Our incredible BNS community, including our teachers, staff and families, find ways of infusing the school with so many relevant and captivating topics and experiences that benefit our students tremendously. In that spirit, this week, BNS celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in several wonderful ways through curriculum components in the classroom as well as opportunities for the membership as a whole.

In each of the three BNS classrooms, our teachers routinely stress empathy and compassion for one another as a foundation and basis for learning. This week has given us a chance to link those concepts with our history. We introduced his legacy and message through books, parent/teacher modeling, conversations, art projects and most importantly through play.  

In particular, our Mighty Oaks students have been learning about equality, empathy and problem solving. They have been practicing using words to resolve differences. They created beautiful “stained glass” doves with tissue paper, played friendship games, and artfully crafted a friendship fruit salad to share at snack time.  Even our youngest students in the Sprouts had the chance to practice compassion and kindness by speaking kindly to one another after reading one of my favorites, Please Mr. Panda.  

Outside the classroom, our BNS Philanthropy Chair, Jenny O’Brien spearheaded a collection drive, inspired by MLK Day and the call to service. Continuing through the end of January, this initiative will include a canned good drive and fundraiser for the Capital Area Food Bank to benefit those effected by the government shutdown. To donate, please follow the link: https://www.mightycause.com/story/Bannockburnnurseryschool. Each morning during arrival, the BNS students have excitedly participated in the drive, happy to drop their non-perishable goods in and help those in need. 

Dr. King’s message of unity and compassion weaves seamlessly into our school’s philosophy in so many ways and the children have readily adopted the concepts into their play and every day practice and ritual.