Joining thousands of others at more than 100 schools around the world, teams of students at Rochester Memorial School, Sippican School and Old Hammondtown School embarked on a four-hour virtual “ideathon” focused on solving the problem of a devastating disease impacting citrus plants.

            “This hands-on experience allowed students to apply their scientific thinking to a real-life issue and provided valuable insight into the types of challenges farmers and industry professionals face every day,” said Rochester Memorial School Principal Heidi Letendre. “It was an inspiring and empowering opportunity for our young scientists.”

            Groups made up of fifth and sixth graders from Rochester Memorial School, Old Hammondtown School and Sippican School were invited to take part in the Student Solve challenge as a result of the schools’ use of the OpenSciEd curriculum offered by the One8 Foundation through its Applied Learning Hub.

            At the outset of the Student Solve challenge held in mid-December, students were presented with a problem that a company is facing and then met virtually with an expert mentor before brainstorming, conducting research, submitting their ideas and receiving feedback.

            With their mentor’s guidance and feedback, the students dug into the question of why some citrus trees are resistant to a devastating disease called Huanglongbing – also known as citrus greening – while others citrus trees sustain significant damage.

            “Throughout the experience, students alternated between working in teams and meeting with mentors on Zoom. They brainstormed possibilities, conducted research, asked clarifying questions, refined their thinking, and ultimately submitted one solution idea per team,” said Old Hammondtown School Principal Stephanie Wells. “We are so proud of our students for embracing the challenge with curiosity, kindness and collaboration.”

            “Participating in the Student Solve challenge gave our students an authentic opportunity to use their critical thinking skills to engage deeply with science, while working collaboratively, to address a real-world problem,” said Sippican School Principal Lynn Dessert. “Experiences like this not only strengthen critical thinking and problem-solving skills, but they also help students see how their learning can make a meaningful impact in the world.”

            Principal Letendre credited sixth-grade teacher Tracey Forns for her leadership of the students through the Applied Learning programming. Principal Wells thanked sixth-grade science teacher Sara Jacobsen for organizing this learning opportunity and science specialist Ben Squire for helping to facilitate the experience throughout the day, along with sixth-grade teachers Kyle Letendre and Julie Letourneau. Principal Dessert thanked Sippican sixth grade teachers who worked on the project, including Erin Furfey, Bill Roseman, Nicole Boussy and Zenobia Nelles.

            According to the One8 Foundation, around 4,000 students, 105 schools and 227 educators participated in the Student Solve challenge. Additionally, more than 49,000 students in Massachusetts are engaged in the OpenSciEd curriculum, drawing from 127 schools and 62 school districts.

            Superintendent Michael S. Nelson and Assistant Superintendent of Teaching and Learning Shari Fedorowicz commended the teachers at Rochester Memorial School, Sippican School and Old Hammondtown School for facilitating such an engaging program, provoking critical thinking among all the fifth and sixth-grade students who participated. They also thanked the industry mentors who offered their expert feedback as part of the Student Solve event.

            “It’s inspiring to see our students apply the skills they’ve learned in their Applied Learning classrooms and then receiving feedback from relevant industry experts,” Assistant Superintendent Fedorowicz said. “This idea-generating experience is something our students will remember as they move forward with their science education and beyond.”

            “Kudos to our teachers who delivered this experience to our OpenSciEd students, and many thanks to the industry experts who volunteered as mentors,” said Superintendent Nelson. “We are proud to offer our students engaging, real-world experiences that challenge them to think creatively and tap into all the skills and knowledge they have learned in the classroom.”

            Last summer my son, who was visiting from New York, and I were driving around our lovely village, heading to the wharf for ice cream. He was driving. Suddenly a police car appeared in the mirror, waving him over to the side of the street. We had no idea why.

            We had just left my house, which is not far from the intersection we had just passed through, so he was not speeding.

            The officer, who was very nice, said my son had failed to make a full stop at a stop sign. (I believe that is called a “rolling stop” in police jargon.) I’d argue that my son did stop, even though there were clear sightlines and no pedestrians in the area. Nevertheless, he didn’t argue the point. I taught my son never to argue with law enforcement, especially when they are wearing a weapon.

            The officer had a sense of humor. When I offered that in the 60-plus years since I got my driver’s license, I have driven around the village a thousand times and never once rolled through a stop sign (I lied), he laughed. My son frowned. He gave us a warning and left. He was a good guy.

            Ever since I have been thinking about signs. Without them life would be chaos. Signs are everywhere and for good reasons. I even have a sign on my front-light post with our name on it. I wouldn’t want to come home late at night and go to the wrong house.

