Category: General

Fol·ly /ˈfälē/ noun – A lack of good sense; foolishness

It appears to me that our annual Fall Follies is somewhat mischaracterized by its name, for it is anything but folly. In reality, the entire production fully embodies our mission to Think Creatively, Act Compassionately, and Live Courageously.

Creativity radiated through many of the acts, from Elise, Airlie, and Cassy’s restaurant comedy skit to the Hula Hooping of Cam and Adora. The execution of Aliya, Rebecca, Haley and Kylie’s dad jokes was not just creative, but spot on.

Compassion was on display by the audience as students summoned their courage to perform. It wasn’t just compassion, but there was an energy of encouragement, a tangible sense of “you can do this.” Performers encouraged, supported, and uplifted their fellow cast members. One of my favorite parts of the show (besides my daughters) was when Eli momentarily froze in his “How to Draw a Crocodile” act. Not only was the audience supportively patient, but I could hear students gently whisper, “Go, Eli.” That moment embodied so much of what Saklan is about.

And then there’s the courage. Stepping onto the stage in front of 250 people, spanning from peers to parents and grandparents, is no small feat.  All of the acts were displays of courage and bravery and deserve a shout out. 

While it’s unlikely that we’ll consider renaming our Fall Follies, it’s clear that the event is the antithesis of folly.

#SaklanCreativity #SaklanCompassion #SaklanCourage

Thank you, Saklan, for your extraordinary support of this year’s Annual Giving Fund (AGF) campaign.

Our goals for this year’s campaign are to raise $175,000 and have 100% participation from the Saklan community. To date, we have raised over $157,000 with participation from 88% of our community (a record for this time of the year at Saklan). The chart below shows you where each class is towards reaching the 100% participation goal.

The outpouring of support from the Saklan community this year is humbling and will make a powerful impact on our ability to continue challenging students to think creatively, act compassionately, and live courageously.

If you haven’t had the chance to donate to our AGF campaign, it’s not too late! You can make an AGF gift via the following methods:

• DONATE ONLINE through our secure site; or
• Write your check made out to The Saklan School with “Annual Giving Fund” written on the Memo line and deliver it to our office.

If you would like to discuss your gift further, please contact Emily at ewilliamson@saklan.org.

On behalf of all of us at The Saklan School, thank you very much for your support.

#SaklanCompassionate #SaklanAGF

As the fall session of enrichment comes to an end, we are excited to share the classes that will be offered during the second half of the year! For the winter session the following classes will be available:

Check out the class descriptions here. Classes begin the week of January 22nd, and have limited space available. Registration for the classes will open on Monday, December 4th on the Saklan Enrichment Webpage.

All Saklan students are invited to showcase their creativity by designing a cover for this year’s yearbook. All covers are asked to incorporate the theme of friendship, have a vertical orientation, and include the text “The Saklan School 2023-2024.”

If you have any questions about the Yearbook Cover Contest, please email Lauren at lhaberly@saklan.org.

#SaklanCreative

The 8th grade class has been reading All American Boys, coauthored by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Keily, in their Language Arts/Humanities class. The book delves into themes of racial injustice, identity and social justice.  

In conjunction with vocabulary and literary analysis work, the students have been learning about African American history to place the plot of the novel in historical context. The eighth graders examined the struggles of African Americans to achieve justice and equality after the abolition of slavery in the U.S. in 1865.

Each student studied one “step” in the “walk” through selected events and topics in African American history, starting with the arrival of the first Africans in North America in 1619 and ending with the Black Lives Matter movement today. After examining primary and secondary sources, each junior historian wrote about what they learned and analyzed its relevance to the struggles of Black Americans for social justice throughout American history. They also tied in these topics to the issues and themes in the novel.

Students shared their explanations and interpretations of African American history in individually curated displays that included informational text, historical documents, images and handmade artifacts. Visitors to their classroom exhibit were invited to take a “Walk through African American History” to view the displays and talk to each 8th grade curator. Visitors included the fifth and sixth grade students, teachers and parent guests on campus for CLAS and Middle School Open House.

Thank you to everyone who stopped by the exhibit!

On Thursday, 1st – 8th graders gathered with their family groups to talk about being humble and how they could show humility to others. The students then worked together to write an 8-line, rhyming poem containing a few specific words: humble, turkey, stuffing, grateful and Saklan. The students also dressed up one of their family members as a holiday character or Thanksgiving food item, using only newspaper and tape. The families definitely showed their creativity!

All family groups then gathered on the sports court to share their poems (some groups acted them out) and holiday characters/food items. Among the characters presented were: turkeys, a scarecrow, a football player and a chef!

#SakanSEL