In this Issue
Volume 26, Issue 2 • April 2015
Primary News .................................................2
Admissions News ...........................................3
Technology News ...........................................3
Intermediate News..........................................4
Falk Diversity and Inclusion Group .................5
Music Notes....................................................6
Fundraising News............................................7
Spanish News..................................................7
Library News....................................................8
From the Art Studio ......................................12
Spotlight on Faculty and Staff.......................14
Published by the Falk School PTO
Coming Soon!
ANNUAL LIBRARY BOOK FAIR
Wednesday-Tuesday, April 22-28
Once again, the Falk School library will become a
bookstore during our Annual Library Book Fair. The
goals of the Fair are to encourage our students’
love of reading and to provide financial support for
the library program.
The books are provided by Scholastic,
Inc. Paperback and hardcover
books will be sold with prices
from about $5 to $25. In addition, a 7% state sales tax
will be collected. Payment
may be made with cash,
check (made payable to
Falk School Library) or
credit card. Profits from the
Fair benefit the library.
The Fair will be open:
• Wednesday: 9:30 am to 6:00 pm
• Thursday - Monday: 8:15 am to 6:00 pm
• Tuesday: 8:15 am to 3:00 pm
A Family Fair Event will be held on Wednesday,
April 22, in the library. This will be an opportunity to
get other family members involved and see all the
books your children can choose when they come
to the Book Fair. More information will be included
in the packet your child brings home.
Students will have an opportunity to visit the Fair
during their regular library class. Parent volunteers
and the library staff will be on hand to assist them.
Each student will receive a free raffle ticket for a
gift basket. Parents are welcome to visit the Fair at
Upcoming Dates to Remember
Mar 31Deadline for submission of orders
for PTO Original Works with student
self-portraits
any time. In addition, families may consider buying
one or more books for their child’s classroom,
which teachers really appreciate. Look for these
books on the Classroom Wish List table at the Fair
and on the Online Shopping website (see below.)
Online Shopping April 17-May 1
Shopping online will be available
beginning the Friday before the
Fair and continuing through
the Friday after the Fair. In
addition to added convenience, the online site
provides additional titles
that will not be available at
the Fair. Also, if we run out
of a book at the Fair, it can
be ordered online. To access
the site, go to http://bookfairs.
scholastic.com/homepage/falkschool. Teachers may choose to create
an online wish list for their classroom library.
Books ordered online will be delivered to school
after the Fair ends, and shipping is free. Again,
profits benefit the library.
Once again Falk School will be participating in
the All-For-Books Program. All money collected
through this program supports literacy two ways:
1) it will buy books from the Fair for the classroom
libraries to support reading; and 2) Scholastic will
match the dollar amount collected with book donations ($1 collected = one book) to two nonprofit
organizations - the Kids In Need Foundation and
Kids in Distressed Situations, Inc.
Apr 15Middle School Spring Concert, Jazz
Band, Concert Band and Chorus
Apr 16 - 17 No School for Grades K-5
Apr 22 - 28 Book Fair
Mar 31 Dr. Suzik’s 2nd Town Hall PTO Meeting
May 11 - 14 7th & 8th Grade Musical, Guys and Dolls
Apr 2 - 6 May 15
No School (Passover/Easter)
Apr 13 - 17 Grade 8 Exit Interviews
Falk Spring Carnival (Early Dismissal)
May 20Intermediate Spring Concert,
Intermediate Band and Chorus
Primary News
Primary is off to a great start for another successful year...
Although it has been cold outside, Kindergarten has been staying warm learning lots of new things! We
began the New Year by having Miss Hwang and Miss Kim visit our classrooms for two weeks from
Duksung University in South Korea. We played Korean games, made Korean masks and listened to
Korean stories. It was a wonderful experience for all of us. In Technology, we have been exploring
conductive and non-conductive materials such as paper clips, pencils, paper, objects from around
our classroom and we even tested play-dough ingredients! We celebrated the 100th day of school by
getting super silly and turning ourselves into 100 year olds! (There is a
book in our classrooms to prove it!) We also celebrated Valentine’s Day by
graphing candy hearts and making a “Love” book. We dressed Wacky for
Dr. Seuss’s birthday and read Dr. Seuss stories to celebrate this special
day! It’s been a fun-filled winter!
First grade has been continuing to have an amazing year. Learning about
water, communities, and traveling to different countries has kept us
busy over January and February. It was exciting wearing our pajamas to
school and enjoying homemade hot cocoa with marshmallows. We also
had a blast celebrating our 100th day in school. Our joint Valentine’s Day
celebration could not have been better. We played bingo, decorated our
bags, wrote a poem, and made a craft. The field trip to Snapology was a
huge success. Students enjoyed building, creating, and
working together.
