Summer Lab Field Study Enrollment is Open

Registration is now open for two of Summer Lab's popular Field Study programs. The ten-day Sicilian Photographic Workshop will be led by photography teacher Liese Ricketts and art and art history teacher Brian Wildeman, along with world-class photographer Ernesto Bazan. This trip runs from June 15 - 26, 2007, and is open to high school students who have taken Introduction to Photography or its equivalent. Read more about the trip and download application forms.

Crow Canyon Archaeological Center in Cortez, Colorado will host the eleventh annual trip by Lab School students to visit the ancestral home of the Anasasi Indians. Middle school teacher Susan Lesher and advisor Michel Lacocque will chaperone this trip, which is scheduled for July 29 - August 4, 2007. Read more about the trip and download application forms.

12-18-06

Fifth Grade Fine Arts Note Cards

Continuing this exciting tradition for the tenth consecutive year, the Lab Schools' own unique note cards, featuring work completed last spring by Philip Matsikas' fifth grade Fine Arts students (our current sixth graders), are available for purchase. Each student chose a work from the history of art and interpreted it—in miniature—as an original watercolor painting. All 130 cards are currently on display on the Blaine Lobby bulletin board.

Sets of the professionally-printed cards are being sold for $25 per set in assorted sets of a dozen with matching envelopes; for every four sets purchased, a fifth free set is included. For families of the student artists, each set contains two of your child's work, and custom options are available to those who have purchased $100 in assorted sets. All profits from sales of these cards benefit the Laboratory Schools. Order forms are available online.

12-14-06

Connections 2007: Save the Date

Friday, March 2, 2007, is the date for Connections 2007, to be held in the Grand Ballroom at Navy Pier. It promises to be a party worth remembering, with a phenomenal band and plentiful food—and minimal speeches.

Connections is headed by a great Co-Chair team—Anita Blanchard and Marty Nesbitt, and Kate Collins and Charlie Newell—who are hard at work with the Connections Committee, a dedicated group of parent volunteers whose excitement is contagious. Keep an eye on the Connections web page as the party details are finalized.

The proceeds of this year’s event will be devoted to the arts—specifically, to new tools and technology to support our music, theatre, and visual arts programs. All purchases will be portable and will be designed to complement future new facilities for the arts.

Connections history began in the 1980s, and has raised millions of dollars to benefit our children. While it is our Lab's major fundraising event, it is also a celebration of the school community and of all the good that comes from a Laboratory Schools education. We hope you can make it, and we look forward to seeing you at Navy Pier on March 2.

12-12-06

Lab Alumni Featured in Crain's

Read a recent article in Crain's Chicago Business entitled Lab School Ties Still Bind Top Alums. It documents the diverse friendships created at Lab that are sustained throughout the years, discusses the "'oasis' of diversity" that many students find here, and features several of Lab's prominent alumni.

12-11-06

Biddy Basketball & Soccer are Back

This is the final week of registration for Lab's Youth Basketball and Youth Indoor Soccer programs, which are geared toward students in third through sixth grades.

Coached by Lab's varsity coaches, these programs feature instruction, drills, and games. Varsity players are on hand to demonstrate skills and referee the games. Both programs run for seven Saturdays, January 6 - February 17; basketball in the mornings and soccer in the afternoons.

Register online for Youth Basketball or Youth Soccer; the deadline is December 15. For more information, contact the Athletic Office at 117-834-1035 or email dribben2@ucls.uchicago.edu.

12-11-06

  Slide Show  

First Storm of the Winter

Lab students and faculty weathered the first cold weather and snow of the winter season with undiminished attendance.

In severe weather situations, information on school closures will be posted on Lab's web site and transmitted via the telephone tree. Local radio and television stations also carry closing information. In addition, parents can check the status of the Lab schools by going to www.emergencyclosings.com and searching for the school, or using the touch-tone service at 312-222-SNOW and entering Lab's main phone number (773-702-9450).

12-04-06

Maya Works Sale Raises $5,300

Ms. Mitzenmacher's fourth grade and Ms. Sukenic's third grade classes sponsored a two-day Maya Works sale offering a variety of handcrafted items—from beaded jewelry and headbands (see the photo at left) to hackeysacks—to the Lab Schools community. The sale was a great success, raising over $5,300 for the Maya Works Fair Trade Cooperative. This money will provide Guatemalan artisans with opportunities for establishing new small businesses, feeding their families and educating their children as well as allowing them to continue making a living creating their art. More information about Maya Works can be found at www.mayaworks.org.

