Around the Halls

fourth-graders recently held their annual Colonial Day, during which they had the opportunity to practice cross-stitching, quilting and calligraphy; play colonial games such as hopscotch and marbles; make butter; and learn about beekeeping and how a spinning wheel works.

Colonial America is an integral part of the fourth-grade social studies curriculum.

physics teacher Kim Geddes and media specialist Elease Franchini co-authored an article documenting their collaboration on a physics project that will be published in the February issue of The Science Teacher, a national education journal.

The article, “Using ExploraVision to Engage and Motivate High School Physics Students,” describes the incorporation of the national science competition ExploraVision into a physics high school classroom. The authors describe how they used the ExploraVision program to meet the needs of learners in a unit on energy and chronicles the collaboration between the classroom teacher the school’s media specialist to complete student entries.

Students were organized into teams that selected energy topics in technology to explore with the ultimate goal of designing a product based on their prediction of a future use of the technology. The students’ research was limited to topics in energy to meet the curriculum requirements for the course. The research effort emphasized higher-order thinking skills, incorporated problem-based learning, used technology, and emphasized experimental design and the scientific process.

One of the goals of the ExploraVision program is to increase students’ interests in science as they apply scientific and engineering principles to envision future technologies and imagine themselves as future scientists and engineers. The authors said their goal is to provide engaging, real-world opportunities for students that will inspire imagination and creativity while teaching required content, and ExploraVision serves that purpose.

recently recognized its Students of the Month for November. Those students are Camron Neighbours, Brody Craft, Danielle DiBattista, Kyle Pearce, Kaitlin Davis, Evan Gianfala, Wyatt Northcutt, Noah Blackwell, Reece Rubelsky, Grayson Hawkins, Bella Maxim, Haley Thompson and Paul Grinchuck.