School news: Science and history

Braddock students plant ferns for a bioretention project.

An occasional series highlighting programs and activities at schools in the Annandale/Mason District area. The information and photos here are from Fairfax County Public Schools and individual schools.

Bioretention project – Students in grades 3-5 at Braddock Elementary School worked with the Fairfax County Stormwater Team to plant 600 ferns and coneflowers one day in October as part of a bioretention project on school grounds. Merrifield Gardens donated native Virginia plants for the project.

Braddock’s XSTREAM programs coordinator Joyce Matthews and third-grade Spanish immersion teacher Wanda Negron designed the project while participating in the Chesapeake Bay Classroom program during the summer and coordinated their efforts with the Stormwater team.

The bioretention project dovetailed with the fifth-grade curriculum on landforms, the fourth-grade ecosystems unit, and the third grade unit on soil. Students in all grades learn about watersheds and conservation of the Chesapeake Bay, with cross-curricular connections for math, social studies, Virginia history, and language arts.

Annandale High School’s Green Atoms environmental science club helped finish the project later that day, ensuring that the 600 plants were set properly into the ground and planting an additional 100 plants. Braddock students will help monitor and water the new plants until they go dormant for the winter.

The Stuart “It’s Academic” team.

Academic stars –The JEB Stuart High School “It’s Academic Team” won its match on the long-running quiz show on Oct 21. Stuart beat teams from Chantilly High School, also in Fairfax County, and National Cathedral School, a private girls school in Washington, D.C. The match will be televised on Dec. 23, 10:30 a.m., on NBC/Channel 4.

Traveling trunks – The social studies team at Poe Middle School is bringing history into the classroom by hosting traveling trunk exhibits from museums and national parks across the United States. These exhibits are an engaging way for students to get a hands-on experience with historical artifacts that would otherwise be unreachable due to time and distance.

Poe will host exhibits on an early American colony from the Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation (Nov. 28-Dec. 4), the Lewis and Clark expedition from Fort Clatsop National Park (April 4-13, 2018), and the Civil War from the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park (May 2018). The traveling trunk exhibits are made possible through the support of the Bailey’s Crossroads Rotary Club.

Holmes Middle School students are the Aspire summit.

Girls in STEM – Several seventh-grade girls from Holmes Middle School participated in the fall Aspire summit, a program designed to introduce girls to jobs in the STEM fields (science, technology, engineering, and math) and to empower women in the workforce.

The summit is sponsored by Visa and the Washington Redskins. The Holmes students heard from and met Fox 5 morning news anchor Allison Seymour; National Football League senior vice president of security and former D.C. police chief Cathy Lanier; Rebecca Schulte, president of NBC Sports Washington; and other successful women.

The girls will participate in monthly workshops with Holmes counselor Megan Neforos throughout the school year. They have been invited to return for the spring summit, which will focus on health and wellness.

Teacher honored – Glasgow Middle School science teacher Lynn Eckerman was named the Middle School Teacher of the Year by the Virginia Middle School Association. The award was presented by the association’s annual conference in Blacksburg Oct. 20.

Computer repair stars – Glasgow and Poe middle schools are among the seven Fairfax County schools that participate in the Virginia Student Training and Refurbishment Program (VA STAR), which teaches students in middle and high schools to repair computers that will be donated to families and organizations in need.

VA STAR is run by Prince William County Public Schools and its SPARK Education Foundation, but is open to schools across the state. Participating students refurbish surplus hardware from state agencies or private companies while learning about careers in information technology. They can earn an IT repair certification and participate in internships.

New fees – The FY 2018 budget approved for Fairfax County Public Schools includes new fees for extracurricular activities and Advanced Placement (AP) and International Baccalaureate (IB) tests.

Students participating in one or more extracurricular school activities will be required to pay a one-time nonrefundable $50 extracurricular activity fee per year. The $50 fee is the same no matter how many activities the student participates in. The extracurricular activity fee applies to athletics and clubs for which no academic credit or grade is awarded.

FCPS will pay for six AP or IB tests taken by a student during their entire time in FCPS schools. For any additional tests beyond those six, students will be charged $119 per IB test and $93 per AP test.

Students who qualify for free and reduced-price meals will not be charged for the test or extracurricular fees. Other students and families who are undergoing economic hardships and are financially unable to pay the fees can apply for assistance. Contact your school for more information.