OCTOBER 9, 2024

During orientation week, Class IX launched into their first STEM unit of the year which interlaces their studies in math, biology, and computer science and connects them to the students' trip to London. The class met for a book discussion about The Ghost Map: The Story of London's Most Terrifying Epidemic—and How It Changed Science, Cities, and the Modern World, which tells the story about the rapid spread of one cholera outbreak in London during 1854. Later in the week, students were separated into groups for a special activity around the Schoolhouse. Working together, students were tasked with finding “water pumps” throughout the building, and carried textbooks (to represent water weight) back to their homeroom—with each batch of “water” containing characteristics of contamination. Students then made connections to how quickly the disease was able to spread during that time. Their studies of The Ghost Map will culminate with class presentations after their London trip later this fall.