Heated air expands and bubbles from the flask.

Nancy Buchman’s students in (9-12) are learning about hot air, the increased movement of molecules, and hot air’s expansion in a closed vessel. Students inserted glass tubing into a rubber stopper and placed it in the mouth of the flask. The flask was turned upside down in a ring stand and lowered until the glass straw extended into a small beaker of water. The alcohol burner heated the air in the flask, and the only place for that expanded air to go was out the glass tubing and into the beaker. What did they get? Air bubbles!

Students built their own planes at the GE Learning Center.

  General Electric hosted our (6-9) students in a tour of their facility. Students were introduced to 3-D printing and could see how this technology aids in the design of machine parts. Students saw examples of GE planes and helicopters – and even got a chance to design their own planes using thick paper, weights and basic flight design principles. The class appreciated the tour and now has a deeper understanding of all that’s involved in creating and manufacturing these extremely complicated machines.

Watch an egg get sucked into a flask; one of the miracles of science!

TNSM teacher Nancy Buchman shared a video of an egg and a balloon being sucked into a flask and jar thanks to the magic of hot air and air pressure working together. Here’s how the experiment worked: Nancy put a lit piece of paper into the jar which caused the air to heat up. As the hot air rose, the air pressure in the jar lowered. The higher air pressure outside the container pushed both the egg and balloon into the jars.

Flat Stanley travels the world.

Kira Hinkle and Kristen Rammel’s 2nd grade class read the Flat Stanley book and took the challenge of mailing Flat Stanleys to friends throughout the world to take pictures of him in front of exciting landmarks. As “Stanley pictures” arrive, students enjoy this window into different cultures. We have photos of Stanley in front of a Frank Lloyd Wright home, Big Ben, a double-decker bus, a phone booth, a London bus, a New Orleans’ street and in front of Stanley School.

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Enjoy the full version of the musical “Stone Soup” performed by 1st-3rd graders.

Get your popcorn ready and find a comfy chair to enjoy this amazing musical. Plot Summary: Weary travelers entered Old Town with a less-than-warm reception, but once they offered to make stone soup, the community got excited and found something to add to the cook pot. Many thanks to all who were a part of this presentation, including the musical’s director Melissa Robinson and her assistant Grace Robinson, and music and dance teachers Andrea Rosenthal Warnken and Jeanne Speier.

Channel 12’s John Gumm creates “weather” with the 1st-3rd grade class

Local 12​’s weatherman, John Gumm, visited The New School Montessori and made “lightning” from balloon static, “rain” from a super-saturated paper towel, and “clouds” from compressed water vapor in an empty 2 liter bottle. John also made TV weather anchors out of Will and Parker who, in the video below, gave their best attempt at weather reporting while being “hit” with gale-force winds from a leaf blower and torrential rain from a spray bottle.

(6-9) Teacher Kira Hinkle is very involved in peace education at TNSM and worldwide through AMS

Since first reading the writings of Maria Montessori, Kira Hinkle has found herself drawn to Montessori’s emphasis on peace education. Kira recognizes the importance of developing the whole child and finds it is increasingly overlooked in the education of young minds, and yet, it is at the center of the Montessori philosophy. It is for this reason, that as an educator, she was drawn to the Montessori method and was interested specifically in The New School Montessori which teaches and practices peace education with its staff and children. In addition to teaching at the 6-9 level, Kira also serves as a member of the American Montessori Society’s Executive …

Thank you for your support of our Make Your Mark Auction and Gala!

Thank you to our sponsors, guests and volunteers who supported our Make Your Mark Auction and Gala!  Your generosity made this event a record-breaking fundraiser, but it’s not over yet. You can still make a tax deductible gift by clicking here, and for every donation over $100, you’ll receive a DVD copy of the video shown at the event.

Students create homemade barometers.

Nancy Buchman’s physical science class is studying atmospheric pressure. They created homemade barometers by trapping air in glass jars that were then covered with a balloon. When the air pressure outside the jar increases, it pushes down on the balloon. When the air pressure outside the jar decreases, the higher pressured air in the jar pushes up on the balloon causing a slight dome.