The third and fourth grade students were involved in all aspects of organizing and executing the sale. They helped to choose the inventory, sort items, advertise to the entire school community, and run the "marketplace." At the end of the sale, students took an inventory of leftover items and counted money to determine the total funds raised.

This community-wide effort appealed to kids from nursery through high school, as well as parents and staff members throughout the schools. The organizers would like to thank everyone for participating and supporting this worthy organization.

11-30-06

Jazz Band at the Checkerboard Lounge

U-High's Jazz Band will be playing at the Checkerboard Lounge on Sunday, December 3, in a concert sponsored by the Hyde Park Jazz Society. The band will perform from 3:00 to 5:00. There is a cover charge of $10.00 for adults, $5.00 for students over 12 with a student ID. Students attending with parents are free, as are children under 12. Pizza and soft drinks will be provided.

The Jazz Band regularly plays at events as diverse as Connections, the halloween parade, and First Friday at the Quad Club. So far this year they have performed at the U-High opening day assembly, the Partici-Party, Jazz Day with Jim Rotondi & Eric Alexander, the recruitment open house, and a Dewey Founders party. They will also be busy during the upcoming holiday season.

Enjoy the Jazz Band's music on Sunday at the Checkerboard!

11-30-06

Potluck Dinners a Lower School Tradition

Dumplings, fried chicken, meatballs, lasagne, samosas, risotto, pad tai, and—of course—pizza are a sampling of the main courses found at potluck dinners hosted by nursery, kindergarten, and lower school classes. These potlucks, held once or twice a year by each class, allow parents, students, and siblings a chance to get to know each other and to see student art projects in the classroom and around the school.

11-17-06

A Taste of Morocco

After studying North African food and culture, seventh grade French students enjoyed lunch at Tagine, a Moroccan restaurant on Chicago's North Side. The students were treated to chicken tagine, couscous, briwats, Moroccan pastries, and finally mint tea served to them by owner and head chef Eddie Eddie Maettaoui.   

11-17-06

Lab After School Registration Underway

Lab After School winter quarter registration is underway! Registration is open from November 13 to November 20. This quarter there are new special class offerings including Dance 101, offered by The Hyde Park School of Ballet; and swim lessons, offered by Mike Cunningham, the director of Midway Aquatics. Visit labafterschool.org for a complete listing of all special classes and daily program options for the winter quarter. If you have any questions, please contact the After School office at 773-702-9449.

*Note: There will be no Special Classes on Monday, November 20th and Tuesday, November 21st.

11-17-06

Fall Sports Roundup

In their first season of class AA competition, Lab's fall sports teams posted fine results. U-High competes primarily in the Independent School League during the regular season, and participates in class AA Illinois High School Association post-season competition.

The golf team finished in 5th place in the ISL, with senior Nick Kogelman and freshman Evan Levin winning all-conference honors. Nick Kogelman went on to finish second among more than 100 golfers in both the regional and sectional tournaments, and qualified for the IHSA State finals for the second consecutive year.

The boys and girls cross-country teams both won their ISL championship meets for the third consecutive year (boys) and seventh consecutive year (girls). In IHSA regional competition, each team finished in second place, beaten only by Lyons Township. The teams then finished in the middle of the pack at the Niles West sectional meet, boys placing 14th and the girls 15th. (Coach James calculates, given the times run by the team at sectionals, that the U-High boys would have placed 4th overall at the class A state meet .)

The boys soccer team tied for second place in the ISL, with an overall season record of 9-8-6 (5-3-4 in the ISL). Leo Carlson, Morgan Murphy and Elan Weiner were named to the first team All-ISL, and Nate Wise and Phillip Kemp Bohan were selected to the second team All-ISL. The team won their first IHSA AA regional championship, beating Reavis High School in overtime. They beat Kelly High School in the sectional semi-final match and lost a tough 1-0 match to Mt. Carmel in the rain-delayed sectional championship. U-High boys soccer finished the season as one of the top 32 team AA teams in the State. Elan Weiner earned IHSSCA All-Sectional honors, while Morgan Murphy and Leo Carlson won honorable mention IHSSCA honors.

