Building Community through Conservancy in Lower School Science
Holly Caldwell
Stroll past the Lower School’s pollinator garden in the spring and you’ll see preschoolers engaging in a delicate dance with monarch butterflies. Initially, Shipley’s youngest students are likely more enchanted with the thought of chasing these winged creatures than understanding their deeper connection to our environment. But much like the maturation cycle of the monarch, under the tutelage of Lower School Science teacher Dan Del Duca, students will graduate from tracking animal prints in the snow in Pre-K and Kindergarten, to learning about the water cycle as second graders, to conducting chemical tests to determine the overall health of the Mill Creek. Over the years, fifth graders have collected data that shows a high increase of chloride levels after snow storms due to road salt being applied to area roads.
Each hands-on activity is designed so that students can participate in the decade-long partnership Mr. Del Duca has cultivated with the Lower Merion Conservancy (LMC). Working toward the mutual goal of caring for the local watershed, Mr. Del Duca’s students work in collaboration with the LMC to raise community awareness of this issue. Shipley’s yearlong program on sustainability is key to supporting this mission, as it helps students understand their individual role in the larger ecosystem, which “gives them a sense of personal responsibility of caring for our environment,” explains Mr. Del Duca.
To protect our watershed and in collaboration with Shipley’s horticulture program, this spring the group will build a rain garden on the Lower School’s campus to filter water and trap runoff. Though grounded in science, this project encapsulates all aspects of life in the real world. “It’s scientific, mechanical, and mathematical, but at its core are social elements, because it affects us all as human beings.” Mr. Del Duca encourages all students to view environmentally based endeavors through a new lens: “Projects reach their full potential when everyone in the community participates. When the methodical student works alongside the humanistic dreamer, that’s when the magic happens.”
Fifth graders visited Ashbridge Park to collect and analyze water samples as part of their yearlong program on sustainability in science class. The data collected is shared with the Lower Merion Conservancy. “We have a true partnership sharing stream data and educating the public about keeping our streams and rivers clean,” said Mr. Del Duca.
Fifth graders visited Ashbridge Park to collect and analyze water samples as part of their yearlong program on sustainability in science class. The data collected is shared with the Lower Merion Conservancy. “We have a true partnership sharing stream data and educating the public about keeping our streams and rivers clean,” said Mr. Del Duca.
Fifth graders visited Ashbridge Park to collect and analyze water samples as part of their yearlong program on sustainability in science class. The data collected is shared with the Lower Merion Conservancy. “We have a true partnership sharing stream data and educating the public about keeping our streams and rivers clean,” said Mr. Del Duca.
Fifth graders visited Ashbridge Park to collect and analyze water samples as part of their yearlong program on sustainability in science class. The data collected is shared with the Lower Merion Conservancy. “We have a true partnership sharing stream data and educating the public about keeping our streams and rivers clean,” said Mr. Del Duca.
The Shipley Sprouts, Shipley's Upper School horticulture club, won two second-place awards at the 2022 Philadelphia Flower Show for their Tablescape exhibit. In addition, students in the Upper School STEAM Department won third and second-place awards for their Garden Gate exhibit.
The Shipley School is proud to announce that Don Draper has been appointed as Director of Tennis. In his capacity as Director of Tennis, Don will oversee the growth, continuity, and strategic vision for tennis at Shipley.
Originally published in the May 2022 issue of the Upper School student newspaper, The Beacon, this article shares insights from All School President Griffin Chulik ’22 about his student government experience and some final thoughts as he departs from the Shipley community and prepares to head off to college in the fall.
Helping students identify their strengths and weaknesses is an essential goal for any educator guiding them on the path to success. This is especially important in sixth grade, as students make the transition from elementary to middle school. One cornerstone of the sixth grade SEED curriculum is having students explore their own learning styles and apply this knowledge to forming relationships.
On Thursday, May 26 the Upper School held its annual Closing Awards Ceremony. During this ceremony, Shipley recognized the outgoing and incoming student leadership officers and presented students with academic, athletic, and leadership awards.
Shipley's Middle School Latin students took the 2022 National Latin Examination with over 100,000 students from around the world. An impressive 26 students earned Latin Award prizes and recognition for excellence. Middle School Latin students also competed in The Philadelphia Classical Society's 83rd Annual Latin Week Competition - Traditional Artistry & Literary Projects on Classical themes. A total of 55 Middle School students won Latin Awards and recognition for excellence.
The Shipley School is proud to announce the appointment of Harry Green as the School’s new Director of Track and Field. This new position will oversee all running programs. Coach Green will be Head Coach of the Varsity Indoor and Outdoor Track & Field teams and the Cross Country team.
What do Coke and Pepsi have to do with statistics? The seniors in Matt Frankel’s interdisciplinary statistics class can tell you! After studying the statistical problem-solving process all year, students ran a large study with 300 subjects to see if they could differentiate between Coke and Pepsi with a greater accuracy than random guessing would provide.
Shipley Middle School science teacher Ace Schwarz has been selected to participate in its 2022 National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Landmarks of American History Workshop, The Space Age on the Space Coast. "I am hoping to bring back what I learn so we can really develop the space exploration aspect of our curriculum," commented Mx. Schwarz.
Shipley’s Middle School Science Olympiad team earned an overall ninth-place finish at the Pennsylvania Science Olympiad State Tournament held at Penn State Altoona on April 30.
The Shipley School is proud to announce that after an extensive search, Eva Winiarski has been named Head Varsity Girls' Lacrosse Coach. She brings a wealth of teaching, playing, and coaching experience to Shipley, most recently as the Assistant Lacrosse Coach and Defensive Coordinator at The McDonough School in Maryland. In the classroom, Eva will join Shipley’s exceptional English Department as an Upper School teacher.
On April 24, 2022, three groups of Shipley’s Upper School students presented research at a roundtable presentation of the Student Participatory Action Research Collaboration (SPARC). “Our students were passionate, thorough, confident, and genuinely enthusiastic about their research topics,” said student advisor and Shipley’s Interim Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Sheri Rider Jobe.
Shipley sixth-grader Jordyn Colbert '28 won first place in the 17th Annual Charlotte Miller Simon Poetry Contest, presented by the Ardmore Free Library.
Shipley’s Middle School and Upper School Science Olympiad teams participated in the Southeast Pennsylvania Science Olympiad Tournament. Combined, the teams earned 18 medals and qualified for the State tournament.
The Shipley School’s DEI Strategic Plan goal 3 is to ensure an equitable experience for all members of the community. One initiative of that goal is to create and support affinity spaces for students, colleagues, families, and alumni. Affinity spaces speak to the efforts of not just ensuring equitable experiences, but also creating experiences that foster belonging in our community. Learn more about our efforts to create these spaces.
In 2021, the Shipley Black Alumni Association (BAA) set the goal of raising $100,000 to establish an endowed fund at Shipley to support experiences aimed at educating students about American history and culture through the lens of African-American contributions. By the end of Black History Month 2022, the results are impressive: $55,170 given by 116 donors.
The Shipley School is a private, coeducational day school for pre-kindergarten through 12th grade students, located in Bryn Mawr, PA. Through our commitment to educational excellence, we develop within each student a love of learning and a desire for compassionate participation in the world.