Fifth and Sixth grade area band students were selected to perform together at Falls Church High School. Poe Middle School student Jim Boryan, grade six, and Beech Tree Elementary student Samie Boryan, grade five, were both chosen to perform at the concert. (Photo: Courtesy Jonathan Boryan)
National Student Art Month Celebration
The Fairfax High pyramid will hold its annual Art Show and One Man Art Show at Fairfax High in celebration of National Student Art Month. The show will be held Thursday, March 27, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., and again from 5 to 7 p.m. Artwork from students at Fairfax High, Lanier Middle, Daniels Run Elementary, Eagle View Elementary, Fairfax Villa Elementary, Providence Elementary and Willow Springs Elementary will be on display in Fairfax High’s new atrium. Artwork will include paintings, drawings, prints, mixed media, sculptures, photography and computer graphics. There will also be musical presentations and a make-and-take art table for children during the show’s evening hours. Art teachers from each school will be on hand to discuss student projects.
Students Learn Value of Saving
Students and their families at Cameron Elementary are able to participate in two savings programs offered by Apple Federal Credit Union (AFCU). The Johnny Appleseed Junior Ecology Club is designed to create interest in ecology and to encourage students ages 5-12 to save on a regular basis. The other program is a student savings account that allows students to deposit money and earn a higher interest rate than a standard savings account. This program is run by sixth grade students at Cameron who collect and record the deposits. In addition to teaching students how to save money, the program offers an opportunity for students who may be interested in a career in banking or finance to get early on-the-job training.
Sixth Graders Initiate Energy Plan
In an effort to think globally and act locally, a group of five sixth graders at Mantua Elementary discussed conserving electricity in their school and community. The group proposed installing sensors on schoolroom lights so they would turn off automatically if no one was in the room. After proposing their idea to Fairfax County Public Schools, the school system installed motion sensors in all the school’s rooms and approved funding in support of the responsibility shown by the students toward the environment.
Stuart Sings, Plays Their Way to Victory
The Stuart High Madrigal Chamber Singers received a superior rating at the District Choir Festival, the highest rating awarded. Also receiving superior ratings at their festivals were the school’s Symphonic Orchestra, Concert Orchestra, Wind Ensemble and Concert Band. Stuart’s band department received the Virginia Honor Band designation by the Virginia Band and Orchestra Directors Association for the third consecutive year.
Student Wins Second in Art Contest
Rosie Duvic, an eighth grade student at Thoreau Middle, was recently awarded second place in the 2008 Virginia Aviation Art Contest for students ages 10-13. Duvic, who is enrolled in Joyce Moses’ synergistics class at Thoreau, entered the contest, which was judged by members of the American Society of Aviation Artists. Her prize was a copy of Microsoft Flight Simulator.
West Potomac Creates Webcast
“The Fusion Show,” a musical variety radio show produced by West Potomac Academy students in music and computer technology classes, in partnership with Fairfax Public Access, airs every Tuesday from 8:30 to 9 a.m. on cable Channel 37 and via webcast at http://www.fcac.org/webcasting/webcast.htm. Fusion showcases the musical compositions of the students and includes interviews from the school community and industry updates in the various genres of music.
Hayfield Bowls to Get Fit
Students at Hayfield Elementary recently took part in Rolling Bowling to enhance their physical education unit on bowling. Students bowled on a working bowling lane, complete with pin setter and ball return, in the Bowl America bowling truck. Students in all grades were able to try out their bowling skills during Rolling Bowling.
Drunk Driving Reality Check for Teens
As part of an ongoing effort to address underage drinking and driving, and to promote safe driving among teens, the sophomore class at West Potomac High School will see the documentary film, “Smashed: Toxic Tales of Teens and Alcohol,” at 12:45 p.m. on Thursday, April 3. The film was created by HBO Family and includes live emergency room experiences and medical recoveries, as well as interviews with teenagers and their families that focus on the outcomes of drinking and driving.
Copies of the documentary and educational kits are available to high schools nationwide as part of a joint effort among partners including the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA), Recording Artists, Actors and Athletes Against Drunk Driving (RADD), National Organizations for Youth Safety (NOYS), Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD), Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA), and HBO Family.
Distance Learning Program Honors Mrs. Washington
Students from Springfield Estates and Wakefield Forest Elementary Schools were active participants in a distance learning program, “The Real Martha Washington,” which was broadcast live over the Fairfax Network from Mount Vernon’s Donald W. Reynolds Museum and Education Center earlier this week. The program, produced by Fairfax County Public Schools Department of Information Technology and George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens, featured two different historical interpreters: Susan Zickel, who portrayed the young Martha Washington up to the American Revolution, and Mary Wiseman, who portrayed the older Martha Washington during the period following the Revolution to the time of her death. Students were able to ask questions of both interpreters. Additional questions submitted via e-mail from around the country were also asked of the two Marthas. The program was designed for students in grades 3-5.
Local Journalism Adviser Honored
Journalism adviser at Annandale High School Alan Weintraut is the recipient of the Southern Interscholastic Press Association’s (SIPA) Elizabeth B. Dickey Distinguished Service Award. Weintraut is adviser to Annandale’s award-winning newspaper, the “A-Blast.”
Weintraut was honored for working as a faculty adviser to student journalists, for encouraging students to practice cutting-edge journalism, for being involved with peer workshops across the country and for encouraging the use of technology in journalism. The “A-Blast” appears in print and online at http://www.thea-blast.org/index.php. SIPA is a not-for-profit organization of public middle and high schools, and independent schools, that promotes professionalism in scholastic journalism and mass communication in the southeast.
