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We invite new students and their parents to an Open House at "Erudit" — for children ages 4 to 15! 📅 Saturday, August 29, 2026 🕐 10:30 AM – 1:00 PM 📍 Silver Creek Middle School 3701 Saul Road, Kensington, MD 20895 (School cafeteria) At the event there will be Russian-language testing to determine level and class placement, a presentation of the educational programs, a chance to meet the teaching staff, and an opportunity to ask the administration questions and get detailed information about studying at the school. 📌 To take the placement test, please register your children at this link: https://forms.gle/5cm8BdEM3d1SQP2C7 📚 The first day of school is September 12. We'd appreciate it if you could share this information with friends and acquaintances who might be interested in studying with us.

Dear Parents, We are pleased to share a brief overview of Russian School Erudite’s 2023–2024 school year. On September 7, 2024, Russian School Erudite began its 10th school year! More than 270 students, ages 3 to 17, attend our school. Our faculty includes 52 teachers and teaching assistants. Students attend 23 in-person classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, the school sponsored 11 high school students (compared with 21 last year) who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. Irina Ryan taught both in-person and online NEWL preparation classes. In addition to our core academic program, taught during the first four class periods, Erudite offers 13 educational and creative clubs, 5 mathematics groups, 3 levels of LEGO Robotics, and 2 school theaters — the Karusel Theater Studio and the Melody Musical Theater. Our school also offers Ukrainian and Kazakh language classes. Our Achievements School Events and Special Programs This year was filled with exciting educational, cultural, and creative events: Each month was dedicated to a special theme. As part of this initiative, we organized two major school-wide projects — “Our Pets” and “The Seasons.” Themed open classes were also held in nearly every grade. Students in Grades 1 and 2 participated in our “Eureka!” Science Conference, where they presented their own science projects and conducted fascinating experiments. Our intermediate and older groups took part in the annual “Malyshok” concert. Together with Grandma Zabavushka (Marina Zonova), the children solved riddles, answered questions, played games, and sang songs. In celebration of Film and Theater Day, students enjoyed a showcase of films created by the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade. As always, some of our brightest celebrations took place during the New Year season. Preschoolers enjoyed the magical “A Visit to Mother Hulda” celebration with traditional circle dances, led by Marina and Yaroslava Zonova. The school also presented the festive concert “New Year in the Land of Fantasy,” directed by Marina Zonova. During the holiday celebrations, student artwork was showcased in exhibitions by the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, and the Crafts Club, led by Nazeli Nersesyan. For the first time, our high school students participated in the “World of Professions” project. Guest speakers — including a physician, attorney, diplomat, financial professional, economist, business owner, microbiologist, engineer, and computer designer — introduced students to their careers, discussed the importance of education, and answered their many questions. Our high school students from the Journalism Club, led by Ksenia Turkova, visited the National Gallery of Art, where they explored an exhibition by renowned American photographer and photojournalist Dorothea Lange. They also interviewed art historian Anna Robert for an upcoming episode of the school podcast. Throughout the year, young reporters from Erudite Times, together with students from the Erudite Club in Milwaukee, conducted online interviews with prominent Russian-speaking journalists from around the world. Our Creative Productions This school year, our performing arts groups presented several exciting new productions: The Melody Musical Theater, led by Elena Ayanyan, presented “Aladdin’s Magic Lamp.” Students of the Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha and Shamil Najafzade, performed “In Our Neighborhood.” The younger and older groups of our school Dance Studio, led by Olga Ermilina, prepared lively dance performances for both productions. Competitions and Academic Success Throughout the year, our students proudly represented Erudite in school-wide, regional, and international competitions: Living Classics International Young Readers Competition — 30 students from Grades 4B and 6 participated, with two advancing to the U.S. national round. Students were prepared by Irina Grabelnikova, Irina Shmal, Gulbarshyn Nurmanova, and Natalia Kovaleva, with professional support from Zuleikha Najafzade and Karine Dabagyan. 4th “Word Factory” International Creative Writing Competition for Russian-Speaking Children Living Abroad — 16 students from Grades 1 through 6 participated. This year, students wrote fairy tales and stories incorporating the words “Masha” and “tree.” All entries were submitted to the competition committee in Paris. Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II — our high school Russian-language program accredited by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for academic credit. Twelve students participated this year: six earned 0.5 creditafter completing the first year, while the remaining students successfully completed the two-year program and earned 1 full high school credit. At the international “Constellation” Festival, the Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha Najafzade, won the Best Classical Production category with “Eugene Onegin: Scenes from the Novel,” directed by Shamil Najafzade. Our school mathematics competition brought together 32 students ages 6 to 12, under the direction of Natalia Grishina, head of our mathematics program. Our annual school chess tournament featured 19 young chess players. In February, we also welcomed Grandmaster Rashad Babaev (FIDE rating 2535). He spoke with students about his chess career, answered their questions, and then challenged them in a simultaneous exhibition. Throughout the year, Rashad also conducted monthly online master classes for the intermediate and advanced Chess Club groups. The Chess Club was led by Alexander Reznikov. Thank You! We sincerely thank our entire faculty and staff for their professionalism and dedication, and the parents of our wonderful students for their active involvement, continued support, and invaluable contribution to our school community!

Dear Parents, We are pleased to share a look back at the highlights and accomplishments of the 2024–2025 school year. On September 6, 2025, Erudite began its 11th school year! More than 270 students, ages 1.5 to 17, attend our school. Our faculty includes 60 teachers and teaching assistants. Students attend 25 in-person classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, the school sponsored 23 high school students (compared with 11 last year) who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. Irina Ryan taught both in-person and online NEWL preparation classes. In addition to our core academic program, taught during the first four class periods, Erudite offers 13 educational and creative clubs, 5 mathematics groups, 3 levels of LEGO Robotics, and 2 school theaters — the Karusel Theater Studio and the Melody Musical Theater. Our school also offers children’s Ukrainian and Kazakh language classes. This year, we successfully launched our “Malyshok” Early Development Program for children ages 1.5 to 3. Next school year, we plan to offer two groups for our youngest students. Our Achievements School Events and Special Programs This year was filled with exciting educational, cultural, and creative activities: Each month of the school year was dedicated to a special theme. As part of this initiative, we organized two major school-wide projects — “Our Pets” and “Art Without Borders.” Themed open classes were also held in nearly every grade. Students in Grades 1, 2, and 3 participated in our “Eureka!” Science Conference, where they presented their own science projects and conducted fascinating experiments. Our intermediate and older groups took part in the annual “Malyshok” concert. Together with their teachers and concert host Marina Zonova, the children acted out riddles using gestures and facial expressions, danced a waltz, created a colorful rainbow, played games, and sang songs. As always, some of our most memorable celebrations took place during the New Year season. Preschoolers enjoyed “The Story of New Year’s Ornaments,” a magical holiday program with traditional circle dances led by Marina Zonova. The school’s Melody Musical Theater, led by Elena Ayanyan, presented the enchanting holiday production “New Year in the Underwater Kingdom.” At the end of the school year, students showcased their creative work in exhibitions presented by the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, and the Crafts Club, led by Nazeli Nersesyan. Our Creative Productions This school year, our performing arts groups presented several exciting new productions: The Melody Musical Theater, under the artistic direction of Elena Ayanyan, presented the musical “The Wizard of the Emerald City.” The Karusel Theater Studio presented “Cipollino,” performed by the advanced group, as well as two mini-productions by the younger group: “The House That Jack Built” and “Moidodyr.” The studio is led by Zuleikha and Shamil Najafzade. The younger and older groups of our school Dance Studio, led by Galina Duke and Olga Ermilina, prepared lively dance performances for our theatrical productions and the annual school picnic. Competitions and Academic Success Throughout the year, our students proudly demonstrated their talents and achievements in a variety of academic and extracurricular programs: “Literary Morning,” a young readers’ project, was held in Grade 4B. Students selected and performed stories by classic and contemporary authors. Their teachers, Larisa Sbornova and Sabina Mammadova, helped them rehearse and develop expressive reading and intonation. Grade 4A held a series of reading marathons. Students read books in Russian and kept reading journals with the support of their teacher, Daria Kolesnikova. The winners received certificates and prizes. Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II — our high school Russian-language program accredited by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for academic credit. Fourteen students participated this year: eight earned 0.5 credit after completing the first year, while the remaining students successfully completed the two-year program and earned 1 full high school credit. Our school’s Russian-language mathematics competition brought together 32 students ages 6 to 12, under the direction of Natalia Grishina, head of our mathematics program. Erudite sponsored a chess tournament that welcomed not only our own young chess players but also students from other schools. Erudite students swept all three top places in the Beginners division, while one of our intermediate Chess Club students earned an impressive third place in the Open division. The Chess Club is led by Nikolai Mounts and Alexander Reznikov. Thank You! We sincerely thank our entire faculty and staff for another successful year, and we are especially grateful to you, our parents, for your continued support, involvement, and dedication to our school community!

Dear Parents, We are pleased to share a brief overview of Russian School Erudite’s 2022–2023 school year. Russian School Erudite has now been serving our community for eight years. Our school has 245 students, ages 3 to 15. Our faculty includes 50 teachers and teaching assistants. Students attend 21 in-person classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, the school sponsored 21 high school students — compared with 9 last year — who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. Irina Ryan taught both in-person and online NEWL preparation classes. Seven students graduated from Russian School Erudite this year and received their diplomas. In addition to our core academic program, taught during the first four class periods, Erudite offers 13 educational and creative clubs, 6 specialized studios, and 3 programming clubs. Our Achievements School Events and Special Programs This year was filled with exciting educational, cultural, and creative events: We introduced a new monthly theme format, with each month dedicated to a particular topic. Two major school-wide projects — “Our Pets” and “Polite Words” — were part of this initiative, along with themed open classes throughout the school. For the first time, students in Grades 1 and 2 participated in Science Day, presenting their own science projects and conducting fascinating experiments. Our students met with writers Marina Abrams and Maria Danilova. Young journalists interviewed Marina Abrams and hosted two talk shows with Maria Danilova. These activities were organized by Ksenia Turkova, director of the Erudite Times Press Club. Erudite students, together with students from the Erudite Club in Milwaukee, participated in an online meeting with Russian-speaking students and graduates of American and European universities. Our intermediate and older groups presented the annual “Malyshok” concert. Film Day featured a showcase of videos created by students of the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade. As always, some of our most memorable celebrations took place during the New Year season. Preschoolers enjoyed lively holiday performances and traditional circle dances led by Marina and Yaroslava Zonova, while the Karusel Theater Studio presented “Alice in Wonderland.” This year, Erudite even got its very own New Year song, “Happy New Year, Erudite!” The lyrics were written by Elena Ayanyan, with music by Alexander Bondarev. It was performed for the first time by students of the Harmony Vocal Studio, led by Elena Ayanyan. During the holiday celebrations, the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, presented an exhibition of student artwork. Our students attended a concert by the MuzAlliance Duo, featuring Anna Kusner on guitar and Petr Omelchenkoon domra. Six New Stage Productions This school year, our creative groups presented an impressive six premieres: The Melody Musical Theater, led by Elena Ayanyan, presented the musical “The Bremen Town Musicians.” The Karusel Theater Studio, under the artistic direction of Zuleikha and Shamil Najafzade, presented four productions: “Eugene Onegin,” “The Tale of the Dead Princess and the Seven Knights,” “English Nursery Rhymes,” and “The King’s Breakfast.” The Teremok Puppet Theater, led by Larisa Sbornova and Natalia Grishina, presented “Mixed-Up Fairy Tales.” Competitions and Academic Success Throughout the year, our students proudly represented Erudite in regional and international competitions and programs: Living Classics International Young Readers Competition — 17 students participated, five advanced to the national round, and two received special awards in the finals. Students were prepared by Natalia Grishina, Karine Dabagyan, and Zuleikha Najafzade. Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II — our high school Russian-language program accredited by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for academic credit. Eight students participated this year: seven earned 0.5 credit after completing the first year, while one student successfully completed the two-year program and earned 1 full high school credit. The Karusel Theater Studio, with its production “Shakespeare on Love,” and the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade, were both recognized as award winners at the international “Constellation” Competition. The international Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian was hosted at our school, with 42 students participating. The school’s mathematics program was led by Natalia Grishina. Two chess tournaments for young players were held at the Tysons Chamber of Commerce. Our students also had the exciting opportunity to participate in a simultaneous chess exhibition with Grandmaster Rashad Babaev. Russian School Erudite sponsored these events. At the end of the year, all our young chess players received a special surprise — new 3D chess sets. The Chess Club is led by Nikolai Mounts. Thank You! We sincerely thank our entire faculty and staff for another successful year, and we are especially grateful to you, our parents, for your continued support, involvement, and dedication to the life of our school!

