Lower School Archives

February 22, 2018

At Mounds Park Academy, a private school in Saint Paul, the words “kindergarten” and “joy” are inseparable. And it doesn’t matter who’s describing the experience.

When asked what she loves about teaching kindergarten, MPA’s Kristine Petersen said immediately, “Pure joy!” While Petersen didn’t specify if it was her joy or that of her students, it’s clear from a parent’s feedback that it’s both.

“Our daughter seems so committed to school because of her joy for it, which is the goal. She not only believes in the joy of school, but she trusts in the joy and excitement you bring to learning and to the classroom!”

Learning by Doing

The overarching philosophy at MPA is that kindergartners learn best by doing. MPA kindergartners move, play, dream, and do. The teachers present every single day as filled with wonder. In an MPA kindergarten class, education is fun, meaningful, purposeful, challenging, and always hands-on.

For example, students: Read More

Incredible Summer Drama Opportunities

February 22, 2018

by Heather Mastel, MPA drama teacher

One of the reasons I love teaching drama is how it resonates with children. There is movement, humor, and creativity. It also teaches collaboration, communication, empathy, reflection, and problem-solving skills for creative challenges. I am excited to bring these learning opportunities to Summer at MPA! Children in Beyond Drama Class will create their own short play, while Beyond Acting! gives lower school students the chance to design, write, and choreograph. The One Act Drama Camp will challenge middle schoolers to rehearse and perform a one-act performance in just one week. We will also go see “Shrek Jr.” and tour the Guthrie Theatre.

For more information about these incredible drama classes and so many other opportunities, visit moundsparkacademy.org/summer. Next week in Panther Post, we’ll share much more about our brand-new summer musical program!

Parent Education With Dr. Jules Nolan

February 15, 2018

The MPA Parents Association invites parents to attend two upcoming talks by Dr. Jules Nolan. Please note that these talks are open to all MPA parents, not just Middle and Lower School. However, the Wednesday discussion will be geared toward Middle School families, so while all can attend, the content will be focused on that age group’s developmental needs.

The Middle School Parent Event is Wednesday, February 21, from 8–9 AM in the Porter Conference Room. Dr. Jules Nolan will present “Social and Emotional Learning: A Better Predictor of Success in School.” This session will explore social and emotional learning, a skill set that is foundational in learning and life, and is currently the focus of new standards and benchmarks from the Minnesota Department of Education. Participants will better understand the five areas of SEL skills and how to develop lagging skills in the areas of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making.

A Joyful Valentine’s Day

February 15, 2018

A big thank you to the whole community for spreading love and joy and making Valentine’s Day on campus such a special one! We hope you had fun with our giveaway contest and are so grateful for each and every one of you!

See some adorable Valentine’s Day party photos here! And, yes, that is Ms. Petersen sliding down the bouncy house slide!

Meet Ms. Stinson

February 13, 2018

Third grade teacher

How many years have you been at MPA?
Thirty years plus—I started teaching at MPA in the 1985-86 school year.

What do you love about MPA?
I love the individualized instruction and attention we can give each student. Due to small class sizes, we know our students very well and can give them the support and positive interactions they need to grow as learners. We differentiate each lesson and help each student become the best they can be, and to grow and thrive each day. Feeling positive about learning and having confidence to move ahead to meet expectations means everything. These components are the recipe for success.

How does MPA nurture students who forever dream big and do right?
We love all of our students as individuals and support their dreams, efforts, and strengths. We encourage them, every day, throughout their world of learning and growing.

If you have worked at another school, how has your experience at MPA been different?
It is different because we truly “believe” in kids.

What would you tell a parent considering MPA?
I would say, “If you want your student to be supported and celebrated as a learner, leader, and achiever, come to MPA!” Read More

Celebrating an Allergy Aware Valentine’s Day

February 1, 2018

Popcorn, Pirate’s Booty, birthday cake applesauce (seriously, try it!), and more! As part of MPA’s efforts to be a more allergy aware school, we are happy to share the Valentine’s Day edition of the Snack Safely list!

Looking for something beyond the little ones’ tastebuds? We are also very excited to share that MPA is on Pinterest, and premiering a food-free Valentine’s Day idea board! Head there to find tons of fun and slightly out-of-the-box ways to say “I care about you!” to all of your friends this Valentine’s Day! We can’t wait to celebrate with you and see what your creativity brings to the Lower School festivities on February 14!

The Great Kindness Challenge

January 25, 2018

If this is your first time hearing of “The Great Kindness Challenge,” it can be described in many ways. By definition, it is an annual, nation-wide initiative that takes place at the end of January. To those who see our Lower School students participating, it is one week dedicated to enhancing a pervasive culture of kindness in our school. To everyone who witnesses the Challenge taking place, it is a system of encouragement for our littlest minds to consider how their random acts of kindness add up. Lower School students are taking action and participating this week, as kindness is a core principle of their CHAMP program.

