The Home Stretch

As the weather heats up (at least for today) and February turns to March, we look to the last third of the school year. Next week is interim week, “A Capital Week,” which for many students is the “beginning of the end.” Interim week, a signature program of the Cardin School, takes our students and faculty out of the traditional classroom to learn together for a week of intensive, experiential programs around a specific theme. This year we are exploring our nation’s capital, which is practically in our own backyards. The entire school population will travel to DC to tour governmental facilities, meet with government officials, visit museums and monuments and attend a luncheon at the Israeli embassy. I am sure you will read more about interim week both here and in our school eNewsletter.

Interim week also serves as a renewal week, recharging students and faculty to enthusiastically complete the year. When we return to the classrooms on March 14, we move at lightning speed to the end of the school year. Within what seems like a blink of an eye, we celebrate Purim, Pesach and Shavuot; we remember the Holocaust, reflect on the transition to Medinat Israel, and remember those Israeli soldiers who fell to keep Israel, and those American soldiers who fell to keep us, free. We produce Our Town, acknowledge our athletes at the sports banquet, and celebrate our entire student body at the Awards Ceremony. The junior class travels to look at colleges. The seniors are the busiest, preparing for AP Exams and finals, the prom, their senior Israel experience and graduation.

Come and join us as we complete the final third of the 2011-2012 school year!

~Barbie Prince
Head of School

Literary Reflections

As winter — though it hardly seems apropos to call it that — descends and we enter another spring, I want to take this opportunity to share 2 of my favorite spring poems. Poetry, like the weather, can change our moods, for the better or worse. When we experience a poem, we, like the changing weather, adapt ourselves to it. The first poem was one of Wordsworth’s earlier poems. It blends the light, playful air of spring with the freedom of thought. Read it below, and let me know what images stick out for you

Lines Written in Early Spring William Wordsworth (1798)

I heard a thousand blended notes,
While in a grove I sate reclined,
n that sweet mood when pleasant thoughts Bring sad thoughts to the mind.

To her fair works did Nature link
The human soul that through me ran;
And much it grieved my heart to think
What man has made of man.

Through primrose tufts, in that green bower, The periwinkle trailed its wreaths; And ’tis my faith that every flower Enjoys the air it breathes.

The birds around me hopped and played,
Their thoughts I cannot measure:--
But the least motion which they made
It seemed a thrill of pleasure.

The budding twigs spread out their fan,
To catch the breezy air;
And I must think, do all I can,
That there was pleasure there.

If this belief from heaven be sent,
If such be Nature’s holy plan,
Have I not reason to lament
What man has made of man?

In the second poem that I am going to share, is by Robert Herrick. What strikes me about this poem is the strong images of brooks, blossoms, birds, etc… Each one conjures up a sense of the freedom in spring, of the joyous youth and innocence brought about by the season. What mood does this poem leave you with?

Robert Herrick (1591-1674)
Hesperides (1648)

I sing of brooks, of blossoms, birds, and bowers:
Of April, May, of June, and July flowers.
I sing of Maypoles, Hock-carts, wassails, wakes, Of bridegrooms, brides, and of their bridal cakes.

I hope you enjoy these poems as much as I did; they offer us a glimpse into our upcoming season: spring. May you have a warm winter and a light, playful spring.

~Joel Neft
English Instructor

Class of 2007 Cardin Alumni Get Ready to Move On

As a parent of two Cardin graduates from the Class of 2007, I am frequently asked how the girls are doing. Four years ago, daughters Chelsea and Johanna were looking forward to high school graduation and exuberant about college acceptances. Now they are only three months away from college commencement and exuberant about their future.


Last week Chelsea received an acceptance to the Social, Decision, and Organizational Science doctoral program in the Department of Psychology at the University of Maryland. She will spend the next five years working in the Mind Perception and Morality Lab of Dr. Kurt Gray. Chelsea’s interest in moral judgments and their real world implication may well have been sparked by the integrated curriculum she experienced at Cardin. Who knows how many other students in Mr. Cantor’s AP Psychology course will go on to obtain their PhD? For an idea of what Chelsea will be researching, check out a presentation by Dr. Gray delivered a few months ago at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KgnR3iIjO_c .

Johanna also received an honor last week. The President of Franklin & Marshall College requested that Johanna introduce David Ferriero, a guest speaker invited to address the full campus community. Mr. Ferriero was appointed by President Obama to serve as the Archivist of the United States responsible for overseeing all branches of the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the 13 Presidential Libraries. Johanna worked as an intern with the Legislative Center of the NARA last summer, a wonderful experience which motivated her to apply to Masters programs in Public History – a specialized field of history linking archival and library sciences with outreach to the public. When he thanked Johanna for her introduction, Mr. Ferriero commented that NARA would be delighted to welcome Johanna back to work at the Archives. Next month Cardin students will stop at the National Archives as part of their Interim Week activities. Perhaps one of them will be the next Cardin student to be inspired by the power of seeing primary source documents.

As the first Cardin graduates complete their college studies this spring, we are equally proud of them. They made their mark on campuses across the county and will now enter various fields of scholarly work and professions, well equipped to become leaders of tomorrow.