Dear Parents, We invite you to look back at some of the highlights and accomplishments of the 2021–2022 school year. Our school has now been serving the community for seven years. We have 225 students, ages 3 to 15. Our faculty includes 46 teachers and teaching assistants. Students attend 21 in-person classes and 2 online classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, the school sponsored nine high school students who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. In addition to our academic program, we offer 12 enrichment, educational, and creative clubs, 3 specialized studios, and 3 programming clubs. Our Achievements School Events and Special Programs Our school was once again filled with exciting educational, cultural, and creative activities throughout the year: Our annual video book review competition featured 10 students of different ages sharing their thoughts on favorite books they had read over the summer. We launched the “Erudite Times” podcast, where our young reporters regularly share their work. The Press Club is led by Ksenia Turkova. Film Day featured a showcase of films created by students of the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade. Our traditional New Year celebrations included lively performances and circle dances for preschoolers, led by Marina and Yaroslava Zonova, as well as the spectacular interactive musical production “New Year, Disney Style,” led by Elena Ayanyan and Alla Foxman, with the participation of Amazing Fox Entertainment and the Harmony Vocal Studio. During the holiday season, the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, presented a wonderful exhibition of student artwork. In celebration of Cosmonautics Day, our students took part in a special live online meeting with Alexey Akulovfrom the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Our Creative Productions Our performing arts groups presented three exciting premieres: “Beauty and the Beast” — a musical presented by the Melody Musical Theater, led by Elena Ayanyan; “Shakespeare on Love” — a production for older students presented by the Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha and Shamil Najafzade; “The Land of Magic Words” — a production for younger and intermediate students presented by the Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha Najafzade. Competitions and Academic Success Our students proudly represented Erudite in a variety of regional and international competitions and programs: Living Classics International Young Readers Competition — 14 students participated, with 7 advancing to the national round and 2 reaching the Top 10 in the U.S. finals. The students were prepared by Karine Dabagyanand Zuleikha Najafzade. Kniguru in America International Literary Competition — one of our sixth-grade students earned third placein the senior-group Book Review category. The student was guided by Olga Ermilina and Karine Dabagyan. Russian Language Olympiad, organized by American Councils for International Education — 14 high school students represented Erudite this year. Results will be announced at the beginning of the next school year. Students were prepared by Karine Dabagyan and Olga Bulanova. Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II — our high school Russian-language program accredited by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for academic credit. Seven students participated this year: four earned 0.5 creditafter completing the first year, while three successfully completed the two-year program and earned 1 full high school credit. “Word Factory 2022” International Children’s Online Literary Competition — our fourth-grade students participated under the guidance of Gulbarshyn Nurmanova. At the international online “Constellation” Festival, the Karusel Theater Studio and FRAME Film Schoolreached the finals with their filmed theatrical production “Naughty Nastya,” led by Zuleikha and Shamil Najafzade. The international Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian was hosted at our school, with 29 students participating under the direction of Natalia Grishina, head of our mathematics program. Our young chess players participated in two chess tournaments at the Tysons Chamber of Commerce, sponsored by our school. Of the 15 students representing Erudite, six earned top placements. The chess program was led by Nikolai Mounts. Thank You! We sincerely thank our entire faculty and staff for another successful year, and we are especially grateful to you, our parents, for your continued support, involvement, and dedication to our school community!

