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AOSR News March 2004

Contents Message from the Principal

1 All School News 8,9,10 News from Counselor

17 Voters Registration

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PPAC 3 Pre-K News 10 Talking with Teacher 18 Il Foro 25

PTO Corner 4 ES News 11 Sports Briefs 19, 20 Calendar 26

Board Biographies 5 MS News 12 Notes from the Field 21

2004-2005 Fees 6 HS News 14-17 Rome ‘N’ About 22

1st Sem.Honor Roll 7 Wellness Program 15-16 Bon Appetito 23

WWW.AOSR.ORG

Dr. Dougherty is recruiting teachers in the US until March 1. His column will appear again starting in next month’s issue.

Healthier and More Knowledgeable Students, Make Better Learners

By Dr. Beth Pfannl, Principal

AOSR is hosting its first Wellness Day for high school students and staff members this month. On Thursday, March 4, students in grades 9 – 12 will attend a series of workshops on health related topics ranging from the effects of drugs and alcohol on the brain to techniques on how to relax and lower stress levels.

When thinking about health education, one usually recalls learning about food groups, puberty, and den-tal hygiene. All are important topics, however, the first annual Wellness Day promises is take this a few steps beyond.

Our feeling at AOSR is that knowledge is fundamental in helping students make good choices in life related to their health and well-being. “Education researchers have worked to identify educational approaches that positively affect health-related behaviors among young people. Many research studies have established the effectiveness of skills-based school health education in promoting healthy behavior and academic achieve-ment.” (ASCD, Leadership, Vol. 61, p.71).

The idea of a Wellness Day originated from a discussion among AOSR teachers, students, and parents about the everyday experiences that students live through and how these impact on their own health. Workshop topics were chosen that would be of particular interest to our high school students: the correlation between eat-ing breakfast and doing well in school, the link between success in high school sports and academics, the general increase in depression among students today and how this can be overcome, and the effects of smoking on the body as well as the use of drugs, including alcohol. Workshops will be led by educational and health professionals, some of whom are outside speakers and others who are AOSR teachers on staff, and will center on why students may choose to smoke or not smoke cigarettes, the effects of nutrition on performance, and learning about AIDS. There will be a total of five sessions for students to attend throughout the day. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States have identified six types of behav-ior that cause the most serious health problems among people over 5 years old: alcohol and other drug use, high-risk sexual behaviors, tobacco use, poor dietary choices, physical inactivity, and behaviors that result in inten-tional or unintentional injury. These six behaviors will be addressed during Wellness Day.

Underlining the importance of education, the Centers state that these behaviors usually are established during youth; persist into adulthood; are interrelated; and are preventable. In addition to causing serious health

(Continued on page 5)

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is a monthly publication of the American Overseas School of

Rome (AOSR) To make comments, suggestions, or to submit an arti-cle to the Falcon Flyer, please send an email to ptonewsletter@aosr.org. or call editor Lisa Finerty at 06-4782-6192. Article submissions may be left also in the Flyerbox located in the Principal’s office.

Next Deadline 3-24-04 The deadline for submission of articles for the Flyer is Wednesday, March 24, for news and an-nouncements for the period, April 3rd to May 3, 2004.

Important Phone Numbers School Number: 06-334-381

Fax: 06-3326-2608 Headmaster: Larry Dougherty 06-3343-8331 Headmaster’s Secretary : Domenica Losani 06-3343-8331 Principal: Beth Pfannl 06-3343-8326 Principal’s Secretary: Alessandra Cozzi 06-3343-8326 Admissions: Don Levine 06-3343-8300 Reception/Secretary: Joanne Hoberg 06-3343-8300 Financial Consultant: Elisa Bruno 06-3343-8338 Boarding/Finance: Estelle Dougherty 06-3343-8339 Guidance Counselor: Donna Ross 06-3343-8327 Nurse: Diane Cullen-Moore 06-3343-8321 After School Activities: Christine Hogan 06-3343-8320 Margaret Ciuffreda MS Activities Coord.: Angela Santangelo 06-3343-8336 Resource Room: Karen Lee 06-3343-8302 Records Office: Marina Benetti 06-3343-8315 PTO/Boutique 06-3343-8322

Via Cassia 811 00189 Rome, Italy

Internet: www.aosr.org

PTO Partners

Carol Atwood atwood@mclink.it Susan Berton thebertons@hotmail.com Julie Deptula juge98@hotmail.com Grazia Deulus deulus@virgilio.it Lisa Finerty lisaland@mindspring.com Susan Haight b.haight@agora.it Francesca Kelly fkellysun@aol.com

Laura Rumpf ericrumpf@yahoo.it Monique Smits smitjes@libero.it Ana Volk vvolk@libero.it Moshira Zelenka karel.zelenka@tiscali.it

As always, please call if we can help!

Publisher’s News

Thirty-five years ago, I had 9th grade English in the Falcon Flyer room. I remember reading my poem alliterations in the style of Chaucer. The room is still used as a classroom. This week Junior IB/AP English students were doing oral presentations. Last year, my son did his oral presentation here. I feel lucky to still be learning in this room. Welcome back from Settimana Bianca. This edition is one day late because of it! You will note that the "No Class Days" box is missing from this edition; it will appear next month. Last month the Falcon Flyer was particularly good on the website because of all the pictures which were included. This month's edition is even better; especially the pictures of Pre-K Carnevale on page 10, and Helen Hagg's Martian Cartoon on page 13. See the Flyer on the internet if you haven’t yet, at www.aosr.org, "Newsletter". Based on discussions of the PPAC, the Falcon Flyer will publish a Italian supplement of the PPAC meeting notes and Dr. Pfannl’s column sometime in March. Latoya Kelley has joined the Falcon Flyer. Two of her three children are in their first year at AOSR, in Pre-K and Grade 1. "They love it!" she says. We are looking for an Italian proofreader, too, if you want to volunteer. Your contributions have made it really fun to assemble the Flyer. We prefer you write us by email, and "attach" a Word file. It is best not to heavily customized the layout. A single, black font is ideal. Last but not least I want to thank Jimmy McDivett (my AOSR classmate) and the rest of his committee for the wonderful Gala Benefit. CORRECTION: The photo of the MS Choir singing at Villa Tavernna at the Holiday Party which appeared last edition on page 3 was credited by the American Women Association of Rome's website( awar.org ) to the staff at the English Yellow Pages -- and we will too!

Lisa Finerty Editor

PPAC Principal Parent Advisory Committee

Grazia Deulus Claudie Ottolenghi Lisa Finerty Cinzia Palana Carolyn Grosso Sam Simpson Susan Haight Claudia Sobral Millie Kneeland Beth Pfannl, Principal

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PPAC NEWS Principal Parent Advisory Committee

Meeting Notes Monday, January 26, 2004

In attendance: Grazia Deulus, Susan Haight, Millie Knee-land, Claudia Ottolenghi, Cinzia Palana, Sam Simpson, Clau-dia Sobral, Dr. Beth Pfannl, Principal Lost and Found Items: It was suggested that a flyer be sent home and an email message to all families about the lost and found items that are at school. There are several large bags of clothes and other items. IB Community Service students have washed and organized all the clothing found at school. All items with names have been returned to students. Remaining items will be on display during spring concerts and Parent/Teacher meeting times. Student and Faculty Bulletins: Compliments were made about the Student and Faculty Bulletins. It was reported that beginning this semester, the AOSR Intranet would be up and running. Communication with teachers: Parents reported that they are pleased to be able to communicate with teachers by email. This is a fast and efficient way of communicating; however, not all teachers are using this method. Role of PPAC: Specific teacher issues, including personnel issues, should not be brought to this committee. Those issues should be brought to the principal’s attention directly by the parents with the concerns. Issues that affect student life at AOSR and general con-cerns should be communicated to members of this committee and get placed on the agenda. Members were reminded that the purpose of the PPAC is to facilitate communication between the principal, the administration and the parents. It should be noted that PPAC mem-bers are NOT class representatives. Room Parents: It was suggested that this should be implemented across the board in all grade levels. Room Parents would serve to help orient new parents, organize class events, etc. North Gate: The gate would remain open until at 9:15 am daily in order to facilitate traffic flow between the North and South gates. Security: It was noted that the security guards should be vigilant of who enters the gates. The possibility of having a decal on AOSR cars might facilitate identification by the guards. Community Service: This should become a school wide project and not take place just at the end of the year. The school could adopt a few charities and work with them throughout the year. One person or two should coordinate this for the school.

Meeting Notes Monday, February 23, 2004

In attendance: Grazia Deulus,Lisa Finerty, Susan Haight, Millie Kneeland, Cinzia Palana, Sam Simpson, Dr. Beth Pfannl, Principal . Condition of the locker rooms: The locker rooms that serve our HS sports teams and visiting teams need to be fixed up. Homerooms for the HS: Should these be consid-ered for next year in order to deal with administra-tive issues? Technology: The Daily Bulletins for both faculty and students are now on the school web, the real-time homepage of all the computers at the school. School attendance is inputted now by teachers di-rectly on the computers in their classrooms and is immediately available for reference by the admini-stration throughout the day. Also the AOSR web-page revision is in process. Room Parent System: To better support good communication between families, especially at the beginning of a school year, it was proposed that a calling tree, organized through a Room Parent sys-tem, should be organized for the 2004-2005 school year. Hillside Theater: Spring is the Hillside Theater’s busy time with the MS Shakespeare Festival, the HS Shakespeare Festival, and Awards ceremonies. In addition, in 2005, a 5-year Alumni Reunion will take place at AOSR where alumni from the Shake-speare festivals over the past 40 years will restage their roles. HS Ski Trip: Well appreciated by students and parents. With the positive word of mouth, it will probably be in great demand next year. PPAC Notes/Organizational Chart will be trans-lated into Italian and published in the Falcon Flyer. NEXT MEETING is Monday, March 22, at 13:15 PM in the PTO Boutique.

Alumni Corner Here is an email from an alumna, Tisha (Brake) Banks who attended our school in the 70's. If any-one can help her with the information, please forward it to the Falcon Flyer (contact info on page 2) I know this may just be a bother but I figured it couldn't hurt to try... My name is Tisha (Brake) Banks. I attended AOSR in the late 70's; my father was in the Army. Here is the question: I remember at lunch we had a great soup. It had ditalini

pasta, herbs, broth but no meat…. I have been trying to find a recipe for this soup and I haven't been able to find anything close to it. I know you have more important things to do but it would mean a lot to me if you could help me out. With greatest appreciation, Tisha Banks AOSR Alumna

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THE PTO’s CORNER

Welcome to the club! That’s right — if you’re an AOSR parent, you’re automatically a member of the PTO – also known as the Parent Teacher Organization. What does the PTO do? We support school ac-tivities; we run Booster Bars, we raise funds for special school projects, we operate the Tuesday Boutique, we publish the Falcon Flyer…and we do a lot more, too. One of the PTO’s favorite projects is donating money to the school libraries. We just received a very nice thank-you note from Elementary School Librarian Clem Ricci, with a long list of all the new books she pur-chased with last year’s PTO grant of 1000 euros. Stop in the ES library and take a look at what’s happening. We hold monthly meetings to discuss and plan all the things we do — and we’d really like to see your face there! So please come to our next PTO meeting on Monday, March 8 at 9:15 in the Boutique. Meetings are a great way to get more involved with the school – and we promise, you WILL get more involved if you come! Speaking of more involved, do you have under-used shopping skills? That’s hard to imagine, I know, in a place like Italy, but still…it’s possible. The Booster Bar organizers would love to have some more shoppers to add to their list – right now there are only a few people who do the shopping for the Booster Bar (usually at Metro) but we sure could use a few more. Please let Carol Atwood (06-3088-9705) or Sabine Neumann (06-3326-6738) know if you’re interested. AOSR’s big, bouncy Spring festival, called Mayfair, is scheduled Saturday May 8. PTO runs sev-eral of the events at Mayfair, including the Booster Bar, drink sales, used book sales, bake sale and international food tables. We need you to join us in helping run these events. Mayfair is an enormously fun day for everyone — a day that isn’t possible without a big enthusiastic team of parents, students, board members, administration, staff and teachers all working together to make it happen. Finally, the search will soon be on for new PTO officers to start running the show for the 2004-2005 school year. We will need a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary, not to mention new committee heads. If you’re a natural leader, or if you want to focus on a particular area of support for the school, we need you! Come to our next meeting to see how it all works. Mark your calendars – the PTO’s next meetings are the following Mondays at 9:15 in the Boutique: March 8, April 5, and May 3. Feel free to bring a coffee to sip as you join other dedicated parents working to-gether for AOSR. Francesca Kelly PTO Secretary

BOUTIQUE READY FOR SPRING CLOTHING

The Boutique will begin accepting spring and summer clothing on Tuesday, March 2nd. Winter clothing will no longer be accepted after that date. Do your spring cleaning and bring your clean, stylish clothes to consign or donate. Green tags will go half price on March 16th. Vendors who wish to retrieve unsold items should come by the Tuesday before or early that morning. Presently white and yellow tags are on the half price racks. Come visit and see our new cabinet and shelv-ing (thanks to Matthew Tupper!) for the AOSR School Spirit items. New additions have been V-necked sweatshirts, aprons and baseball caps!