The volleyball team finished in second place in the ISL, with a season record of 19-13 (9-3 in the ISL). First-year coach Amy Landis was selected ISL coach-of-the-year, and Anne Sawyier and Elizabeth Lin were selected first team All-ISL. The team also won the ISL sportsmanship award. They then advanced to the IHSA regional finals, defeating Mt. Assisi in the regional semi-final match.

Girls tennis finished third in the ISL with a 5-2 record. They placed third in the 10-team sectional tournament, and qualified three players for the state finals. The doubles team of Alex Guynn and Rebecca Resnick finished second in the section, qualifying for state for the second consecutive year, where they had a 3-2 record. Freshman Gabbie Clark finished third in the section and also qualified for the state tournament where she won three matches and lost two. The team scored six points at state, placing them 39th of the 305 teams in Illinois.

The girls swim team will compete in the St.Ignatius sectional meet on November 11. Thus far this season they have had a few swimmers break into the all-time top-ten list.

In the middle school, the fall sports teams also had successful seasons. The seventh grade volleyball team finished with a 5-2 record; the eighth grade team was 1-7. According to Coach Cunningham, the teams demonstrated understanding of rotations/switching and executes pass-set-hit numerous times in the matches.

The boys cross-country team won five of the six meets they entered, including the elementary division of the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational hosted by Loyola University. The girls team finished in the top three in all six of their meets. Coach Ingalls was very pleased by the commitment shown by the entire team this fall.

The seventh grade soccer team had an undefeated season record of 4-0-1, while the eighth graders finished 4-1-1. Unfortunately, rain caused the cancellation of half of their games.

11-07-06

Faculty In-Service Day

On the first of two days this year set aside for faculty in-service, Lab teachers participated in a variety of activities to enhance their professional lives.

The day began with an address by Robert Zimmer, the newly appointed president of the University of Chicago. President Zimmer is well known to the Lab community, having been a professor of mathematics at the University for two decades, a Lab School parent, and a member of Lab's Board of Directors. He spoke with the faculty and staff about the importance of the Laboratory Schools to the University community, and about the impact quality faculty have on a school or a university.

The faculty then dispersed to individual and group activities, including:

11-07-06

Halloween Traditions

Lab's halloween traditions are not to be missed! Cameras in hand, parents eagerly lined the hallways to watch lower school students and teachers march in Lab's annual halloween parade, which ends with a sing-along in the gymnasium. Click here to view the variety of inventive costumes in this year's parade. (Many thanks to parents John Zich and Anne Ryan for contributing photos to this slide show.)

The middle school has established a tradition of their own: a costume contest. Especially popular this year were group costumes such as the seven sins, the digits of (pumpkin) pi, political figures with entourages, Dr. Evil and Mini-Me, Willy Wonka's Oompa-loompas, a ballet troupe, peanut butter and jelly, salt and pepper, cereal boxes, and middle school administrators. Click here to see a slide show of these and other ingenious middle school costumes.

In addition to the many lower and middle school teachers in costume, the P.E. and Athletic Departments combined in a group costume: a dodgeball team. They invite other departments to start a tradition and join them next year in costume.

10-31-06

Bizaarnival

Parents and high school students joined forces to put on Lab's second fall Bizaarnival. After decorating the cafeteria and creating activities, they dressed in costume to help guide younger participants through them. There was skull decorating, mask making, pumpkin painting, mud pie mixing, and bobbing for apples. Pirates, witches, princesses, superheroes and mummies, along with their families, enjoyed a haunted house, cotton candy, storytelling, costume contests, and horse-drawn wagon rides on the Midway.

10-29-06

Guest Speaker Dr. Michael Thompson

Lab's Middle School and Parents' Association teamed up to bring guest speaker Michael Thompson to campus. Dr. Thompson is a consultant, author and psychologist specializing in children and families. As a clinical consultant, Thompson has worked with more than two hundred independent schools across the U.S. and in other countries. He and co-author Dan Kindlon wrote the New York Times bestseller Raising Cain: Protecting the Emotional Life of Boys. He is the author of Speaking of Boys: Answers to the Most-Asked Questions About Raising Sons and co-author of Best Friends/Worst Enemies: Understanding the Social Lives of Children.