Second grade, Room 20, has been busy spending the cold winter days
with a Mardi Gras celebration that included “critter parade hats” that
the students created and gobbling up king cake. The students have
been working hard to prepare for their performance of Shakespeare’s As You Like It in late February.
The performance, combined with the 6th grade’s performance of the same play, was a big success!
Thanks so much to everyone for their support!
The Primary Team is looking forward to spring and taking some of our learning experiences outside!
We celebrated
the 100th day
of school by
getting super
silly and turning
ourselves into
100 year olds!
Contact Information
2014-15 Falk PTO Officers:
Director
Jeff Suzik
412-624-8022
Secretary
Ann Gaul
412-327-9152
President
Tica Hall
412-398-2940
Treasurer
Michael Steich
412-521-1281
Vice President
Anne Brownlee
412-606-9093
2
www.falkschool.pitt.edu
Admissions News
Falk School’s admission season was a tremendous
success! We are welcoming a number of younger
brothers and sisters and a few legacies to our
Kindergarten class of 2015, in addition to the many
children and families new to the Falk School experience. New families will be joining the Falk community in other grades, too! We have invited all of our
new families to Spring Carnival. Please remember
to extend a warm welcome when you see them.
We are always looking for current parents to
help new families transition to Falk. If you are
interested in being a resource for those just joining our
community, please email the admissions office at falkinfo@pitt.edu.
Do you have a younger child who will be five years old by September
1, 2016? It is not too early to complete a Kindergarten application. Log
into your Family Access Portal account and select “Apply” from the top
menu bar.
Admissions Office 412-624-8024
Technology News
Robotics Team
A robotics team of 6th
and 7th graders from Falk
participated in several
local First Lego League
scrimmages and competitions in the fall and winter.
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Volume 26, Issue 2
Intermediate News
In the classroom… in 3rd Grade Words…
Humanities
I like Music. Music is special to me, because I love
to sing and dance. I also like learning new songs. I
love to sing and be happy whenever I dance!
- Perla McEllistrem, Rm 123
I like every humanities class because it helps me
learn new stuff. And Yoga was amazing because it
calms you down!!!
- Natasha Akhtar, Rm 123
My favorite humanities class is either Gym,
Technology or Library. In Technology we are using
Scratch, a computer programing app. It’s very, very,
very fun!
- Simon Nigam, Rm 123
I liked playing Hurley Burley in P.E. I liked
Technology because we did Scratch, and I liked
singing “Follow the Drinking Gourd” in Music.
- Elizabeth Gaul, Rm 123
I liked Art because when we made self portraits I
did great! And when we started making games in
Technology I was happy!!!!! And P.E. was fun too.
- Gray Siegler, Rm 123
In Math we are studying probability. We are using
probability lines and percents to value words like
impossible 0%, 0/1, 0/2, 0/00. Unlikely: 25%, ¼.
As likely as unlikely, 50%, 2/4, ½. Likely: 75%, ¾.
Certain: 100%, 1/1, 2/2 00/00. We are also using
data logs. First we put the likeli- or unlikelihood of
something occurring, then if possible do the task.
For example: flip a coin 10 times. What are the
chances of getting tails? Heads? Then flip the coin
and record what happens. This is a fun unit, and I
hope to get some more data and learn more about
probability.
- Xavier Ramirez, Rm 122
Reading Class
Robotics
In novel groups we read books together. Some of
the books are Gossamer, by Lois Lowry, Because
of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo, Half-a-Moon Inn
by Paul Fleischman, The Eyes of the Amaryllis
by Natalie Babbitt, and City of Ember by Jeanne
DuPrau. During class time we try to make conversation by sharing reactions, responses and
connections we have to the books.
- Scarlett Kaufman, Rm 122
Science
In Science we are using a battery and a paperclip
and a light bulb to make light. We are trying to
make a circuit to make light. Phil and I made a
circuit that made a lot of light. We put the light bulb
on top of the battery, then we bent the paperclip
long enough to reach the top and bottom of the
battery and it made a lot of light!
- Deniz Finkel, Rm 118
4th Grade Play
In Language Arts we are writing a play. It is about
animals putting their babies to sleep with lullabies.
We are working with Ms. Dillaman’s class to create
the play. Each class does one act. We wrote the
script and all the lullabies in the play. We will
perform on Friday, March 20.