Booster Bars March 5, to benefit Grade 3 March 12, to benefit MS Honors Choir March 19, to benefit Grade 1 April 2, to benefit HS STUCO

MAYFAIR 2004 Is Around The Corner

Grazia Deulus Mayfair Coordinator

deulus@virgilio.it

Spring has sprung! The grass is risen! Oh, what a welcome event the annual Mayfair is! Have you had enough of winter? The tried-and-true method to move the calendar forward is to begin the celebration of AOSR’s Mayfair! This annual event — May 8, 2004 — is our school’s way to cele-brate with the friends we have made at AOSR. It’s a very easy time to remember, being the day before Mother’s day. Games, food, music, dancing, performances, raffles, auctions, book sales, sports and much more! This is a time to see old friends, make new ones, and watch children who really enjoy their school! More information will follow in the coming days and weeks. In the meantime, would you please mark your calendars and start thinking about what you would like to contribute to the Mayfair? All ideas and suggestions are very welcome. Please feel free to con-tact me either by phone or e-mail – I’d love to hear from you! It will be fun working together to make this happen. Please also plan to invite relatives and friends to attend our Mayfair, and have a wonderful day with our big AOSR family.

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Last issue the Falcon Flyer presented the biographies of the four Board of Trustee members elected at the November corpo-ration meeting. This month, we present the biographies of an additional four Trustees, and present the remaining four in our next issue. Contact information for all Board members is in the School Directory. DOMENICO FALCONE Domenico Falcone was born in Rome and is an Italian citizen. He is married to Nicoletta, and they have three daughters. Flavia, the oldest, is in Grade 2. Elena, the middle child, is in Kindergarten. Flaminia Victoria, the youngest, was born in the U.S. and has dual citizenship. Domenico graduated in Business Administration from the University of Rome, where he also taught for two years. He is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Auditor. He is currently a partner of Deloitte & Touche and has worked as an auditor since 1988. He also has broad experience as a business consultant and participated in several international projects in Europe and in the U.S. He was elected to the Board of Trustees in 2001 and presently serves AOSR as Treasurer of the Corporation. JIM MC DIVITT Jim McDivitt is an American citizen who has been a resident of Rome since 1961. He attended AOSR from 1961 until his graduation in 1972. After 20 years with various aviation compa-nies and airlines, he is currently a corporate pilot for a European multi-national company. This is the second time Jim has served on the Board of Trustees (1997-2000 and 2001- current). He does not have any children attending AOSR. While on the Board he participated on the Alumni, Fundraising, and Buildings & Grounds Committees. Jim established the first Alumni database for the school, assisted in the organization of the 1997 50th An-niversary Reunion, and was Chairman of the 2001 Grand Reun-ion. He has organized the Annual AOSR ball for the last 2 years with great success. He is very active in the American and Inter-national community of Rome, and has been President, Co-Chairman, and Treasurer of many different organizations. ERIC RUMPF Eric Rumpf is an American citizen. He is the Project Director of a major construction renovation project at the American Em-bassy. He and his wife Laura have two daughters at AOSR, Holly, grade 9 and Anna, grade 6. For the past seven years, he directed construction projects on U.S. Embassies and Consulates throughout Southeast Asia. During his assignment in Myanmar (Burma), Mr. Rumpf served for two years on the Board of Di-rectors at the International School of Yangon (Rangoon). He was elected to the board of trustees in November 2002 for a three-year term. RICHARD ZACAROLI Richard E. (Rich) Zacaroli is Vice President of Marketing for Recon/Optical, Inc., a Chicago based company working in the aerial photographic equipment market. Rich and his family have lived in Rome for eight years. Two of his three children, Daniel and Anne-Marie, graduated from AOSR and are attending col-lege. His oldest daughter, Jennifer, lives with her husband and children in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, USA. Last summer Rich married AOSR teacher Lori Tibbett in Rome, and they make their home in La Giustiniana. Rich has been a member of the AOSR Board of Trustees since 1998, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of AOSR since 1999. He is also President of the Parish Council and Chairman of the Finance Committee at the Church of Santa Susanna in Rome, and has served on Boards of Trustees of several youth organizations and a Credit Union during the past fifteen years.

AOSR Board of Trustee Biographies

Art Teacher Mrs. Phoebe Cosentino painted this beautiful Italian street scene and donated it for the Silent Auction at the Gala Theater, Art, and Music Ball held on February 7. The bidding was fierce and it found a happy home with the Faidleys. Thank you, Mrs. Cosentino!

problems, these behaviors “contribute to many of the education and social problems that confront the nation (US), including failure to complete high school, unem-ployment, and crime.” (Leadership, p.71). All students need to learn how to respond to stress, deal with strong feelings in health-enhancing ways, and build a reliable support group of peers and adults. Young children need to learn how to make friends and deal with bullies. Older children need to practice a variety of strategies to resist pressures to engage in risky behaviors while maintaining friendships. Early adoles-cents need to learn how to obtain reliable, straightforward information about the physical, emotional, and social changes of puberty. High school students need to learn to weigh their health-related decisions in terms of their life plans and goals. The skills-based, hands-on approach, in a com-fortable, familiar setting, helps students to address issues and answer questions that are important in their lives. Wellness Day at AOSR will engage students and help them learn in a constructive, preventative way. It is our hope that workshops of this nature will leave a lasting impact on our students. That is the purpose of Wellness Day, 2004.

(Continued from page 1) Dr. Pfannl: Healthy Students…..

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All School News

Development projects have been continuing. Some projects are more visible than others. About 3 weeks ago, we started laminating the windows of our school for both heat conservation and safety; now the job is virtually complete. Eric Rumpf of the US Em-bassy gave his expertise in directing this project. If you want to see what transparent laminated windows look like, you can’t--they are 100% invisible (except for an unfortunate tiny trapped air bubble here and there.)

A more visible and glamorous project (reported in last month’s Flyer) is the Villa flower gar-den strategically placed near the not-so-pretty galva-nized iron fire escape. The gardening company inten-tionally picked one type of violet flower that has zinc colored leaves that perfectly match. The flowers are in bloom and waiting to have their pictures taken.

Another simple but pretty garden starts from the ESL Center behind the gym and runs along the fence to the outside eating area, once named the Senior Bench. There are seasonal flowers planted now that are providing the color until the hydrangeas (Ortensie) are ready to show off their beauty in late Spring. In the 2004 edition of the Euro Farmers Almanac, it mentions that Ortensie have large pink flowers that can be changed to powder blue simply by throwing 5 eurocent pieces (because of their copper content) into the flower bed (it doesn’t say whether one has to throw them backwards over one’s shoulder.)

A third garden located by the entrance to the gymnasium has a big carabinieri plant (so called be-cause of its red plume-like flowers) right in the middle. Antonio, one of our bus drivers, is now our tufo master who created this curved garden. It is now the home of our bigger-than-life topiary Falcon. You will have to decide whether the bird is a tree or the tree is the bird.

Our newest drinking hole is an old-looking rustic tufo fountain located near the Senior Bench. Blending in so quietly in its corner, it looks like it was part of the original real estate. Press the button, close your eyes and you’re drinking cool water brought by an underground aqueduct from some ancient mineral wa-ter source.

Re-registration: During March you will be receiving the re-registration cards for next year together with the 2004-05 school fees. We would like to know which students will be returning so we can deter-mine the number of available places for new appli-cants. Please return the cards (one for each of your children) shortly after you receive them. Until the April Fools’ Day issue… Don

Green Thumb Report

By Don Levine, Admissions

FEES & FINANCIAL REGULATIONS 2004-2005

Approved by the Board of Trustees: Jan 28, 2004 Capital Assessment per family (one time) € 2 900 Registration per student (one time) € 450 1/2 Year Full Year Euro Euro 3 450 6 900 Pre-kindergarten (3 and 4 year olds) Includes lunch 4 350 8 700 Kindergarten (5 year olds) Includes lunch 5 175 10 350 Grades 1, 2 5 600 11 200 Grades 3, 4, 5 6 225 12 450 Grades 6, 7, 8 6 750 13 500 Grades 9, 10 6 950 13 900 Grade 11 7 250 14 500 Grades 12, 13 returning students 7 800 15 600 Grades 12, 13 new students 1 000 International Baccalaureate Program 9 200 18 400 Boarding (Full Pension) Grades 9-13 (Tuition & bus not included) 1 100 2 200 Regular bus service round trip 700 1 400 Regular one way AM or PM 350 700 English as a second language (Gr. 4 & up)

FINANCIAL REGULATIONS Registration Fee is non refundable and is payable upon initial registra-tion. Capital Assessment is non refundable and is generally payable upon initial registration. Tuition Due Dates: Returning students: Semester I – Monday, July 5, 2004 Semester II – Monday, December 13, 2004 A student may not be permitted to attend classes unless fees due have been paid in full. Any exception from this provision must be ob-tained in writing from the Headmaster. Re – registration : a € 500 advance on tuition is required to hold a re-turning student’s place. ♦ by Wednesday, April 7, 2004 (2004-2005) ♦ by Monday, April 11, 2005 (2005-2006) A late re-registration fee of € 450 will be applied for a late re-registration. A returning student’s place will not be held if the re-registration advance on tuition is not paid. Cancelled Re-registration : 50% of the advance is refundable if notification is received by July 5. Installment Plan : the AOSR installment plan will incur a fee of € 300. A late charge of 1% per month will be applied to late payments. Delin-quent accounts may result in the dismissal of the student. Late enroll-ment: Tuition and transportation costs for students admitted before the Mid-semester dates (see below) must be paid in full for that semester. Otherwise, the semester cost will be determined on a case-to-case basis, based upon previous school transcript credits and other documentation. Mid semester I - November 5, 2004 Mid semester II - April 8, 2005 Early withdrawal: The school will not reimburse any payments for a current semester because of a student’s absences, withdrawal, suspen-sion or expulsion. However, Semester II payments will be reimbursed if the school is notified of a transfer by Monday, January 10, 2005. Official transcripts and records are released after all financial obliga-tions are met. The school reserves the right to adjust fees due to unex-pected circumstances.