Dr. Thompson spent the day at Lab speaking with groups of students in eighth, seventh, sixth and fifth grades about friendship and popularity. He touched on the same topics with faculty in the afternoon. Later that evening in Mandel Hall, Dr. Thompson addressed a large audience of parents, speaking about the pressures children face, in school and in their lives.

10-24-06

Musidora as "Irma Vep"

Timely UofC Collaboration

Just in time for halloween, in one of the University of Chicago's many collaborations with Lab, James Lastra, Associate Professor of English and Cinema Media Studies, will be coming to speak to eighth grade French students about the silent film series Fantômas and Les Vampires.

Fantômas is one of the most popular fictional arch-villains and master criminals in the history of French crime fiction, created in 1911 by Marcel Allain and Pierre Souvestre, a team of French writers. In 1913 and 1914 the silent film pioneer Louis Feuillade directed five Fantômas serials starring René Navarre as Fantômas.

Les Vampires is a 1915 ten-part silent film serial, written and directed by Louis Feuillade and starring Musidora as "Irma Vep" (anagram for vampire). It is set in Paris, and follows the exploits of a gang of master criminals who call themselves "Les Vampires."

10-22-06

Visitors Welcome!

Over 500 people attended Lab's Middle and High School Open House held Sunday afternoon, October 22. Visitors had the opportunity to meet administrators, faculty and students and talk with them about curriculum, student activities, and "life at Lab" as experienced by students new to our community. Those who missed this event, but who are interested in applying to and/or learning more about the Laboratory Schools, are invited to call the Office of Admission at 773-702-9451 to request an application and schedule a December/ January tour of our campus. The application deadline for Grades 1-11 is December 30, 2006.

10-19-06

Age-Group Swim Club Underway

Now in its second year of competition, the Midway Aquatics Club is an age-group swim team based in Lab's Sunny Gym Pool. Open to swimmers aged five to 18, the p rogram focuses on developing swimmers from basic stroke development to preparati on for competition. The team's philosophy is to develop swimmers through goal se tting, physical training, knowledge, and strong core values. Midway Aquatics is coached by Mike Cunningham, who believes that through positive reinforcement an d challenges his swimmers can become successful athletes.

Training takes place Monday through Friday in two sessions. The beginning swim g roup has pool time from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m., while more experienced swimmers train from 6:30 to 8:15 p.m. The club participates in Illinois Swimming Incorporated (ISI) competitions,weekend meets in which swimmers compete in several events.Mor e information can be found at the Midway Aquatics Club web site.

10-15-06

Bye Bye Butterfly

Each year kindergarten students experience first-hand the life cycle of the Monarch butterfly, Danaus plexippus. They watch as caterpillars in glass tanks eat milkweed, attach themselves head-down to a twig or the top of the tank, and turn into chrysalises, each a beautiful green with glimmers of gold. The butterfly tank is the first stop for students as they arrive in the morning, eager to see if orange and black wings have emerged from the chrysalises.

Butterflies become the focus of kindergarten projects as students create Monarch masks, make observational drawings, read butterfly books, and write poetry and stories about their butterflies.

In the final stage of the project, students set the Monarchs free to migrate to Mexico, California, or the Caribbean. Outdoors, in a circle around the tank, students sing songs and wave goodbye to the butterflies as they try out their wings and fly away.

10-11-06

Students Explore Storm's Aftermath

A thunderstorm accompanied by 65 mile-an-hour gusts of wind descended on Chicago, leaving its mark on Lab and the surrounding neighborhood. Walking to school, families wended their way through fallen trees and exclaimed over crushed cars. The Woodlawn nursery school buildings were among tens of thousands in Chicago that were left without power and had to close for the day.

In Blaine Courtyard students, writing journals in hand, clustered around a wooden playhouse that had been picked up by the wind and deposited—intact—30 feet away, calling to mind scenes from The Wizard of Oz.

Some classes explored a natural maze created by the branches of a massive honey locust that had fallen in front of Ida Noyes; others visited downed trees along the Midway.

