The Gordon School

Ask a Young Kindergarten student about Rekenreks.

These math tools are similar to abacuses, and these five and six-year-olds started using them today as part of their ongoing exploration of numbers.

This, our most popular post of 2024, got the attention of Facebook’s librarian and bookseller communities, and helped shape people’s thinking around which books are targeted for removal from libraries.

A recap of our top twenty posts of last year is at https://ow.ly/NmNz50UzMUT

“Banned books week used to be a fun thing for librarians, when there were maybe fifty books we had that were banned for a variety of reasons.”

“Now, it’s more like fifteen hundred books. And as I go through the list, I realize they are all books about belonging.”

“This is not about language, or content. This is not about different ideas of what is appropriate. These bans are targeting books about belonging, about families, culture and identity.”

As National Banned Books Week got underway, Gordon’s librarians went into the stacks to pull titles that were on PEN America’s index of school book bans.

What used to be a morning task is becoming a weeklong project.

There are dozens of books from Gordon’s collection piled up in the display, and these are only the middle-school-age books. They haven’t even started on the chapter books and picture books in the downstairs collection.

This morning, fifth graders were digging hungrily through the display, now labeled as Books About Belonging.

Downstairs, fourth graders looked over the PEN list of picture books, then reviewed their library skills by finding and pulling books from the list.

There were some strong reactions, explained one librarian. “These fourth graders were delighted when they saw and remembered a book that had meant something to them when they were young. And then came the shock, as they found it unfathomable that a book ban might mean that some other child might not have access to that same book, and that same experience.”

The display of books on belonging will remain out for browsing for the rest of the month, and followup conversations will continue in library class and at Middle School meeting.

And after the display comes down, the books return to the shelves, ready to share a message of belonging with future generations of Gordon students.

More on book bans from PEN America at https://ow.ly/6acE50TvGXf

Thanks to the parents, friends, family and fellow students who came to the sixth grade gallery walk this morning.

Sixth graders had designed original art in response to works of fiction they read this fall, and prepared full artist’s statements to explain their choices.

Inspiration came from authors ranging from Agatha Christie and Phillip Pullman to Karls Harry Visiting Authors Kwame Alexander and Kyle Lukoff.

Each work rewarded a close look, with trapdoors, textural references, inside jokes and hidden flourishes throughout.

These deserve to be seen in person, but you can get a feel for them at https://ow.ly/1Nkp50Uv12G -

Early Childhood made it look easy this morning, but they were working very hard. Get a peek at their winter gathering at https://ow.ly/TzIA50Utyx9

It’s the kind of thing you can do when every student learns Spanish, beginning at age three.

See moments from Gordon’s second annual Spanish Immersion Day—and hear a custom-made playlist-at https://ow.ly/67cx50UseyN -

Gordon was proud to host this event in partnership with the Tomaquag Museum as part of Traci Sorell’s visit this week.

More moments from Traci Sorell’s time at Gordon at https://ow.ly/lk6N50UqcYT -

Fifth grade basketball has begun!

The formal interscholastic league is only open to sixth, seventh and eighth grades, so Gordon’s fifth grade program runs on a different rhythm.

These students will be practicing twice a week, learning and competing together in the months ahead.

It’s an all-inclusive program that’s overwhelmingly popular. These Gators are ready to play! Over seventy-five percent of the fifth grade is participating in basketball this winter.

Yes, that was a Gordon seventh grader in East End Theater and Performing Arts’ production of Matilda, which opened this evening at Tollman High School. The show is directed by Emily Gaye of Gordon’s after school theater team and it’s not too late to buy tickets for the Saturday performances (2:00 and 7:00pm) and the final performances Sunday (4:30pm).

Valerie Bolling had Gordon students entranced yesterday with presentations that connected directly with their lives, and with the work they do here at Gordon.

Bolling’s work for younger students focuses on the everyday moments that define their worlds. The heroes of her picture books are learning to ride bikes, they are discovering swimming, they playing music, exploring their neighborhoods, and experiencing the joy of dancing.

And in Bolling’s world, there’s no reason to postpone joy. She had students laughing, standing, clapping rhythms and dancing in place as she read to them from her picture books.

First and second grade got a similar message, told through the lens of the small moment story. Gordon first grader write their first nonfiction books as small moment stories, vignettes of special moments drawn from their six- and seven-year-old biographies.

For fifth and sixth grades, the presentation was more of a conversation, centered on the idea of multiple perspectives and the importance of understanding what each author brings to their material. She had them riffing imaginatively in response to some open-ended prompts, and students got a chance to share some of their own writing with her along the way.

Bolling has thirty years of experience in elementary school education, and her website gives a direct mission for her work as an author: “I write because I want all children to feel at home in book.” Thanks to Ms. Bolling for seeing our students for who they are, meeting them where they were, and allowing them to welcome her into their home here at Gordon.

Do you need to know what a red bellied woodpecker looks like? Or a house sparrow? Or the difference between a male and female downy woodpecker?

Ask a Young Kindergarten student.

They added a bird feeder to the garden outside their classroom, joined Cornell University Project feederwatch and began counting bird species. Today they received binoculars so they could get a better look at a hawk flying over the fields.

How do you feel when you write?

What book do you feel most connected with?

What is your favorite part of writing a book?

Third and fourth graders were all about the feels when they met with author Traci Sorell today.

More on their conversation at https://ow.ly/lk6N50UqcYT -

The Gordon community turned out yesterday to celebrate Cameron Rust ’19 as she helped Penn State’s women’s basketball team defeat Providence College.

Cam came to Gordon in the afternoon to talk with Middle School students about her career thus far, highlighting the commitment and hard work required to play Division I sports.

Then, dozens of Gordon friends turned out for the game, including Katie Horton ’23, Tomás Caruso-Carrillo ’22, Jaqueline Faulise ’16, Rachael Romain ’16, Alyssa Howard ’14 and Savannah Rust ’17. They were armed with handmade signs and blowups of photos from Cam’s time playing for Gordon in the Nelson Field House.

Hey alumni! Let us know what you’re up to! Greg Carson is eager to hear from you at [email protected], or you can come tell him in person as he convenes a young alumni open house for the classes of 2020 to 2024 next Friday the 20th. Snacks will be rolled out at 8:30am, but alumni are welcome to stop in anytime before noon.

At Gordon, Middle School is a time to try on multiple identities, and the athletics media day lets students experience the feeling of being in the spotlight as a top recruit.

It’s a playful way to get students shake off inhibitions and tap into their inner superstar.

Gordon’s athletics program is built to allow Middle School students to stretch themselves and to try new things. Everyone who tries out makes a team, everyone on a team plays, and each team member learns to trust and support their teammates.

Sometimes we have championship teams. Sometimes we don’t. But every season is unforgettable.