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James Freeman Lorenzo Masserini Daniela Muenzel Martin Oberle Adi Shachar Marcella Zarrelli Grade 6 Romy Ben-Hur Omri Ithaki Paolo Liel Karpel Miranda Mancini Marissa Musselman Tamala Mwandemere Cindy Pratesi Benny Raccah Massimo Zheng

FIRST SEMESTER HONOR ROLL 2003-2004

Grade 12 Hannah Ceen

Christine Skodon

Grade 11 David Israelachvili

Federico Soddu

Grade 10 Maria Anna Murmura

Grade 8 Garen Der-Khachadourian

Grade 7 Benjamin Otte

Grade 6 Katherine Berton

Flaminia Marrucci

Principal’s Honor Roll (3.50-3.99)

Headmaster’s Honor Roll (4.00 GPA)

Grade 12 Gianluca Belisari Luca Candelori Lavinia del Bianco Sarah Davignon Methiya Fuang- Arrom Mariafrancesca Gioia Danai Giwa Anna Grasso Ian Haight Annalisa Kelly NaHyun Lee Luca Montesi Paolo Murmura Shikha Prashad Enea Sacco Georg Seebode Valentina Squitieri Oguzhan Tulun Ottavia Zappala

Grade 13 Vanessa Ananiades Grade 12 Alessandro Batazzi Nicole Borunda Paola Brienza Nicole Halloran Staecy Ives Patricia Kelly-Schmutz Robert Peterson Isabel Pogany Sean Satterwhite Nicolas Stoll Silvia Telesca Katia Trukhanova Grade 11 Sesil Erdal Timothy Garbinsky Davide Lelli Na-Re Lim Benedetta Marigliano Matteo Mencarelli

Grade 11 Sudeep Bhatia David Brown Ettore Canestri Rozen Erdal Michael Gorelick Shankar Kar Marino Taussig de Bodoni Tom Nof-Agam Victor Okonkwo Grade 10 Raffaello Amorosi Marin Finerty Shungo Inoue Edoardo Linari Giulia Merlo Raya Mustafa Sabrina Triglia Zhi Chao Yi

Grade 9 Roisen Agnew Javier Elkin Chiara Gambioli Javier Elkin Chiara Gambioli Christopher Haight Tajnim Imami Nuwanthika Jayatilake Tae Hyun Lee Yara Mirdad Morel Naim Tyler Otte Brennan Panzarella Holly Rumpf Grade 8 Pietro Fazzi Talya Kahan Mohamed Mattar David Ortiz Crishan Perera

Marina Pozzan Edoardo Quadri Yeonathan Shachar Matthew Smith Matthew Smith Brieanne Vallee Carolina Van Der Does De Willebois Serena Zhang Jin Kai Zhou Grade 7 Neta Ben Israel Andrew Ceen Dario Corsetti Stefan Countryman Gabriele Fabozzi Shira Gazit Rebecca Jonsson Jillian Kneeland Federico Merlo Joey Miller

Seth Moore Elisa Palana David Prosperi Sage Rahm Siddheshwar Singh Nicoletta Valente Jiayi Wang Roxana Weich Grade 6 Ludovica Batazzi Elena De Giovanni Eva Ellergaard Pedersen Kelly Fowler Fatin Nashra Hadtamizi Helena Hagg Sophie Manente Jasmine Mohsin Michael Rafaeli Anna Rumpf Callie Simpson

Honor Roll (3.00-3.49)

Ryan Panzarella Daniele Pestilli Benjamin Pfannl Enrico Piano Gabriele Raccah Elisa Russo Chiara Siravo Oluseyi Smith Manuel Xueref Carol Zanzuri Grade 10 Zinnat Akhter Ana Almour Stephanie Bittner Buddenbrock Gabrielle Cancelliere Brian Culley Eric Davignon Taykun Erdal Alessia Fiochi Steffen Fischer Shashi Karunanethy William Kelly

Josh Kneeland Emin Mamedyarov Robert Michalski Nicole Otte Nathan Rice Roma Rispoli Daniele Schiavo Claire Sensi Riccardo Serrao Mandi Shenedjela Ides Van Der Does De Willebois Grade 9 Sabina Abdullaeva Flaminia Belli Simona Capogna Kristin Fowler Maria La Via Michela Lombardi Flora Mezzabotta Jordan Musselman Annika Neumann Elena Testi

Grade 8 David Ananiades Christian Brown Alessandro Castiello Alessio Daswani Aaron Dungca Randy Garcia Mario Gioia Alexa Goldhammer-Blanc Mat Gonzalez-Bisbardis Itzik Itzhaki Ludovico Linari Yael Refaeli Alejandro Smith Danique Smits Karim Zelenka Grade 7 Ezio Belli Piergiorgio Ciceri Angela Cosenza Nina Ellergaard Pedersen Jonathan Farache Melanie Ferguson

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All School News

Visiting Author Comes to School By Sue Berton and Laura Rumpf

Our visiting author is coming soon! She is going to be at AOSR March 16th and 17th. Sue Robinson is an Australian author currently liv-ing in London. She has written several books for children aged 5 - 14 (currently on display in the elementary school library). She is a former teacher and has agreed to come and inspire our own elementary and middle school stu-dents. We know her wisdom and experience will be of great benefit to all our budding authors. This will also motivate our own 3rd and 4th graders who will be working on their own publishing project at that time. We need your help! We are looking for a volunteer who would be willing to host Mrs. Robinson at their home for the 15th, 16th and 17th. It will only require that you have a place for her to stay. Her transportation will be provided to and from school and we, the PTO, will host a dinner for her. If you can help out, please notify Sue Berton at 334-332-6737 or email her at: theber-tons@hotmail.com.

Student Organizes Voter’s

Registration for Community Service

On February 13, senior Ry

Finerty fulfilled some of his Community Service hours required for graduation by organizing the first of four non-partisan Voter’s Registration Drives at school. Because Ry turns 18 on May 29 of this year, he learned that he could now register to vote through re-search on the internet. He then attended a Voter’s Regis-tration seminar hosted by the St. Paul’s Within the Walls church on Via Nazionale at the beginning of February. Ry used a reference booklet provided by the Fed-eral Voter’s Assistance Program to help 16 people com-plete their application to vote and to request their absen-tee ballot for the US Federal Election to be held on No-vember 2, 2004. “Each state has different requirements about the way the form is completed — some of the states even ask you to declare your race, and others need the voter form notarized, so it gets a little tricky,” he said. “There were 16 people that registered — one who never lived in the United States — and some people took the forms home for their families.” Ry will organize other Voter Registrations at AOSR for students, parents, teachers, and friends of the school. He will set up a table near the Grade 3 Booster Bar on March 5, from 1 PM to 4 PM.

In March, the Cassia Hills are

Alive with Music! By Ms. Rebecca Bailey

ES Choral Director

March comes in like a (Musical) Lion!

Monday, March 1-For the second of the AOSR Young People’s Concerts, Westover Glee Club Choir will perform and does choral exchange with the AOSR Middle and High School choirs.

Wednesday, March 10-4th Grades go to the RISA Music Festival at Marymount.

Friday, March 19-3rd Grade Musical dur-ing school assembly, "Wack-a-doo Zoo"

Thursday, March 25- Annual Spring Choral and Ensemble Concert in Cafeteria 7:00 p.m., including Elementary, Middle, and High School Choirs and H.S. Ensemble. Directed by Rebecca Bailey and Roy Zimmerman

Monday, March 29- Elementary Spring Disney Concert Assembly at 2:00 p.m. (for stu-dents and teachers only), Grades K-5

Tuesday, March 30- Elementary Spring Disney Concert at 9:30 a.m. (for parents and fami-lies only), Grades K-5

Let there be Music!

January 29, 2004 Dear Elementary School Parents, Teachers and Students at the American Overseas School of Rome, On behalf of la Casa della Famiglia di Villa Glori, I would like to thank you for your kind do-nation of canned food to our community this past Christmas. Your generosity made our residents feel loved and cared for. We are very fortunate to count on your support. I wish your school continued success and thanks again for thinking of us during the holidays. With much appreciation, Massimo Raimondi Director Casa Famiglia di Villa Glori

9

Start Thinking about the AOSR Summer Camp

By Mr. Kieran Canter Camp Director

It’s a Sports Camp, an Arts and Theater Camp, and a Swimming Camp all rolled into one! It’s the AOSR Summer Adventure Camp. The sports agenda for the 2004 camp in-cludes soccer, lacrosse, tennis, volleyball, flag foot-ball, basketball, baseball, ultimate Frisbee and, for those who choose the full-day program, swimming! AOSR’s wonderful outdoor Hillside Theater houses the acclaimed theatrical offerings in which every camper takes part. Painting, acting, singing and dancing, as well as work on scenery and costumes are all included. Designed for children ages 3-15, the camp features specially designed recreational activities based on summer camp programs in the United States. These camp activities, songs and games are always a hit with children. And, at the end of every session, campers will take part in Olympics Day and be treated to a real American picnic. Of course, we’re proud of the quality of the camp instructors, including members of AOSR’s own staff. As an added bonus, door-to-door bus service is available. Camp is divided into two sessions, June 21-July 2 and July 5-16. For the “Pre-K Pods” (pre-school children) there is an additional session of-fered, June 14 to June 18. Campers may choose to attend the half-day program from 9 am to 12:30 pm for €250 a session, or the full-day program from 9 am to 3:30 pm for €350. Another camp — Total Sports — will be held July 19-23, and costs €175. Registration forms are available at the main office, or by writing summercamp@aosr.org,. You can always call 06-3343-8320 for more information.

All School News (continued)

THANKS FOR BUYING GIRL SCOUT COOKIES

On behalf of all the girls in Rome who benefit from the Girl Scout program (and this is virtually all girls, Scouts or not!), we thank you for your generous support. Overseas Committee — Rome, Italy USA-GSO —- North Atlantic

Gala Ball Review By “Happy Feet” Rumsby

The Ball was a blast, I had such a good time. ..... Elvis, if he were still alive and is really not running a gas station in Pasadena, would have serious competition from those kings of the Pelvis — Geoff Miller and Kip Hen-dry! Did they shake their bodies at the gala ball! Actually everyone had a wonderful time, Dr. D. was noted tripping the light fantastic with a different fe-male for each dance. The food was good, the company excellent and the band truly magnificent. They even had the sedate Dr. Pfannl twisting away to "Hound-dog.” The baskets for the silent auction were so beautiful. Start marking your calendars for next year!

Library News By Mrs. Nan Miller, HS Librarian

Vatican Visit: February 9th the Vatican Library School held its annual visit to AOSR. Students from its library program stopped in at the Elementary and High School libraries to be greeted by the librarian and learn more about how school libraries work. Book Basket: The library gained more interest-ing reading by winning the basket of books at the silent auction held at the AOSR Gala Ball on February 7th. The basket contains books donated by community mem-bers. These will soon be available to patrons. Scanner: The library has a printer with a scan-ner ability. Students can scan in photos to print with their papers, or do the same with text. Ask the librarian. Magazine Raffle: The library will hold another raffle for our past issues of ESPN and Rolling Stone magazines. Check at the library front desk! New Books: Available now are titles ordered from last year's generous donation from the PTO. Many thanks, and we'll see you in the library!

Another Way to Congratulate your Child

on a Job Well-Done By Mrs. Lori Tibbett, Yearbook

Advisor

Parents: If you would like to include a page of congratulations for your senior or other graduate in this year's yearbook, please fill out the "Advertisement Form" attached to the Falcon Flyer this month (or available in the main office) and include a disc of your page and payment. You can also email you document to the yearbook advisor, Jennifer Flaherty at jflaherty@aosr.org.

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PRE-K NEWS

On Tuesday, February 24, the PreK celebrated Carnevale with handmade masks, confetti, and bal-loon animals on the soccer field in the few moments of sunlight during the afternoon. They returned to the classrooms to enjoy the traditional holiday treats — frappe and castagnole— brought by the class moms, Ketty Smith and Alessandra Giannetti.

