Lower School French Teacher Géraldine Naddaff participated in a Makerspace Professional Development at Tufts University's Center for Engineering Education and Outreach. The workshop was designed to focus on the tools and different uses of a Makerspace. Géraldine shares, “one of my favorite activities was designing and building a musical instrument that needed to play at least two different sounds. Using scrap materials, we worked in groups of three. Another interesting project was designing and making a devise that would help a young woman carry water on a arduous terrain. We chose to build a harness from basic scrap material such as strings, felt, and cardboard. My goal was to learn about different activities that would engage my Lower School French students in new ways of learning. I will be able to use some of the hands-on, problem-solving, and team building activities in my language class.”
Middle & Upper School Art teacher Brent Ridge attended a photo etching workshop at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, MA, with Master Printer James Straud. This technique of etching uses a transfer process and photos or drawings are used as the basis for etching plates in printmaking. Using printed films or drawn films they learned to use a UV light process to expose photo-polymer prepared copper plates and developed them using a development and etching process using an aquatint. He reports that “the results were fast, spectacular, and impressive.” The use of etching allowed them to connect technology from the digital, to the analogue, to the hand-made. The center organized an open studio evening at the end of the workshop where students could view work produced by other fellow artists.
Lower School French Teacher Géraldine Naddaff participated in a Makerspace Professional Development at Tufts University's Center for Engineering Education and Outreach. The workshop was designed to focus on the tools and different uses of a Makerspace. Géraldine shares, “one of my favorite activities was designing and building a musical instrument that needed to play at least two different sounds. Using scrap materials, we worked in groups of three. Another interesting project was designing and making a devise that would help a young woman carry water on a arduous terrain. We chose to build a harness from basic scrap material such as strings, felt, and cardboard. My goal was to learn about different activities that would engage my Lower School French students in new ways of learning. I will be able to use some of the hands-on, problem-solving, and team building activities in my language class.”
Middle & Upper School Math teacher Peter Slaski traveled to Kansas City, MO, in June and graded AP Statistics Exams for the College Board. He was one of nearly 900 teachers who graded the Statistics Exam. Besides grading each day, he attended the keynote presentation by Jeff Rosenthal, who talked about daily applications of statistics. On a "best practices night,” fellow teachers gave brief overviews of their favorite lessons and shared materials including videos and worksheets. He also participated in the Fun Run one evening. Although they were long days of grading, Peter reports that it was a rewarding experience that he would consider doing again.
In preparation for the newly reinstated Upper School World Religions class being offered this fall, Humanities Teacher Kyla Graves attended the "Institute on Teaching the World's Religions" workshop offered through CSEE (Center for Spiritual and Ethical Education) in Chicago. The workshop included educators from around the country and focused on the intersection of religion and ecology, Native American religion, and ecology, Chinese religions, and Islam and the West. Students in her course will directly benefit from this workshop, as information learned and connections made will be applied directly to her class. Students will be exposed to exploring "ways of knowing" which will examined throughout the course as they learn about Native American and Indigenous traditions and wisdom, Asian religions, Islam, Christianity and Judaism.
Manager of Infrastructure Jason Bock attended the annual Computer Science Teachers Association (“CSTA”) conference in Baltimore. He participated in sessions ranging from discussing integrated computational thinking in K-5 to sessions hosted in partnership with the NSA and the Department of Homeland Security.
Middle and Upper School Science teacher Bethany Shannon attended a course at Harvard Museum of Natural History and the Arnold Arboretum entitled ‘The Green Planet.’ She states, “It was an exceptional experience with lectures from current leaders in the field of plant evolution that broadened my understanding of the topic. I also learned an array of classroom appropriate activities that I will use to expand my evolution curriculum to include more plant based examples.”
Director of Middle and Upper School Music Frank Van Atta attended the Chorus America Conference, held in Los Angeles, CA. In addition to pedagogical lectures and performances, the conference explored arts administration, including community engagement and opportunities for collaboration. The performing ensembles included the Los Angeles Children’s Choir, the LA Gay Men’s Chorus, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.
In addition Frank also attended the 2017 Massachusetts Summer Conference of the American Choral Director’s Association (ACDA). This three-day conference featured world-renown conductors including Alice Parker, Dr. Jo-Michael Scheibe of UCLA, and Jay Broeker of the Blake School of Minneapolis. Frank also presented an interest session entitled The Three R’s: Achieving Choral Excellence through Repertoire, Rehearsal, and Re-Evaluation. His lecture included methods and repertoire implemented at Brimmer to choral directors from around the Northeast.
Head Chef Michael Sconce traveled to Italy and enrolled in two workshops: truffle hunting with dogs and bread making. They visited the countryside outside of Florence to hunt for Black truffles, along with the help of lagotto romagnolos, dogs who are trained to hunt for underground fungi. His bread making workshop focused on the regional traditions of the area, specifically a bread called fogaccia leva, which is a form of focaccia cooked between hot iron paddles. He also learned about growing faro wheat, an ancient grain the Italians have been using, and growing, in the same way for hundreds of years.
Grade 4 Teacher Gemma Kevaney attended a Primary Source course called Cultural Proficiency for Today's Diverse Schools. The weeklong institute featured readings, guest speakers, and teachers as researchers. The course emphasized the importance of tolerance and understanding issues of diversity and finding ways to support all students. Speakers included: Marilynn Johnson from Boston College, Eric DeMeulenaere of Clark University, and Tufts University Professor Jayanti Mistry.
Brimmer and May School
69 Middlesex Road
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
617-566-7462
Chestnut Hill, MA 02467
617-566-7462
As an inclusive private school community, Brimmer welcomes students who will increase the diversity of our school. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, sex, gender, gender identity and expression, disability, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, or any other characteristic protected from discrimination under state or federal law, in the administration of our educational policies, admissions practices, financial aid decisions, and athletic and other school-administered programs.