Class Updates September-October 2024

Exploring Voice in Writing (Airlie)

In this class, we have been using the phenomenon of voice in writing as a central theme that has allowed us to explore topics like: written style, genre, academic discourse communities, epistemology, scientific (deductive) vs. qualitative (inductive) research, inner experience, neurodiversity, and the challenges of accurately describing what is happening in the mind of another person. Students have enjoyed exploring these topics through hands-on activities and class discussions. For the most part, they’ve found the prospect of reading the papers I’ve offered a bit intimidating. However, in a recent class, they asked if I would bring formal definitions of voice in writing from scholarly works in different disciplines. I’m looking forward to sharing these resources with them in our next meeting.

A People’s History (Adrie)

People’s History has covered a wide range of topics and places this fall, including the French revolution and Napoleon, the history of domesticating cats, witchcraft trials in Europe, the Salem witch trials, and the Harlem Renaissance.

Lunch Class (Ellen)

It's been so fun to watch our group coming together this fall as a team. Everyone is developing their knife skills, their cleaning skills, and exploring some new flavors and textures in food! So far we've made: Chili, Macaroni & Cheese, Ramen Soup, Pesto Pasta, Sheet Pizza, and Mee Goreng. More lunch adventures await!

Scene On Radio (Ellen)

We've been making good progress through Scene On Radio's season two "Seeing White," having listened to the first six episodes so far. The subject matter is challenging, and this group has been consistently wading into discussions with humility and openness. We're certainly learning an awful lot about our history and our present, and everyone is doing a great job of being engaged.

Big Topics Book Club (Ellen)

We got off to a bit of a slow start as a class, and we're still struggling to all be on the same chapter, but we've been working our way through the first 5 chapters of The 1619 Project and are starting to hit our stride as a group. This book brings up big feelings, hard truths, and eye-opening connections, and everyone has been steadily wading into our discussions with courage and care.

Social Issues  (Ken)

We have spent a lot of time on the 2024 election, and now we will shift to the transition and what comes next.  We will keep an eye on economics, LGBTQ issues, race relations, foreign policy including Ukraine and Gaza, and much more.Teens are encouraged to bring in topics they would like to discuss each week.

Psychology (Ken)

We have started with the topic of Personality, including wondering if we do have traits that are stable over time and setting, and if those can be named. We also considered some personality theorists, such as Freud, Jung, Maslow, Rogers and others.  We have moved on to Developmental Psychology, including one of my favorite documentaries, the UP Series. Next will be some basic Cognitive Psychology and some of the classic Social Psychology stories.  

The Body (Josh)

Primarily we’ve used a series of videos to cover the basic systems of the body, including the Skeleton, Skeleto-muscular, Cardio-Vascular, Respiratory, Immune, Endocrine, the Ear, Skin and others.

Geometry (Josh)

In this class we’ve looked at basic shapes found in the world, starting with circles, lines and arcs and relating them to the apparent movement of the sun and moon in the sky. More recently we’ve been using compass and straight edge to divide circles in half, thirds, quarters and sixths and estimate pi. We’ve talked a lot about angles and we’ve recently begun exploring basic concepts of Euclidean Geometry.

The 20th Century (Josh)

In this class we started with a decade by decade survey of the century as a whole. Since then we’ve been working our way more systematically through the decades from 1900 into the 1930s. We’ve focused especially on cultural, technological and social changes as well as some politics.

Rhythm (Josh)

This class has largely involved improvisation and playing percussion instruments together for a half hour each week. In the process we’ve explored rhythms based on threes and fours and practiced keeping steady rhythms against breakout percussion fills. Sometimes other instruments such as bass guitar are also used.

Shut Up & Write (Aaron)

We have developed a small but dedicated group of regular writers, who mostly use our time together to work on writing for other classes or personal projects. We recently consolidated to just one class session a week.

The Star Wars Empire (Aaron)

We recently finished watching and discussing the original trilogy (in their theatrical, non-special edition forms) and have just moved onto the prequels. We've talked about the cultural and political influences behind Star Wars, the storytelling techniques used in the original three movies, and the impact of the films on broader American culture.

Miniature Painting (Aaron)

This class has proved way more popular than I was expecting! We have developed a relaxed, supportive group for painters of all experience levels. We have even attracted several teens with no interest or experience in D&D, who simply enjoy the painting. It's a great class to end the week with!

RPG Adventures (Aaron)

We only just had our first class, but I'm looking forward to exploring new games with our group. I hope I can expose teens to new games and design principles beyond Dungeons & Dragons.