- Ani Vaughan, Rm 122
4
Math
In the classroom… in 4th Grade Words…
In Robotics, we built robots and programmed them
with Dr. T. At the end of the unit we will create final
projects, a course the robot will run. All of the robots
work in different ways, so we record our findings
and write a reflection of the classwork. Every day
we get a new challenge and it isn’t always easy!
But it is always fun.
- Alexis Alarcon, Rm 122
Every day
we get a
new challenge
and it isn’t
always easy!
I really like the play because we all got to incorporate some of our own lines and decide the plot.
One time when we were trying to decide the plot
we were deciding whether to have a lost baby
animal or kids having their mom tell a story about
an animal. Someone said that some kids would be
upset by a lost animal. Each group made their own
lullaby (sea otter, lemurs, dolphins, toucans, tortoise
and the main character). They each wrote the
music, lyrics and each have a part to play (music
wise). We are all excited!
- Hannah Malkin, Rm 118
Intermediate News, continued
Falk Diversity & Inclusion Group
Classroom subjects ...in 5th Grade words…
Social Studies
In Social Studies we are making a brochure on a state that is not in the
Northeast Region. My state is Oregon and I found out that Oregon has the
smallest park in the world!!! It is called Mill Ends Park and it is only 425
square inches!
- Toby Kaufmann, Rm 121
Math
In math we are working on base ten pieces and decimals. We look at a group
of different base ten pieces and write the equivalent decimal and we also
worked on turning them into percentages.
- Skyler Ed, Rm 121
Science
In Science we are trying to find out who stole Bo Peep’s sheep. We took
samples from the suspects’ pens and compared them to the ransom note.
I think the person who did it was Simon, because his ink matched and the
farmer’s testimony said he was good with animals. It can’t be Tom Thumb
or Goosey Gander because of the evidence.
- Ian Mackey-Piccolo, Rm 121
(The Bo Peep mystery comes from a book One Hour Mysteries. The framework of the mystery is used to teach about setting up experiments and using
science in real world contexts.)
Reading Class
We read A Mango Shaped Space and I really liked it. I loved all the different
colors, and it was a nice mixture of happiness and sadness. Right now we are
working on our final project. We are drawing the alphabet with color and then
we write our name and express what those colors mean to us!
- Gracie Cain, Rm 121
The Falk Diversity & Inclusion Group met
on Feb. 25 for a lively discussion on “Living
in a Material World: How Our Values about
Money and Class Shape our Children
and Our Community” facilitated by Laura
Dietz, PhD, a Falk parent and an assistant
professor of psychiatry and psychology at
the University of Pittsburgh.
The gathering, supported by the PTO,
included parents and faculty who talked
about the research links between materialism and low self-esteem and troubleshooting ways to discuss money, materialism
and income disparities with our children.
Several people expressed an interest in
making income diversity more integrated
into the Falk community, including through
targeted discussions in the classroom about
budgets, money, income disparities and also
by expanding community service projects
through the school for Falk families.
5
Volume 26, Issue 2
Music Notes
Falk School PSO Extravaganza
•On January 14th Rhian Kenny, Principal
Piccoloist for the Pittsburgh Symphony
Orchestra performed for K-5 audiences to
kick off our annual Falk School Symphony
Extravaganza.
Music, Drama and Dance are in full flourish in the Performing Arts Wing at Falk
School despite the unusual amount of delays this semester. As we reflect on
our recent general music classes and performances, both Dr. Conover and Ms.
Sassani are thankful for the spirit of our students both in the Falk building and
out and about Pittsburgh.
•On January 20th Noah Bendix-Balgley
performed the Khachaturian Violin
Concerto for students grade 3 – 8. He was
accompanied by Falk parent, Sung-Im Kim.
As You Like It
On February 26th the Falk
6th grade and Ms. Wright’s
second grade class performed
Shakespeare’s As You Like It.
• On January 29th Monique Mead, Falk
parent, and her student Grace Shin worked
with our K-1st graders.
• On February 1st the Falk Middle School
Chorus performed a Steven Schwartz
Medley in the Heinz Hall Grand Lobby
before the concert.
• Special thanks to Monique Mead for organizing the annual Mini-Maestro Program,
which was attended by many Falk students.
