WELCOME BACK!

WE have been working hard all summer to prepare for the school year. Your teachers have been visiting all kinds of places and doing professional development. Yep that's right we were LEARNING new things all summer long. Here's a sneak Peek at some of our adventures.

• Mr. Hussey taught a writing class at UPENN for students going into their first year of college.
  
• Mr. Pilla and Ms. Leaness went to a mini-maker session and learned some new tech tricks.
• Mr. Pilla, Ms. Guarino and Ms. Hertz did presentations at ISTE, an international education conference and Mr. Hussey, Mrs. Reed, Mr. Zeller and Ms. Leaness also attended the conference and took part in sessions.
  
• Mr. Hussy and Ms. Leaness went to ECET2, an education conference as guests of the Gates Foundation.
  
• Ms. Leaness attended a Facing History and Ourselves summer conference with Mr. Jones and Mr. Elish, two student teachers who will be with us this year.
  
• Mr. Zeller was a facilitator for the Teacher's Lead Philly Summer Institute at Swarthmore College. He also took part in the iTag book club on the New Jim Crow.
  
• Ms. Leaness attended a special Edcamp event and participated in the mini-unconference sessions.
• Ms. Aziz explored the hidden natural areas of Philadelphia and learned to read the landscape in a field course called Conservation and Land Management at UPENN. She investigated the Natural Land Trust's Crow's Nest and Preserve and Wissahickon Valley Park.

Your teachers have been all over the world!

• Ms. Isakowitz went to New Zealand and Spain.
  
• Mr. Gray went to DC, Minneapolis, MN. and O'ahu, Hawaii.
• Mr. Hussey and Ms. Leaness went to Seattle.
• Mr. Pilla went to Beliz.
• Ms. Williams and Mr. Rosen-Long went to Cuba.
• Mr. Roy spent a few days in Boston.