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Creating Community

SOCIAL ACTION PROJECTS

Students organize to help our local, national, and world communities. Boys and girls work with ‘outreach’ organizations to relieve some of the most pressing social needs.

Classroom curricula are expanded to supplement social action projects. Teachers present guided lessons and activities concerning the history and social life of the people we assist, as well as case studies of individuals struggling under the conditions we are attempting to improve.

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DURING PAST YEARS, LAUREL HILL STUDENTS HAVE:

  • Supported the Heifer Project, an organization that promotes self-sufficiency, by donating livestock and farming education to needy families.
  • Raised funds to assist families affected by the 2001 earthquakes in El Salvador and India.
  • Raised sufficient funds to construct a schoolhouse to serve residents of a rural village in Madagascar, and to support a teacher’s salary for one year.
  • Raised funds allowing one hundred children in Ethiopia to receive lunches every day for a year.
  • Raised funds supporting the operation of anti-Taliban clandestine home schools for girls in pre-9/11 Afghanistan.
  • Raised funds that purchased the freedom of chattel slaves in Mauritania.
  • Supported local food pantries, hospitals, and hospice.
  • Raised funds for various 9/11 charities.
  • Supported numerous local and national healthcare initiatives.
  • Responded to emergencies due to natural disaster.
  • Provided clean water filtration systems to villages in Cambodia.

MICRO-SOCIETY

Our Micro-Society program is a student-run town in miniature, complete with everything from a bank to a marketplace to a mediation center. There is even an IRS! Micro-Society presents a realistic setting to learn about commerce and institutions, to practice citizenship skills, and to learn to resolve problems in everyday adult life.

THEMES

Themes are school-wide curriculum enrichment projects that allow the entire student body to study together as a community. Each year, students explore themes such as.

  • Black History: Concepts of social justice, equality and activism are emphasized.
  • Poetry: Children become acquainted with the unique styles of major poets, and learn to integrate these styles into their own writing. Children learn to recite poetry, create poetry, and publish poetry in a special anthology.
  • Earth Day: Children complete projects relating to ecology and environmentalism. They celebrate the wonders of the natural world while learning active strategies for environmentally responsible living.
  • Election Year “Great Debates”:Children assume the identity of leading politicians as they prepare to debate an urgent issue facing our country. The experience culminates in a school-wide debate in which teams argue a particular viewpoint, and then examine their own opinions. Citizenship, civic responsibility, and news awareness are emphasized.
  • Classic Classics: Children engage in an in-depth exploration of essential childhood classics. Literary analysis, story structuring, character development, and voice are brought to life in activities that raise literacy to new levels.
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Welcome Back To School

               

 

 

LHS is a recognized New York State private school, located in Suffolk County, Long Island.

 

 

 

 

Parent Bravos

Here is a small sample of some of the  beautiful comments from our Parents

From a 6th Grade Parent:

Dear Mr and Mrs Stark,
And all our wonderful LHS teachers! We want to support all parents in sending our deepest gratitude for giving our kids some sense of normalcy during these very challenging times.
It’s very important for us to know that while my husband, as many other ICU doctors and nurses, are fighting every day with this vicious disease, our children can still follow their routine, learn, and communicate with their teachers and friends. It helps us, parents, and it definitely helps kids to continue their growth as individuals.
I see excitement in (our daughter’s) eyes when she is getting ready for school in the morning, when she is running to the printer to get an assignment, or just talking to her friends during breaks.
Thank you so much to every single one of you!
 
 

From a 3YR Old Parent:

“We wanted to say thank you for accommodating the preschool families with the tuition suspension during this time.
We are also amazed (and truly grateful) that the zoom on- line learning format is continuing despite the circumstances.
I know this is not an easy time for businesses, organizations etc. If there is anything at all we can do to help the school during this time or once we return, please let us know. Maybe a fundraiser or maybe there is something we can do for our individual teachers. Just brainstorming…
Finally, some thoughts as we’ve entered week 3 of zoom/on-line learning. It’s been such a wonderful experience participating in our kids’ learning! Yes managing working from home and helping with homeschool can be exciting… but I’ve enjoyed seeing firsthand how dedicated our teachers are to not only teaching and providing additional resources to enhance learning, but also doing it with such great enthusiasm.
 There’s a great sense of community and collaboration between administration, teachers and parents, and it is evident that our main goal is how to make this experience the best it can possibly be.
How lucky are we to have such amazingly dedicated teachers in our kids’ lives! How blessed are we to be part of the
Laurel Hill family!
In the midst of chaos you have given us a sense of normalcy and we are genuinely appreciative of all your efforts.
 
 

 

 
 
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As Charles Dickens famously observed…
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times . . .
it was the season of darkness,
it was the spring of hope . . .
We at Laurel Hill live “the best of times” every day because we are blessed by the beauty, by the serene innocence, and by the precocity of our boys and girls.
We at Laurel Hill live “the best of times” every day for the blessing of totally dedicated teachers and support staff who clearly know why they selected to do what they do in career and in life and give, and give, and give tirelessly to fulfill their greatest ambitions for their children’s growth and well being.
We at Laurel Hill live “the best of times” because we are blessed to have families joined with us to support and to build – partners in turning great ideas into great accomplishments, partners ready to share their skills and to help in the work that needs to be done.
 
IN THEIR OWN WORDS
 
FROM A TEACHER….
Ms. Bond’s Zoom Classroom
Never in my teaching career would I have thought that I would need to teach elementary class via online classes. Yet, here we are in uncertain times, teaching in a media platform that is geared towards the children of this generation.
As apprehensive as I was before the first day of Zoom (I woke up a number of times during the night like it was my first day of school!), I now feel energized and excited about what we are able to do with the Zoom program. I’ve found that I’ve been able to keep most of my teaching the same as when it is a live class! In Reading, we’ve done an author study and vocabulary work in just three days! I am so proud of how much hard work my students continue to do while they are at home!
FROM A PARENT…..
I hope this email finds you well and safe. I have been thinking about you & Mr. Stark often and must first apologize for the time lapse in reaching out to express my deepest gratitude. I can’t believe that we have just completed 3 weeks of successful and engaging remote learning. Your steadfast leadership at the onset of this crisis was inspiring. As this crisis turned into a nationwide tragic pandemic, your engaging and detailed remote learning program did not waiver. In fact, it strengthened! Our children were the lucky ones to maintain a sense of normalcy with their routine schedule and engaging “live” classes with all of their treasured teachers and classmate friends.
Read More Parent Testimonials