Recent Events
March 20th: 4th grade Lullaby Project
March 27th: 5th grade performed the Japanese folk tale “The Grateful
Statues” and the Columbian folk tale “Domingo Siete” using musical
instruments and handmade puppets
Upcoming Events
April 7 – 10th: Mr. Nardini’s class performance – The Hobbit
April 15th: Middle School Spring Concert featuring the Falk Jazz Band,
Middle School Chorus and Middle School Concert Band
May 11 – 14th: 7th and 8th grade musical, Guys & Dolls
May 20th: Intermediate Spring Concert featuring the Intermediate Chorus
and Intermediate Band
May 29th: 3rd grade performance – The Great Migration
6
Fundraising News
PTO Original Works Spring Fundraiser
We are very excited that the time has come for the
PTO Original Works fundraiser. It is a wonderful art
project that the Falk community takes part in every
two years.
The children in all of the grades (K-8) have recently
completed their self-portraits for this project during
Dr. Armstrong’s and Ms. Capezzuti’s classes. The
self-portrait theme has been chosen so that parents,
if they choose, can create a collection of their
children’s self-portraits throughout their years at Falk.
By now, you have hopefully received a package with your child’s image printed
on a magnet, order forms, and a detailed brochure. You will be able to purchase
the magnet as well as order your child’s self portrait on a variety of fun and
useful items. Please remember that if you are not purchasing the magnet that
came with the package, then it must be returned. The deadline for all orders
is March 31, 2015. All of the artwork ordered will be available by Mother’s Day.
We hope you will join in and celebrate our children’s creativity while supporting
Falk School!
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to
contact us via email.
Amee Chaudry and Katie Salvi,
Parent Co-Organizers
Dr. Armstrong and Ms. Capezzuti,
Faculty Visual Arts Advisors
Spanish News
Folk Tales
This semester the fifth grade Spanish students are working on learning
a Colombian folk tale called “Domingo Siete” and they
will be performing this for the entire Falk community
after Spring Break. The students have been working
really hard on learning their lines and the meaning of
the story, and both rooms 119 and 121 will be working
together so this event can be successful. Also, Miranda
Carpenter-Achugar, one of our Spanish heritage
speakers, helped prepare the script and helped the other
students with pronouncing their lines so she could help
the Falk community by sharing her native language and
heritage background. This is also a collaboration with Ms.
Sassani from the Music department and Ms. Capezzuti
from the Art department, and we are really excited to show
this story to the entire school and parents.
7
Volume 26, Issue 2
Library News
THE HEARTWOOD PROGRAM
The Heartwood Program is a literature-based ethics curriculum for children. The
program uses illustrated books from representative cultures around the world
to help children understand seven attributes: courage, loyalty, justice, respect,
hope, honesty, and love. The stories are primarily folklore, legends and hero
tales. The books are read aloud in class and then discussed. The different
attributes are featured according to a schedule throughout the school year.
Parents are encouraged to read the books aloud with their children. Many of
the books are available at the public library and the Falk School library.
Honesty is the attribute for April
Main Books:
Supplementary Books:
Osa’s Pride by A. Grifalconi
A Pair of Red Clogs by M. Matsuma
The Dragon’s Robe by D. Lattimore
The Empty Pot by Demi
Our King Has Horns! by R. Pevear
Roses Sing on New Snow by P. Yee
The King’s Fountain by L. Alexander
Gold Coin by A. F. Ada
A Penny’s Worth of Character by J. Stuart
Sam, Bangs and Moonshine by E. Ness
Striding Slippers by M. Ginsburg
Summer Wheels by E. Bunting
The Talking Eggs by R. San Souci
Taro and the Tofu by M. Matsun
The Treasure by U. Shulevlitz
The Truthful Harp by L. Alexander
The Winter Wife by A.E. Crompton
Love is the attribute for May
Main Books:
Supplementary Books:
The Seeing Stick by J. Yolen
Grandma Didn’t Wave Back by R. Blue
The Rag Coat by L. Mills
Honey, I Love by E. Greenfield
Magical Hands by M. Barker
Mufaro’s Beautiful Daughters by J. Steptoe
Annie and the Old One by M. Miles
Blackberries in the Dark by M. Jukes
The Hundred Penny Box by S. B. Mathis
The Keeping Quilt by P. Polacco
The Legend of Scarface by R. San Souci
Love You Forever by R. Munsch
My Mother is the Most Beautiful Woman in the
World by R. Rehyer
Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs by T.
DePaola
Now One Foot, Now the Other by T. DePaola
Saying Good-bye to Grandma by R.R. Thomas
The Wednesday Surprise by E. Bunting
8
Library News, continued
SPRING READING INITIATIVE:
GET READING @ YOUR LIBRARY
PYRCA
April & May
Special literacy events are planned
in April and May to celebrate
“School Library Month” (April) and
the joy of reading. These include
Book Badges, Reading Chain,
Library Book Fair, and the All
School Read-In. Later this month
families will receive by mail information about these events as well
as a “starter” set of Book Badges
for recording home reading.