10-05-06

Students Investigate the Living Wage

Since reading Nickel and Dimed by Barbara Ehrenreich, students in Ms. Yourist's humanities classes have been investigating the cost of living in our country. The Poverty in America web site, created at Penn State University, includes a living wage calculator that estimates the cost of living in a variety of regions across the United States. One aspect of this living wage estimate reflects the cost of food for single adults and extended families.

The students went to a local supermarket to see how well they could eat on a "living wage". Most discovered that they definitely could survive but that the variety of foods was lacking, size portions not the biggest, and healthful selections not always possible because of cost. If surviving on a living wage was difficult, it was difficult for many of the students to see how a family makes ends meet on a minimum wage.

10-01-06

Say Cheese!

Photographers from Lifetouch National School Studios took individual and class photos of lower school and nursery school students last week. Each year, picture day raises funds for the Parents' Association, which uses the money to support programs and activities in the classrooms. Families are offered a variety of packages for purchase, each of which includes a photo of the entire class.

Middle school students will have their photos taken on Tuesday, October 10. (Principal Alexis Wright says, "Tuck those shirts in!")

10-01-06

Library Celebrates Banned Books Week

In support of the right to choose books freely for ourselves, Rowley Library and the American Library Association are sponsoring Banned Books Week (September 25-29), an annual celebration of our right to access books without censorship. This year's observance is themed "Read Banned Books: They're Your Ticket to Freedom," and commemorates the most basic freedom in a democratic society—the freedom to read freely.

Since its inception in 1982, Banned Books Week has reminded us that while not every book is intended for every reader, each of us has the right to decide for ourselves what to read, listen to or view. Rowley Library has a banned book exhibit located outside the library and is selling "Read Banned Books" buttons.

The ten most challenged books of 2005 (according to ALA statistics) reflect a range of themes. The books are:

• It's Perfectly Normal for homosexuality, nudity, sex education, religious viewpoint, abortion and being unsuited to age group
• Forever by Judy Blume for sexual content and offensive language
• The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger for sexual content, offensive language and being unsuited to age group
• The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier for sexual content and offensive language
• Whale Talk by Chris Crutcher for racism and offensive language
• Detour for Emmy by Marilyn Reynolds for sexual content
• What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones for sexual content and being unsuited to age group
• Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey for anti-family content, being unsuited to age group and violence
• Crazy Lady! by Jane Leslie Conly for offensive language
• It's So Amazing! A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families by Robie H. Harris for sex education and sexual content

9-26-06

  Slide Show  

Summer Lab Visits Old and New China

Thirteen students, along with Ms. Melicent Rothschild and Mr. Alexis Wright, toured China at the beginning of August as part of Summer Lab's Adventurer Field Study program. The incoming eighth and ninth graders were greeted at the Beijing airport by the new Chinese teacher, Mr. John Sun, who hosted their first dinner. Tiannamen Square and the Forbidden City were first on the itinerary, as was a delightful visit to witness morning exercises at the Temple of Heaven Park. The students excelled at climbing the Great Wall in the mountain mist.

In Xian, the ancient capital, the travellers were awed by the excavation of the Terra Cotta Warriors and the architecture of the Wild Goose Pagoda. In Shanghai, a trip to a Buddhist temple on Buddha's birthday was special, as was a visit to the "restrained area" where a Jewish synagogue was created for the refugees during World War II. Modern Shanghai's three hundred skyscrapers built in the last ten years were astounding from a boat on the Huangpu River.

The students also enjoyed visiting with Lab students who stay with their families in China during the summer. They relished the dinners and treats graciously given by several Lab school parents.

9-21-06

World Language Lab Open for Business

Lab's new World Language Lab is helping students in their study of language. Generously funded with money raised at last year's Connections benefit, the digital language lab:

• provides dedicated space for students and faculty to explore the latest instructional technologies for language teaching and learning.
• increases students' contact time with their language of study.
• gives individualized feedback on pronunciation and comprehension.
• is a space designed for students to create, speak, socialize, and even sing in their language of study without being disruptive to or distracted by others.
• is a teaching space as well as a drop-in resource center for teachers and students.