Grades 8 and 3 Enjoy Storytelling Together

By Ms. Jennifer Flaherty, English Teacher

In an effort to encourage cooperation between schools and grade levels, Mrs. Rumsby and Ms. Flaherty brought their classes together for an afternoon of fun and storytelling on Wednesday, February 11th. After studying quest stories and the fantasy genre, Ms. Flaherty's 8th grade English class created quest stories of their own, set in their own fantasy worlds. All of the stories were illustrated, and many of them were several pages long. The 8th graders were welcomed into Mrs. Rumsby's 3rd grade classroom to read their stories to the younger students. While most of the storytelling was done in pairs, one multilingual group was assigned to work specifically with ESL students, and their presenta-tion included stories, pictures and games. The 3rd graders were very enthusiastic, and each storyteller was given a lollipop in thanks. The af-ternoon was a success, and Ludovico Linari, one of the 8th graders, suggested that "One day, they should read to us!"

All School News (cont.)

A parent-child conversation overheard on

campus..

Mother: Oh look, May 8th is a good weekend to go camping! Child: No, Mom, not that weekend. I don’t want to miss this year’s MAYFAIR!

Caroline Van Der Does De Willebois “reads” stories in a tri-lingual group activity to members of Mrs. Rumsby’s class. Photo by Alexa Goldhammer, Grade 8

11

ELEMENTARY SCHOOL NEWS

Fourth Grade Singers Take Their Show on the Road...the Via Cassia!!

Fourth grade will take part in the Rome International Schools Association Music Festival at Marymount from 9AM to 3 PM on Wednesday, March 10. Re-becca Bailey, AOSR ES choirmaster, will conduct.

PTO Publishing Project Underway By Sue Berton

Once again, the PTO will sponsor the 3rd and 4th grade publishing project. With this project, the teachers give us a copy of each student’s best writing. With the help of our volunteers here at the PTO and parents of these students, we type them up and bind them into books. Once the writing is done the children are able to illustrate their book. It is a great way for the children to display and be proud of writing on which they have worked so hard. It is also great for their parents to be able to share this written work with their child and friends and family. This project has been well received in past years. Please help us make this year’s publishing project another great success. If you are interested in helping out with editing, typing, or the binding of these books please call Sue Berton at 334-332-6737 or email at: thebertons@hotmail.com.

Third Grade News By Mrs. Jane Rumsby and

Mrs. Susan Prideaux, Third Grade Teachers

Third Graders are hav-ing a social whirl. On January 20th we went to Castel Sant' Angelo, in spite of the grey weather and freezing wind. It gave us a taste of what it was like to pull guard duty on the castle ramparts (see “Notes from the Field”, p. XX). Massimo, our security guard friend, came by to say hello and pick up the lovely calendar the kids had made for him. What a wonderful office he has. (Make sure you say hello from us if you visit the castle!) We saw how the vain Pope Paulinus had a crafty picture in his bedroom that actually is a con-cealed mirror. We also saw how the pope's bathroom was heated, but not that of the soldiers'. On January 30, we performed our "Operation Respect" assembly. The kids sang beautifully, thanks to the help of Ms. Bailey. In fact they did a great job, and all that drama coaching has paid off. The audience was wonderful, too, and Dr. Pfannl shared a few precious anecdotes at the end. In March, we'll be presenting a musical. We are looking for volunteers to help with the costumes. The pattern is really simple, so if you have a spare thimble, think of us…..! On March 5th, 3rd grade are finally having their famous Bake Sale and Booster Bar. We'll also be saying good-bye to the Kizler family who are off to Germany, all the best. Massimo is doing well and will soon be off to Poland, thanks again for all your thoughtfulness.

New ES Art Show is Up! Paintings of students in grades 2,3,4 and 5 are on exhibit in the lunchroom and near the bar. Grade 2 painted large animals in tempera and water-color. Grade 3 drew and painted fall and winter landscapes in tempera and watercolor with reflections in water, a sky of blue, and a red, violet and orange sunset. Inspired by the works of 17th, 18th and 19th century artists, Grades 4 and 5 created still-life paintings. Future projects will be integrated with classroom studies of ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome. Students will experiment working with clay, papier maché and mosaics.

Painting by Danny Zelenka (Grade 5) Photo by David Brown (Grade 11)

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MIDDLE SCHOOL NEWS Middle School Explores the

Dolomites By Mr. Mancini

MS Ski Trip Coordinator

Forty-two students and five teachers enjoyed an unforgettable experience in the heart of the Dolomites during the Middle School 2004 Ski Trip. When they departed AOSR at 7:00 A.M. on Sunday, February 15th they were ready to spend the next seven days together, but little did they know that they were going to have one of the greatest times of their lives. Nobody could have imagined the excellent skiing conditions and the ski lessons with instructors would only be part of everything else that would happen to all of the participants.

In addition to the 4½ hours of ski instruction per day, the

evenings were always jam-packed with fun-filled activities, each with a different theme and purpose. The Hotel Marmolada in Caprile was very nice, and both the accommodation and restaurant service were of good standards. Everybody felt comfortable there, the after-skiing hot chocolate was something to look forward to, and the food was delicious. One surely could not say that there was little time for socializing on this trip. On the contrary…

Agordo and Alleghe were quite close to the Ski Civetta

area and the bus ride was short and pleasant. Both cities offer old-fashioned architecture together with a rather unique intercultural flavor, and both students and teachers alike romped through these two beautiful cities with pleasure. Students were able to take a relax-ing dip into the large swimming pool located in Agordo, accompa-nied by their chaperones. Meanwhile, our half-day trip to Belluno, which was only an hour ride away, was also just as rewarding with its historical background and its Venetian-style center. Once again, everyone appreciated the visit to this interesting city. The guide illus-trated the major points of interest connected with Belluno. Its origin dates back to the Celts, then the Romans, and later Venice. The port of Belluno and the waterfront along the River Piave was the site of a year-long siege between Italians and Austrians towards the end of World War I, and which resulted in casualties of over one million soldiers. Even World War II brought tragedy to Belluno. Being an important Nazi headquarters in Northern Italy, there were numerous resistance movements to disrupt the Nazis. Once captured, four par-tigiani were executed in the main square to discourage further pro-tests from occurring. The tour of the city was brief and concise, and many good questions were asked by our curious students. They dem-onstrated interest and expressed appreciation, and AOSR received compliments from everyone wherever the group went.

Wednesday evening all the students were introduced to the

head coach and the four North American players of the local Alleghe A-Division hockey team. They came to our hotel to sit and talk with everyone, autograph their team’s posters that everyone received, and have pictures taken with most of the students and teachers. The fol-lowing evening, we all went to Alleghe and witnessed a crucial pro-fessional hockey game against two arch-rivals, Alleghe versus the first- place Val di Fassa. The AOSR cheering section was really loud and wild, which added to the excitement of a great match that ended with a ‘come from behind’ 4-4 tie. It was definitely FUN to be there and participate.

Wasn't this supposed to have been a Ski Trip? Of course.

Everyone was rewarded with five great days of skiing. By the end of the week, all the participants advanced and improved their style and abilities. The panoramic runs were eye-boggling, and it was truly unbelievable at times. It was almost impossible to concentrate on

Eighth Grade Energy Quest goes “Outside the Box,” and Makes Best Use of the Ele-

ments! Eighth graders are busy inventing and building their own scientific devices in Mr. Hall’s science classes. There will be a museum of these projects dis-played under the porticos on the quad on Tuesday, March 9th from 9:15 thru 10:30. Although these devices are all top-secret at the time of this report, moles in the scientific community here at school are excited that there may finally be un-veiled non-fossil fuel energy solutions! These students are all veterans of the Seventh-Grade Science Fair. Some will build on last year’s foundation, and hope to advance their understanding of sustainable energy generation, and of their ES classroom visitors, by a quantum leap.

MS Valentine's Dance The MS Valentine's Dance was a great success! The STUCO members spent hours transforming the cafeteria with red and pink hearts. The tables were dressed in Valentine colors with red table cloths and candles. Cupids lined the staircase to the entrance and arrows were aimed. MS students feasted on pizza, snacks, sweets and sodas!! Over 70 students attended this event!!

improving skiing techniques while the horizon offered a spectacu-lar view. Most of the participants actually got to ski the entire 80 km Ski Civetta area along with their instructors and group. The instructors were all professional: well-prepared, efficient, and friendly. They were eager to teach and guide the students, and the students respectfully followed the instructions with great enthusi-asm and will to learn or improve. The gold medal winners from the three different SNOWBOARD categories are: Neta Ben-Israel (gr.7), Filippo Toti (gr.7), and Edoardo Foco (gr.8); the gold medalists from the three DOWNHILL SKIING categories are: Jonathan Farache (gr.7), Costanza Amato (gr.6), and Nicolo` Amato (gr.8). The silver medal winners: SNOWBOARD: Rebecca Jonsson (gr.7), Seth Moore (gr.7), and Jacopo Foco (gr.6); DOWNHILL SKIING: James Freeman (gr.7), Joel Farache (gr.8), and Andrew Ceen (gr.7). The bronze medal winners: SNOW-BOARD: Shira Gazit (gr.7), Lorenzo Masserini (gr.7), and Benja-min Otte (gr.7); DOWNHILL SKIING: Michael Rafaeli (gr.6), Jessica Kingsbury (gr.7), and Jillian Kneeland (gr.7). Honorable mention goes to Mr. Hendry for bravely attempting to snowboard on the first few days…and to the surprise of his fellow participants and colleagues witnessing the entire ordeal, he actually SUR-VIVED!

Like all good things, this ski trip had to eventually come

to an end on Saturday, February 21st. The buses arrived on time, and the students (and teachers) were reunited once again with their families. With only one day rest, school resumed on Monday, February 23rd. Reality deals a hard blow to these participants, but they will always cherish those seven delightful days spent in the heart of the Dolomites.

13

Martian Cartoon An Interview with IB Student Valentina Squitieri

“The more you know,

the more you don't know!"

Valentina Squitieri is motivated by chal-lenge. This 12th grade International Baccalaureate stu-dent returned to Rome last year, after living 13 of her 17 years abroad, and is one of the 17 IB students in the 2003-4 senior class. She has studied at English-speaking, Portuguese-speaking and Italian-speaking schools and has become an expert in astrophysics and in particular the field of "Cepheids," a star of variable lumi-nosity which is used in astrophysics to calculate dis-tances in space. Her unlikely foundation for this study --- "Archeology!" “I just couldn't dedicate myself to studying an-cient Egypt when, right now, we are on the verge of colonizing the new world of space," Valentina said. "The more you define and measure the distances of space, the more immense it seems. Ancient Egypt --- and history generally--- seemed too well-defined al-ready." Valentina’s pursuit of science study began in earnest when she began her junior year at AOSR. Although most of this project is independent study, she is taking three science courses this year and her teachers helped her qualify for a professional NASA internet site, which needed a password, so that she could access NASA's luminosity measurements. Valentina researched and wrote her IB Extended Essay this past summer. Before she started she spent a lot of time at the Osservatorio di Monte Mario in Rome and at the Planetarium in New York the previous sum-mer, thanks to one of her relatives that gave her an intro-duction. Valentina's 2,000-word required paper for IB candidates ending up being double that amount --- be-cause of the calculations! “I wrote on how to find the distance from earth to the beginning of the Andromeda Galaxy (the closest galaxy to our own) using six of the Cepheid stars,” she said. She enjoyed working at the Observatory, which all can see atop the "eighth" hill of Rome on the west side of the Tiber. Valentina learned the lay of the land with this unobstructed view. "Even though I was born here in Rome, I am discovering it for the first time," she said. Last year, Valentina received the school's annual "Patrizia d'Averio Award for Excellence in Mathemat-ics" and is also part of the National Honor Society. She does her community service tutoring college students in English. Her next challenge: “Passing my driver's li-cense test!” By Helena Hagg

6th Grade, Mr. Hall’s Science Class

14

HIGH SCHOOL NEWS

Tutoring Help Available Tutoring help in Physics, Chemistry and Math is available to any high school student at no charge. Students need to sign-up with Dr. Bree or Mr. Miller. Since this is a supervised activity, students who are signed up in these tutorials may ride the after-school buses home.

