The Brunswick Trust N E W S L E T T E R
Being a Bruin: What It Means
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orrowing the Lower School theme of “Be” this year, our Brunswick community in all divisions is focusing on what it means to Be a Bruin. What do Bruins stand for? And what do we stand against? Each pillar of the Brunswick Trust reminds us of these lessons and serves to help us practice the skills necessary to take care of ourselves and each other.
Character & Leadership
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ower School boys kicked off the year combining an extra-special “B-Day” — Brunswick’s 120th birthday — with a brand-new theme for the 2022-23 school year: Be.
Boys created 120 “candles” adorned with thoughts about how they want to feel and be this year: Courage, Honor, Truth to be sure, but also qualities like “safe,” “kind,” “polite,” “proud,” and “welcoming.”
Lower School Head Katie Signer said thinking about ways “To Be” is a great way to begin a new school year; she introduced the theme in September by asking boys to think it through for themselves.
SMART Goals have been the focus at the Middle School this fall as boys completed a new midsemester reflection exercise designed to dovetail with the midpoint comments students received from teachers. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measured, Achievable, Relevant, and Timed.
“Who or what should Brunswick boys be?” she queried. “What qualities and traits should they embody?” To answer these questions, and in celebration of the big birthday, Brunswick’s very own Cake Boss, Chef Patrick, baked a giant cake for a big birthday celebration.
Boys were asked to review teacher comments and place a plus sign next to identified strengths and a star next to challenges. Students reviewed the Character Continuum with the objective of seeing how their academic strengths might overlap with character strengths. Based on what they learned, boys were then asked to set SMART goals for the remainder of the semester. Much more than just an intention to “do better” in math, a SMART Goal is specific and achievable. For example, a student might set a goal to create a weekly, 15-minute morning meeting with a math teacher to work on practice problems. continued on page 2
CHARACTER
D I V E R S I T Y, E Q U I T Y,
H E A LT H
SERVICE &
& LEADERSHIP
INCLUSION &
& WELLNESS
S U S TA I N A B I LI T Y
BELONGING