Dear Parents, We invite you to look back at some of the highlights and accomplishments of the 2020–2021 school year. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, Russian School Erudite operated entirely online throughout the year. This year marked Russian School Erudite’s sixth anniversary. Our school served 140 students, ages 3 to 15. Our online program was supported by 32 teachers and teaching assistants. Students attended 17 online classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. The school sponsored seven high school students who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. Our school is accredited by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) to offer the two-year high school program Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II for academic credit. Four students completed the program and each earned one high school credit. In addition to academic classes, we offered a wide range of online enrichment programs throughout the year, including three mathematics groups, programming, journalism, Melody Music Studio, Karusel Theater Studio, Akvarelka Art Studio, Harmony Vocal Studio, chess, crafts, intellectual games, and an engaging Russian-language enrichment program. From June 28 through August 20, our “Summer with Erudite” online program will welcome children ages 4 to 13. Our Achievements Despite the challenges of a fully online school year, we continued to create engaging educational, cultural, and social experiences for our students. Highlights included: a school-wide video book review competition featuring students’ favorite books from their summer reading; festive and interactive New Year programs, featuring musical video greetings from Ded Moroz and Snegurochka, exciting quests, and searches for gifts hidden by the mischievous Baba Yaga; the online “Snowman Parade” competition; two online Erudite Cup Chess Tournaments, followed by a year-end game of Bughouse Chess; special online lessons dedicated to Victory Day; Pushkin Day, with online quizzes for intermediate and older students devoted to the life and works of Alexander Pushkin. Throughout the school year, we also placed a special emphasis on encouraging a love of reading: Evening Readings with Natalia Grishina, as well as an online meeting with children’s author Dina Sabitova; reading sessions for third-grade students with G. A. Nurmanova; regular meetings for our young journalists, organized by Ksenia Turkova, with journalists from Voice of America, as well as a special online meeting with popular children’s authors Andrey Zhvalevsky and Evgenia Pasternak. Our students also achieved outstanding academic results: At the annual Russian Language Olympiad, our students earned 5 gold and 4 silver medals. Our high school students participated in the “Russian Without Borders” program organized by the Erudite Club in Milwaukee, gaining knowledge and experience that can support their future college studies. Our school maintained its MCPS accreditation for the high school Advanced Russian: Level II course, allowing eligible students to earn academic credit. Participation in International Projects Our students continued to represent Erudite in international programs and competitions: The Karusel Theater Studio took first place at the 10th International Festival of Russian-Language Children’s and Youth Theaters with its video productions Baggage and Crocodile. 18 students participated online in the Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian. Our students participated in the international Living Classics young readers’ competition, with one of our seventh-grade students becoming a regional winner. Our Creative Achievements Creativity remained an important part of school life, even in an online environment: The Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha Najafzade, with support from the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade, presented a new video production, “Naughty Nastya.” The Harmony Vocal Studio, led by Elena Ayanyan, created a music video featuring the song “Inseparable Friends.” The Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, presented two themed online art exhibitions. One of the studio’s students also became a winner of the Jack and Jill magazine children’s art competition. A new course exploring the folklore of different countries and cultures, taught by Yaroslava Zonova, was introduced for the first time this year. Thank You for Being with Us We are deeply grateful to all the parents and teachers who stayed with us throughout this challenging year and believed that our school could continue its work under any circumstances. Thank you for your support, dedication, trust, and understanding. Together, we kept our school community connected and made learning possible even when we could not be together in person. Thank you for being part of Erudite. We are always here for you!

