Published for the Arts Based School Community
March 7, 2024
Friday, March 8- Early Dismissal-Conferences
- K-4 Dismiss at 11:45
- 5-8 Dismiss at 12 noon
Monday, March 11 No School-Conferences
How We Do It and Why
By Mary Siebert
“To have a comeback, you have to have a setback.” - Mr. T.
It has been a relief to welcome group activity back into our school, at levels comparable with pre-COVID ones. Bit by bit, we feel the energy returning, and the disconnections being revitalized. We are in our comeback phase.
Tuesday, we welcomed singers from UNCSA; graduate students from the prestigious Fletcher Opera program. As part of their studies, they perform one-act operas for young children around the community. With all of our 1st and 2nd graders from both campuses in the theater, we learned what opera is: A play that tells a story, in which the characters usually sing instead of speaking. Why do they sing instead of talking? Because the music tells part of the story too, just as it does in a movie or cartoon. A scary moment will have scary music, a happy moment will have happy music, along with the words.
Afterward, students had opinions about their favorite character, they wondered whether the pianist was considered to be one of the characters, they had questions about the plastic fruit and the moment one singer tripped…live theater always brings up a host of feelings and questions unique to live theater.
Today, we welcome the Fletcher Opera singers back to perform for all of our one hundred kindergarten students. At the opposite end of our age spectrum, our 8th graders will take a trip with Coach Bri to see the ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament; the first time we’ve ever had this exciting opportunity!
Meanwhile, the 7th graders have been auditioning for their own opera: Brundibar, coming up in early May. 7th graders have also recently been to The Sawtooth Center where they learned to run a printing press and printed art to accompany their poetry, with guidance and inspiration from the irrepressible Terry Schupbach-Gordon. Mrs. Gledhill is planning a “Wayzgoose” celebration of their work, more to come on that when details are established.
3rd Grades venture out to the Piedmont Environmental Center next week. 4th grade is busy working with Mr. Bob as they prepare for their big show (more about this next week!) 5th grade looks forward to a visit to the Civil Rights Museum in Greensboro in two weeks, and 8th grade has another big trip toward the end of the month, to visit Raleigh and the NC Museum of Art. K-1 will see a play from the UNCG School of Drama the week before break, and we’ll end that week with 2nd, 3rd, and 4th graders hearing a concert by the great WSSU Burke Singers.
6th grades are working toward band concerts, and we hope to announce soon when those will take place in May. Meanwhile, they are beginning work on their music videos about Genghis Khan, Joan of Arc, and Mansa Musa. Meanwhile, student teachers from Wake Forest University circulate through the school with regularity, peeking into classrooms and taking notes. What they see are groups of students focused on reading, math, science, writing, social studies, plus all of the above mentioned activities. Yes! It feels like we are back in action.
Final Friday Sing
The final Friday Sing of the year is scheduled for May 24 at 10:20 a.m. This is a half day that will allow us to assemble outside in the morning, before it gets too hot (it really will be hot by then, no kidding,) and parents will be welcome to join us. K-8 students at ABS North will assemble in the courtyard of the 7th Street building. K-2 students at ABS South will assemble outside to sing together.
Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids (CCCK)
ABS is participating in the state’s effort to ensure all schools are free from lead and asbestos through the Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids program. The state is provided free testing and if necessary remediation for all public schools. We began the process by identifying all taps used for drinking and/or cooking preparation within the ABS-North campus. We collected samples from these taps and sent them to the state for processing. The results were returned to us this morning. The Clean Classrooms for Carolina Kids™ team received 29 sampled taps at The Arts Based School. We did not detect lead in the facility's drinking and cooking water samples. No mitigation activities required. The ABS-South campus is leased from WSFC which will conduct it’s own testing. For more information, visit www.cleanwaterforuskids.com/carolina
2024 ABS Summer Camps
Registration is now OPEN for Summer Camps! Please follow the link below to register. Click on the title of the camp that you would like to register for and fill out the Google Form. Invoices will be sent following registration to secure your spots! Check out the updated FAQ!
2024 ABS Summer Camp Registration
Contact Ashley Tate at [email protected] with any questions.
Yearbook Orders!- Deadline March 15
It's time. Please place your order for yearbooks. Envelopes have been sent home; however, you can easily order online as well.
Website: www.strawbridge.net
Order Code: YB29376
Cost: $25
This year's book will include both campuses.
Inclement Weather
In the event of inclement weather, ABS will announce school closings on local TV channels, under “The Arts Based School”. This information will also be posted on the ABS website (www.artsbasedschool.com).
Ways to get involved and learn more about ABS:
- Follow us on Social Media
- Read and Review the Student/Parent Handbook
- Catch up on Thursday Notes you may have missed
- Explore the ABS website
- Make sure we have best contact information so that you receive all communications