            The current resident of the Peoples’ House in Washington and I are the same age. He may have realized, as have I, that our memory fails us from time to time. That may be why he has been placing signs throughout the White House. He placed a sign outside the Oval Office saying, “The Oval Office.” It is written in classy gold script. I assume it is so he can tell the difference from the other rooms in the building which are rectangle.

            There is a new sign as you enter the Cabinet Room, identifying it as the “Cabinet Room.” He wouldn’t tolerate any cabinet member complaining about getting lost and missing a meeting. A new sign designates the old Rose Garden as the “Rose Garden Club” with its round tables and yellow umbrellas. It is surely destined to become the official national resort. There are no roses there anymore, but the name is historic, so he kept it.

            There is a new gold lettered sign leading to the West Wing, but the one for the East Wing was discarded. It is no longer needed. There is even a sign on the Truman Balcony advising visitors not to look up at the sun during an eclipse. (Not true, I made that up.)

            Anyway, I’m beginning to think putting signs everywhere in the house is a good idea. I have been thinking of doing the same in our house. You know how car mirrors say, “Objects appear smaller in the mirror.” I’ll place one on our bathroom mirror saying, “Bodies appears smaller in this mirror.” One can always start the day with a little reminder before breakfast. I don’t see well without my glasses so a large sign hanging in the shower will warn ‘Slippery when wet.’”

            The kitchen will have a number of important warning signs. “Toaster, beware flying objects.” Another will say, “Trigger Warning! Trashcan, unpleasant smells.” There will be one on the refrigerator: “STOP, objects inside have dangerous calories and may cause weight gain.” Oh, and “DO NOT ENTER WHEN WIFE IS COOKING!” That one will definitely be all caps!

            I’ll be sure to have a sign on my recliner warning that reading books may (will) cause drowsiness. Also, I’ll tie one on the dog’s collar warning, “Beware tripping hazard.” That one will be glow-in-the dark for when he is sleeping by the bathroom door in the middle of the night.

            All the others will be printed in classy gold script lettering.

            Mattapoisett resident Dick Morgado is an artist and happily retired writer. His newspaper columns appeared for many years in daily newspapers around Boston.

By Dick Morgado

            When I look at my weather app to check out the temperature, I frequently scroll over to England, Spain, and Paris to make comparisons – often wishing how nice it would be to be elsewhere. Well, this past Christmas my wish was granted and I was off to Paris for the holiday. Ooh la la!

            This trip rekindled a deep reverence for Europe in winter. I’d lived there for a spell while working with my husband in Italy and even further back had taken a ski trip with the high school ski team to Austria. I pinch myself that I am still able to travel across the pond and can make new memories.

            The change of scenery wasn’t the primary reason but rather to spend time with my daughter who lives in Paris with her husband. When they proposed me going there – my “yes” was instantaneous. Despite it being December, I found a warmth presiding throughout my trip – from my arrival and the placards “Bienvenue Mom!” to each turn of the journey.

            I knew enough not to expect the bright blue skies of Parisian summer, but I wasn’t prepared for the outdoor beauty that persists here during the stripped-down season. When an environment has good bones, so to speak, whether it is your own backyard or a great big city like Paris, you can still be transported without all the greenery and flora. “Good bones” (an expression taught me by the late New Bedford landscape designer Allen Haskell) is an important feature for the garden, especially in winter. In garden speak, it’s a landscape that has year-round permanent elements such as trees, shrubs, paths and other hardscaping that lend shape and structure and interest – to wit, a certain gracefulness.

            Our escapades took us across the city to some of the major landmarks and out to the nether regions outside Paris with the central focus of holiday fun and relaxation. To kick things off, a few days before Christmas, we went out in search of Buche de Noel (a fancy Yule Log cake), surfing the incredible gourmet food market at Galeries Lafayette, taking in all the splendors of food and also the iconic Art Nouveau glass dome in the flagship store. Visitors were out in full force, whether to absorb the vibe or get their last-minute Christmas shopping done or both. From storefront window displays to the light-infused streets, buildings and trees, it reminded me why “city of lights” denotes Paris. (The historical premise is rooted in the city’s role in the Enlightenment as well as the early adoption of street lighting, but it really is an incredibly luminous place.)