HS STUCO BAND CONCERT

On Friday, March 5, the HS Student Council presents a band concert in the auditorium. This concert, featuring the home favor-ites, “Nurse” and “Cottonear,” will

also feature “Widow Maker,” and Dani and Victor. Admission is € 4, with drinks and food pro-vided. The concert starts at 7:30 and ends at 10:30 PM. As the advertisements say, “Have any other plans for Friday night? Cancel ‘em!!”

HS Shakespeare Festival to

Feature “A Win-ter’s Tale”

HS auditions for the 41st Annual Shakespeare Festival have begun and will continue through the first week of March. “A Winter’s Tale” will be performed in May overlooking the Cassia Hills, in the Hillside Theater. Ms. Cottie Ceen will direct this Spring’s production.

Excerpted from a letter dated 11 February:

It is with a great pleasure that I write to you to express my profound appreciation and gratitude … for the honour (that AOSR MUN Class) made to my country by choosing to be the Senegalese Dele-gation at the XXVI Annual Session of the Hague International Model United Nations held at the Netherlands Congress Centre – The Hague on January 25-31, 2004. The Senegalese government is very proud and grateful to that Delegation, whose contribu-tions, I am told, were very relevant and interesting. Sincerely, Saliou Cisse Senegalese Ambassador to Belgium

Yearbook Senior Pages for the Year-book are due March 30!

AOSR High School Presents an Evening of Deep, Dark,

One-Act Comedies By Mr. Kip Hendry

Misery loves company, and therefore we invite you to join us for an evening of black comedy as the AOSR High School presents this year’s evening of one-act plays: “Hard Times.” We have chosen pieces by authors Neil Simon (from his collection of one-acts entitled The Good Doc-tor) and Christopher Durang, in which characters wallow through the quagmire of love, money, health, and politics for our perverse amusement. In Durang’s “Wanda’s Visit,” Jim (Tucker Burnley) and his wife Marsha (Bri Riffe) are visited by Jim’s old flame (Marin Finerty), who has now become psychopathic and is in hiding from her mobster, ex-husband. In the first of Simon’s three pieces, “Defenseless Creature,” bankers Kistunov and Pochatkin (Stephanie Bittner-Buddenbrock and Irma Orlandi) are badgered by a ‘defenseless creature’ (Larua Proenza) who bullies them into reimbursing her for her husband’s back pay. “The Sneeze” (featuring Grace Kortchmar amd Irma Orlandi) paints a scene of a social strife and remorse when lowly Assistant Chief Clerk in the Department of Trees and Bushes (William Kelly) accidentally sneezes on the Minister of Public Parks (Jordan Musselman). Lastly, nothing brings the house down like arma-ture dental work as portrayed in “The Surgery” (with Rob Michalski and Ian Haight). Come, alternately laugh yourself to tears and cry yourself to laughter, Thursday and Friday, March 11 and 12 at 7:30pm (or 19:30 for those of you who can’t tell morning from evening)!

15

HS WELLNESS DAY PROGRAM THURSDAY, MARCH 4

AOSR will hold a Wellness Day for high school students on Thursday, March 4. This program focuses not only on the physical, but also social, emotional, relational and psychological health of the adolescent student. Seminar topics include: “Dude, Why does my Brain Look Like Swiss Cheese?,” and “Is your Health Going Up in Smoke?” as well as “Your Choice: Mad, Sad, or Glad?” and “Fill Up Your Life Helping Others.” There are physical fitness classes, including Pilates, Yoga, strong and flexible Personal Fitness, and the value of Team Sports and a class of First Aid Basics. Students will learn about Energy Boosting Ideas. Skills to communicate feelings are also featured, including “Loud and Proud,” and a class on Stream of Consciousness. “How do you Learn Best?” will be asked in one workshop and decision-making will be explored in another. Guest speakers will discuss Sex and STD’s, Living with HIV, and Street Drugs. Students will attend three one-hour sessions in the morning and two 40-minute sessions in the afternoon, with 55 minutes for lunch. Knowledge is power and this program will serve to educate, then offer positive choices, by exposing students to a variety of methods and techniques to cope with life’s challenges in a positive way. It should make for some interesting dinner conversations that evening, at a minimum. — Mrs. Jody Ballard Counselor

HIGH SCHOOL NEWS (CONT.)

Dude, my brain looks like a Swiss cheese!?!?!?! DRUGS AND THEIR EFFECT ON THE CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM Description: You’ve probably heard about the effects of certain drugs on the nervous system, but do you really understand how they affect your body’s control system? In this module you will get a brief and simplified explanation of the structure of the nervous system (yes, a little bit of Biology) and participate in simulations of how the nervous system functions. You will get a chance to determine your reaction time to a specific stimulus, run around outside pretending to be a neuro-transmitter and associate the affects of drugs to the activities performed. Speaker Bio: Mr. Patrick J. Foley, AOSR High School Biology Teacher, B.S., Biology, Concentration in Experimental Psychology-Allegheny College, M.Ed., Secondary Education- University of Hartford

THERE IS NO “I” IN TEAM Description: The 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team. The 1985-1986 Boston Celtics Basketball Team. The 2000-2001 New England Patri-ots Football Team. What enables a rather ordinary collection of people to accomplish great things? In this module we will discuss the key elements of a successful team and have the opportunity to share per-sonal experiences of athletic participation with others and participate in team building activities. Also, there will be a brief discussion and prac-tice of psychological techniques that enable athletes to reach their po-tential. Speaker Bio: Mr. Patrick J. Foley, AOSR 8th & 9th Grade Health and Physical Education Teacher , American Football, Swimming and Track & Field Coach, Former Lacrosse, Track & Field, Baseball, Swimming and American Football, Intercollegiate Athlete PILATES Description: Fun, interesting, and a great work out! Learn how the muscles of your body work together to develop overall fitness. Pilates “requires” your body to use all muscles equally with a focus on the core (stomach). When practiced correctly it will decrease back pain and result in increased flexibility and strength. Come prepared to work your entire body! Speaker Bio: Shannon Navis is a very active athlete. She has taught Pilates for over four years. She completed training in the well-known New York Authentic Pilates Program from the Zoe Studio in LA and trained with renowned Juanita Lopez in Chicago. She has always been involved in health and fitness both in the medical field and in health studios. Shannon has as her focus an appreciation for the intricacies of mind-body integration.

SEX AND STD’s Description: Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STD) are quickly becom-ing an epidemic around the world. This presentation will discuss some of the most common STDs, and how they can be prevented. Speaker Bio: Beth Carbine, (Navy Medic), Certified Sexual Health & Re-sponsibility Program (SHARP) Counselor and Certified HIV-STD Prevention Counselor by the Navy Environmental Health Center.

IS YOUR HEALTH GOING UP IN SMOKE? Description: Why do people smoke when they know smoking is physically harmful to their health? Understand why people smoke and how they can quit. Speaker Bio: Amy Suchocki (Navy Medic), Certified HealthCenter. Pharmacy Technician in the US Navy Armed Forces stationed at the Branch Medic Clinic, Naval Sup-port Activity, Gaeta, Italy. TELLING IT LIKE IT IS, LIVING WITH HIV Description: Sex, drugs, and rock and roll can have lasting life long consequences. Listen to a candid talk about HIV and AIDS. Think It Can Never Happen To You? Most people who are sexually active are at risk. Learn how to protect yourself and be smart about the decisions you are making in your life. Speaker Bio: Andrew Espinosa is originally from Chicago, Illinois. He graduated as a commissioned officer in the United States Air Force from the University of Colorado. His degree in Aerospace Engineering afforded him the opportunity to go on to become a distinguished graduate of the Instructor Training School. He later taught Navigators, Weapons System Officers, and Electronic Warfare Officers before flying 21 combat missions over Iraq in 1993. Since 1997, Andrew has been a HIV/AIDS volunteer speaker and a member of the European AIDS Treatment Group (EATG). He has taught about HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment, and access to treatment in over a dozen countries including the United States and Cuba, countries in Western, Central and Eastern Europe including Russia, and the Ukraine. STRONG AND FLEXIBLE? PERSONAL FITNESS ASSESMENT Description: This workshop will give you the information you need to assess your current level of fitness. You will have an opportunity to create and maintain a fitness program that will give you the results you are looking for. Muscular Strength, Muscular Endurance, Flexi-bility, Cardiovascular Endurance, Body Composition Speaker Bio: Karen Baker: Physical Education Teacher for 13 years in Georgia, M.Ed. Georgia Southern University (Major: Health and Physical Education), Certified Exercise Sci-ence Alliance, National Aerobics Certified, The Cooper Institute, Physical Fitness/Personal Trainer Certified, The Cooper Insti-tute, Biomechanics of Resistance Training Certified Aerobics and Fitness Association of America, Certified Nautilus Trainer, Schwinn Indoor Cycling Instructor Certified, American Red Cross, CPR and First Aid Certified STREET DRUGS Description: Learn about street drugs and how they affect your body and mind. This workshop will discuss both the physical and legal consequences of drug use. The broad scope of drugs and their effects on society will be presented along with real life anecdotes and ex-periences. Speakers’ Bio: Frank De Re & A. Angelucci are spe-cial agents from the United States Drug Enforcement Admini-stration.

16

A flea and a fly in a flue Were imprisoned. So what could they do? Said the flea, “Let us fly!” ”Let us flee,” said the fly So they flew through a flaw in the flue. Submitted by Gabriele Diviso AOSR Alumnus Class of 1966

LIFE OR DEATH DECISIONS Description: Adolescence is filled with new and exciting experi-ences, BUT it can also be very stressful, overwhelming, and at times the future can look bleak. This workshop will help students learn to cope with the emotional pain caused by distress, anxiety and a host of other seemingly “negative” emotions. Participants will learn how to utilize resources, including friends, to help them get through diffi-cult times. Speaker Bio: Caroline Ripley has been a teacher for many years and is the Director of a Help Line here in Rome. She works with adolescents in crisis prevention and develops interna-tional programs between Britain and Italy. ENERGY BOOSTING IDEAS—TEEN NUTRITION Description: You are what you eat!! How do you relate to food? What are good eating habits? Learn how to manage your nutrition through your teenage years. Can some eating habits actually be de-structive both physically and emotionally? Get answers to these and other questions related to your nutrition. Speaker Bio: Marta Rahm, BS in Dietetics from the University of Texas Southwest-ern Medical Center. She is a registered dietitian, a nutrition educator and the PR Chair and Italian Representative for the American Overseas Dietetic Association. MAD, SAD OR GLAD Description: All behavior is a choice. You really can control your behavior if you want to. Even in the worst situations you can still make choices as long as you know what your needs are and how to satisfy them. Mad, sad, or glad – what works best for you? Speaker Bio: Ms. Rumsby is currently working as an AOSR 4th grade teacher. She has taught High School. She has advanced degrees in Elementary Education and Psychology. She has worked with adolescents having difficulties for the last 7 years. STRESSED OUT? WHY AND HOW TO COPE Description: Overwhelmed with the amount of things to do? Have that anxious feeling in your stomach? Never seem to get everything done and feel bummed out about that? Blank out on tests? Learn how to use your “stress” positively and enjoy your life while working towards meeting your goals. Speaker Bio: Ms. Rumsby is cur-rently working as an AOSR 4th grade teacher. She has taught High School. She has advanced degrees in Elementary Educa-tion and Psychology. She has worked with adolescents having difficulties for the last 7 years. BASIC FIRST AID Description: Learn the basic techniques of helping someone in need of care. Points covered will include: Sprains and Strains, Seizures, Poisoning, Recognizing the symptoms of heart attack, Shock, Se-vere bleeding, Wound care, Choking, Fainting Speaker Bio: Diane Cullen-Moore is the school nurse at AOSR. She has been involved in school nursing for 15 years. Before that, her acute care experience was in Boston hospitals and the public health sector in California. Ms. Cullen-Moore has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Boston College and is a registered nurse under the Massachusetts Board of Registration for health professionals. YOGA Description: You have all heard about how yoga is the new thing, and how everyone famous, like Gwyneth Paltrow, Madonna, and Sting, are doing it.....now you have the chance to try it! Learn what is so special about yoga and why doing some simple movements and poses are good for you physically and mentally. You will have the chance to try some yoga poses, learn about ways to integrate it into your busy schedule, and receive a relaxation program you can do at home. Remember to wear loose, comfortable clothing! Speaker Bio: Brenda McDonald, MS, OTR/L is occupational therapist who currently has a private practice here in Rome. She received her Master’s degree in occupational therapy from Tufts Univer-sity, Medford, Massachusetts, and her bachelor’s degree in soci-ology from Western Washington University, Bellingham, Wash-ington. Dance and yoga are two of her favorite hobbies and pas-times.

