News & Views

Second Graders Exercise Their Imaginations During Day of Roxaboxen

Inspired by their reading of Roxaboxen, an award-winning children’s book written by Alice McLerran and illustrated by Barbara Cooney, Country School second graders headed to the woods to exercise their imagination on Oct. 20.
Working in small groups or individually, children whisked around the school’s 35-acre woodlands for several hours, collecting fallen branches, stacking logs, piling stones, sweeping leaves aside to make roadways and paths, and creating an imaginary town of their own.  View more photos.

Back in the classrooms later that afternoon, students connected their experiences to the school’s mission and core values, which honor courage, curiosity, creativity and kindness.

The second grade day of Roxaboxen is just one of many Country School traditions that combine traditional teaching methods, such as a read-aloud, with an experiential component.

"It was a joy to watch students express themselves as individuals, while also working together to form their own special community," said Grade 2 Teacher Caitlin Bellgamba. “The ability to imagine, and then act upon that imagination, is a crucial part of childhood. It’s a fundamental underpinning of creative problem-solving and entrepreneurial thinking. Plus, it has the added benefit of being a lovely way to spend a morning.”
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New Canaan Country School admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin and are afforded all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, or disability in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, financial aid policies or any other school-administered programs.