Summer 2016

The Good News from St. John’s

Graduation

It was a gloriously sunny day as our eighth

graders processed up the aisle of St. John’s Episcopal Church towards their graduation.

The girls were lovely in their long white dresses

and the boys resplendent in their blue blazers and white trousers. This traditional ceremony

is one that the St. John’s community looks forward to each year, and it never fails to be a

joyful day. Our graduates are headed off to

Holy Child, Stone Ridge, Woodbury Forrest, Georgetown Preparatory School, Our Lady of

Good Counsel, and the Magnet programs at Blair High School, and Poolesville High School.

This year’s graduating class earned $160,000 in

scholarships. We’re very proud!

Summer greetings from St. John’s! We hope that you are enjoying the lazy days of

summer and are anticipating a new start in September. Even though the school year has ended, the campus is a hub of activity. This is a time to complete some important

tasks, including cleaning classrooms, painting hallways, and hosting Bar-T and Drama

camp attendees.

This issue of The Good News wraps up the spring trimester with some of the exciting

events in which our students participated, as well as our fond farewell to our

graduating eighth graders. We wish them much success as they go off to high school and hope they will visit us often.

St. John’s Students Travel to Costa Rica

This spring sixteen of our Upper School students traveled to Costa Rica for a week where they learned first-hand what

service learning really means. The students teamed up with World Leadership School to immerse themselves in the culture of Costa Rica and to serve a community there. From refinishing furniture to re-purposing play equipment to

painting and building fences, our students led through service at Chilamate Elementary School. They also participated in leadership workshops, toured the rainforest, zip-lined over the canopy, visited a chocolate factory in the forest, white

water rafted, and enjoyed spending time with the children at the school.

In between their work, the students experienced the beauty of the country with a zip-lining canopy tour, whitewater

rafting on the Sarapiqui River, and a cooking class. They visited a sustainable farm, learned about the different processes of cacao, and took numerous hikes in the rainforest. It was a trip that none of the students will forget.

In between their work, the students experienced the beauty of the country with a visit to Xunantunich, an ancient Maya

archeological site, went whitewater rafting, and took a nighttime visit to the zoo. It was a trip that none of the students

will forget.

The Good News from St. John’s – Winter 2014 The Good News from St. John’s – Summer 2016

Kindergarten News

The kindergarteners are reading! They are also writing, and spelling through a variety of activities. Our daily language arts routine consists of

the “Daily Fix-it”, dictation, reading several theme-based stories, and other supplemental activities that enhance their learning experience. Our

science units included insects, the sun, moon, stars, wind, and clouds. Our social studies topics included fun facts about Maryland and manners.

Math topics included place value, measurement, money, time, and

fractions. It was a year of many firsts: first Field Day, first Baccalaureate, first International Festival, first Festival of the Arts, first math

assessments. The list goes on and on. It has been a wonderful year, and now it’s time for first grade! Here we come!

First Grade News

The last two months of first grade were busy and full of exciting learning opportunities. The students enjoyed going on a Measurement Scavenger Hunt and creating Area Robots. They made their own analog clocks to practice telling time in five-

minute intervals. “Minute to Win It” games were a favorite, lively activity. The students also had fun collecting data from

their classmates and making and interpreting graphs. Some of the favorite fiction stories read by the first graders were Henry and Mudge, Mole and Baby Bird, and The Dot. In science, we learned about matter. Through the use of balloons

filled with air, water, and ice, students learned about the three states of matter. An economics unit taught the students about needs, wants, goods, services, producers, consumers, and advertising. All of these concepts were brought together

at the First Grade Annual Bazaar. Each student made thirty products to sell at the bazaar and created a poster to advertise his or her product. It didn’t take long for the Lower School students to buy everything! As part of their community service,

the first graders donated the money made from the bazaar to the ALS association. It has been a year filled with many

special blessings and wonderful experiences! Now these responsible first graders are ready for second grade!

The Good News from St. John’s – Summer 2016

Second Grade News

We enjoyed a field tTrip this month to The

Adventure Theater at Glen Echo Park to see The Emperor's Nightingale. This was a fantastic Chinese

fairy tale about greed. We loved exploring the fairy

tale genre and comparing different versions of Little Red Riding Hood. We thought Ninja Red Riding Hood was awesome! For science, we explored and experimented with the Rock Cycle.

We used starburst candies to replicate the 3 stages

of a rocks cycle; igneous, sedimentary, and metamorphic. It was a blast, no pun intended! In

math, we worked really hard on reviewing all our math skills and began basic division. We solved

equations to figure out riddles. Do you know why

10 was afraid of 7? Because 7 ate 9!