• Book Badges: From April 1
until May 31, students, parents,
teachers, interns, staff, and family
members are encouraged to fill
out a Book Badge for each book
they read or that is read to them.
Envelopes for collecting Book
Badges are in the K-5 homerooms, the library, and other locations around
the school. Additional Book Badges are available in the same places. Note:
unpaged books usually have 32 pages.
• Page Tally: We will keep track of the cumulative total pages that the Falk
School community has read and display the total each day in the library and
outside the school office.
• Book Badge Display: The completed Book Badges will be attached and
hung about the library. During the Read-In (see below), the Book Badge
display will be moved to the gym.
• The Library Book Fair: This
year’s theme is “Book Fair Under
the Sea….Explore an Ocean of
Books!” The Fair will take place
April 22-28 in the library (see
page 1).
This is the third year Falk is participating in the
Pennsylvania Young Readers’ Choice Awards
(PYRCA), and we are pleased that so many
students are working toward being able to vote.
In order to vote in any category (K-3, 3-6, 6-8), a
student needs to have read or heard at least three
titles from that category. Some teachers choose
PYRCA books to read aloud to the classrooms, and
we use our read aloud time during primary library
classes to make sure all of the primary students
are eligible to vote! Falk students will vote on their
favorites during the last week of March. Falk winners and statewide winners will be announced later
this spring, and the awards presented during the
PSLA conference in early May. Look for the display
in the library that shows how many Falk votes each
book received.
Book Club
The Carnegie Library hosts an annual Battle of
the Books, a team trivia contest based on books.
Teens form teams of no more than four or five
members, read the selected books and prepare
to compete in the Battle. For the second year in
a row, five 6th graders took it upon themselves
to form a group. All on their own, this group of
intrepid boys worked together to divide responsibilities for reading the ten books and knowing them
well enough to answer trivia questions. They were
going up against teams from around Pittsburgh
who had professional coaches (librarians) and no
doubt plenty of milk and cookies. Congratulations
to Allen Gao, Oscar Nigam, Pablo Coen-Pirani,
Jackson McCullough, and Alptug Kaynar for their
initiative and for representing Falk.
• Read-In: A school-wide silent
sustained Read-In will be held
Wednesday, June 3 (tentative
date) at 9:30 a.m.
in the school gym.
The total number of books read and the total number of pages
read during April and May will be announced at the Read-In. The
entire Falk School community is invited to join in sustained silent
reading for twenty minutes. Parents are encouraged
to attend.
We will appreciate your support of these activities. Information is
available on the library website at http://www.falkschool.pitt.edu/
library-pages/spring-reading-initiative-april-may. The Reading
Initiative activities begin April 1 and continue through May.
9
Volume 26, Issue 2
continued on page 10
Library News, continued
Birthday/Gift Book Program
The library and the PTO coordinate the Gift Book
Program as a means of expanding the library
collection while commemorating special events and
special persons: birthdays, holidays, grandparents,
teachers, preservice teachers, and sometimes
even pets! An appropriate bookplate is placed in
each book. All Falk students, teachers, preservice
teachers, and staff benefit from the continuous
updating of the collection.
At the end of October families received in the mail
a letter inviting them to participate, a donation form,
and a book list. Students and adults can also come
to the library to browse books and complete an
order form. Donations can be made at any time.
Keep in mind the dollar amount for each book is a
suggested donation. This information is also available on the library website at http://www.falkschool.
pitt.edu/library-pages/about/Gift-book-program.
Sarah Delano and Cindy Tipper coordinate this
program with Ms. Williams. If you have any
questions about the Gift Book Program, contact
Ms. Williams (412-624-8516 or (lwilliam@pitt.edu).
