Educational Excellence Since 1912
Hamden Hall Country Day School
Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12
Hamden Hall Country Day School
Educating students in PreSchool through Grade 12
Middle School Students Immersed In Real-World Media and Immigration Project
A division-wide, weeklong project in the Middle School immersed seventh- and eighth-graders in two topical subjects: the media and immigration.
Dubbed the Media Conference, Middle Schoolers were broken into six teams, and each one became a news organization for the week. There were two newspaper teams, two TV teams, one radio team, and one magazine team. The topic they all reported on was immigration in the New Haven Area and learning took place thanks to guest speakers, panel discussions, field trips and classroom activities and research.
Learning about the role of the media enabled students to hone their research, writing, and communication skills. And in delving into the subject matter – immigration – students garnered a historical perspective on the topic.
The project was the brainchild of Middle School Director Brian Christman and English teacher Allison Ehrenreich, both of whom started the planning process many months ago. Each year the Middle School undertakes a division-wide experiential learning project. Past projects have included a mock political convention, an Earth summit, and a public service announcement competition.
“The Middle School Media Conference is a division-wide undertaking that fosters student curiosity and passion because it's an authentic, real-world project. Our students are learning about relevant topics and building important skill sets that enhance their critical thinking, research methodology, and communication aptitude,” said Mr. Christman.
Perhaps most impressive were some of the speakers on campus. Students heard from local politicians such as former New Haven Mayor John DeStefano, state Sen. Gary Winfield, and North Haven First Selectman Mike Freda; professional journalists such as Quinnipiac University professor and former WTNH broadcaster Kenn Venit and WNPR education reporter David DesRoches; and Wesleyan students Ahmed Badr and Aiti Rai, both of whom are refugees.
“When I was in the refugee camp I never expected to come to this powerful nation,” said Aiti, who lived in the camp for 16 years. Aiti is now a Hartford resident and a U.S. citizen studying to be an attorney.
“Living in the camp became a natural way of life and we didn’t have any expectations. We didn’t have a TV so we had no idea of what the United States was like,” Aiti told students gathered in the theater for a panel discussion on immigration.
The conference kicked off on Friday, Oct. 19, with New Haven historian and Hamden Hall alumnus Colin Caplan, Class of 1997. Colin is the operator of Taste of New Haven culinary tours and events and has written extensively on New Haven history, publishing five books. Caplan offered an abbreviated history lesson prior to students making their way into the Elm City on Wednesday.
Middle School history teacher Bud Kohler took a group of students to a variety of locales during field trip day, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office (to speak with an ICE official), the Knights of Columbus Museum, and several businesses on Wooster Street. Mr. Kohler said students spoke with local merchants and their employees to discuss the economic impact of immigration in New Haven.
Other groups visited a refugee resettlement agency, the Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services, and the offices of Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. On hand to greet them and discuss the Congresswoman’s position on immigration was Hamden Hall alumnus Lou Mangini, who serves as the Congresswoman’s chief aide. Some students even conducted official polling on the New Haven Green.
“It’s the most ambitious project we’ve ever undertaken because of the number of moving parts,” said Mr. Christman.
Each day’s activities and programming also included a homework assignment – from website creation to journal entries and research for the next day’s guest speakers to story and video editing. English and history classes focused exclusively on the project and a final day, culminating presentation took place on Friday at 2 p.m. in Taylor Gym. Students worked in groups to create displays that were judged by a specially selected panel.
“It's wonderful to see the students at this level of engagement as they carry out the various tasks they've been assigned,” maintained Mr. Christman.
Click on the individual links below to view each tean's website and content:
Dubbed the Media Conference, Middle Schoolers were broken into six teams, and each one became a news organization for the week. There were two newspaper teams, two TV teams, one radio team, and one magazine team. The topic they all reported on was immigration in the New Haven Area and learning took place thanks to guest speakers, panel discussions, field trips and classroom activities and research.
Learning about the role of the media enabled students to hone their research, writing, and communication skills. And in delving into the subject matter – immigration – students garnered a historical perspective on the topic.
The project was the brainchild of Middle School Director Brian Christman and English teacher Allison Ehrenreich, both of whom started the planning process many months ago. Each year the Middle School undertakes a division-wide experiential learning project. Past projects have included a mock political convention, an Earth summit, and a public service announcement competition.
“The Middle School Media Conference is a division-wide undertaking that fosters student curiosity and passion because it's an authentic, real-world project. Our students are learning about relevant topics and building important skill sets that enhance their critical thinking, research methodology, and communication aptitude,” said Mr. Christman.
Perhaps most impressive were some of the speakers on campus. Students heard from local politicians such as former New Haven Mayor John DeStefano, state Sen. Gary Winfield, and North Haven First Selectman Mike Freda; professional journalists such as Quinnipiac University professor and former WTNH broadcaster Kenn Venit and WNPR education reporter David DesRoches; and Wesleyan students Ahmed Badr and Aiti Rai, both of whom are refugees.
“When I was in the refugee camp I never expected to come to this powerful nation,” said Aiti, who lived in the camp for 16 years. Aiti is now a Hartford resident and a U.S. citizen studying to be an attorney.
“Living in the camp became a natural way of life and we didn’t have any expectations. We didn’t have a TV so we had no idea of what the United States was like,” Aiti told students gathered in the theater for a panel discussion on immigration.
The conference kicked off on Friday, Oct. 19, with New Haven historian and Hamden Hall alumnus Colin Caplan, Class of 1997. Colin is the operator of Taste of New Haven culinary tours and events and has written extensively on New Haven history, publishing five books. Caplan offered an abbreviated history lesson prior to students making their way into the Elm City on Wednesday.
Middle School history teacher Bud Kohler took a group of students to a variety of locales during field trip day, including the U.S. Attorney’s Office (to speak with an ICE official), the Knights of Columbus Museum, and several businesses on Wooster Street. Mr. Kohler said students spoke with local merchants and their employees to discuss the economic impact of immigration in New Haven.
Other groups visited a refugee resettlement agency, the Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services, and the offices of Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. On hand to greet them and discuss the Congresswoman’s position on immigration was Hamden Hall alumnus Lou Mangini, who serves as the Congresswoman’s chief aide. Some students even conducted official polling on the New Haven Green.
“It’s the most ambitious project we’ve ever undertaken because of the number of moving parts,” said Mr. Christman.
Each day’s activities and programming also included a homework assignment – from website creation to journal entries and research for the next day’s guest speakers to story and video editing. English and history classes focused exclusively on the project and a final day, culminating presentation took place on Friday at 2 p.m. in Taylor Gym. Students worked in groups to create displays that were judged by a specially selected panel.
“It's wonderful to see the students at this level of engagement as they carry out the various tasks they've been assigned,” maintained Mr. Christman.
Click on the individual links below to view each tean's website and content:
Hamden Hall Country Day School
1108 Whitney Avenue
Hamden, Connecticut 06517
Phone: 203-752-2600
Fax: 203-752-2651
admissions@hamdenhall.org
Hamden, Connecticut 06517
Phone: 203-752-2600
Fax: 203-752-2651
admissions@hamdenhall.org
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Hamden Hall Country Day School is a nurturing and inclusive community with a dynamic learning environment that promotes academic excellence by understanding each child and fostering their individual growth.