LOUD AND PROUD Description: In this workshop we will be stretching out with our creativity, learning tools of self-expression which will help to both share your thoughts and ideas as well as affirm them to ourselves. I always tell my students to give their creative offers “loud and proud,” meaning to share your thought-full invention in a way that is generous and that makes yourself feel good to give. In Loud and Proud, we’ll learn some theater-based games that deal with sharing our interior thoughts and supporting others as they do the same. Speaker Bio: Kip Hendry. In addition to my work teaching English and Theater here at AOSR, I spend a lot of my time both as a performer and writer. Last summer I wrote, directed and performed in two plays (along with my brother), in a 40-show tour across Italy. I studied both theater and creative writ-ing in college and have published my fiction and poetry, but I love making music and visual art as well, and get a kick out of sharing the happiness that I find from creative expression with the world. STREAM OF CONSCIOUSNESS Description: In both of my workshops we will be stretching out with our creativity, learning tools of self-expression which will help to both share your thoughts and ideas as well as affirm them to our-selves. In this workshop, we will do some creative writing exercises that help you make contact with that internal thought-stream that is so often drowned out by the din of mechanical and practical thoughts (or fears, judgments) that help get us through the day. You’ll be able to pour yourself out to share with others, or simply to see yourself in a new mirror and keep your reflection private. Speaker Bio: Kip Hendry. In addition to my work teaching English and Theater here at AOSR, I spend a lot of my time both as a performer and writer. Last summer I wrote, directed and performed in two plays (along with my brother), in a 40-show tour across Italy. I studied both theater and creative writing in college and have published my fiction and poetry, but I love making music and visual art as well, and get a kick out of sharing the happiness that I find from creative expression with the world. HOW DO YOU LEARN BEST? LEARNING STYLES Description: How do you learn? Are you a visual learner, an audi-tory learner or a combination of both? In this workshop you will discover what your specific learning styles are and how to optimize your skills. Speaker Bio: Pam Kvilekval. Director of Special Education Services, Inc., Rome, Italy. Consultant for private international schools in Rome, Milan, Florence, Naples, Genova, private Italian schools, the Comune di Roma: Ufficio socio-psico-dagogico, and the Comune di Arlena di Castro. Adjunct Gradu-ate Faculty for Overseas Programs and Rome Coordinator for Framingham State College. Education Background includes: Masters of Arts from Goddard College in Special Education Ad-ministration, Graduate Studies from Northeastern University, Educational Administration, B. A from Simmons College.

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News from the Counselor Donna Ross

News from Rome

From Parent Elizabeth Bloch-Smith, comes a reference for a good

website for Rome news, www.seekitaly.com. The last week in February, Rome warmed up. Scirocco winds blew north from North Africa and the Sahara Desert. It was a welcome temperature change, but we were all surprised to see that the rain that fol-lowed it marked cars (and any laundry that happened to be out drying!) with smears of mud. Turns out that these winds carry sand, too! In fact, a mountain community to the south reported that the snow that fell during those winds was “red!”

HS Ski Trip By Stephanie Bittner-

Buddenbrock Grade 10

For Settimana Bianca, two high school

chaperones, ten students, and three other adults embarked on the HS ski trip from AOSR. We stayed in the small town of Zoldo, in the Dolo-mites, about 15 minutes away from the slopes. The four girls stayed in one room and the six boys shared two rooms at the Albergo Al Sole. Most of the students were skiers and only three students were snowboarders. All of the chaperones were skiers. We spent the day on the beautiful slopes in the Civetta area, taking les-sons and free skiing/boarding. We came back to the hotel at around 5 PM and stayed there until dinner, relaxing. A couple of nights, we went to the hot spot of Zoldo, a small blue lighted disco called “Ice Cube.” We bonded on the ski trip and had lots of great stories to tell about lost snowboards, coke bottles, British girls, instructors, and runs “fuori pista”! A lot of inside jokes have emerged from this trip and we will all remember these days and this trip for quite some time.

OUR CONGRATULATIONS GO TO THE FOL-LOWING SENIORS ON THEIR ACCEPTANCES TO COLLEGES/UNIVERSITIES:

Jacques Barbot Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) Gianluca Belisari Endicott College Luca Candelori Imperial College —London University College -London University of Bath University of Bristol University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology Hannah Ceen American University Mariafrancesca Gioia University of San Francisco Anna Grasso University of Bristol University of Reading Trillian Gregg Southern Vermont College Green Mountain College Ian Haight Bowdoin College Annie Kelly American University Tulane University Katica Nadvegi Buckinghamshire Chilterns University College Sean Satterwhite Lynn University Christine Skodon University of Chicago Nick Stoll Barry University Katia Trukhanova Brunel University European School of Economics Regents Business School of London

OUR NEXT EDITION WILL HOLD MANY MORE CONGRATULATIONS TO THE CLASS OF 2004!!!! Be aware of the following deadlines: JUNIORS: SAT Register March 25 for the May 1 testing Register April 29 for the June 5 testing

ACT Register March 19 for the April 3 testing Register May 28 for the June 12 testing

STUDENTS MUST REGISTER WITH MRS. ROSS FOR THE ACT TEST. If you have questions regarding which tests you should take, please see Mrs. Ross. ALL eleventh graders and their parents are invited to meet with me this Spring to discuss post-high school plan-ning. Please feel free to contact me to arrange a convenient time for our meeting.

HIGH SCHOOL NEWS (CONT.)

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How long have you been teaching at American Overseas School of Rome? I believe this is my tenth year at AOSR, although I worked here as a substitute teacher for two years in the 80’s, immediately after graduating from University.

What is your educational/professional background? I was a student at AOSR and graduated in 1978. I have a Laurea in ‘Lettere e Filosofia’ from La Sapienza University in Rome. I have a High School Teaching Certifi-cate for Philosophy, Pedagogy and Psychology from the Italian Ministry of Education, and I am currently finishing another five year degree, in Psychology. I have always worked in education, also in other International Schools (New School, St. Stephen’s), in the Italian School and at the American University of Rome.

When and what made you decide to become a teacher? I decided to become a teacher a little after graduat-ing from university. I was called by some of my former teachers here at AOSR to substitute for their classes, and I found out how much I loved to be with teenagers and share my knowledge with them. Until then I had thought that my career would be with languages – they are my passion, too. I have studied six of them- but at this point I understood that my call was a different one.

What made you interested in teaching at an international high school as opposed to College/University? I have been very fortunate in this respect because I also teach at University level. This is an extremely stimu-lating and rewarding experience, that adds to my under-standing of education.

Would you share one of your most rewarding teaching experiences? Of course, the most recent memories are the strong-est: the “Theory of Knowledge” course that terminated this past January has been one of the best I have ever taught: I had clever, passionate, humane, generous students that have shown me aspects of reality and of thinking that I had not yet discovered. I modified many of my long-established ideas thanks to them, they have taught me a lot, and I am very grateful to them.

As one of the organizers of the IB program, can you ex-plain what the Theory of Knowledge means and how do students benefit from it? I do not organize the IB, I only teach one of its courses: the IB program is very demanding, and its goal is to help students become mature and independent learners, and also to teach them not only from books but also from life. It is a very ambitious program and our best students are very lucky to have this special opportunity.

What is your approach to teaching European History at an international school environment? European History is not only the history of the European continent, it has affected the major political de-velopments in most of the world, and every student, wher-ever he comes from is interested in it. The difficulty might arise from the fact that some students do not have a strong background knowledge in European History, and have to compensate for that by studying very hard.

Has the way you've been teaching European history changed over the years? If so, how and why? Over the years I have developed a greater sensitiv-ity for the relationship between the past and the present. Before I encouraged students to establish parallels between events in the past. Now I find myself encouraging them to think more in terms of the present, and possibly of the fu-ture, as if I were shifting from intellectual curiosity to more practical application of historical knowledge.

What do you hope your students get out of your program at the end of the year? I hope that my students have acquired information, created knowledge, and developed critical thinking and in-tellectual tools that will accompany them for many years in their lives. I also hope that they have become more open, humane, tolerant and understanding of other men and women — in other words, better people.

How do you face the challenge to explain the profound and quick changes that have taken place in the world in the past 3 years? I think I already answered that question. The world is changing fast and the information we acquire becomes obsolete and useless if we cannot extract a meaning that goes beyond the single event. History can be an extremely precious opportunity for us to discover the patterns and regularities that remain almost unchanged and that we can use to predict and influence the future.

Finally, as a parent of two AOSR students, what do you think are the strengths of our school? I honestly believe that in Rome there is no better environment for a child to grow up in than AOSR. The ele-mentary school shapes the children’s personalities in an incredible way while teaching them to find fun in learning; the middle school gives them sound values that will accom-pany them into their adult life, and the high school leads them to be sophisticated thinkers and competent learners, besides helping them find out their intellectual interests. The whole community is really like a large family, my daughters and I have received a lot by the people of AOSR.

Talking with Teachers By Claudia Sobral

Mrs. Alessandra Telmon High School History, “Theory of Knowledge”, Psychology, Anthropology and Sociology Teacher

19

Sports Briefs With Doug Kneeland

2003-04 AOSR Basketball Rosters BoysGirlsSeniors Ian Haight Vanessa Ananiades Nick Stoll-Tamara Djurdjevic James Kingsbury Nicole Borounda Jun-iorsTim Garbinsky Ryan Panzarella Ettore Canestri Chris Williams SophomoresPatrick Cosenza Daryn Goldhammer-Blanc Will Kelly Holly Deguzman Josh Kneeland Alessie Fio-chi Mandi Shenediela Rozen Erdal FreshmenJordan Mussel-man Sabina Abdulla Brennan Panzarella Michela Lombardi Tyler Otte Kristin Fowler David Grosso Holly Rumpf Chris Haight Annika Neumann Yara Mirdad Roisin Agnew Flaminia Belli Victoria Borrero Irma Orlandi

Falcons Roll Over Livorno

The goal of the Falcons as they headed to the Medi-terranean championships in Aviano in late February was to make the big breakthrough – to knock off at least one of the Department of Defense heavyweights and make it into the final four. And so they did. The AOSR Falcons hit their stride at just the right time, the week before the Mediterranean tournament. Both the girls and boys basketball teams posted convinc-ing wins over Livorno in the last home games, Feb. 6 and 7, of the season. The Falcon girls won the opener on Friday night and followed it up with a “mercy” win on Saturday. In ASIL play, when a team leads by 40 points, the other team has the choice to stop playing. Livorno elected to finish the game, and the Falcons somewhat belatedly let a number of their freshmen finish the game. The boys didn’t have it quite so easy. Friday night they lost the closest game of the season, 59-56 when Livorno hit 30 free-throws, shooting four times as many foul shots as the Falcons were allowed to shoot. The lop-sided officiating on Friday seemed to moti-vate the Falcons on Saturday. Senior Nick Stoll and freshman Jordan Musselman were on fire in the first half, stealing the ball and hitting threes to lead the Fal-cons to a 30-point lead. Tim Garbinsky, Ian Haight, and Ryan Panzarella dominated the boards. The Falcons maintained their lead in the second half, when everyone on the roster got to play. By the end of the game, the Falcons were playing a team of all freshmen and sopho-mores. The young Falcons kept the pressure on Livorno and coasted to a 63 -38 victory.