Staffed by George Dyer, the newest member of the Information Systems team, the World Language Lab is available for use by both classes and individuals. Its facilities include 28 iMacs, two G5 Macintoshes for media editing, six media stations arranged for group use, color and black and white printers, a conference area, and large screens for presentations. Through the lab's wired network, students have access to authentic language from native speakers, desktop videoconferencing tools, student audio and video recordings, and media-intensive collaborative projects.

9-21-06

Par•ti•ci-Party

Lab parents, old and new, faculty and staff are invited to the second annual Par•ti•ci-Party to celebrate the ways we work together to make the Lab Schools thrive and grow. The event takes place on Saturday, September 16, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the Kersten Family Atrium of the Gordon Center for Integrative Science. Cocktails and light refreshments will be served.

This year, we are pleased to have James L. Madara, M.D., Dean of the Biological Sciences Division & the Pritzker School of Medicine, University Vice-President for Medical Affairs, Chief Executive Officer of the University of Chicago Medical Center, AND fellow Lab parent, welcome guests to the beautiful new Gordon Center for Integrative Science (CIS). The evening's program, beginning at 6:20, will include brief remarks by David Magill, followed by an exciting new video showcasing the collaborations between Lab's high school science department and the University of Chicago faculty at CIS,featuring Harinder Singh and Steven Sibener, who are both parents and University faculty, Sharon Housinger, Chair of Lab's Science Department, and Katie Shakman, 2006 graduate, who did research in the labs this past summer.

Don't forget to rsvp! Please let us know if you are planning to attend by calling 773-702-0578 or email kpitts@ucls.uchicago.edu.

9-08-06

Freakonomics Comes to U-High

High school students, faculty, and staff freaked out when school opened. Lab parent Steven Levitt, University of Chicago economist and author of the bestseller Freakonomics, shared his insights and fielded questions at the opening assembly. He faced over 500 University High School students and teachers who had been given his book by the Laboratory Schools for summer reading.

In break-out sessions, students participated in a coin flip activity to investigate the nature of randomness. To gather data for future Levitt-like analysis by U-Highers, students completed a questionnaire designed by the committee to gather facts about themselves. Students, in student-led book discussions, pondered thought-provoking issues suggested by Freakonomics.

Book selection, the opening assembly, and follow-up activities are planned and organized by a joint committee of high school students and faculty. This year's committee, chaired by University High history teacher Andrea Martonffy, included student leaders Johanna Heineman-Pieper, Daniel Hornung, Talia Nasr, Alexa Rice, Jaya Sah, and Molly Schloss, and faculty members Catie Bell, Brenda Coffield, Cathy Feldman, Rosa McCullagh, Shirley Volk, and Amy Wharton.

In its sixth year, the now traditional kick-off to the school year began as the brain child of former University High Academic Dean Cathy Feldman and English teacher Carolyn Walter who were looking for an enjoyable way to begin the academic program for the new school year. In previous years, the community has shared Barack Obama's Dreams from My Father, George Orwell's 1984, Ernest J. Gaines's A Lesson Before Dying, Alan Lightman's Einstein's Dreams, and William Knowlton Zinsser and William Zinsser's Mitchell and Ruff: An American Profile in Jazz.

9-05-06

Annual All-School Luncheon

Following a long-standing tradition, Lab School teachers enjoyed a speech by one of their colleagues at the annual All-School Luncheon that kicks off planning week. This year's speaker was science teacher Dan West, who spoke on the value of story telling. Read a copy of his talk here.

At the luncheon, the Mary V. Williams Award for Excellence in Teaching was awarded to lower school teacher Sylvie Anglin. This award, which was established in memory of Mary Williams, a long-time teacher at the Laboratory Schools, supports professional opportunities for faculty in the lower and middle schools. The recipients of this award are selected on the basis of their ability to embody much of the spirit and qualities that Mary had in her career as a teacher: a teacher who understands the big picture of education, not just as academics, but a style that speaks to the whole child; a teacher who understands that learning occurs on a continuum with many strands of development in a student coming forth at different times; and, at the end of a productive year, a teacher who challenges students to move forward in opportunities and to be completely involved.

8-30-06

Lab Welcomes New Faculty & Staff

Several new faculty and staff are joining the Lab Schools community this year, as well as familiar faces moving to new positions.
Lab extends a warm welcome to:

8-30-06