At Brooklyn Friends School, community service is an important and inherent part of each student’s education. Beginning in preschool, children first learn what a “community” is and what it means to be part of that new community away from home. As usual, we start with the concrete—the classroom. Learning to be part of a group, taking care of our space and materials, taking turns to speak, and listening to others carefully are all fundamental aspects of the preschool curriculum. Gradually we branch out to other aspects of children's lives. In school, that can mean coming together once a week for our preschool sing, interacting with our lower school “buddies” or being part of the “all school” holiday program in the fall and the “all school” art show in the spring. Families and family traditions are common themes in many classrooms, as are curricular projects about the natural world and environmental awareness. Preschoolers are also involved in activities related to the specific needs of other people. Collecting coins for the annual Penny Harvest is introduced each fall by our lower school “buddies” and the children actively participate in this project, which helps New York City nonprofits. Together with their families, our preschoolers are encouraged to collect clothing, toys or books for children in need. Additionally, each classroom takes a turn baking for the women’s shelter at the Brooklyn Heights Synagogue. These projects gradually teach children to understand the impact they can have on their environment and on others. As our students grow and increasingly develop the capacity to look beyond themselves they come to know what “community service” and giving means. By the time they are in the Fours program, most children have begun to attach importance to being generous and helpful—a significant outcome of our focus on community and caring.above: Surya, Jack, and Aja from the Green Room in front of the Preschool “Mitten Tree.” Families bring in mittens, hats, and scarves, which are given to children at the St. Johns Place Family Center in Crown Heights. Brooklyn Friends School has a longstanding relationship with the Center, which our sixth grade class visits several times a year. The sixth graders’ gift and toy drive for St. Johns Place Center netted 10 huge bags of holiday gifts for the children there.