AOSR Boys Basketball Ian Haight Nick Stoll James Kingsbury Tim Garbinsky Ryan Panzarella Ettore Canestri Chris Williams Patrick Cosenza Will Kelly Josh Kneeland Mandi Shenediela Jordan Musselman Brennan Panzarella Tyler Otte David Grosso Chris Haight

AOSR Girls Basketball Vanessa Ananiades Tmara Djurdjevic Nicole Brounda Daryn Goldhammer-Blanc Holly Deguzman Alessie Fiochi Rozen Erdal Sabina Abdulla Michela Lombardi Kristin Fowler Holly Rumpf Annika Neumann Yara Mirdad Roisin Agnew Flaminia Belli Victoria Borrero Irma Orlandi

Falcons Sweep International Schools

The American School Italy League (ASIL) includes two types of schools. The five largest high schools are located on US military bases, and the students are mostly dependents of US Department of Defense mili-tary or civilian employees. The other three members of the ASIL league are private American international schools: AOSR, Mary-mount, and Milan. In many sports, these three schools are quite competitive. They are similar in size, and they each have a diverse mixture of students from many dif-ferent countries. In a sense, they form a league within a league. In basketball, the small American international schools tend to be out-numbered and out-sized by the Department of Defense schools. When it comes to boys soccer, the shoe is on the other foot. In soccer, the diver-sity of the international schools – especially their Italian students - becomes their strength. But more about that in the Spring! This year, the AOSR Falcons easily dominated the other two international schools in basketball. The Fal-cons swept all four varsity games with Marymount (boys and girls varsity), and AOSR also won all four varsity games with Milan.

AOSR BOYS REACH FINAL FOUR

The Falcon boys basketball team stormed into the final four (semi-finals) at the Mediterranean Basketball and Cheerleading Tournament 2004 in Aviano on Val-entine’s Day by beating Incirlik (Turkey), Vicenza Cougars, and Marymount Royals. The win over Vicenza was especially gratifying since AOSR had lost twice to Vicenza during the regular season. The Falcons finished the tournament in fourth place out of ten teams after losing close games to the first three teams: Naples (1st), Aviano (2nd) and Si-gonella (3rd). The Falcon boys were led by seniors Nick Stoll, who was selected to The All-Conference team; Captain Ian Haight, selected All-Conference Honorable Men-tion; and James Kingsbury. Many thanks to the coaches, Phil Davis, Ray Ross, and Dennis Uyenoyama.

2003-2004

20

Sports Briefs. (Cont.)

FALCON GIRLS LOSE HEART-BREAKER

The AOSR girls staged a furious rally to over-come an eight-point deficit before losing to Vicenza 40 - 39 in the Mediterranean Basketball Tournament. The Falcon girls tied for fifth place in the ten team tournament. AOSR finished with a 2-2 record, beat-ing Ankara (Turkey) and Marymount, and losing to Naples and Vicenza. The final results placed Naples first, Aviano second and Sigonella third mirroring the boys results. Seniors Vanessa Ananiades, Nicole Borunda, and Tamara Djurdjevic played their last high school games in front of hundreds of screaming fans from around the re-gion. Vanessa Ananiades was named to the All-Conference team, and Tamara Djurdjevic was All-Conference Honorable Mention. Many thanks to coaches Mr. Kieran Canter and Ms. Tara Rosso.

NAPLES SWEEPS MEDITERRANEAN, EUROPEAN TITLES

The Naples Wildcats swept both Mediterranean Basketball championships. The girls and boys teams each defeated arch-rival Aviano in the finals. Sigonella placed third in both events. The Naples girls team won their third straight title. For the boys, it was the first title for the Wildcats since 1990. STOP THE PRESS ! In the European Cham-pionship, Naples and Aviano, finished first and second, mirroring the finish of the Mediterranean championship. So the teams from Italy were the strongest teams in Europe this year.

Spring Sports Schedule

March 12 Soccer/Tennis at AOSR vs. Sigonella March 20-21 “ at Vicenza March 26-27 “ at Aviano April 23 “ at AOSR vs.Milan May 1 “ at Marymount May 8 “ at AOSR vs. Livorno May 13-15 Soccer Med Championships at Naples May 13-15 Tennis Med Championships at Aviano May 21-22 Soccer European Championship TBD

The AOSR Yearbook Staff kindly requests your participation in the funding of the 2003 - 2004 TABULARIUM. Fees for companies:

• Full page advertisement - €100.00 • Half page advertisement - €50.00 • Business cards €15.00

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your advertisements will circulate through the thousands of people in the ever-expanding international AOSR community. Please return the form below and payment, to Ms. Flaherty’s box in the staff room or at the high school office.

Thank you for your support, The AOSR Yearbook Staff

Sign-in Form ◊ Full page ◊ Company Advertisement ◊ Half page ◊ Business card ◊ Personal Advertisement Name of company Name of advertiser Signature Date

Learn Italian, Eat Italian — At the Same Time!

AOSR Parent Angela Linari hosts “Cucina/Cuisine — Learn Italian While Cooking” in a wonderful location, next to the school. There is a lovely meal afterwards. The fol-lowing are offered this month. Call 338-8011729. Friday, March 5, 3:30 to 7:30 Light menu of rolled bass, tonnarelli, wrapped gilt-bream on grilled eggplant, and baked apple tart. € 33 Friday March 19, 3:30 to 7:30 Light menu of Beef carpaccio and zucchini, pasta “stracci” with Broccoli Rabe, Turkey brest with artichokes, Apple jello with saffron pears € 30 Thursday, March 25, 3:30-7:30 All artichoke meal, cream soup with mozzarella, rhombus-shaped pasta with artichokes and leeches, Roman-style artichokes with stewed port, Artichoke sorbet. € 30

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NOTES FROM THE FIELD

On Tuesday our class was going to Castle Sant'Angelo but lots of people were stuck on the schoolbus so we went to the gym first. After that Emily and Alice came, but Yasmin didn't. We went anyway. So I went and came to Castel Sant'Angelo. It was really big. We saw four air holes and we saw the place where the ramps were. We saw even the bath-room of the pope. Ms. Rumsby told us that the pope had a picture but it actually was a mirror but he should not have a mirror. Then we went to the courtyard where there was an angel. We ate snacks over there and we saw a man-gonel (editor’s note: a kind of big catapult) and I did a picture of it. We also saw four bastions. We saw really nice frescoes. It was really nice. A bit later we had lunch, it was freezing. At the end we went to the book shop and I bought three things, before we went to play tag. Hope you all get there. By Danaja Volk 3rd Grade

Castel Sant’Angelo

A Day in the Life of

Pietro Pantalani, Third Grader At Castel Sant'Angelo it was very interest-ing. First we saw the airholes in the ramp and we saw how the Roman soldiers were, they were one meter 50 tall. We even went on all four bastions!!!! It was fun. Then we had lunch, I ate pizza with ham and drank water. Then we went in the pope's bed-room. We saw a little painting he pushed and a mir-ror would appear!! After we went to the very top of the castle. It was fun! Then we went to the bookshop I bought a coin of the Emperor Costantino. When we went back to school I sat by Edo-ardo and we talked about the Lord of the Rings. We even saw the pope's bathroom, that was beautiful. Then at school I finished my work and went to piano. By Pietro Pantalani 3rd Grade

Just about everything you have ever wanted to know and then some...from the sister of an AOSR parent who does know just about everything. And do you want to know WHY? “It’s not that she has her doctorate in neuro-biology, it’s because SHE IS MY BIG SISTER AND BIG SISTERS ALWAYS KNOW EVERYTHING!” A dime has 118 ridges around the edge. A cat has 32 muscles in each ear. A crocodile cannot stick out its tongue. A dragonfly has a life span of 24 hours. A goldfish has a memory span of three seconds. A "jiffy" is an actual unit of time for 1/100th of a second. A shark is the only fish that can blink with both eyes. A snail can sleep for three years. Al Capone's business card said he was a used furniture dealer. All 50 states are listed across the top of the Lin-coln Memorial on the back of the $5 bill. Almonds are a member of the peach family. An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain. Babies are born without knee caps. They don't appear until the child reaches 2 to 6 years of age. Butterflies taste with their feet. Cats have over one hundred vocal sounds. Dogs only have about 10. "Dreamt" is the only English word that ends in the letters "mt". February 1865 is the only month in recorded his-tory not to have a full moon . In the last 4,000 years, no new animals have been domesticated. If the population of China walked past you, in single file, the line would never end because of the rate of reproduction. If you are an average American, in your whole life, you will spend an average of 6 months wait-ing at red lights. It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. Leonardo Da Vinci invented the scissors. Maine is the only state whose name is just one syllable. No word in the English language rhymes with month, orange, silver, or purple. Our eyes are always the same size from birth, but our nose and ears never stop growing. Peanuts are one of the ingredients of dynamite. Rubber bands last longer when refrigerated. "Stewardesses" is the longest word typed with only the left hand and "lollipop" with your right. ....................NOW, you know everything...or do you? Look for the next installment next month!

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Rome ‘n’About

Each of us has already had the pleasure to take our children to downtown Rome for one of the clas-sic shopping tours in those shops our teenagers consider ‘awesome’. ‘Lets’ go downtown’ is the most fre-quent sentence we hear from our youngsters. How can we not join them for a nice shopping trip without any cultural impact? Let’s see what we can do combining waiting at ‘Footlockers’ and having the opportu-nity to see something valuable. As we parents all know, the most popular street for this occasion is Via del Corso. Each sidewalk off Via del Corso leads us to the most famous stores and boutiques. If we would only go for window shop-ping, we could imagine being in London, Tokyo or New York. Raising your head, you understand that you are in a very antique and unique town. I would like to show you today the way off Via del Corso into Piazza del Popolo: looking at Porta Del Popolo, the surface of which probably was designed by Michelangelo, the structure, as we see it today, was designed by Bernini. On the right hand side we see the church of Santa Maria Del Popolo. The legend says that this church was built on the ruins of the family tomb of Nero. The little square outside in front of the church was the place where executions took place. We have to enter the church to be surprised. The church is very old which you can understand if you see the grave stones of the Middle Ages, as well as on the pavement. The actual architecture is dated in the 15th century. On the left hand side you walk by the second niche of the aisle, which was designed by Raffaello: it is unique because of its proportion and sty-listic balance, very typical for this artist. In this niche you see two statues by Bernini from the 16th century. The church is full of important works which could fill a museum. I would suggest buying a guide or renting headphones to get more information. At the end of the aisle, always on the left hand side there are two niches: the one on the right has two splendid masterpieces by Caravaggio. On the right wall ‘The Con-version of Saint Paul ‘on the left wall ‘The Crucifixion of Saint Peter’. These two paintings are the most revolutionary ones of sacred art: they are extremely realistic with excellent proportion of the body. The im-portance of these two paintings is easy to understand. One could stay watching them for a long, long time… In Rome you don’t pay an entrance fee for those marvelous impressions, so you saved some money. Have you forgotten your child at Footlockers? Return and spend a fortune for the most trendy shoes your son or daughter has chosen in an atmosphere of wild music...then go back home and remember two masterpieces of big importance and value, and a church full of art and history.