Dear Parents, We invite you to take a look back at some of the highlights and accomplishments of the 2019–2020 school year. This year, Russian School Erudite celebrated its fifth anniversary. Our school serves 270 students, ages 3 to 15. Our faculty includes 60 teachers and teaching assistants. Students are taught in 23 classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. During the second half of the school year, all 23 classes successfully transitioned to online learning. The school sponsored seven high school students who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced Russian proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. At the beginning of the school year, our school received accreditation from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), allowing high school students to earn credit for completing our two-year Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II program. Four students completed the first year of the program. In addition to our academic classes, Erudite offers 20 enrichment and educational clubs, 6 creative studios, and 3 programming clubs. On June 15, we launched our “Summer with Erudite” online camp for children ages 5 to 15. Our Achievements Despite the unexpected transition to online learning, our school continued to offer a wide variety of engaging educational and cultural activities throughout the year, including: the school-wide “Where Are My Roots From?” project; two New Year celebrations: the interactive “New Year’s Round Dance” for preschoolers and the “Interplanetary New Year” concert for intermediate and older students; two Erudite Cup Chess Tournaments, with a total of 54 participants; the “Two Times Two” Mathematics Olympiad for elementary school students; the “Malyshok” concert for preschoolers, with each class preparing a special performance; Russian-language intellectual games for intermediate and older students; the school-wide online project “Reading Poems About the War,” commemorating the 75th anniversary of Victory in World War II and the Great Patriotic War; special online lessons dedicated to Victory Day; Pushkin Day, featuring online quizzes for intermediate and older students about the life and works of Alexander Pushkin; a video book-review competition featuring students’ favorite books from their summer reading; accreditation by Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) for our two-year high school course Advanced Russian: Level I & Level II, allowing eligible students to earn academic credit. Participation in International Projects Our students also took part in a number of international educational and cultural initiatives: More than 40 students from our school and the Erudite Club in Milwaukee participated online in the Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian. Eight students represented our school in the international Living Classics recitation competition. Our students participated in an international event celebrating World Read Aloud Day. One of our students became a winner of the international “Let There Always Be Sunshine” competition for the best essay about the Great Patriotic War. Creative Achievements Our students and creative studios continued to achieve success throughout the year: The FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade, received a diploma at the Russian National Children’s Film Festival “Kinoostrov: A World Without Borders.” The Young Journalists Studio and FRAME Film School became award winners in the “New Page” Young Journalists Competition, led by Ksenia Turkova and Shamil Najafzade. Students of the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, created the “Snowflake” collaborative art exhibition. Students of the Harmony Vocal Studio, led by Elena Ayanyan, prepared an online performance of the song Katyusha in honor of Victory Day. The Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha Najafzade, presented a mini-production based on Samuil Marshak’s poem Baggage, as well as “The King’s Breakfast.” Older students participated in the online creative course “How Poetry Works,” taught by Ksenia Turkova. Supporting Our Community During the COVID-19 Pandemic During the pandemic, our school also launched free online programs to bring children and families together through books and storytelling: the daily evening program “Good Night, Erudite”, including Marina and Yaroslava Zonova’s “Alone with a Fairy Tale” project and evening readings with Zuleikha Najafzade; the daytime online reading program “Quiet Time” with Natalia Grishina. We sincerely thank all our parents for your involvement in school life, your continued support, and your dedication to our school community!

