Friends School of Minnesota’s Conflict Resolution Program embodies many qualities that reflect our mission, our values and our progressive educational practice. On March 1-2, Alissa Abelson (Jungle Teacher and Conflict Resolution Coordinator) and Sara Wayne (K-8 Spanish teacher and middle school advisor) presented our conflict resolution program at the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS) in Baltimore, Maryland at their annual convention. The NAIS theme this year was “From Vision.. Read More
Media Literacy and the Penumbra Theater Company
Friends School of Minnesota 7th and 8th graders wrapped up our Race, Gender, and Sexuality in the Media and Pop Culture unit in humanities in May. This unit challenges students to examine the role media plays in their lives, how the media constructs messages about race/ethnicity, gender, and sexuality, and how those messages impact one’s sense of identity. We center the unit around the Center for Media Literacy’s five core concepts.. Read More
Thoughts About Community
Friends School of Minnesota head of school Lili Herbert shares some thoughts about community in her weekly newsletter message to FSM parents. She reminds us that community at its best is inclusive and supportive of every member. However, she also notes that community can be very challenging. Community sometimes requires us to be more tolerant, forgiving, and open to change in ourselves and others. Dear Friends School of Minnesota Parents, I think some of you may have seen.. Read More
8th Grade Capstone Project 2014 – Conflict Resolution
For the 2014 8th Grade Capstone Project, we chose to focus on Friends School’s Conflict Resolution (CR) Program. For the past year, we have immersed ourselves in understanding and evaluating the Conflict Resolution Program, going over the CR manual, watching the CR training video, and assessing what is working and what’s not working with conferences in lower and middle school. To begin with, we looked at the different aspects of.. Read More
Spotlight on Alumni: Matt Chrastek
Since 2000, Friends School of Minnesota has graduated nearly 200 alumni who are out in the world carrying out the mission of the school. We caught up with Matt Chrastek (FSM Class of 2004) as he heard that he will receive a Peace Corps Master’s International assignment next summer.
Improving the Social Climate of Middle School: 8th Grade Capstone Project 2012-13
At Friends School of Minnesota, we are committed to providing a holistic education, nurturing the physical, intellectual, spiritual, and social development of children. We do this in countless ways every day and through our curriculum. Here are two examples of how our students and staff worked this year to improve the social climate of middle school. Kindness Retreat with Youth Frontiers Every other year, Friends School of Minnesota 5th & 6th.. Read More
1987 article about the founding of Friends School of Minnesota
Thank you to Don Irish for digging up this 1987 Tribune article about the origins of Friends School of Minnesota. It is interesting to read about FSM’s origins and see that the founders’ vision and core values are still strong 25 years later.
Bullying: Behaviors vs. Character
An article in a recent issue of Independent School magazine, “Why Our Approach to Bullying is Bad for Kids” caught my attention. In essence, the author Susan Porter, a school dean, says that labeling children as either “bully” or “victim” doesn’t help us to help children.