Education

Hayfield Senior Excels in Automotive Technology

Danielle McCarther will compete in state competition in April.

When automotive technology instructor John Terrien saw the name of Hayfield Secondary School senior Danielle McCarther on his class roster this year, he was thrilled. “I was happy to have her in the class,” Terrien said.

Listening Tour Concludes at Lake Braddock

Superintendent listens as community members voice their concerns.

Lake Braddock Secondary School hosted Fairfax County Public Schools Superintendent Karen Garza for the final stop of her listening tour.

Chantilly One-Act Heads to States

The cast and crew of Chantilly High’s production of “Vocal Work” will compete Saturday, March 8, at the VHSL State One-Act Play Competition in Charlottesville. Written and directed by Chantilly Theater Director Ed Monk, it’s a comedy set in a sound studio. The audience sees a hectic day in the life of Amanda, working at her sound studio which specializes in creating radio spots. According to the show’s publicity blurb, “The schedule is screwed up, the mattress girls have yet to be cast, the car girl doesn't know how to sound sexy, the diarrhea ad isn't finished, and time is running out.” Chantilly won the Concorde Conference Championship with “Vocal Work” on Jan. 30. In the Northern Region competition on Feb. 8, Chantilly came in second behind West Springfield High. Both schools then advanced to the state finals, where they’ll compete against additional high schools.

Fifth Graders Create Animated Movie

While many movie lovers will be watching to see who wins the Oscars in Hollywood this weekend; a world premiere movie debuted here in Potomac. Ninety-eight Beverly Farms Elementary School fifth graders and their parents sat down to watch an animated film on Monday, Feb. 24. Their eyes were glued to the screen with good reason: they created the film themselves. The film is titled “The Extraordinary Fifth-Grade Field Trip," a 14-minute film composed of 6,438 drawings. Each second of the movie equals 10 drawings. Inspired by their reading of adventure stories and tall tales, the students gave free rein to their imagination as each came up with his or her own animated field trip adventure. Working with artist-in-residence Leila Cabib, each student designed a storyboard illustrating the key scenes of their animated segment and then created and filmed numerous sequential drawings to bring the story to life.

Mountain View Department Awards

Mountain View High presented the following Department Awards, Feb. 5, to graduating seniors: English, Nina Iandolo; Business, Alexis Kharin Arriola; P.E., Reynaldo Gonzalez Martinez; Art, Nina Iandolo, Joshua Todd McDow, Trong LeDuc Bui; EFE, Aya Elhadi Abdelhalim; Family and Consumer Science, Chakoda Lanora Robinson. ESOL: Level 1, Jose Ramos Cantarero; Level 2, Ting Shi Zhong; Level 3, Evelin Clavel Delgado, Reynaldo Gonzalez Martinez; Level 4, Milton Fernandez Lemus, Maria Villafuerte Pineda.

Robinson High Student Attends College, Inspires Others

Rachel Keith will graduate from NOVA and Robinson this spring.

Rachel Keith, a 17-year-old Fairfax Station resident and senior at Robinson Secondary School, has been thinking about college long before many of her peers. It was this forward-thinking that led Keith to take college classes at Northern Virginia Community College as a dual-enrolled student.

National Tour Starts at Rocky Run MS

Bugler from Centreville begins his national tour at Rocky Run Middle School

Herndon High Prepares For StompFest

Year marks Step Team’s 20th year at school.

High school step teams from around the area will be arriving at Herndon High on Saturday, Feb. 22 for the annual StompFest. "This will be the biggest event we have ever had," said team captain Hannah Vaughn. The Herndon High step team was founded in 1994, and StompFest has been an annual event for sixteen years.

Herndon High To Produce ‘Robin Hood’

Children’s show also fundraiser for HHS Drama Boosters.

"No cast member goes on stage while tech crew is doing operations," said Catherine "Cassie" Szymczyk.

Teacher Vs. Student Basketball Game

Teachers win competitive game against students at Herndon Middle.

On Feb. 6, a team of seventh and eighth grade students from Herndon Middle School competed in a basketball match against school teachers. "We had a lot of students attend this year’s event," said after-school specialist Mike Thomas who was also helping as game announcer.

‘To Be Graceful and Fast’

Westfield High freshman Nicole Bachman isn’t an Olympian, but she is an accomplished ice skater. And on Feb. 27, she and Team Ashburn will compete in the Synchronized Skating National Competition in Colorado Springs. A resident of Centreville’s Virginia Run community, Bachman’s among five girls from Fairfax County on the 15-member team. They skate at the Intermediate Level — the U.S. Figure Skating Assciation’s most competitive level. And this is the first time an Intermediate team from the Washington Metropolitan area has made Nationals.

Students To Perform at Festival

Theatre students from Yorktown High School and from Fairhaven School in Prince George's County will participate in Swapping Stories, a theatre workshop on Feb. 22 at 3 p.m. at the Atlas Performing Arts Center located at 1333 H Street NE, Washington, DC. Swapping Stories is an inter-generational, inter-cultural project that helps people find, develop, and exchange their stories. Led by project creator Judy Thibault Klevins, participants learn to "walk in another's shoes," leading to understanding that one's stories center on universal themes.

Incorporating Math and Science Into a Child’s Day

Simple suggestions for supporting math and science learning.

Maria Kennedy was driving her 5-year-old son to pre-school when he asked a question that stunned her. "Mommy, why is the sun following us?" Kennedy, who says she was stuck in rush-hour traffic and running late for work wasn’t sure how to respond.

Schools’ Band Director Honored

Jane Morgan, the band director at Stratford Landing Elementary School and Waynewood Elementary School, has been named the 2013-14 Elementary Band Director of the Year by the Fairfax County Band Directors Association. Morgan has been teaching band at Stratford Landing since 1999, and said she has learned a great deal from her students. It is her students that have brought her the most joy in her position, Morgan said. “It’s great to see what the kids accomplish and how far they go,” Morgan said. “They just keep me fresh every day.” Morgan has also taught middle and high school students.

Oratorical Winner: Jacob Atagi

Jacob Atagi, is the winner of this year's American Legion Post 24 Oratorical Contest. A freshman at West Potomac High School, Atagi represented Post 24 at the 17th District American Legion Oratorical Contest Jan. 25 at McLean Post 270.

The Connection