Ross Upper School
Barbara Raeder's fifth graders took their class to the Senior Lecture Hall on March 18. As part of their studies on Ancient Indus Valley Civilizations and the roots of Hinduism, the students embodied different Hindu gods and goddesses and presented a brief biography on their chosen deity. The presentations were given in a classroom format on stage with parents, students and faculty merely "observing" from a distance.

The students selected a god at random, from a hat filled with names of deities, thus "determining the children's destiny," Barbara teased. The students researched their gods and fashioned elaborate costumes. The stage was a blur of bright colored scarves, shirts and skirts as well as creative props including cardboard arms (Hindu gods often had additional arms), bejeweled crowns, bindis, plastic swords and a homemade sitar. Soft Indian music played in the background as each student stood up to present. Several gods made their presence, including Vishnu, the protector and preserver of the universe; Krishna, the god of love, peace and joy; and Sheba, the god of dance, destruction and creation.

The students also created portraits of the deities they selected. The colorful works of art were on display throughout the Café. In conjunction with this project, the Café staff prepared a delicious lunch using the "Flavors of India."

The fifth graders will visit Ganapati Devesthanam, a Hindu temple in Flushing Queens, during their overnight trip to New York City on March 26. The final component of the project involves a written reflection in two drafts focusing on a project description, identifying the learning process and reflecting on what the individual student has learned about him/herself.

Art Exhibition
Ross High School students proudly displayed their works of art in two separate exhibits on March 14, Guild Hall's 17th Annual Student Art Festival, and the Southampton Cultural Center's Annual Student Artist Invitational. At Guild Hall, aspiring young artists on the East End, in grades nine through 12, were able to display their works of art in a professional gallery setting.

Film Screenings
The show also featured screenings of the winners of The Student Film Project. Ross School junior Alexa Barrett won second place for her film Crimson Awakening.

"My film is about a teenage girl who views several traditional portraits at a gallery opening and becomes inspired to create her own modern perception of the portraits," Alexa explained. "Having done it for my modernity project at the Ross School, it has several aspects to it that represent the modernity period."

The four-minute film featured complex cinematography techniques including stop motion animation and time-lapse imagery. It is about the shift from traditional painting to modern art.
"I was thrilled to even be selected to have my film screened because all of the movies that were screened were considered winners," said Alexa. "It was a huge honor to be selected by Guild Hall to have my film screened, and on top of that to win second place with a stop motion pixilation was very exciting!"

Guild Hall's gallery walls were also filled with works of art by Ross students: Arlis Andon (Grade 12); James Caputo (Grade 12); Patience Pollock (Grade 12); Yvie Biddle-Hentic (Grade 11); Matt Tilton (Grade 11); Ian Sinclair (Grade 11); Camille Coy (Grade 11); Hannah Levy (Grade 11); Chelsea Werle (Grade 11); Emma Lesser (Grade 10); Shu Wu (Grade 10); Devon Leaver (Grade 10); Noah Engel (Grade 10); Ben Potter (Grade 10); Henry Lee (Grade 10); Abigail Cook (Grade 10); Tina Bozsik (Grade 9) and Wu Qing Hipsch (Grade 9). Their work will be on display through April 12.

Art Invitational
The Artist Invitational at the Southampton Cultural Center is a sophisticated exhibition and competition for local high school juniors and seniors. The Ross students who showed in the Invitational were Skyla Winters (Grade 12); Taylor Wilson (Grade 12); Evelyn Hoffmann (Grade 12); Kirsten Judson (Grade 12); James Caputo (Grade 12); Patience Pollock (Grade 12); Angela Gay (Grade 12); Joe Saunders (Grade 11); Hannah Baker (Grade 11); Allegra Crespi (Grade 11); Hannah Levy (Grade 11); Sydney Dratel (Grade 11); Miles Kozatch (Grade 11) and Carlotta Kohl (Grade 11). The exhibit ended on March 22.

Ross Lower School
Ross third graders performed an erudite but funny play about the history of the universe entitled "When The World Was New" at the Lower School on March 19. This project was many months in the making. The students started with in-depth research in November, studying everything from fossils to the Paleozoic and Mesozoic Eras. Later, they wrote their own scripts based on their studies. Performing arts teacher Margaret Kestler compiled all the scripts into one featuring several acts and many wild characters. There was a museum tour guide trainee who when left alone was greeted by a talking fossil; there were also mad scientists crunching data and storytellers and poets, not to mention one very enthusiastic reporter with a news bulletin on "the oldest known land mammal found in the Silurian rocks of Scotland! A fossil of a millipede from plant life to insect life and beyond!"

Even a caveman appeared at the end, discovering the wonders of the world - a delicious apple or the sparks caused by hitting two rocks together - and then the narrator: "So humans stepped forth and with them the seeking mind to know and understand the great mysteries of the universe and of life." The play ended with a song, performed by four students, written by Margaret.