Third Grade News

The final months of school just flew by!. In math we finished up

with units on measurement, fractions, and decimals. The students also had an end-of-year multiplication and division fact

assessment to test for proficiency as they head to fourth grade.

We finished reading Misty of Chincoteague. In writing, we had the opportunity to write a story about a magical map and the

adventures students took. They generated some very creative stories with exciting adventures to find their way home. In social

studies our annual Travel Fair was the culminating activity for our

version of a Flat Stanley project. Students created their own “Flat People” and sent them to visit family and/or friends in a self-

selected state. This year we had collaborative partners in California, New York, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, and more. All the

students did a wonderful job presenting their projects and I know

they learned a lot from the opportunity. Happy Summer Everyone!

Preschool 3’s and 4’s News

Preschool/3 finished up the year with our north-south-east-west treasure hunt maps,

finding our own “treasure” at the end (X marks the spot). In science, we experimented with making oobleck, a substance that takes on different textures as

you squeeze, poke and pull it. In math, students each made life-size bar graphs, questioning fellow classmates on their “favorites” (color, food, super-hero, animal,

movie, etc.). Preschool 4 was very busy too! In science students observed

caterpillars change into butterflies and grew beans in plastic bags. We wrapped up the year with our Zany Zoo and traditional Family Day. Our field day was a blast

working with the eighth graders to complete lots of activities! It was a great year!!

The Good News from St. John’s – Summer 2016

Fourth Grade News

Fourth grade is non-stop at this time of year. In reading, we read The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster. The humor was not missed by these bright fourth graders as they laughed aloud at the puns and jokes the author makes throughout

the story. In writing, we wrote children's books for the second grade class. This project gave the students an

understanding of a second grader’s interests, so they could connect with them in a meaningful way. In social studies, we had an in depth unit on the history of Maryland. Did you know that Maryland is not named after Queen Mary? Well, my

fourth graders do! And if you ask them, they will happily tell you Maryland is named after Henrietta Maria, Charles I's new wife. In science students completed the year with our energy unit. Fourth graders got to figure out and build

parallel and series circuit with wires, light bulbs, and batteries.

Fifth Grade News

In English during the last trimester, students finished Kokopelli’s Flute about the southwestern U.S. and the Pueblo culture and then wrote a five paragraph essay on a topic based on what they learned. Students continued their Wordly

Wise study of vocabulary as well as read Shades of Gray about the post Civil War South. Simultaneously, they studied the same period in their social studies class. The year ended with the students writing a short story based on one of the

novels we read during the year. They had to bring together their writing mechanics, vocabulary, knowledge of how stories are structured, and base their short story during the time period that took place in one of the novels. In science,

students did some Lego Dacta building as they studied electricity. They learned to build electrical devices with the Lego

kits and worked cooperatively to troubleshoot any problems they may have encountered with the devices. These activities provided a window into the future of STEM related careers. Students also learned about the similarities and differences of

the two common electrical circuits: series and parallel. In math, students completed a unit on measurement, both metric and customary; covered perimeter, area and volume of different shapes; and finished off the year learning about integers

and how to solve one and two step equations. They competed their year in Technology with several hands-on activities

such as making a shoebox projector using a magnifying glass, taking apart a Chromebook and learning about the parts, and creating small robots that accomplish simple tasks.

Sixth Grade News

The sixth graders have been delving into the nuts ‘n’ bolts of grammar, punctuation, and vocabulary development, as we

explore comma rules, phrases, and clauses in English class. Their literature units explore Greek Mythology; The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan (enriched with the modern retelling of Homer’s “Odyssey”) immerses different groups of scholars

into the classic gods and goddesses of Mount Olympus as well as into myriad minor gods, monsters, and heroes. In

science, chemical and physical changes were the topics covered this trimester. Many experiments were conducted in the lab in order to observe and classify these changes. In keeping with the idea of cause and effect, the class moved into the

study of drugs and their effects on the body. This showed them how the chemistry of the body is altered when drugs enter the system. In math, students learned about angles, polygons, area, and volume. They also worked on operations

with integers and one and two step equations. They finished out the year with the coordinate plane and transformations.

Finally, in technology, students rounded out their technology studies with a debate-style class entitled “Issues in Technology.” Any given day could find them researching the dangers of artificial intelligence or debating the inherent

value of violent video games. The goal of the class is to allow students to grapple with complex ethical technology issues and take a stance on them.