Shopping and Something Else by Sabine Neumann-Heider, AOSR Parent

There is a church a few minutes walking from San Giovanni metro stop line A which is very inter-esting and possibly one of the oldest churches in the world. Santa Croce in Gerusalemme was built three times, once in 326 AD, again in 1144, and again in the Baroque period of Rome in 1744. A visitor can still see all three constructions, set inside each other. Here, too, you can find the preserved splinters of the Holy Cross, thanks to Emperor Constantine's mother, Helen. During her trip to the Holy Land in the 4th century, Helen found three crosses. By a mira-cle, she and Macario, the Bishop of Jerusalem, knew which one was Jesus' cross. These discoverers both later became saints. St. Helena split the cross into three parts. She left the first part to Bishop Macario and sent the sec-ond part to her son in Costantinopolis (which is now Istanbul). She took the third part of the cross with her to Rome and housed it in this church, along with some other genuine relics. It was a wonderful field trip for us and we hope everyone gets a chance to visit Santa Croce in Gerusalemme.

Santa Croce in Gerusalemme, Rome by Alessandra Giannetti and Ketty Smith-Quiroz, AOSR Parents

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Bon Appetito ! with Sue Berton

With the wonderfully diverse population of fami-lies here at AOSR, I thought it would be fun to send out some recipes that were not Italian or American. I put my feelers out and came out with these two wonderful reci-pes sent to me by one of Lisa Finerty's girlfriends, Ann Mc Carthy. Ann doesn't have any children at AOSR but she loves to read our Falcon Flyer (hey, who doesn't?). She has thoughtfully passed her recipes on to us. Thank you, Ann McCarthy, for the wonderful recipes. They look simple and delicious and I can't wait to try them! Squash or Pumpkin Chowder 1 large onion chopped 2 tbs cooking oil 1 clove garlic, minced 1 tsp red curry paste (very spicy) or 2-3 tsp. curry powder 7-8 cups butternut squash or pumpkin 4 cups chicken bouillon broth 1 can unsweetened coconut milk 2 Tbs grated fresh ginger salt/pepper Sauté onion and garlic, add curry and then add all remain-ing ingredients. Cover and cook until Squash or Pumpkin is soft. Let cool slightly and then puree in food processor or blender. Serve with hot bread, crackers or pita bread toasts. NOTE: Red curry paste and pita bread can be found at Castroni, a chain of international food stores all over Rome. Shrimp can also be added to soup. This next recipe sounds wonderful. I really can't wait to try it as I am always looking for something differ-ent to do with our wonderfully abundant seafood that we have access to here in Rome.

Brazilian Fish Stew 2 lbs white fish (like cod, halibut) cut into cubes about the size of large ice cubes juice of 1 lemon olive oil 1 cup of spicy tomato/jalapeno sauce (purchased at Castroni) 1 med/large onion 1 green pepper 1 yellow pepper 3-4 medium size ripe tomatoes (You can also use 1 cup or so of cherry tomatoes) 1 can unsweetened coconut milk 2 cups bouillon fish broth Basmati rice Marinate fish in juice of one lemon, a healthy drizzle of olive oil and cup of spicy tomato/Jalapeno sauce. In heavy metal pot whose bottom has been coated with olive oil, sauté the onion. After the onion has been slightly sautéed, add green and yellow pepper and continue until peppers are lightly sautéed. Add chopped ripe toma-toes and continue to sauté until tomatoes are soft. When the above mixture is ready, add 1 can un-sweetened coconut milk and two cups of bouillon fish broth and bring to a boil. Add marinated fish cubes and cook until fish is cooked, about 5-10 minutes max. Add hot pep-per if you want a spicier soup. Serve with a large scoop of basmati rice and sprin-kle with chopped cilantro. Excellent with a hot, buttered baguette. NOTE: Mixture can be cooked with Cilantro but some-times people do not like it so best to sprinkle on individu-ally at the last minute. Fresh Cilantro (Coriander) can be purchased at Piazza Victoria market. Also, the onion/tomato mixture can be prepared days ahead and only the fish and other liquids have to be added the day you eat it. Well these recipes give us something new to try. Let me know what you think after you try them. I love feedback. Here's hoping everyone returns safely from their adventures on their February break! Bon Appetito!

MOM By Lorenzo Mencacci, Grade 3

My mom is very nice, She's also a bit batty,

She's good at cooking rice, Which makes me a bit fatty.

MARS By William Kizler, Grade 3

In the planet of Mars, They have shoes like ours,

And the same socks and shoes laces, And two arms like ours

(But not in the same places).

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Breakfast The Right Start Every Day

Adapted by Marta Rahm, RD and AOSR parent from “Tip of the Day” www.eatright.org (American Dietetic Asso-ciation’s website)

Beep, beep, beep…wake up! It’s time to start a new day. As you begin your daily morning routine – get-ting lunches packed, kids ready for school and yourself out the door – be sure breakfast is one of your family’s top priorities each morning. Breakfast is important to everyone’s overall health and performance. It is an early-morning refueling stop for your body. After eight to 12 hours without a meal or a snack, your body needs to replenish its glucose, also called blood sugar, the main energy source for the brain. Studies show breakfast eaters tend to have more strength and endurance, and better concentration and problem-solving abilities. On the flip side, those who skip breakfast often feel tired, irritable or restless in the morning. Breakfast is essential to students’ health and nutrition and gives them a jump-start on their day’s daily requirements for vitamins, minerals and other nu-trients. Research shows kids who regularly eat a morn-ing meal tend to perform better in school, often scoring higher on tests. Kids who skip breakfast tend to be tardy or absent from school more often. Breakfast eaters often behave better in school, too. Don’t forget who else should eat breakfast: You! Kids who see their parents eat breakfast are more likely to eat breakfast, too. If time is a concern for you in the mornings, start the day with quick breakfast op-tions, like:

Whole-grain cereal with fruit and milk Whole-grain cereal with a cup of yogurt Toasted waffles topped with peanut butter Instant oatmeal with milk and dried fruit A whole-wheat pita stuffed with sliced hard-

cooked eggs. If your taste buds just don’t crave breakfast foods, enjoy a sandwich or leftovers like pizza, pasta or rice in the morning. Just make sure to start your day the healthy way – with breakfast! Do you have trouble digesting milk? The rea-son? Your small intestine may not produce much lac-tase. Lactase is the enzyme that digests the natural sugar, called lactose, in milk. Without adequate lactase, consumption of milk can lead to gas, bloating and diar-rhea. The good news is you don’t have to skip milk and the calcium it provides, just make a few alterations in your eating habits. First, drink milk in small amounts; usually the body can release enough lactase to digest a smaller amount of milk. Drink milk with other foods. This helps slow down digestion making absorption of lactose eas-ier. Try other dairy foods that are lower in lactose such as yogurt, cheese, buttermilk or special lactose-free milks.

Voter’s Registration

All U.S. citizens who will be at least 18 years of age by November 2, 2004, have a

right to vote, whether or not they have ever lived in the United States. Voting in Federal elections (as opposed to some state and local elections) has no bearing on the citizen's tax status.

US citizens can register and vote using their last known US address of themselves, their parents, or their grandparents, in that order.

Since there are no polling places outside the US, all US citizens who expect to be outside the US on November 2 vote by absentee ballot. In order to obtain an absentee ballot, the "Federal Post Card Application" must be completed. This FPCA is available at the US Embassy, Consulates, Democrats and Republicans Abroad organiza-tions, and from the Federal Voters Assistance Pro-gram website, www.fvap.gov, where detailed in-formation is available on how to complete the form. The request for an absentee ballot from Italy is a 30-day turn-around once the ballots are printed, which should be after both the Democ-ratic and the Republican conventions in Au-gust. Any voters who request an absentee ballot now should receive their ballot no earlier than Au-gust 30 and no later than September 30.

There is also a toll-free phone number from Italy to the Federal Voters Assistance Pro-gram --- 800-874729 --- to answer any questions about voting in the November 2, 2004 election.

Many voters' advocacy groups will be reg-istering voters and requests for absentee ballots over the next few months. AOSR students and parents will be doing Voter’s Registration, and those dates will be published in the Falcon Flyer. In addition, there is a lot of assistance available all over Rome. Contact the Embassy which is located at Via Veneto, 121. Their website is www.usembassy.it and the phone # 06-4674-1.

The Falcon Flyer has a reference guide for our school community. The Flyer contact infor-mation is available (as always!) on Page 2 of every issue.

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SPORTS FOR ADULTS The adult sports events avail-able at school this year are: Monday — 7 pm volleyball Tuesday —3:30 pm soccer Tuesday — 7 pm basketball No charge, no sign-up, just please bring your parent ID to

show at the front gate. Don’t forget your kneepads, water, and Advil!

AOSR Parents Dottoressa Lorinecz and Dottore Karpel are pediatric dentists with and office on Via Cassia (No.515). They are new to Rome and have generous hours. They can be reached at 06-3350522.

Adult ballet class and stretching exercises has now started every Friday morning at the Welcome Neighbours Ballet Academy. This is your occasion to keep fit, socialize and have fun. Please phone now if interested: Jenny Ussani, Ballet teacher, 06-30361843 or 335-669-4762. ""Haven’t you always wanted to learn ballet?

Tutor for ES students available after-school or weekends by col-lege grad who speaks English, Italian, Chinese and some Arabic. If interested, call Elena @ 347-715-2030 or at home 06-904-05-037.

Household items for sale: desks, dining tables, single beds, trundle bed, wardrobes (various sizes) bookcases. Reasonable prices. Contact Barbara Faidley at L.Faidley@agora.it

Tutor for all grade levels is available after school and on weekends by a post-graduate who speaks English and German with a Masters degree in International Relations. If interested please call Ben at 333.9245333

Il Foro Reprinted from the 32nd Annual AOSR Ball 2004 event pro-gram, which took place 7 February.

A Small Miracle By Mrs. Molly Bianchini

HS English Teacher

Each time I want a reminder of the small miracles our school performs in the lives of its students, I recall one very special young man I taught in Grade 10 Honors-English many years ago. Mark's dark-hair covered his eyebrows and hid his eyes most of the time, and he was trying to grow a beard, too, but with little success. He had a wild and sometimes fright-ened look, but was stylishly and quite carefully dressed. A bright student. A promising writer. But mute Mark never spoke. Not that he couldn't speak; there were no physical rea-son for his silence. Mark had simply decided at the age of six that he had nothing to say to the world. No poetry recitations for him, no participation in class discussion, no conversation with his peers. Just silence. Mark liked English and he brought me small gifts al-most daily --- of pebbles, wild flowers, and once a real shrunken head when we studied Heart of Darkness. We com-municated through the written word, questions and answers on scraps of paper, assignments and evaluations in his diary. And so the year progressed. Mark's peers accepted him, in the kind and tolerant way our AOSR students have of making a place for everyone in our school. Over the months he relaxed and smiled occa-sionally, and his hair was often swept aside to reveal a new expression in his eyes. And then, eight months after Mark had come to us, it happened. Ten years of absolute and unbroken silence came to an end. Mark began to speak --- surprising his parents who remembered only his small child's voice, then he began to talk to his teachers and finally to some trusted friends. Mark left us in June of that year, but I know he took with him some wonderful memories and lessons -- and best of all, the power of speech.

Dear Friends, We hope you can join us for the next international community network-ing dinner at the Moscati Restaurant —exceptional food and wine in a stylish and stimulating atmosphere. The set-ting and the crowd always make for a truly interesting and memorable eve-ning.

Wednesday, March 24, 2004 Cocktails start at 7.30 pm and dinner

at 9:00 pm. The address is Moscati 3 in the Baldu-ino area, overlooking Rome. Reservations are necessary. Please call 06 4740861 or 06 9 7 6 1 7 5 2 8 o r e m a i l : info@englishyellowpages.it. We look forward to seeing you there, Tracy, Susan & Maggi P.S. If you cannot make it this time, please mark your calendars for Moscati on April 21st and May 26th.

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