Potomac Traditions
Assembly, May Day, Kindergarten Circus, Book Fair, Red-Blue Day…These are magic words to our Potomac students and alumni. Such traditions strengthen our community and our core values, linking past to present and present to future. Since 1904, our assemblies, dramatic and musical productions, athletic contests, and special events have helped develop the habits of heart and mind critical to academic excellence at The Potomac School.
Assembly
Assembly has always been at the heart of Potomac. We gather together weekly in divisional assemblies and periodically as an entire School to share, perform, listen, learn and celebrate. Assemblies offer an incomparable opportunity for children to speak and perform in front of a supportive audience, beginning at a very young age. Over time the group experience becomes an integral part of each students education. Students gain confidence as valued and contributing members of the School community. They learn to appreciate diverse viewpoints and to interact amongst each other with our trademark generosity of spirit.
May Day
May Day has been an important Middle School Potomac tradition since the School's earliest days. The entire School looks forward to the festival, which incorporates English traditions and folk music to welcome spring.
Kindergarten Circus
Every year, the latest crop of our almost first-graders transforms into a circus troupe, complete with clowns, body builders, lion tamers, elephants, cheerleaders and tumblers. Those who participate remember this special day for the rest of their lives.
Book Fair
Potomac instills in its students a love of reading and nourishes this love through such traditions as Book Fair, held each year in March. Lower and Middle School students especially look forward to this event, and help collect new and used books to sell to the community. Proceeds from Book Fair support Potomac’s libraries. Click here to learn more about Book Fair.
Fall Frolics and Spring Auction
Each year the Potomac community comes together for Fall Frolics and the Spring Auction to benefit faculty professional development and student scholarship programs. Fall Frolics is a day of carnival games, a raffle and a large marketplace of new and used goods, and is open to the larger community. The Spring Auction was formerly held at the end of the Fall Frolics day, but in recent years has been moved to March, just before Book Fair. Both events bring the community together for a day and evening of fun and collegiality. Click here to learn more about Fall Frolics.
Red-Blue Day
Every new student is assigned to either the Red or the Blue team and remains Red or Blue throughout his or her Potomac career. Reds and Blues compete in various games and activities, with the competition culminating in the Upper School Red-Blue Day, and bragging rights for the victors of the tug-of-war and capture the flag contests.
Grandparents Day
Connecting the generations is important to the Potomac community. Grandparents Day is an opportunity to invite grandparents and other “special” friends to visit the School. There is just one important rule: no parents!
Class Plays
Each Lower School grade and Middle School class performs its own play at an assembly every year. The faculty enjoys the tradition, too. Some write their own plays or adapt beloved books.
Greetings and Goodbyes
A small but important tradition at Potomac, all students are acknowledged as they arrive and leave School each day. In the lower grades this means looking your teacher in the eye and shaking hands; in the upper grades, students say good morning to the faculty awaiting their arrival in the East Building lobby. This tradition teaches students to take a moment for connection, consideration and respect.