With a new crop of Lower Schoolers, both joining and returning to Beasley for the 2026-2027 school year, there was a bushel of energy in the Ronald Beasley Studio at the opening assembly on Thursday, September 3. That morning, students and teachers from Junior Kindergarten through fourth grade filed in and sat at their respective plots in the semicircle-shaped audience. Once rooted to their spots, Amy Scheer, Head of Lower School, welcomed everyone to the very first assembly of the academic year!
To kick everything off, the Pledge of Allegiance was led by third graders, followed by everyone singing America the Beautiful. Then, Ms. Scheer reviewed some general assembly guidelines and rules. She highlighted some of the principles that the Lower Schoolers are absorbing in these first weeks of school, especially noting that:
- We take care of our school.
- We take care of each other.
- We take care of ourselves.
She also talked about some of the hand signs that the Lower School community members can share during big group gatherings that can connect with the presenter while not interrupting them. Some symbols stood for silently saying, “Me too,” or represented a silent applause.
Next up, Dr. Katy Nichols, Lower School Music Teacher, and some fourth-grade leaders guided the rest of Beasley in dancing and singing a song about the Lower School community. While the students have already gotten to know their homeroom teachers, the song introduced all of the Lower School staff and specialist teachers.
After the seeds of the assembly rules and community introductions were planted, Susie McGaughey, Lower School & Fifth-Grade Counselor, had the fun privilege of introducing the overarching 2026-2027 Beasley theme: “A.C.R.E.S. – Always Growing: Tend Your Acre To Grow Your Best Self.” Dressed as a gardener, McGaughey explained that the acronym A.C.R.E.S. stands for Assertiveness, Cooperation, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control; these are known as our “Fly Five” words. Fly Five is the social-emotional learning curriculum developed by the Center for Responsive Schools, which promotes the Responsive Classroom approach that the MICDS Lower School implements. Fly Five teaches about these five words as the core competencies that the Center for Responsive Schools believes are the skills students need to be successful in and out of school. In future assemblies, one of those specific words will be the theme of each Beasley assembly, and each grade level will be assigned an assembly where they will share something that they are learning or doing that aligns with the Fly Five themes.
The A.C.R.E.S. theme is especially relevant because it reminds us of gardening. “All plants across acres of land need light, water, air, soil, and space to grow,” the Lower School Counselor stated. “But did you know that each one might have a special need that helps them flourish?” She described how some plants need a special temperature to grow in, and others need a supporting structure to grow up like a trellis or cage. “In many ways, each of us as Lower Schoolers are like plants. We all need things like food, water, and air, but we each might have particular, special needs that are unique to each of us.”
To illustrate this point, Ms. McGaughey invited Centron Felder (“Mr. C”), Lower School Learning Specialist, and a fourth-grade volunteer to join her and have the Lower School audience play a special game: “Name that Plant!” Upon giving three hints, students tried to guess the plant that was being described by learning about its special needs. They had a lot of fun figuring out the plants that were being hinted at.
Beasley assemblies always wrap up with the celebration of recent birthdays and an additional song. On September 3, many August and September birthdays were honored. Each student with an August or September birthday was called up individually by Ms. Scheer, received a birthday card, and then the community sang Happy Birthday. Lastly, Dr. Nichols led the JK-fourth graders in a closing song: Oats, Peas, Beans and Barley Grow.
What a fun first assembly of the school year! We can’t wait to watch our youngest learners tend to their own acres throughout the year to become their best selves!