            From here we took to the Tuileries Garden Christmas Market “La Magie de Noel” – one of Paris’s largest and most popular markets located next to the Louvre. The fanfare of amusement rides and holiday-festooned food stalls provided a few hours’ merriment, and I especially enjoyed my first vin chaud (mulled wine). This same park that we strolled through last summer, watching men playing petanque and children sailing miniature wooden sailboats in the park’s ponds, had been transformed into a Christmas village with ice skating and amusement rides and the aroma of assorted French foods – fondue, saucisson and escargot filling the air. A small-scale reproduction of the iconic Eiffel Tour appeared in the framework of the booths, the real one visible from the western end of park near Place de la Concorde.  I pinched myself: Yes, this was real!

            Continuing our pre-Christmas stroll along Rue de Faubourg provided a totally different scene as we passed some of the high-fashion couture houses, gaping at bedecked Hermes and Chanel holiday displays. Art galleries, antique dealers, high-end perfumers and jewelers as well as diplomatic buildings such as the Elysee Palace (the French Presidents’ residence) are located in this section of the 8th arrondissement.

            Getting away from the commercial side of Christmas, we attended a concert provided by the Orchestre Helios at the Eglise de la Madeleine, with its grand temple-like neoclassical architecture and ornate interior. Traditional Christmas songs were performed in various languages – renditions of “White Christmas” and “Adeste Fideles” as well as the catchy “Petit Papa Noel” in which members of the audience sang the refrain. This elevating sensory delight would resonate through my entire holiday. The finale of the evening was dining at the brasserie Le Grand Colbert, the self-same restaurant featured in the film Something’s Gotta Give, where Diane Keaton’s character finds romance. My daughter Olivia and her husband Seb both work in the film trade so they know these tidbits!

            My sojourn was a balance of quiet family time with jaunts to a few amazing places worth mentioning. We went to a very different kind of show called Zingaro – known as “equestrian theatre” and combining storytelling, music, dance and extravagant staging within an old theater in Paris. The stories accompanied by musicians are told in French (naturally), reminding me that I need to step up my Duolingo. I’m on day 698, but have far to go!

            Christmas eve was a delight spent on the outskirts of Paris with our French family. The meal is savored over a good length of time – it is traditional to take your time eating as meals (I didn’t clock it, but I think it was 4-5 hours long, with multiple courses served. Of course some of that time was to open gifts and drink champagne! This is the norm in France and other European countries. You enjoy your food and conversation – it really becomes a mindful experience.

            Christmas day was low key – quite a change from my typical frenetic Christmas. A day of opening presents and making crepes and a bike ride to explore a new neighborhood where my daughter and son-in-law will move to. Flying through Paris on an electric bike on Christmas day was life itself!

            A few days after Christmas, we ventured to the countryside outside Paris to a farm-to-table restaurant “among the top 100 restaurants of the world.” Le Doyenne is in Saint Vrain, set on the historic Chateau de Saint-Brain grounds, offering seasonal tasting menus from their own regenerative farm in a beautifully restored stable, known for its rustic charm and commitment to local, seasonal ingredients. We had course after course of epicurean delights matched with wines and champagnes of the region. The setting is rustic with views of the gardens and orchards as well as the very visible kitchen and with each exquisite plate explained in perfect English (the staff is multi-lingual). I’ve never considered myself a gourmand, but this could be a life changer!

            After dining (again this was a multiple-hour experience), we walked around the farm and greenhouses where I noticed the harvest still in progress. (They don’t have the deep freezes we have.) As we lounged around the huge fireplace, we flipped through books from the bookcase including Alice Waters “The Art of Simple Food” – who opened Chez Panisse, a restaurant in Berkeley, California, famous for its role in creating the farm-to-table movement and for pioneering California cuisine. The day out was a total delight in every way. The fireplace indoors and a fire-pit bonfire outside the restaurant felt a lot like home to me.

            The final outing – on the day before my return to the states – can only be described as magical. The Festival du Merveilleux is an annual winter event held at the Musee des Arts Forains (Museum of Fairground Arts) open for only one week and transforming the museum into a wonderland with vintage carousels, performances – including tap dancers evoking the 1920s and an amazing performance inspired by the whirling dervish tradition. The vintage carousels, and magical illuminations and memorabilia from days of old alone were captivating – a wonderland within the greater wonderland that is Paris.

            It’s been three weeks since I returned home and the enchantment still hasn’t worn off! I continue to look longingly at my weather app, but the snow outdoors is a lovely distraction.

I love Paris in the spring time

I love Paris in the fall

I love Paris in the summer when it sizzles

I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles

I love Paris every moment

Every moment of the year.

– “I Love Paris” Cole Porter

The Seaside Gardener

By Laura McLean