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Peck School’s fourth-grade students are approaching language in a new way this year, thanks in part to a curriculum shift. Using their knowledge of traditional spelling rules, students are now focusing on morphology—the study of word structure and how words are built. Morphology looks at how words are broken down into their foundational parts, such as suffixes, prefixes, and Latin and Greek bases. This approach aims to enhance students' literacy skills by providing them with the tools to understand how words are constructed.

Peck uses a structured literacy approach in Lower School based on the Orton-Gillingham Methodology. This multisensory literacy program teaches spelling and word knowledge through the sequential introduction of specific phonics-based spelling rules. It provides students of all skill levels with a solid foundation in reading through explicit and structured instruction. Incorporating morphology in the fourth grade is a natural progression in our approach, building on students’ knowledge with a new level of linguistic awareness.

Each morphology lesson follows a three-part drill structure that incorporates visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learning:

Visual Drill – Students observe the morphemes they are studying, presented on the board or through flashcards.

Auditory Drill – The teacher explains the morpheme’s meaning, and students write it down while saying it aloud, reinforcing both understanding and memory.

Morphemic Analysis Drill – Students apply their knowledge by writing on individual whiteboards and identifying and analyzing words that use the learned morphemes.

“The different modalities of learning through morphology (auditory, visual, and kinesthetic) help students internalize it better,” said Fourth Grade Homeroom Teacher Cara Regan. “We are seeing students take what they learn during morphology lessons and recognize it in other places such as when they are reading, and that further proves that the lessons are resonating with them.”

By incorporating morphology into the fourth-grade curriculum, The Peck School’s curriculum encourages students to develop a richer understanding of language that extends beyond memorization. This skill set empowers students to connect word knowledge across subjects, deepening both their reading comprehension and their love of language.

As part of their studies on environmental change due to human impact, the seventh-grade science class is exploring how carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels contributes to the greenhouse effect. This process traps heat in the atmosphere, leading to global warming.

To better understand potential solutions, students have designed small-scale carbon capture devices made from coffee cans and funnels. These devices capture carbon dioxide emitted from a candle, symbolizing a factory releasing carbon emissions into the environment. The captured carbon dioxide is then directed to algae farms, where the algae utilize it for photosynthesis—a process that requires sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to produce energy and fuel algae growth.

While this setup is on a classroom scale, students discuss how it reflects larger-scale possibilities. Real-world algae farms could help reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide, using it as a resource to grow biofuel—an eco-friendly alternative to fossil fuels.

Each class, students observe and document the algae's color and changes, directly witnessing photosynthesis in action. They will present their findings in the coming weeks before Thanksgiving.

This project was inspired by lessons in the book Engineering in the Life Sciences, co-authored by Peck's Science Department Chair Dr. Kathy Kennedy, which encourages hands-on learning of abstract concepts.

“Using algae as a biofuel is something scientists are actually exploring in the real world," said Upper School Science Teacher JT McMillen. "Seeing this process on a small scale is a unique opportunity that can inspire students to pursue similar work in the future after getting a taste of it here in seventh-grade science.”
 

Third graders rolled up their sleeves while volunteering with America’s Grow-a-Row to harvest peppers for a cause they could feel proud of!

Grow-a-Row, a nonprofit operating 423 acres across four locations, donates fresh produce to food pantries and shelters across the country while educating communities facing food insecurity on nutrition and healthy eating. Peck’s third graders joined Grow-a-Row’s Pittstown (NJ) farm for its final day of the harvest season, where they discovered the dedication and resilience it takes to cultivate a successful farm.

The grade’s travel to the Pittstown farm was also a last-minute, weather-related change from potato harvesting at another location—which meant students not only experienced the effort of a harvest but also saw firsthand how adaptability is essential in real-life farm work. 

This shift, along with the knowledge that any peppers left behind would go to waste (and there would be less food for those in need) motivated students to maximize their efforts.

“Our trip to Grow-a-Row was truly meaningful. Third graders directly served their community by ensuring that people would have food on their tables. There was nothing glamorous about it, just hard work—and every bit of it mattered,” said Third Grade Homeroom Teacher Katie Bruno. 

In just two hours, Peck’s third graders harvested a remarkable 2,400 pounds of peppers—enough to feed 9,500 people, and so many that Grow-a-Row even ran out of bins in which to carry them all! Third graders left with a sense of pride in the work they put in that day, knowing that they had a direct hand in improving their community.

English teacher Sarah Chan knows how to set the perfect spooky scene. In her extracurricular Scary Story activity, Mrs. Chan captivates students with dramatic readings of ghostly tales, sparking both screams and laughter along the way. With all lights turned off, the room is cloaked in an eerie ambiance, as Mrs. Chan’s voice shifts between whispers and gasps, bringing each spine-chilling scene to life. Students act out her words in real time, filling the room with their own shrieks and giggles as they embody characters in the story.

“Scary stories is so fun because you get to be scared with all of your friends (but not scared enough to give you nightmares!) It’s a lot of fun at the same time!” said Ilana L. ’27

For an extra dose of comfort, Mrs. Chan encourages students to bring along their favorite teddy bear to clutch during the most thrilling moments. The activity has become a highlight of the Halloween season, but the love students have for this activity goes throughout the year.

 Ready to feel the thrills yourself? Watch this video and join in on the fright-filled fun!

Last Friday, Peck's second graders embarked on an exciting field trip to the Newark Museum as part of their studies on Indigenous peoples, beginning with the Alaskan Inuits. The museum’s Indigenous Peoples exhibit offered students a unique, hands-on experience, allowing them to see, feel, and interact with ancient artifacts like clothing, pottery, and everyday resources such as porcupine quills and feathers.

The students also learned about traditional food preparation techniques and lifestyles, enriching their classroom studies with tactile exploration. One of the trip highlights was making their own pinch pots—a clay hand-building technique used for thousands of years by Indigenous cultures.

"This is such a meaningful trip because while we have started to talk about these topics in class, this gives them a firsthand look at what Indigenous peoples were really like in an up close and interactive way," said Second Grade Home Room Teacher Erin Ceder.

As part of their study of early civilizations, Peck fifth graders dove into one of history’s greatest mysteries: the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. The gardens are one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, but unlike the others, there is no physical evidence to confirm their existence—only stories and artistic depictions. This project ties directly into the fifth-grade curriculum's essential question: What makes a civilization?

Students pondered whether the Hanging Gardens were ever truly built, considering that no archaeological proof has been found. They not only explored the possibility of the Gardens' existence but also gained insight into the broader question of how we determine what is real and worth investigating in history.

To further their understanding, students created their own models envisioning what the Gardens might have looked like. They created 2D or 3D models, making educated guesses as to what might be realistic representations of the gardens given the available resources of the time and the common architectural styles of the geographic location and time period.

“History can feel disengaging for students because it often seems predetermined. However, presenting a historical mystery—like the Hanging Gardens of Babylon—as unfinished or unsolved sparks their interest,” said Upper School History Teacher Dave Carlo. 

“They’re learning to make informed inferences by evaluating which building strategies were plausible based on what we do know about that time in history. Incorporating building projects teaches students practical skills while also sparking their imaginations.”