The universal language of music! In our Early Education Center, music is seamlessly woven into activities and helps enhance learning. For faculty members Amy Kuenzel and Ximena Yanez’s primary students, incorporating music from around the world creates a global perspective in the classroom.

“Many studies have shown the great importance of music in early childhood development,” said Yanez. “While listening, children are often strengthening vocabulary, social emotional skills, and the relationship between body and brain. Why not branch out from what we’re used to hearing on the radio?” Students have been enjoying a range of multilingual CDs from India, France, and a number of South American countries, which students locate by pouring over their classroom map.

“They are making the connection between sound and place,” noted Yanez. “Now if you step into room 102, you can often find them holding hands and dancing to their favorites. We’re listening to French Caribbean this week!” It’s just one of many ways that make Ashley Hall’s early education program the only one of its kind in the Charleston area.

Lower School students journeyed among the stars this week, all from the comfort of the LoDome! With the help of the StarLab (an inflatable, portable planetarium), Lower School faculty member Beth McCarty used an interdisciplinary approach to introduce girls to science and humanity concepts, including light pollution, star formation, and the myths behind constellations.

“I was so happy we could visit the StarLab this year,” said McCarty. “This felt like a field trip to space with plenty of smiles and excitement. We do a brief discussion about stars, constellations, and our star—the sun! Then we crawl into outer space, and I point out common constellations, tell some myths that go along with the stories, and of course name the zodiac constellations. The students beg me to tell them more about Greek mythology. They get lost in the drama of these magical stories!”

As the Lower School Science Lab’s dedicated instructor, McCarty brings hands-on science to all students during her amazing weekly classes, which always feature an exciting experiment, a new STEAM project, and sometimes even an animal dissection! Each session opens a new adventure for students. “After the students see the constellations in the StarLab, they are able to look at our night sky and point them out to their own families,” enthused McCarty. In Pardue Hall, girls are always at the center of the action; there simply is no better way to cultivate a love of science from an early age.   

This school year, second graders have been busy as bees in pursuit of one of their favorite subjects: insects! During investigations in their homeroom classes and the Lower School science lab, they learned about insect life cycles by raising ladybugs and mealworms and dissected flowers to understand pollination. While visiting Ashley Hall’s Nature Retreat on Johns Island, they even dug up a one foot by one foot square of dirt to study insect ecosystems, with creepy yet exciting results!

For students, these hands-on activities vividly illustrate insects’ critical roles in the environment and inspire them to record their own observations. “After reading non-fiction books about insects, each student wrote her own non-fiction book about the insect or arachnid of her choice,” said Lower School faculty member Beth McCarty. “They also participated in a science lab where they ‘became honeybees’ and learned what it was like to live and work in a beehive.”

As a capstone, students had an opportunity to become beekeepers with Ashley Hall’s own active hives. “They put on bee suits, learned about beekeeping tools, and then visited our Upper School rooftop hives to check on our honeybees, who are healthy and storing honey for the winter!” enthused McCarty. These immersive experiences connect students directly with the subject matter and spark their desire to learn more. Now that is certainly something to buzz about!

In Visual Arts faculty member Raúl Miyar’s Foundations of Art class, students become keenly aware of their environment. Only by learning to refine their skill of observation can they begin to develop as artists. “Figure drawing is a pillar in beginning drawing lessons because of the complexity of the subject,” Miyar noted. “It requires intense focus and observation to attain accurate descriptions of shapes and forms. As one of the most important foundational drawing exercises, it expands the student’s perceptional skills.”

To hone their drawing skills and techniques this semester, students completed a series of figure studies using their peers as models. For Miyar, observing objectively is critical. “At the introduction to the course I explain that they are not learning how to draw but are instead learning how to see,” he said. “Most of them have probably not absorbed this information conceptually at this stage, but in time as they practice their observational skills, they will begin to comprehend the power of visual expression and how they are in control of what they communicate visually. As they develop their skills further, these conceptual ideas will become the basis of their practice, but before they reach that point they need to develop the technical skills that will enable them to communicate their ideas freely and uniquely.”

