Did you know the name ‘LEGO’ is an abbreviation of the two Danish words “leg godt”, meaning “play well”. It’s true! Although LEGO seems completely American to many the LEGO Group was founded in Denmark in 1932 by Ole Kirk Kristiansen!
Develop and enhance students’ problem solving and critical thinking skills
Expose children to concepts and vocabulary of Engineering, Architecture and Physics
Provide an opportunity to have a great time with a terrific and versatile building system
The Pre-Engineering summer camps are primarily focused on BUILDING techniques
Choose one:
Pre-Engineering: Let your imagination run wild with tens of thousands of LEGO®! Build engineer-designed projects such as boats, bridges, mazes and motorized cars, and use special pieces to create your own unique design! Explore the endless creative possibilities of the LEGO® building system with the guidance of an experienced Play-Well instructor. This is an ideal way to prepare young builders for the challenge of Engineering FUNdamentals. (ages 5-6)
Engineering Fundamentals: Power up your engineering skills with Play-Well TEKnologies and tens of thousands of LEGO®! Apply real-world concepts in physics, engineering, and architecture through engineer-designed projects such as arch bridges, skyscrapers, motorized cars, and the Battletrack! Design and build as never before, and explore your craziest ideas in a supportive environment. An experienced instructor will challenge new and returning students to engineer at the next level. (ages 7-11)
What makes Denmark the happiest country in the world–and what are the secrets of Danish parents for raising happy, confident, successful kids, year after year?
This upbeat and practical guide brings together the insights of a licensed psychotherapist and a mom — a Dane and an American married to a Dane, respectively — on the habits of the happiest families on earth.
The book delivers fresh advice on how to:
– Encourage free play
– Foster authenticity and confidence
– Nurture empathy
– Emphasize teamwork over power struggles
– Celebrate togetherness
Filled with practical takeaways and inspiring examples, The Danish Way of Parenting will help parents from all walks of life raise the happiest, most well-adjusted kids in the world.
The SCC welcomes author Jessica Joelle Alexander for a talk and Q&A followed by a signing.
Carla Chrisfield, soprano, and William Merrill, piano will present an hour’s concert of music from several cultures and eras. Some of the Scandinavian composers included are Jean Sibelius, Wilhelm Stenhammar, Hugo Alfvén, Toivo Kuula, and Oskar Merikanto.
Lyrics for every song will be in the original language, but the artists will have translations available so that the audience can understand them yet be able to hear the music as the composer conceived of it.
Saturday, October 1st | 7pm | $15; $7 for SCC Members and seniors
The traditional crafts of crochet and knitting have become one of the hottest movements in modern art. We follow a few International artists and knitters as they bring yarn to the streets and into our lives in new ways. Starting in Iceland, this quirky and thought-provoking film takes us on a colourful and global journey as we discover how yarn connects us all. Starring: Barbara Kingsolver, Cirkus Cirkör, Olek Tinna Toshiko.
Our Kaffestugan will be open before and after the film for coffee, pastries and open faced sandwiches.
ABOUT UNA: Una Lorenzen is an Icelandic filmmaker living in Montreal, Canada. She received her MFA in experimental animation at California Institute of the Arts in 2009. Her films have traveled widely to festivals and venues and she has worked on award winning films and Emmy nominated series. Una creates animation and motion graphics for music, story and educational content of all sorts. Using mixed media techniques she aims to create a unique visual experience in each project.
For the month of October our hall is filled with delightful wall hangings from Lilleputt Studios.
All pieces are for sale at $55 a piece. A portion of the proceeds will go towards funding SCC programming.
open through October | email for specific viewing times.
More about Lilleputt Studio creator, Annika Schmidt:
Born in Boston, and raised in Cambridge, Annika Schmidt grew up visiting her mormor and extended family in Blekinge, Sweden. At 18, Annika attended a year long art and design program at Ölands Folkhögskola, on the island of Öland on the south east coast of Sweden. She then went on to earn a BFA in Furniture Design and Textiles from the Rhode Island School of Design, before moving to NYC to work in design for a few years.
