Classroom Spotlight: Spanish IV
Inspired by Frida Kahlo’s art, students in Señora Fiori and Señora Rose’s classes created and presented self-portraits to their classmates, using Spanish to describe the creative elements in each piece.
Señora Rose explained the project by saying, "Frida Kahlo’s work is often considered surrealist, though she herself said that her paintings were not surreal but rather expressions of her own reality. Inspired by that idea, students used Kahlo’s art as a lens to explore their own realities. In their self-portraits, they incorporated meaningful symbols and elements that represent who they are and what matters most to them."
This fun yet challenging project combined history, creativity, and Spanish presentation skills!
Classroom Spotlight: English VI
The Sixth Form class recently completed their "Moth" stories as a part of their "Using My Voice" English class curriculum. The project required students to write, and then perform, their own personal, true story.
Students began by listening to and reading stories from NPR’s “Moth” radio hour. Berkshire then welcomed Matthew Dicks—a “Moth” storytelling champion—to campus to speak directly to the senior class.
Ms. Hardcastle explained the project by saying "The assignment is an opportunity for students to reflect on moments large and small that have been transformative in some way. Thematically, this assignment also connects to the course's title, which is "Using My Voice," as students find unique ways to tell their stories, often infusing moments of humor and levity into the narratives." Topics this year ranged from learning the truth about Santa Claus, getting over a fear of flying, and sibling rivalry.
Seniors in AP English will complete this project in the spring.
In the Moth Story project, we learned important pieces of storytelling, like building suspense and grabbing people's attention." –Jack Peters '26
A lot of us wrote about smaller things. We didn't necessarily think about it in the moment, but as we looked back, we realized we learned meaningful lessons." –Grace Merell '26
Storytelling is an underrated skill. Matthew Dicks taught us different ways to communicate through stories." –Erion Milla '26
Most of us didn't fully memorize our story, so we had to improvise to get to the five-minute mark. This project taught me how to think on my feet which is a good skill to have." –Jack Mugler '26
Classroom Spotlight: Studio Art
Students in Mr. Seelenbrandt’s Studio Art classes visited The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Mass. in preparation for an upcoming landscape assignment. After touring the museum, they selected two landscapes to work from, and then sketched the compositions in “color zones,” or blocks of similar color. Each zone becomes a little monochromatic painting on its own and by adding shades and tints to match the original, the landscape slowly emerges from the canvas. Students then brought this technique back to work on their own landscape paintings in class.
“When students sketch out the color zones, there’s no shading, no detail," said Seelenbrant. "It’s an exercise that really gets them to paint or draw what they see, not what they think they see. We talk a lot about how the Impressionists painted. You spend so much time right up close to the canvas, but you’ve got to step back and spend time back away from it as well. You’ve got to change your perspective.”
The most challenging thing about this landscape project was to trust the process because I had to stop worrying about the final result and focus on each part of the painting, step by step." - Emma Spivey '29
Photos from the Clark: Mr. Seelenbrandt
The radio station is up and running for the school year! A 232-watt, federally licensed radio station, WBSL 91.7 FM offers students and faculty the opportunity to explore a variety of radio platforms, live on the FM radio dial.
There are student- and faculty-hosted radio programs each week in the evening starting at 7:00 p.m., including talk shows, themed-music hours, and much more! Check back regularly as new shows and time slots may be added throughout the year.
This year's Fall Dance Concert showcased a variety of dance styles including ballet, contemporary, hip-hop, jazz, K-Pop, and tap.
My favorite thing about this season of dance is getting to see just how far our dancers have come. This season features some challenging, technical choreography, and our team enthusiastically embraced adversity and learned to find joy in the process. I am so excited for them to share just how hard they have worked to come together as a team and raise the level of this program! –Ms. Bagby
Congratulations to all of the dancers on a spectacular performance! Dancers: Lyla Carmona '29, Nuala Chee '27, Sara He '28, Kiki Jiang '28, Katherine Nelson '27, Eleanor Rose '27, Lily Royce '27, Gabrielle St. Clair '27
Thank you to the faculty, crew and ushers for all of your support! Mr. Sayler Ms. Powell Mr. Hayes Ms. Kupiec Dr. Wu Chidera Okeke ‘26 (Stage Manager) Dalia Banevicius ‘17 (Poster Design) Ushers: Yuki Hu '26, Ciecee Qiu '28, Emily Yang 27, Sophie Benjamin '26, Asher Watkins '28, Claire Kim '26, Lila Barkan '27
The Warren Family Gallery Presents
Krista Edlund Dalton's From Water to Wood is on display from Friday, November 7 – Saturday, December 18 in The Warren Family Gallery. We are excited to welcome the Dalton family back to Berkshire's campus! This exhibition includes Dalton's exploration of material transformation, landscape, and the quiet narratives held within natural forms.
The sensitivity and depth of Krista's work make this a compelling exhibition for our school community" –Glen Seelenbrandt, Director of The Warren Family Gallery
As the fall season comes to a close, Berkshire teams wrap up regular season play on November 8 before heading into the postseason. Congratulations to all our fall athletes and coaches on their hard work and achievements this season! Winter sports are just around the corner, with scrimmages beginning November 15.
The Ritt Kellogg Mountain Program (RKMP) Mountain Bike team finished their season with a fantastic showing at the championship. Out of a team of four, three riders brought home medals, and the entire team had a strong showing and rode incredibly well. Go Bears!
Head of the Charles Regatta
The Berkshire Bears had an impressive showing at this year's Head of the Charles Regatta. The boys team finished 43rd out of 86 boats, earning them an automatic entry in next year's race. The girls team also performed well, placing 49th out of 86.
Our Regional Advisory Board Boston Chapter hosted our Berkshire cheering squad! Alumni, families and friends were able to cheer on the Bears together. Thank you for hosting!
For more crew news, follow the team on Instagram @berkshireschoolcrew.
Alumni Spotlight: John Harker '97
After dedicating 22 years to the United States Coast Guard, serving in law enforcement, search and rescue, and homeland security missions across the globe, John Harker ’97 recently fulfilled his life dream of becoming the Harbormaster of Harwich, Mass. on Cape Cod.
Learn why Harker joined the Coast Guard, how his missions and events like 9/11 impacted him, and why he decided to return to public service as a Harbormaster.