Seventh Grade News

As the year came to a close, students in English class completed studying Avi’s Nothing but the Truth. They got into

great discussions about the ironic ending, most students falling on the side of disliking it. We also completed some creative writing, and students were challenged with picking their favorite pieces of writing from the year for their writing

portfolio. In science, the focus was on the systems of the body and their organs. Chicken wings and frogs were dissected in order to gain a better understanding of the muscular and digestive systems. The culminating event was our annual

presentation by doctors from NIH, who brought actual organs to the classroom, allowing the students a firsthand

experience with them. In math, we said goodbye to geometry for a little while in order to spend time learning about ratios, proportions, and percents. In religion, students worked in small groups to become knowledgeable on one of the

four Gospels and how it recorded some of the major events in the life of Christ. Students were then redistributed into another group, formed by one or two individuals from each Gospel to engage in a comparative study of these writings as

they related to the audience for whom each was written. In Latin, we added more colors to our linguistic palettes, as we worked with adjectives and adverbs and expanded our lexicons with some new vocabulary and English derivatives.

Eighth Grade News

As the year came to a close, students finished studying Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird in English class. They

analyzed the book and thought about the similarities and differences to a previous text we had read. They

worked on their graduation essays in anticipation of Baccalaureate and Graduation. In science students

studied heat and heat technology along with the

periodic table of elements. A final project was to choose one of the elements and create an element

block giving detail about the properties of the elements, along with its uses and information about its atomic

structure as it related to its location on the periodic

table. A major emphasis throughout the course of the year has been to find where and how science integrates

into the world in which the students live through observation and application of the concepts. In math,

both algebra and honors algebra finished out the year

with systems of linear equations, inequalities, rational and irrational numbers, and quadratic functions. High

school math placement tests were in April and May and the entire 8th grade did exceptionally well. In World

Religion, students completed their slide presentation on one aspect of Christianity, which they shared with the

class. Students researched their topic using a minimum

of 3 resources, which needed to be documented. The final production was a documentary film about one of

the religions of the world, using Screencastify or Wevideo to record their findings.

The Good News from St. John’s – Summer 2016

Dates to Remember:

Aug. 22 – 5th & 6th Grade Academic Camp begins Aug. 29 – New Parent Reception and Orientation, 6:00 p.m.

Aug. 31 – Preschool Orientation, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 1 – Teacher Meet and Greet, 9:00-11:00 a.m. Sept. 2 – Kindergarten Orientation, 9:00 a.m.

Sept. 6 – SCHOOL BEGINS! Parent Coffee, 8:15 a.m.

Sept. 7 – Room Parent Meeting, 6:30 p.m.

Sept. 11 – St. John’s 55th birthday Sept. 12-16 – Community Building Week

Sept. 16 – Fall Family Picnic, 5:00-7:00 p.m. Sept. 21 – First Out-of-Uniform Day

Sept. 22 – Back-to-School Night, 7:00-9:00 p.m.

Sept. 27 – H.S. Planning Night, 6:30 p.m.

P.E.

This season was all about flexibility as we adapted to the rains

which kept us inside most of the trimester. In Upper School, we forged on, beginning our track and field unit indoors and then

using the skills we had learned to play some of our games on

scooters, such as scooter hockey and scooter handball. Lower School classes also had the opportunity to work with scooters.

What fun the students had! When we finally made it outside, we played spirited games of kickball and whiffleball, and we

continued with our track and field units, including the timed

mile. The Lower School curriculum culminated with stations that combined the concepts of throwing, catching, kicking, and

striking.

Eighth Grade Play:

This year’s eighth grade play, Shrek The Musical, Jr., was a huge success! Our eighth graders, along with back

up from the OASIS Chorus, truly showcased their talents Even those eighth graders who didn’t think they could

perform surprised themselves and were terrific. This St. John’s tradition always brings out the best in our

students and they really enjoy singing, dancing, and

performing for family, friends and the community. It was wonderful!

St. John’s Episcopal School

3427 Olney-Laytonsville Road Olney, MD 20832

Phone: 301-774-6804

Fax: 301-774-2375

Website: www.stjes.com

Admissions Office:

Margaret Curry Director of Admissions

margaret.curry@stjes.com

St. John’s Episcopal School 3427 Olney-Laytonsville Road Olney, MD 20832

Field Day

Each year, we look forward to Field Day celebrating our community, good sportsmanship, and a little healthy rivalry between the BLUE and GOLD teams. It was a beautiful day,

complete with water games and a competitive eighth grade basketball game.

Go Blue! Go Gold!