“Character education is one of the most important cornerstones at Mounds Park Academy. Our commitment to educating the whole child means that academic preparation is but one aspect of education, and that the artistic, physical, social, emotional, and ethical development are equally important. In practice, character education comes to life through the Lower School CHAMP Program,” Dr. Bill Hudson shared in an earlier Head’s Message.

Kindness and compassion make a significant contribution to the early character development Dr. Hudson speaks of. Thus, all week, students have been taking action to complete the “kindness checklist.” Many students have quickly figured out that their daily behavior already checks a thing or two off the list!

Faculty Explore the 6 Cs

January 24, 2018

The academic emphasis on only reading, writing, and arithmetic is long gone; the emphasis today is broader and more nuanced than these foundational skills encompass. Some schools, including Mounds Park Academy, are even broadening the skills identified in the “21st Century Skills” movement, commonly known as “the 4 Cs” or critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity, to include two additional Cs: culture and connectivity.

At MPA, we welcome the increased focus on these critical skills, because, as a progressive and independent school, we’ve been emphasizing them since our beginning in 1982. This was long before the 21st Century was in our public consciousness. We have known for 36 years that these skills are critical for students to become engaged, thoughtful, and informed global citizens who are able to use their deep content knowledge to make a difference in their communities, in our country, and in the world.

We asked six MPA faculty members from across our community to share how they develop the 6 Cs in their students:

Thoughts on Critical Thinking from Jason Schwalen, Upper School English

In the English Department at MPA, we are creating students who are not simply critical thinkers, but informed thinkers who are willing to use those critical thinking skills to confront and solve the problems our culture has carried throughout history…attaining justice, equality, equity, and inclusivity begins with education.

In order to move our culture in a positive direction, our students need to be informed readers, critical thinkers, and skilled writers, and we build these skills by analyzing authors and artists who have attempted to document and improve our culture. Examining these authorial perspectives—and writing about them—helps create a foundation that equips our students to assess, analyze, and tackle the challenges that accompany trying to change the world. Read More

Living Lives of Health and Wholeness

January 11, 2018

by Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School

Today, Middle School students met in mixed-grade level groups to explore the character trait of perseverance, a core pillar of our Middle School Character Education Program. Each group collaborated to complete two separate challenges related to fostering perseverance and then processed their experience with their teachers. Learning from failure, working together, developing skills such as persistence and tenacity were all a part of the lesson, but in the spirit of MPA, there was also a lot of joyful learning taking place.

Character education is but one part of an overall Mounds Park Academy wellness program. The MPA Strategic Plan, Momentum 2020, has as its first goal, “Empower students to live, learn, and thrive in the 21st century globalized society.” Academic and career success are important and MPA provides students a rigorous and relevant curriculum. But as a school committed to educating the whole child, we also understand that in order to reach one’s full potential, students must also have the knowledge and skills necessary live lives of health and wholeness.

Mental illness and anxiety among young people are on the rise. For instance, by the age of 18, 15-25 percent of adolescents will have experienced a major depressive episode. We also know that suicide is the second leading cause of death for Americans ages 15-34. A recent New York Times article quoted research from the Higher Education Research Institute at UCLA that found the percentage of college freshmen reporting feeling overwhelmed rose from 18 percent in 1985 to 29 percent in 2010 and surged to 41 percent last year. These facts paint a grave picture—one that illustrates clearly how critical our work is in this area.

Fostering Citizen Scientists

January 4, 2018

by Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School

Just before break, the Washington Post reported that seven words were being banned from official documents being prepared for the 2018 budget at the Centers for Disease Control including “evidence-based” and “science-based.” The national conversation around “fake news” and questions about the veracity of climate change have placed science and science education at center stage. In addition, the steady drumbeat calling for more STEM education has ignited a passionate discourse about science education, particularly within a liberal arts education. In the midst of this often-polarizing discussion, I have repeatedly seen evidence that MPA does science ‘right’ by focusing on applied learning, critical thinking, and a grounding in fostering students to become citizen scientists.

The MPA science curriculum is founded on the principles of active and inquiry-based learning as first developed when the school was in its infancy. Our phenomenal science teachers continue to provide rich, thoughtful, experiences and opportunities for experimental design, while at the same time giving students the background and content they need to succeed in college and beyond. MPA students are encouraged to think critically about science by using their successes and failures in the lab as learning opportunities. What worked? What didn’t? How could it have been improved? Did it prove anything? These questions are best answered through learning by doing.