Dear Parents, We are pleased to share a brief overview of Russian School Erudite’s 2018–2019 school year. Russian School Erudite has now been serving our community for four years. Our school has 270 students, ages 3 to 15. Our faculty includes 54 teachers and teaching assistants. Students are taught in 23 classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, we introduced speech therapy services for preschoolers, led by professional speech-language specialist Irina Saidkhodzhaeva. Kazakh language classes have been part of our school’s program for several years. This year, the school sponsored four high school students who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. In addition to our academic program, the school offers 18 enrichment, educational, and creative clubs and studios, as well as three programming clubs. Our Achievements This year was filled with exciting educational, cultural, and community events, including: the school-wide “Where Are My Roots From?” project; New Year performances featuring students from the intermediate group through Grade 7; the Erudite Cup Chess Tournament, with 25 young chess players participating; the Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian, with 36 students participating; the “Malyshok” concert for preschoolers, with a performance prepared by every class; special lessons dedicated to World War II, featuring songs from the wartime era, as well as a special Grade 3 lesson attended by a veteran; the “Wall of Remembrance” project and participation in the Immortal Regiment Victory Day commemoration; our continued partnership with the Raduga senior living community, where our young performers are always eagerly welcomed; Pushkin Day, celebrating the 220th anniversary of the great poet’s birth, including a special quiz for older students about the life and works of Alexander Pushkin. Our creative programs continued to flourish as well. During the second half of the school year, we officially opened our theater season, with our performing arts groups presenting five new productions: “Peter Pan” — performed by the younger group of our school theater studio together with the Petrushka Dance Studio, led by Anna Rausch-Gernet; “Cinderella” — presented by the Melody Musical Theater, led by Elena Ayanyan; “The Cat Who Walked by Herself” — presented by the Puppet Theater, led by Alla Maslova; “The Wolf and the Seven Little Goats — A New Twist” — presented by the Visiting a Fairy Tale theater group for younger children, led by Olga Melikhova; “Cipollino” — presented by the Karusel Theater Studio, led by Zuleikha Najafzade. This school year also brought several exciting additions and special events: The Harmony Vocal Studio, led by Elena Ayanyan, opened its doors for the first time. Our first Film Day featured videos created by older students attending the FRAME Film School, led by Shamil Najafzade. Student artwork was showcased in exhibitions by the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd, and the Crafts Club, led by Nazeli Nersesyan. Nearly every student in the school participated in the New Year production “The Snow Queen,” directed by Marina Zonova. Open classes were held in nearly every grade throughout the year. Our Students’ Successes Throughout the year, our students proudly represented Erudite in a variety of competitions. For the second year in a row, our students participated in the Russian Language Olympiad organized by the American Councils for International Education. This year, 13 high school students represented Erudite, earning an impressive 9 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze medals. The students were prepared for the Olympiad by Karine Dabagyan and Olga Bulanova. Six students participated in the Living Classics recitation competition, with four advancing to the national finals. They were prepared for the competition by Zuleikha Najafzade. A total of 36 students participated in the international Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian, hosted at our school and coordinated by Natalia Grishina. We sincerely thank all our parents for your involvement in school life, your continued support, and your dedication to our community!

