Every day at Tenacre begins with a handshake as the head of school greets arriving students. This act of trust and personal attention sets the tone for all that follows. At Tenacre, we embrace the elementary years. As a Pre-K through Grade 6 coed school, we offer a dynamic and exciting environment in which children progressively develop critical thinking skills, become confident and joyful learners, and move forward into higher education and life as caring citizens.
At the heart of our educational philosophy is the critical need to balance nurture and challenge. Nurture, particularly in the younger years, allows children to grow, feel safe, and develop an empowering sense of confidence--"I can do it." Challenge takes on a greater role as students welcome the opportunity to prove themselves in many difficult learning situations.
Every child at Tenace is a full participant, a valued contributor to our vibrant community. In classrooms, on our playing fields, in art, music, and drama, our students are actively engaged in their own education. It is our belief that when every child has multiple opportunities to succeed, every child can and will succeed.
Our proudest tradition is that of valuing every student. We are a small school where everyone knows each other, where academics, creativity, and good citizenship are high achievements to strive toward, and where children learn firsthand the rewards and responsibilities of being part of a community.
Our focus is on the total child. The goal is to respond to the academic, emotional, physical, social, and moral dimensions of each child with a unique philosophy that creatively combines traditional and innovative elements of elementary education.
Sixth graders have been working in art class on pencil sketches, learning lessons about how to create and use a drawing grid, scaling, and shading. Each student chose a black and white sketch from the Web to replicate, printed it out, and then created a grid on a larger sheet of paper to scale the drawing up to a bigger size. Students created their sketch and then started the shading process, learning how to use different pencils to achieve a lighter or darker look.
Fourth graders are working hard on their balloon-powered vehicles in science class. In this STEM project, fourth graders learn about Newton's Laws of Motion and the Engineering Design Process (EDP). Students follow the EDP to design, build, test, modify, and retest balloon powered-vehicles.
In recent weeks, students have been busy in art class creating heart-themed pieces of art, just in time for Valentine’s Day. Kindergarteners took inspiration from expressionist painter Peter Max, creating brightly colored hearts filled with happiness and joy. First graders learned about different types of lines and complementary colors to create sunburst heart designs; and second graders learned about the works of Peter Max and Jim Dine, using acrylic paint and oil pastels to paint hearts.
Fifth graders have been putting their math lessons to practice with a “food truck” project. This project was created as part of the math unit on decimals. Students create a themed truck that sells different items. Students shop at each other’s trucks; the transactions require students to use their knowledge of decimal operations.
Wakanda Style, Tenacre’s Black affinity group, took a leadership role in planning this morning’s Black History Month assembly. Members of Wakanda Style interviewed students and staff members about why they think Black History Month is important and shared information about the origins of Black History Month. These students also talked about why having a Black student affinity group is important to them.
In social studies, sixth graders tested their memories when they each had the opportunity to recite the Gettysburg Address, a Tenacre tradition. Everyone dressed up as Abraham Lincoln—complete with black top hat, beard, and long black coat--for the performance. At the end of the individual recitations, they recited the Address as a group.
Tenacre sixth graders learned how to calculate speed in math class and conducted experiments to test their estimates. Using the distance/time equation, they worked together to calculate the speed of balls of different sizes and weight to see if the outcomes matched their estimates.
Fourth graders are excited to be learning the play the ukulele in music class—a unit they missed during remote learning last spring. This week, they have been practicing the A and C chords, as well as strumming. They will continue to learn and play the ukelele through sixth grade, progressing in difficulty over the next few years.
Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of the new year on the traditional lunar calendar. Celebrated on February 12 this year, Chinese New Year is one of the most important holidays in China. A group of Tenacre students, ranging from pre-kindergarten to grade 6, volunteered to share with the community their family traditions for this holiday.
Jaleesa Anselm, Tenacre’s director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion, is teaching a Civil Rights unit to students in Grades 3-6 this month. The lessons will cover numerous topics, starting with what led up to the Civil Rights movement, including direct connections to enslavement. Students will then start a focused study of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., his life, and his beliefs, as well as other activists like Malcolm X, Bayard Rustin, Thurgood Marshall, Claudette Colvin, Ella Baker, and John Lewis. Students will conclude the unit by learning what it was like to be a student at that time, using first-hand accounts from The Little Rock 9 and The Greensboro 4. The lessons will culminate on February 2 with a virtual visit from Ruby Bridges, an activist who was the first Black/African American child to desegregate the William Frantz Elementary School in Louisiana in 1960.
Fifth graders recently finished producing this year’s first issue of The Tiger Paw. The Tiger Paw is an online magazine written by fifth grade students as part of their writing curriculum. Students wrote about a variety of topics, including popsicles, flamingos, dreams, and why sharks are going extinct.
Tenacre P.E. teacher DaJaun Owens hosted an assembly this morning, streaming live from the Tenacre Art Gallery (TAG)—the first time this has been done. Mr. O, as he is known throughout school, is a huge fan of puzzles and shared his collection of framed puzzles that he has completed since the pandemic started 10 months ago.