Tag Archives: Reginald F. Lewis Museum

03.15.24
by

March Madness at TNCS: Part 1!

At The New Century School, March is always an out-sized month, with activities and events galore. Well, this year, it gets even bigger! So big, in fact, that Immersed needs two posts to handle it all!

Actually, TNCS hit the ground running in 2024, so “March Madness” really encompasses the remarkable first quarter of the year and looks forward to exciting events slated for Q2. Our annual March Madness post starts with a pun tying together the old aphorism, “March, in like a lion, out like a lamb” and either the Science Fair or the Lunar New Year, depending on timing (see 2023, 2022, 2021, etc.). This year, let’s go with: “March, in like a dragon, out like a lamb” because we hope to see the return of our wooly friend at this year’s Spring Festival!

Visiting Chinese Scholars

After a pandemic-related hiatus, TNCS was thrilled to welcome back its first group of Chinese elementary students (and their parents) on January 23rd for a 10-day English-language intensive. All hailing from Beijing and ages 10 to 12 years old, “the girls,” as they were known around campus—“Tiffany,” “Hannah,” Zhao Danqing, and Zhao Tongjia—left their mark on TNCS and will not soon be forgotten for their irrepressible good spirits!

Black History Month

TNCS 2nd- through 8th-graders visited Baltimore’s own Reginald F. Lewis of Maryland African American History & Culture and held the biggest Black History Month celebration yet!

Middle School Valentine’s Social

TNCS middle school students enjoyed their second annual Valentine’s Day Dance, an Alexis Watson special! As Director of Student Support. Ms. Watson takes her role very much to “heart”!

Lunar New Year Celebration

The Year of the Dragon is one of the most auspicious in the Chinese zodiac. The dragon is the only mythical creature on the Chinese zodiac, that, coupled with the fact that dragons are unparalleled in majesty, strength, and all-around charisma, makes 2024 a year full of promise. TNCS Chinese teacher Jia Liu and her mentress Xia Laoshi made sure that TNCS celebrations befit the occasion. Drawing on what former TNCS Chinese instructors created in 2022 and 2023, Liu Laoshi and Xie Laoshi recreated an enchanting Chinese market/festival.

This recap of the events of 2024 thus far are meant to whet (“wet” if we want to get really punny) your appetite . . . because April will shower TNCS students with lots more special events!

01.12.24
by

Celebrating MLK, Jr. Day in Baltimore: Your Round-up of Inspiring Events!

Monday, January 15, 2024 marks the 41st MLK, Jr. Day, honoring the towering legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr. Our own Baltimore City has a deep connection to Dr. King, who visited several times to deliver important public addresses, including 60 years ago on October 31, 1964 to help “get out the vote” just after winning the Nobel Peace Prize.

Even closer to home, The New Century School lives by much of what the Civil Rights giant made possible.

Dr. King dedicated his life to the nonviolent struggle for racial equality in the United States. His leadership was pivotal in ending entrenched segregation for African Americans and in creating the Civil Rights Act of 1964, considered a crowning achievement of the civil rights era.

Baltimore hosts several events observing Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. These events are a great way to honor King’s legacy, celebrate the progress that has been made in the fight for civil rights, engage in volunteer service, and connect with our communities.

Community Events

The Baltimore City Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr Parade wends its way down—you guessed it—MLK Blvd. and features marching bands, local colleges and universities, fraternities and sororities, and more.

The theme of the 42nd Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Commemoration hosted by Johns Hopkins University is “Where Do We Go from Here—Chaos or Community?” The program will be livestreamed and is based on Dr. King’s final book. The keynote will be given by Mae Jemison, an engineer, physician, and former NASA astronaut as well as the first African American woman to travel in space. (TNCS students know her well.)

Museums

At King Day at the Reginald F. Lewis Museum of Maryland African American History & Culture, experience Martin Luther King Jr. and Maryland’s Year of Civil Rights through art, music, and storytelling; hear a choral performance by the Carter Legacy Singers; learn about the Montgomery Bus Boycott from Deborah Pierce-Fakunle and Dr. David Fakunle, mother-and-son storytellers known as Dr. Mama; immerse yourself in “I Am A Man,” a virtual reality program; and explore the Memphis Sanitation Workers protest. Admission is free to this monumental event.

Visit the MLK Jr Day Celebration by Unique Johnson at The Walters Art Museum, an event that will explore Dr. King’s legacy through poetry and music, and is free to attend (with required registration at the link above).

Celebrate “one of history’s greatest visionaries” (see what they did there?) at MLK Dare to Dream Day at the American Visionary Arts Museum (AVAM). Admission is free on Monday, allowing you to tour the museum as well as enjoy live music and dancing performances, open mic, a poetry slam, and more.

The B&O Railroad Museum invites you to experience the fusion of music and history on hallowed grounds, presenting Wordsmith and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra in tribute to Dr. King. An original song and composition directly inspired by the powerful narratives found in the B&O Railroad Museum’s Underground Railroad exhibit will be debuted. (The Museum was designated a National Underground Railroad Network to Freedom Site in 2021 and opened a permanent exhibit, The Underground Railroad: Freedom Seekers on the B&O Railroad, in 2022.) Tickets are free!

Service Opportunities

Volunteer at the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service, organized by the United Way of Central Maryland. Service opportunities include efforts to address high-impact issues affecting Marylanders, from housing and mental health to food access and transportation. Both in-person and virtual projects are available, including building bicycles, creating gardening beds, and packing hygiene kits.

How will you observe this great day honoring a great man?

Additional resources:

02.23.18
by

TNCS Welcomes Chinese Visitors for the Lunar New Year Holiday, Part 2!

As recounted in last week’s Immersed, The New Century School takes advantage of the 2-week holiday many Chinese have in the weeks leading up to Chinese New Year by hosting special programs and inviting various groups to TNCS. For the Year of the Dog, first came a group of 15 university students, eager to take home innovative education ideas, followed by three 3rd-grade students and their parents.

IMG_0052.JPG

The purpose behind this second visit was some cultural exchange—immersion in an English-speaking classroom for the Chinese students for 2 weeks, and a chance for TNCS students to practice conversation skills in Mandarin with their visiting friends Myra, Tony, and Michael.

The outgoing and adaptable trio meshed immediately with their new schoolmates and were welcomed into Mrs. Sharma’s 3rd-/4th-grade homeroom with open arms. It must be said that having the visitors in class for 2 weeks meant that TNCS students got a bit of a holiday as well, getting to go on four field trips during that time!

First up was the Reginald F. Lewis Museum in honor of February being Black History Month.

Next the students visited ANG Pottery in Fell’s Point and saw a master at work, then crafted their own masterworks.

This was followed a few days later by bowling at Patterson Bowling Center.

The Port Discovery Children’s Museum was last, as appropriate, featuring Year of the Dog exhibits (among others).

Meanwhile, lots of fun things happened during school time as well, like making tacos with Chef Danielle!

Even after the school day ended, the visitors were made to feel a special part of the TNCS community, as TNCS families welcomed them into their homes for dinner. . .

IMG_3833.jpeg

. . . or for a musical interlude during an unexpected snow day!

tncs-lunar-new-year-visitors

Their stay culminated with a farewell and awards ceremony held at TNCS, as their proud parents watched.

TNCS students were sad to see them go, but plans are in the works for keeping in touch with Myra, Tony, and Michael, who will always remember TNCS!