Dear Parents, We are pleased to share a brief overview of Russian School Erudite’s 2017–2018 school year. Russian School Erudite has now been serving our community for three years. Our school has 220 students, ages 3 to 15. Our faculty includes 45 teachers and teaching assistants. Students are taught in 19 classes, grouped according to age and Russian-language proficiency. This year, our school became truly multicultural with the introduction of Kazakh and Armenian language classes. The school sponsored 10 high school students who successfully passed the NEWL Russian Language Exam, an advanced proficiency exam that replaced the former AP Russian exam. In addition to our academic program, students can choose from 18 enrichment, educational, and creative clubs and studios. Our Achievements This year was filled with exciting educational, cultural, and community events, including: the school-wide “Where Are My Roots From?” project; the Erudite Cup Chess Tournament, with 26 young chess players participating; the “Memory of Generations” video project, led by Shamil Najafzade; the “Wall of Remembrance” project and participation in the Immortal Regiment Victory Day commemoration; our ongoing partnership with the Raduga senior living community, where our students have become eagerly anticipated guests; Pushkin Readings in celebration of Russian Language Day for our older students, as well as participation in the Pushkin Ball at the Embassy of the Russian Federation. Our creative programs also continued to grow. This year, our performing arts groups presented five new productions: “Kolobok” — Karusel Theater Studio, directed by Zuleikha Najafzade; “Little Mozart” — Melody Music Studio, directed by Elena Ayanyan; a dance production by the Petrushka Studio, led by Anna Rausch-Gernet; “The Fly-Tsokotukha” — our theater group for younger children, led by Olga Melikhova; “Doctor Aybolit” — Puppet Theater, led by Alla Maslova. Our students also showcased their artwork in exhibitions presented by the Akvarelka Art Studio, led by Irina Drozd; the Crafts Club, led by Nazeli Nersesyan; and Drawing for Young Children, led by Kamilla Dasaeva. And our “New Year’s Circus”, directed by Marina Zonova, brought together nearly the entire school, with every student except the preschool group participating in the performance! Our Students’ Successes Throughout the year, our students proudly represented Erudite in numerous competitions and festivals. For the first time, our students participated in the Russian Language Olympiad organized by the American Councils for International Education. Ten of our high school students represented the school — and all ten earned first place and gold medals! Five students participated in the Living Classics recitation competition. Three advanced to the regional finals, and one of our fourth-grade students won the U.S. national round and was awarded a trip to Artek. A total of 34 students participated in the international Kangaroo Mathematics Competition in Russian, hosted at our school and coordinated by Natalia Grishina. At the 8th International Festival of Russian-Language Children’s and Youth Theaters in Washington, D.C., our Karusel Theater Studio won awards in three categories for its musical production of Kolobok. At the Planet of Art talent competition in Washington, D.C., our students earned second and third places in the Small-Scale Theater category. In Visual Arts, Erudite students received first, second, and third places, as well as the Jury Grand Prix. Our teacher Irina Drozd was also honored with the Best Visual Arts Teacher award! We sincerely thank all our parents for your continued support, your involvement, and the important role you play in the life of our school!

Another school year has come to an end, and the Last School Bell has rung at Erudite! Our graduates, who seem to have been little “Pochemuchki” (“Why? Kids”) and “Fantazyory” (“Young Dreamers”)only yesterday, took the stage alongside our future first graders and ceremoniously passed on the “keys to knowledge.” And our future first graders certainly rose to the occasion! They performed for the audience and took a playful school oath, promising to do their homework, arrive at class on time, and not fly away on unicorns during recess. Although we’re not entirely sure about that last promise! The celebration continued with photos and memories from years of school life, heartfelt congratulations, plenty of applause, and a touch of sadness. After all, some of our graduates first came to Erudite more than ten years ago and have quite literally grown up before our eyes. Good luck, dear graduates, as you begin your next chapter! And to our future first graders — welcome to an exciting new chapter of school life!

What does it mean in Russian when “a bear steps on your ear”? Who is “spinning like a squirrel in a wheel”? And why would anyone “make an elephant out of a fly”? These colorful expressions may sound rather unusual in English, but they are familiar Russian idioms. They mean to have no ear for music, to be constantly busy, and to make a mountain out of a molehill. Russian idioms and expressions are one of our favorite — and truly endless — topics! No matter how many you learn, there is always something new, surprising, and fun to discover. A recent open class in Grade 1B, taught by Victoria Grinberg, was dedicated to exploring the colorful world of Russian idioms. Our students immediately “took the bull by the horns” and impressed everyone with their knowledge! They weren’t “leading anyone by the nose,” “twiddling their thumbs,” or “having their heads in the clouds.” Instead, they worked enthusiastically and showed just how well they understood not only the words themselves, but also the meaning behind these expressions. And the parents? They were “on cloud nine!” Learning idioms is especially important for bilingual children. These expressions help students develop figurative thinking and a deeper understanding of Russian language and culture. They also build vocabulary, strengthen an intuitive feel for the language, and help children speak Russian in a more natural, vivid, and expressive way.