~Jan Schein
CFO, Financial Literacy Instructor

Spanish Celebrations

During the frigid weeks of January, a Spanish class at Cardin was learning about “celebrations”. One of the prevalent customs in the festivities of Spanish cultures is the breaking open of a container filled with candies and toys.  While the custom is believed to have originated in China, in Italy in the 1600’s candies were placed in mud jars and then broken open with a stick. These celebratory customs were brought to the Spanish-speaking world by the Italians and Spaniards and have been adopted into these cultures. Celebrations unite family and friends during joyful times and sad times. The main purpose is for communal support and sharing. So, we can say the candies and gifts in a container which is broken open is a way of sharing. Some children will get exactly what they want, others will leave crying. This is symbolic of the joys and the sadness of life. Both are necessary in our journey.

In the Spanish III class, students created their own craft (a piñata), played a game together (broke it open with a stick to make candies fall out), and gave one another a gift (the gift of sharing the experience together). We talked about the value of family and relationships in the Hispanic cultures and observed that, although there are many variations in how families of other cultures celebrate, the needs and purpose of “celebrations” is the same. Do you ever wonder how our future celebrations will change as the U.S. and Latin America and Spain continue to share each ones’ customs and festivities? For me, it sounds like lots more “fun”.

~Rosemarie Steinberg
Spanish Instructor

Radical Expressions

Algebra 2 students are currently working with radical expressions which use the radical sign. The radical sign for square root was introduced in 1525 by Christoff Rudolff (1499-1545) in his book Die Coss (The Unknown). This was the first German textbook on Algebra. It was one of the earliest printed books to use decimal notation and it also introduced the concept x^0 =1. By the seventeenth century, the radical sign was widely accepted. It is believed that Rudolff used the radical sign because it resembled the lower case “r”, for radix.


Arabic writers used the word “radix” (root) because they thought of a square number growing out of a root or being extracted from a root. Late Medieval writers used the symbol Rx to represent radix. The symbol Rx^2 (for square root) was used in 1484.

~Michelle Greenbaum
Math Instructor

Wellness Day

When you think of what it means to be healthy, what do you think about? Is it the food you eat? Medication you take? The exercise you do?


Last Friday, Cardin students and faculty had the opportunity to explore each of these things during our second annual Wellness Day. From physical fitness testing with trainers from Brick Bodies, to local professionals providing seminars on nutrition, acupuncture, sleep, cravings, and skin care, and then on to fitness classes, we got a taste of it all! Friday was a blast—watching students and teachers hula hoop, participate in Zumba, Yoga, & Core training after a day of learning how to live healthy lifestyles, was incredible. Can’t wait for next year!

~Amy Fink
Coordinator of Student Support Services, History Instructor

Taking Care of Ourselves

In the Shulchan Aruch (a compilation of Jewish law) we read that “it is a positive commandment to be very careful and guard oneself from any life-threatening obstacle as it is said, ‘… take utmost care and watch yourselves scrupulously’ (Deut.4:9)”. It is quite fascinating to me, that the rabbis would include taking care of one’s body as a positive commandment. Hillel is famous for calling his Friday bath a mitzvah, as he perceived it as taking care of the divine image and likeness. In Judaism we do not encourage ascetic behaviors nor do we treat our bodies as the enemy of spirituality, but rather we take care of them.


Today at Cardin we all participate in Wellness Day. Both students and teachers will enjoy various lectures lead by experts in the field (on subjects ranging from acupuncture and dietary choices, to the science of sleep and skin cancer prevention) as well as a number of physical activities. I, personally, look forward to a class in Mixed Martial Arts and a workout to strengthen my body’s core. Students and teachers can also choose a yoga or zumba class, or even try to become a hula hoop king or queen.

This day is not just a “fun day”, which would be very appropriate for Rosh Chodesh Adar, but also a day of learning and living Torah – we are fulfilling the mitzvah of taking care of our health and well being. And because we are taught that ein kemach ein Torah, ein Torah ein kemach – “where there is no physical nourishment there can be no Torah, where there is no Torah, there is no way to acquire physical nourishment," we will also enjoy a salad bar lunch. Put on some comfortable clothes and join us for Cardin Wellness Day!

~Rochel Johanna Czopnik
Judaics Instructor

Call Me An Optimist

It's been a crazy winter, not that I'm complaining about the snow days and delays, but it's starting to get a little ridiculous. Today is Groundhog's Day. An old friend used to say that it was the most optimistic day of the year. We all go around hoping that the little guy will see his shadow, giving us a break on the winter season. And today, he did see it, which for me, brightened an otherwise dismal day in just the smallest way. You see, today I learned that a former classmate of many Cardin students passed away suddenly on Tuesday. It's a devastating event that made me want to hug my own children a little tighter. It's tragedies like these that make you realize how fragile life is. As the school counselor, I met with all of the students who were personally affected. I also contacted each of their parents in an effort to keep the lines of communication open. And in another small way my otherwise dismal day was brightened. I took pause to reflect on how close we are in the Cardin community. How much we care about one another. And how we support each other when needed. Call me an optimist.

~Jackie Villet

School Counselor