Our “model baby chicks” – who are VERY noisy – and the incubating eggs have arrived! They are currently living in the science lab and will hatch the last week of school. Very exciting!!
This week, students in grades 5-8 traveled to DC for a tour of the historic monuments and memorials to refresh their history knowledge and see these beautiful places up close. The groups, led by DC by FOOT amazing tour guides in their first trips in a year, started at the Washington Monument, and then turned around to be in the middle of the WWII Memorial. All took part in a scavenger hunt to find our state, the territories and the famous graffiti made by Kilroy. We then walked by the Reflecting Pool to the Korean War Memorial to learn about this conflict that is still ongoing, and then took a turn to the Vietnam Memorial. Many spent some time trying to find relatives on the wall among the 58,000 names of soldiers who passed away in this war. We ended our day visiting Abraham Lincoln – and the groups still had plenty of energy to run up the steps of the Lincoln Memorial – as that is our normal mode of travel – running! A trip to DC would not be complete without us getting stuck into a detour – on Wednesday, it was a processional for the Capitol Police officer where Constitution Avenue was shut down for driving and parking which added some time to our journey – or the bat that landed on the tour guide in the middle of her description of the Vietnam Memorial. That was a lot of excitement and learning for one day and it was wonderful to leave Sterling, VA for a field trip!
Our 7th and 8th grade students were tasked with a STEM project – to power a car with balloons! Working on groups of 3, the students utilized common items such as popsicle sticks, toilet paper rolls, skewers, tape and of course, balloons – to create a powerful vehicle that would race across the basketball court floor. Some definitely had some trouble as there was not enough care taken to make the wheels round and able to roll but several groups mastered the project – and won Amazon gift cards for their efforts! All in all, it was a great learning project during a “stay at home” field trip!
As a continuation of our diversity initiative and celebration of Black History Month, our students have been challenged with answering trivia questions on twenty-five influential leaders who fought for equality in our country. Students who answered many questions (in complete sentence form – of course) on leaders such as Maya Angelou, Shirley Chisholm, Barack Obama, LeBron James, Gilbert Gwynn, and Booker T. Washington, had the chance to win the always sought after homework pass. BIG thank you to Ms. Swarns, one of our exceptional teachers, for her leadership on this important initiative!
On Monday, February 22nd, the students in the Lower School celebrated the one-hundredth day of school with some exciting assignments to recognize this special day.! The different classes decorated shirts with glow paint, shirt decorating, assembled necklaces with cereal, counted blocks – and even took on a 10×10 movement challenge! We are thankful to have made it to day 100 in person at The Newton School and plan to be here for the rest of this school year! Enjoy our pictures from the day!
As a continuation of our diversity initiative and celebration of Black History Month, our students have been challenged with answering trivia questions on twenty-five influential leaders who fought for equality in our country. Students who answered many questions (in complete sentence form – of course) on leaders such as Maya Angelou, Shirley Chisholm, Barack Obama, LeBron James, Gilbert Gwynn, and Booker T. Washington, had the chance to win the always sought after homework pass. BIG thank you to Ms. Swarns, one of our exceptional teachers, for her leadership on this important initiative!
Students in grades 5-8 used their science learning as well as creative skills to work in pairs on the Egg Drop Challenge. Students were provided with a variety of materials to prepare – straws, popsicle sticks, yarn, balloons, tape, felt and more – but could not use more than 15 items. After a video introduction, the pairs had less than 30 minutes to plan and construct something that safely held the raw egg. Once complete, the groups move to the second floor library where the contraptions were thrown over the wall into the middle school lobby below. Only 5 out of 30 eggs broke – which was a remarkable result. It was a great lesson in science and team building!
Our students in grades K-4 helped our community with a wonderful service project to support the Embry Rucker Shelter in Reston. The group worked on their organization, math and food preparation skills by making 70 lunches for people in need. We first made 140 sandwiches – turkey, ham and cheese, labeled them, and then added sides and utensils. We ended with decorating our lunch bags with positive messages and pictures. It was a great way to serve our community and learn some new skills at the same time!