The dictionary definition of art is “The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.”  I think that is a terrific definition, but as an artist and educator, I think it is so much more than that.

As the culminating project for a unit on behavioral ecology, students in Biology 2 went to Woodland Park Zoo to conduct animal behavior experiments. Students spent several weeks learning about evolutionary causes of behaviors, types of learning, social behaviors and ecological consequences of behaviors. Throughout the unit, the students also learned methods behavioral ecologists use to study behaviors through observation. They practiced these techniques in the classroom by watching videos of animals and coding their behaviors and observing live mealworms to determine habitat and food preferences.

On this year’s Global Days, November 25 and 26, middle schoolers will focus on our response to climate change, including advocacy and innovation, and care for creation. Eighth and ninth grade students suggested this summer that we explore our changing oceans and the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, and teen activist Greta Thunberg has further inspired our plans.

Our Residential Life Program houses 28 students in grades 8 through 12, where students hold a daily routine of schoolwork, extracurricular activities and study hall. On the weekends, we host a mixture of on and off-campus adventures such as holiday crafts, trips to the local mall, hiking, roller skating and Seattle sightseeing—just to name a few.

For me, the most powerful element of the trip was seeing the students surprise themselves with their own strength and perseverance.