In their sketches, Miyar’s students capture their classmates in various poses during everyday life. As part of the campus environment, masks appear in many of the students’ compositions and reflect the reality of life during a pandemic. “The emphasis now in their training is technical, but whether the student knows it or not, when observing reality the result is usually compellingly honest and captivating,” Miyar pointed out. “The ordinary, which is normally overlooked, is not transformed; it is simply observed and highlighted. In acquiring the basic technical skills, the student learns to scrutinize that which is usually not noticed, consequently giving it new life and significance. The result is a direct window into each artist’s perception of the world and all the emotions connected to what and how each individual perceives.”

Sketches by (left to right): Elliot Tick ’24, Eads Hubbell ’23, and Elizabeth Perkins ’24

As leaders in Pardue Hall, fourth graders take their responsibilities seriously. In prior years they traditionally ran the weekly Lower School Assembly and took turns planning and presenting the content. However, with assemblies on campus suspended for safety precautions, a new medium of communication was needed. “We felt that it was important to find a way to continue this practice of leadership for our students,” said Lower School faculty member Kendall Lee, who teaches fourth grade along with Lower School faculty member Allie Jordan. “Having gotten used to using a lot of different media platforms, it was relatively easy to make the jump to filming a weekly news show that we could disseminate to the rest of the Lower School. Each week, two fourth grade girls interview an Ashley Hall staff member, report the weekend weather, make special announcements, acknowledge birthdays, report on pop tab collections, and note any other additions contributed from outside sources.”

The content is fun and engaging, and fourth graders are eager to help the Lower School stay connected. “It’s nice to be able to practice, rather than being live in front of the entire Lower School,” said Claire Khan ’29. Filming locations have included the Collab Lab and the Bear Cave, and Performing Arts faculty member Kristine Peters pitches in with formatting each week’s presentation. “I like the extras that Ms. Peters has added in, like the clapping and the singing in the background,” said Virginia Hagood ’29. For Sadie Winters ’29, the joke of the week is her favorite, “even though they’re kind of silly.” While fourth graders miss the big assemblies of the past, they still appreciate the chance to fulfill their important leadership roles and learn something new. “It’s disappointing that we can’t do it live in Davies Auditorium, but it’s fun getting to film, especially in different locations,” smiled Camille Marler ’29 and Pippa Taylor ’29. That sounds like the making of a good morning.

Boat Building has become a rite of passage for Ashley Hall fifth graders, who partner with the Lowcountry Maritime Society on a year-long project crafting their own fleet of wooden boats, and the tradition continues this year! While the safety precautions have increased, the opportunities for skill building, confidence gains, and outdoor fun make this the perfect project for students to learn the ropes of an experiential education.

Research shows that girls decide as early as fifth grade if they will consider careers in the areas of math and science. For the Intermediate Program, sparking interest and solidifying skills in STEAM fields are key curricular goals. “I like Boat Building because it teaches me new skills like drilling, driving, and measuring parts of the boat,” said Marlowe Johnsen ’28. “It gives us new ways to learn.” Creating an outlet for girls to gain confidence and enjoy working outdoors is also a priority. “I love it because everyone is working together, we get to try new things, and we are making new friends while we do it,” asserted Brier Fava ’28. “Yes, we do use power tools a lot!”

During this unique STEAM project, students are guided through the process of learning how to read scaled plans and transform those plans into a wooden boat they build themselves. In addition to teaching building craftsmanship, the program places an emphasis on communication and teamwork. “I love Boat Building because you get to work together and make a really cool project in the end,” said Hannah King ’28. That finale comes this spring, when the girls will head to Colonial Lake to put their handiwork to the test. The year-long journey there is exactly what floats their boats.