Lilleputt Studio was created by Annika in late 2011, when she and her fiance, Ryan, left Brooklyn in search of different pace of life. On a whim, they settled in Portland, Maine, where Annika got to work designing textiles in a small room in their apartment. Drawing inspiration from her Swedish background, Annika seeks to create simple, thoughtful designs, incorporating bold pattern and color. Intrigued by the habits and rituals of a quiet and reflective life, she seeks to create unique items that not only represent Scandinavian values, but help nurture and inspire them in those that engage with her work.
Lilleputt Studio is made up of a variety of products, from printed textiles to ceramics and glass ware, from home goods and décor to accessories. Swedish for ‘peewee’, Lilleputt was named for the small size of the studio, as well as the size of some of its intended customers.
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Lilleputt Studio textiles are printed digitally, in the USA, through an environmentally friendly process, using Eco-friendly, water-based inks on a linen-cotton blend.
The Finnish film tells the story of Maarit. Since her transition from man to woman, Maarit lives a life apart from other people—distant from her estranged wife and daughter and marooned in a dead-end cleaning job far beneath what her education merits. When by chance she meets a handsome, married soccer coach named Sami, her carefully constructed solitude begins to crumble.
While Maarit is sure of herself and her new life, Sami may not be able to handle what society might think of her as a transgender woman. Complicating matters are Sami’s wife, Julia; Teo, a teenage soccer player he coaches; and Maarit’s daughter, Pinja—all of whom have their own agendas. Maarit finds herself at the center of a web of relationships in which everyone is heartbreakingly and fallibly human. At the same time, the ghost of her old life threatens to endanger the precarious balance of her new one.
Part psychodrama and part coming-of-age tale, Open Up to Me is spare and unfussy. It features superb acting from Leea Klemola, who won a Jussi (Finland’s highest film award) for her work in the lead role. As Maarit, she equally embodies vulnerability and determination as a woman who is anxious for her life to finally begin.
Hear some of Boston’s best virtuosi on an intimate scale and join them in lively roundtable discussions in comfortable, friendly, and eclectic surroundings. Last season’s salons featured various trios and quartets and included repertoire featuring both classics and new works by Mendelssohn, Mozart, Ibert, Tomassi, Vivaldi, Dvorak, and our own Steve Laven.
Saint-Saens Septet in E flat Major, Op. 65
Brahms Piano Quintet in F Minor, Op. 34
Dana Russian, trumpet
Rebecca Plummer, piano
Lena Wong, violin
Kristina Nilsson, violin
Jean Haig, viola
Steve Laven, cello
Barry Boettger, bass
60 minutes followed by a roundtable discussion. Tickets $30 | Student & Senior Discounts Available
Fusi, a 43 years old man still lives with his mother. His daily life is characterized by one of the monotonous routine. The appearance of vibrant Alma and young Hera will upset his old bachelor habits.
The director is Dagur Kári.
94 minutes. In Icelandic with English subtitles.
Free; donations accepted.
Films start at 1:30pm. Refreshments for attendees are served at 1pm. Lunch (not included) is available in the Kaffestugan, which is open until 3pm every Saturday.
After their public showing movies in our film series become part of the Scandinavian Library’s collection of DVDs available for borrowing by Library members.
NEWTON FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS: SALON CONCERT with PRO ARTE CHAMBER ORCHESTRA
FEATURING
Kristina Nilsson, violin
Stacey Alden, violin
Anne Black, viola
Steven Laven, cello
WORKS
Felix Mendelssohn
String Quartet No. 5 in E flat major, Op. 44, No. 3
I Allegro vivace
II Scherzo: Assai leggiero vivace
III Adagio non troppo
IV Molto allegro con fuoco
Antonin Dvořák
String Quartet in F major, Op. 96, “American Quartet”
II Lento
Steven Laven (b. 1963)
Original composition(s) to be introduced by composer.