Many thanks to the following donors:
Joseph Carroll, My Strong Bones by Lauren
Taylor in honor of his birthday, January 2014
Nancy Richter Brzeski, signed copy of The
Passionate Art of Nancy Richter Brzeski, May 2014
Elias Vila-Kubiak, Monsters of Morley Manor by
Bruce Coville, audiobook, and Rain Reign by Ann
M. Martin, audiobook, October 2014
Nicklas Rosenbloom, Bone: Quest for the Spark
books 2 & 3 by Tom Sniegoski, Harry Potter and
the Sorcerer’s Stone and Harry Potter and the
Chamber of Secrets by J.K. Rowling, Teenage
Mutant Ninja Turtles: Rise of the Turtles adapted
by Justin Eisinger, The New Padawan by Eric
Stevens, and Zane: Ninja of Ice, Jay: Ninja of
Lightning, Kai: Ninja of Fire and Cole: Ninja of
Earth by Greg Farshtey, November 2014
Sam Bisno, China by Steve Goldsworthy in honor
of Neal Bisno, November 2014
The Watt-Morse Family, Warriors: Into the Wild,
Warriors: Forest of Secrets and Warriors: The New
Prophecy: Midnight by Erin Hunter, Bone: Eyes of
the Storm and Bone: Dragonslayer by Jeff Stone,
and Everest: The Climb and Everest: The Summit
by Gordon Korman, November 2014
Rowan de Boer, 1-2-3 Draw! Super Fun Stuff by
Freddie Levin, December 2014
Emma Outerbridge Waldron, What Came from
the Stars by Gary D. Schmidt, December 2014
10
The Gildengers Family, Four Sides, Eight Nights:
A New Spin on Hanukkah by Rebecca Tova BenZvi and Maccabee! The Story of Hanukkah by
Tilda Balsley in honor of Alisa Einnohner,
December 2014
Phoebe Tsagaris, Sofia and the Heartmender
by Maria Olofsdotter, Imagine – a Door without
a Room: Would You Be Indoors or Outdoors?
by Norman Messenger, Meow: Cat Stories
from around the World by Jane Yolen, The
Paper Princess Finds Her Way by Elisa Kleven,
Tutankhamen’s Tomb by Jen Green, Catopia: a Cat
Compendium by Anne Mortimer, and Jan Karon
Presents Cynthia Coppersmith’s Violet Comes to
Stay by Melanie Cecka, December 2014
Laurie Williams, Cataloging Correctly for Kids by
Inter, Fountain and Weiss, Essential Cataloguing
by J.H.Bowman, and Catalog It! A Guide to
Cataloging School Library Materials by Kaplan and
Riedling, December 2014
Scott Stern, Fabrigami by Stovall, Stern and
Temko, December 2014
Phyllis Scherrer, Colors of the Mountain by Da
Chen and Where Are You Going? by Eric Carle
and Kazuo Iwamura, December 2015
Gale Dunn Kaufmann, The Princess in Black by
Shannon & Dean Hale, House of Robots by James
Patterson, and The Fourteenth Goldfish by Jennifer
L. Holm, January 2015
Patricia Sarada, Claudia and the Phantom Phone
Calls and Kristy’s Great Idea by Ann M. Martin,
January 2015
Ryan Liang, What Do You Do with an Idea?
by Kobi Yamada, Skink: No Surrender by Carl
Hiaasen, and Hyde and Shriek: a Monsterrific Tale
by David Lubar, January 2015
Michael Cavalcante, Pterodactyl by Barbara
Alpert in honor of his birthday, February 2015
Nathan Cavalcante, Rabbit’s Snow Dance
by James and Joseph Bruchac in honor of his
birthday, February 2015
Camille Brenner, Brave Girl: Clara and the
Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909 by Michelle
Markel, from Grandma & Grandpa in honor of her
birthday, February 2015
Jessica Kaufmann,
A Bear Called Paddington
by Michael Bond,
February 2015
Library News, continued
Origami
On December 15th, Scott Stern visited Falk
to do some folding with us. Scott is a Falk
alumnus, author of Outside the Box Origami
: A New Generation of Extraordinary Folds,
and coauthor of Fabrigami: The Origami Art of
Folding Cloth to Create Decorative and Useful
Objects. In preparation for his visit, Sue Neff,
founder of The Origami Club of Pittsburgh,
arranged for us to host Origami USA’s
“Origami by Children 2013” exhibit, which we
displayed during December and January.
In January, Pittsburgh highschool student Evan Deddo,
whose origami design was
included in the exhibit, came
to Falk to work with some
of our 4th graders and a
visiting group of students
from the Environmental
Charter School.
RESEARCH BEGINS @ YOUR
LIBRARY
Middle School
research projects are
underway. The library
provides support for
these projects via print
and online resources;
teachers bring their
students to the library
to have ready access
to these resources.
The online databases
are also accessible from home computers.
Students will need a username and/or password. Links to the databases are found on
the library website’s Online Resources page.
All the passwords for these databases are
found in the online document “Passport to
Passwords.” This pdf document is password
protected — the password is “falk.”
