Middle School
During the last week of January, while New York was enduring bitter cold temperatures, a group of brilliant MMFS 8th graders and lucky faculty and staff were on the annual Costa Rica language immersion trip. We’ve been running this trip for 15 years. The trip is part of our mission to bring the curriculum to life with international travel. Every year the Head of School reports on how well the students do in their Spanish classes. After class they have a blast ziplining, surfing, swimming, boating, dolphin spotting, bird watching, shopping, and of course, eating. But this year we added something new to the Costa Rica trip. In keeping with the Quaker testimony of service and our commitment to empowering students to become “contributing members of a global society,” we added a service component
MMFS students worked on a project at an elementary school in the town of Lorena. An organization called Siempre Amigos ran the project. Working alongside local students, our 8th graders helped lay the foundation for a new basketball court. They also painted new areas of the school.
The work on the basketball court involved raking, hauling, and leveling dirt. For the painting project, students brightened the building’s entrance with coats of green and blue paint.
After the students finished the work, washed the paint brushes, and put the tools away, they joined the local students in a game of soccer. After all that hard work and running around, everyone was thrilled when a local community women’s organization brought them homemade empanadas and tamarind juice. The students were effusive with their thanks—en español.
We have long wanted to add a service project to the Costa Rica trip. True to form, MMFS students made this day a complete success with their hard work and desire to help.
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