Montague Sing (Josh)

This class has been attending a daily community sing that takes place on the Montague Town Common every week. We’ve learned and shared songs and gotten to know a bunch of people in the community who have welcomed us and come to expect us every week!

Open Maker Room (Melanie)

This class is an opportunity for members to use all the resources in the maker room for their own projects and enjoyment. Some of the things teens have done include: woodworking, making armor and weapons out of foam core and cardboard, fabric painting, crochet, beading, working with wax, and electronics.

Financial Literacy (Melanie)

This class focuses on practical knowledge and skills and is structured to reflect the types of financial decisions members will face as they get older. We started with a look at labor law for minors, minimum wage, W-4 forms, understanding and calculating paycheck deductions, and setting financial goals. We also discussed the stock market crash in 1929 as class was held on the anniversary of Black Tuesday. Members are encouraged to keep notebooks or use the folders provided to keep handouts and worksheets organized. They also have the option to work on math skills such as calculating percents, working with decimals and fractions, and basic operations. Members are welcome to seek me out outside of class time for extra math help if needed.

History of Rock and Roll (Melanie)

With a small, knowledgeable group with one returning member, we have been able to spend more time on the roots of rock music in jazz and have watched two movies—Jamboree from 1957 and Hard Day’s Night from 1964—which have provided numerous jumping off points to talk about popular music genres and the music business as well as cultural shifts from the 1950s to the early 1960s in the US and the UK.

Hands-on Science (Melanie)

We started the year by experimenting with bubbles. We discussed the scientific method in the context of changing one thing about a bubble mixture and noting how it affected the bubbles it made. We also made conjectures and brainstormed questions that could be tested experimentally such as why do bubbles tend to rise. From that conversation, we landed on rockets as our next topic. We’ve been building baking soda rockets out of plastic water bottles and testing out various proportions of baking soda and vinegar to maximize thrust while minimizing weight.

Volunteering at Amherst Survival Center (Loran)

In September and October we enjoyed many Friday mornings with nice weather (and not too many yellow jackets) for our outdoor work at the Survival Center. As part of our typical routine, we arrive and organize a few boxes of donated food. We wait for the arrival of the large fresh food delivery van, then we unload it and sort the food by category and arrange it nicely on the shelves for distribution later in the day. We frequently finish the outdoor job before it’s time to go back to North Star; on those days we go inside and bag greens and/or label eggs, routine jobs that always need doing. Recently our group has grown in size. With the help of some volunteer parent drivers (thank you!) we ride in cars to the Survival Center, then the group has been taking the PVTA bus independently back to North Star. 

Service Trip to Washington, DC (Loran)

In September we watched some videos and had some discussions about what to expect on the Service Trip. In October we made commitments and formed our team of six teens and two adults. Since then we have been planning our fundraising activities and making holiday ornaments to sell at the North Star party on December 13 on Wednesdays. In class, several teens have taken over giving presentations. Behind the scenes, teens are working on finding us lodging, lining up Senate/Congressional visits, and planning volunteer and leisure activities. 

Hiking Group (Loran)

In September and October we enjoyed beautiful days and great views on our hikes to Sugarloaf Mountain, Chapel Brook, Mt. Norwottuck, White Rock, Sweet Alice, Rattlesnake Gutter, and High Ledges. On our one rainy Thursday, instead of hiking we took a wet walk to Riverside Cemetery in Sunderland and explored gravesites dating back as early as the 18th century. Hiking Group includes two staff members, a UMass work-study student and one regular parent volunteer driver. We’re always glad for additional parent drivers/hikers!

Genealogy and Family History (Hillary, Loran)

A group of about 6 North Star members and Loran participated in a 6-week community class at Sunderland Public Library. We learned about the basics of Genealogy, including useful information filing methods, free and paid websites, censuses, military records, DNA research, and more. The class was taught by Hillary Schau, a professional genealogist, and drew a large number of community participants. 

Bread (Loran)

Our small but mighty group has been meeting on Zoom Wednesday mornings and making delicious breads in our respective homes, including White Bread, Apple Cinnamon Bread, Polish Potato Bread, Blueberry Lemon Bread, English Muffins, Blueberry Muffins, Japanese Milk Bread, and Apple Cider Donut Loaf. 

Environmental Art and the Human Body (Emily)

Recent projects in Environmental Art and the Human Body include creating sculpture using branches, twigs, acorns, moss, and leaves; practicing landscape painting (and learning about shading) with India ink; combining print-making and collage with multi-colored paint and leaves of various sizes and shapes; and exploring how geometrical shapes (like making circles with a compass) interrelate with hand-drawn organic shapes resembling rivers, root structures, and veins.