• Encyclopaedia Britannica Online School Edition
• Grolier Online
• Gale Student Resource Center
• Gale Virtual Reference Library
•Maps101.com
• Noodle Tools
•POWER Library (This is accessed through
the Carnegie Library website. The password
is your library card barcode number.)
11
Volume 26, Issue 2
From the Art Studio
This year Falk School is hosting Artist-inResidence Katie Kaplan. Katie is a printmaker
who is working with eighth graders to create
a permanent work of art that will hang above
the main stairwell in the school. She has been
challenging students to create imagery connected
to their experience over the last nine years as our
school has grown and changed. In February the
eighth grade class took a field trip to Artist Image
Resources (AIR), a printmaking workshop on the
North Side, to complete multi-layered banners with
Katie and a crew of AIR staff. Students in all grade
levels have had a chance to meet Katie and learn
about her screen-printing work on fabric. Look for
the installation to be hung this spring.
Katie Kaplan also visited with all of the other K-8
classrooms, shared her art work, and invited all of
the students to experience screen-printing. For
example, the third graders screen-printed their
own invented symbols onto the fabric that will be
included in the permanent installation piece. And
after seeing Katie’s travel jumpsuit and her handmade tent, the second graders screen-printed
the third and eighth grade symbols onto a tent that
they will use in their dramatic play spaces on the
primary floor. Kindergarten had the opportunity to
screen-print
the eighth
grade ivy
designs on
the envelopes and
bags that
housed their
Valentine’s
Day gifts
for their
families.
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We want to thank our alumna, Nancy Brzeski, and
her husband Andrzej, for their generous contribution to our Artist-in-Residence program.
On the Friday before
Spring Break, the
fourth grade experienced a wonderful field
trip to the Mattress
Factory. The Mattress
Factory is Pittsburgh’s
very own Installation
Art museum—one of the few in the world. Visiting
the museum’s experiential galleries was a fitting
culmination for this year’s fourth grade exploration and creation of Installation Art. As you may
recall, this past December on the night of the
Intermediate Concert, the Art Studio housed the
fourth grade’s installation of jellyfish, complete with
a water-inspired soundscape, projected watercolor
imagery, and underwater lighting. Thank you PTO
for funding our field trip!
From the Art Studio, continued
Coming this spring in the Art Studio...
Kindergarten is finishing their explorations of
snow, ice and winter and will soon be starting
explorations related to the sensory and aesthetic
dimensions of spring. They will also be exploring
the spring plants and animals discovered in the
school’s backyard.
First grade (room 19) is finishing their clay
self-portraits in their beds. Room 22 is creating
mixed-up, imaginary winged animal marionettes
as the
protagonists
for their
upcoming
writing
projects.
Second
grade (room
21) has
begun their
miniature
squirrel
families and
tree homes.
Room 20 is
completing their oil pastel/watercolor illustrations
for their nature haikus and will be starting their
miniature squirrel families and tree homes.
Third grade is beginning their William Wegmaninspired pet puppets.
Fourth graders are beginning their fairy homes
designed from natural materials.
Fifth graders perform two folk tales using
puppets made in art class.
Sixth graders are beginning action figure
sculptures inspired by the work of visiting artist
Eric Rose.
Seventh graders are working on movie trailers for
an Art and Technology collaboration.
Eighth graders are finishing up their installation
with Katie Kaplan and creating self-proposed
projects.
Pam Armstrong
Cheryl Capezzuti
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Volume 26, Issue 2
Spotlight on Falk Faculty & Staff
In this issue we posed eight questions for
Dr. Conover, who will be leaving Falk at the
end of this school year after 21 years, and Dr.
Armstrong, who has been teaching art at Falk
since 1991.
Lee Ann Conover
Please tell us about your
role at Falk, such as how
long have you been there
and what part of your job
brings you the most joy.
I am in my 21st year at
Falk and I love teaching
in this very special place.
I love the opportunity to
teach all the Falk students in grades K-8. I have
them in Kindergarten and first grade, 4th grade,
Intermediate Chorus and Band, and 6th-8th, so
I get to know everyone. I also enjoy the variety:
music classes, theater classes, instrumental lessons, concert and jazz bands and accompanying
the choruses.
Where did you grow up and what places have you
called home?
I was born in the Finger Lakes region of New
York State in a town called Horseheads. I left
Horseheads to attend college and have since lived
and taught in Corning, NY; Potsdam, NY; Kent,
OH; Penn Run, PA; and I presently live in Smock,
PA.
From your childhood, can you recall a favorite toy,
activity, or author?
My favorite toy was a stuffed animal named
Fluffy—until he was replaced by my saxophone.
