WFS Faculty Present at NAIS People of Color Conference
WFS history teachers Don Morton '94 and John Hanson recently attended the NAIS People of Color Conference and presented "Teaching Race, Gender, and other 'Tough Material' - Strategies for Presenting Uncomfortable Aspects of American History."
Don and John, who have both been teaching at WFS for more than 20 years, sought to share their experiences as classroom teachers with other educators who may be worried and considering abandoning "tried and true" lessons, texts, and other materials because of racism, discrimination, violence, abusive language, or other reasons. Their recommendations include always giving students a sense of agency or control, being proactive in acknowledging what might be triggering, and looking at scholarship compared to the realities and challenges. The session was incredibly well-received and led to great discussion among educators and administrators in attendance.
"It was a pleasure to work with Don on this presentation, to see his skills as a presenter and teacher really shine among a national audience of independent school educators, and to have an opportunity to work collaboratively as teachers within the upper and middle school divisions," Hanson said.
Preschoolers visited the middle/upper school garden to learn more about what is grown there and had the chance to transplant their own basil plants to take home!
Pablo Charriez '24 recently presented about redlining and discriminatory housing practices to 10th grade English classes who are studying the topic while reading Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun.
Kindergarten students traveled to the Delaware Museum of Nature and Science and had a blast learning about the dryptosaurus (Delaware's dinosaur), seeing fossils, meeting a ball python, and more!
Earlier this week, International Baccalaureate and Advanced Science classes visited Incyte labs to speak with chemists and biologists and learn more about the drug development process. Thank you to Scott Larsen, parent of Emma '25, for arranging the presentations and tours.
Lower school students had the opportunity to meet with author Sarah Weeks, who has written more than 60 books for young readers including the best-selling novels, Pie, Save Me a Seat and So B. It, which is now a feature-length film. Our 5th grade students shared and got feedback on first lines and stories based on picture prompts and writing techniques.
Donovan Aldridge '18 and Jack Hanson '18, both currently living in Europe, recently met in Granada, Spain, where they joined the parents of WFS Spanish teacher Dario Robles for dinner in their home!
Last week, the WFS 10th grade visited the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. as part of their continuing study of American History.
Thank you for an incredible Quaker Game Night! This year's event was the largest and most successful yet, and we couldn't have done it without this amazing community.
Statement of Nondiscrimination as to Student Enrollment
Wilmington Friends School admits students of any race, color, gender, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students of these schools. Wilmington Friends School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, national and ethnic origin in administration of their educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school administered programs.