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I still loved him, but he spent his days listening to
me play the saxophone. I also enjoyed playing
basketball with my brothers.
What do you miss about being a child?
I love teaching because it allows me to be with
children, and still feel their sense of wonder and
energy for life. So they make me feel like I haven’t
left my childhood. However, I do miss the people
who were a big part of my childhood.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
Making music, reading and going to concerts/
theater with my husband.
If you could have dinner with one famous person—living or non-living—who would it be and
what restaurant would you go to?
William Shakespeare—I wouldn’t need to eat—I
would be too busy listening to him. (I hope Ms.
Wright and Ms. Smith would be able to join us.)
If Will isn’t available, Mozart would be a nice
replacement. I would take both of them to my
favorite little place — “Let Them Eat Cake” in
Stratford, ON.
If you didn’t have this job, what would be your
dream job?
After 21 years, I have come to realize that this IS
my dream job!
Finally, if you could have any superpower, what
would it be and why?
I guess I would want the power of super eyesight
that would allow everyone to see the good in
everyone else, helping all people to accept
each other. n
Spotlight on Falk Faculty & Staff, continued
Pam Armstrong
Please tell us about
your role at Falk, such
as how long have you
been there and what
part of your job brings
you the most joy.
I began teaching art to
Falk children, K-8, in
1991. A few years ago
when we built the new school and increased the
number of students, my role changed to working
with the youngest children, Kindergarten through
fourth grade. I love every aspect of my job, but
what brings me the most joy is when I observe
and experience the children deriving sheer
pleasure from the art making process. When
this occurs, their sense of engagement, excitement, and joy is palpable and charges the whole
atmosphere of the Art Studio. This is my greatest
fulfillment as an art teacher.
Where did you grow up and what places have
you called home?
I grew up not far from Pittsburgh in Sharon,
Pennsylvania, so western Pennsylvania has
always been my home. I spent my summer
college years on the farm of the artists Nizza and
Chick Mangus — friends of our family. Nizza was
my high school art teacher and introduced me
to weaving. Together we spent hours weaving
on our own looms in her studio, spinning and
dyeing wool with natural materials we had
collected, drawing, watercoloring, gardening,
making bread, and cooking everything under the
sun. My love for nature and the outdoors grew
during these years. To this day, nurturing a deep
appreciation for the wonder and beauty of the
natural world is an essential theme in my work
with children. I also spent much of my childhood
visiting my grandparents in Pittsburgh, so it is not
surprising that I returned to work here. Currently,
my home is in Sewickley with my husband, Jay,
and my three stepchildren.
From your childhood, can you recall a favorite
toy, activity, or author?
My favorite book was Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A
Milne — not the Disney version. My favorite
childhood toy was a soft, cuddly, well-worn
stuffed animal dog who I named Fluffy. Even
today, he visits the young children in the Falk art
studio frequently. My favorite activity was playing
school with all of my stuffed animals.
What do you miss about being a child?
I miss that sense of timelessness that occurred
during my times of play.
What do you enjoy doing in your free time?
In my free time, I love to weave and draw,
garden and cook, curl up with a good book,
write, spend as much time as I can outdoors,
and relish the time I have with my family and
good friends--especially over a good meal.
If you could have dinner with one famous
person—living or non-living—who would it be
and what restaurant would you
go to?
I would have lunch with Fred Rogers. I would
walk down to WQED, pick him up, and then we
would walk to The Porch in Oakland and share
a meal.
If you didn’t have this job, what would be your
dream job?
First of all, this is my dream job, and I couldn’t
think of anything that I would love doing more.
Now there are a few things that I might dream of
doing on the side, in addition to teaching at Falk.
I would love to be apprenticed to a favorite chef
— such as Alice Waters — and I would love to
volunteer in a flower shop that creates contemporary, natural-looking arrangements — such
as Hepatica. I would also love to volunteer and
learn as much as possible from the guys who
made my wedding cake at Food Glorious Food,
my favorite bakery.
Finally, if you could have any superpower, what
would it be and why?
If I had any superpower, it would be to be able to
heal the emotional and spiritual wounds of hurting children and adults. Why? Because I’ve seen
that these wounds, when healed, set human
beings free to reach their fullest potential. n
15
Volume 26, Issue 2
Falk Laboratory School
University of Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh PA 15216
Published by the Falk School PTO
Editor
Deborah Walker
dlwalker23@yahoo.com
Designer
Patricia Tsagaris
pinkhaus.design@verizon.net
Please send us your contributions
for future editions of FalkTalk.
Happy Spring!
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