Pre-K4 Students Discover Magic Pumpkins ND Academy Pre-K4 classes have a wonderful Halloween tradition called “Magic Pumpkins.” One morning in October, each child sprinkles some magic pumpkin dust on a patch of the EYC playground. Later in the day, students go back to check and see what happened, and discover a pumpkin atop each pile of dust! The students bring their pumpkins inside to paint & add googly eyes. They complete a Pumpkin Pal Birth Certificate - naming and measuring their pumpkin. Students also practice nonstandard measurement and take turns measuring each other with pumpkin pictures!

Notre Dame Academy is a Marist Catholic and IB World School located in Duluth, Georgia. For more information, visit us at www.ndacademy.org.

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November 2018Volume 6 Issue 2 theIRISHtimes

A Glimpse Inside Student Life at Notre Dame Academy

8th Graders Create the Next Top Rated Math Game In an effort to show their mastery of equations and inequalities, ND Academy 8th Grade Algebra students created their own board games. Their challenge was to design a board game that they could present to the Board of Hasbro that would be both entertaining and educational. After researching the components of the most popular board games, they were then responsible for creating the game board and pieces, writing clear and concise rules, determining the objective of the game, and creating a given number of equations and inequalities to solve as part of the game. Each of the students had the opportunity to play each other’s game. With real-time feedback from the game players, the creators were then able to reflect on their own game. Each student then spent time thinking about what he/she felt went well and what areas he/she may have wanted to improve. The reality that creating equations could actually more difficult than solving them was an eye-opening experience for all!

Third Graders visit the World of Coca-Cola Third Grade recently visited The World of Coca-Cola to launch our IB unit on Advertising/Economics. We had a great time learning about the principles of effective advertising. Students and chaperones enjoyed seeing advertisements, heirloom artifacts and interesting exhibits surrounding Coca-Cola’s legacy. While we may have left a little sugared up on soda; we were also inspired to create innovative products/advertisements for our traditional Third Grade Mall activity that will be coming up in December. The third graders are currently voting on a name for this year’s mall that will reflect eco-friendly attitudes and actions.

ND Academy’s New International Admissions Program This fall, Notre Dame Academy has been proud to host the first students from our new international admissions program! In partnership with the U.S. government’s Student Exchange Visitor Program, ND Academy is now authorized to issue the necessary paperwork for students from around the world to receive an F-1 visa. With this visa, students can study from 1 to 4 years in the upper school. Our first group of students come from all over the planet: 9th graders Dongkyu and Yaeryung are from South Korea. 10th graders Tram and Cristina join us from Vietnam and Spain respectively. Each has already made a lasting impression on the school and their classmates, and we are very excited to see them continue to thrive in their new surroundings. For any ND Academy family interested in being a part of the international student experience, please contact Dr. Steven Walter (swalter@ndacademy.org). You could join the welcoming committee, join us for the international culture festival, or even host a future International student in your home!

Pre-K4 Students Attend Mass for the First Time This year, Pre-K4 students were invited to start a fun and exciting tradition. These students had never attended Mass at the George Student Center with the other ND Academy students, but they will now attend once a semester. Each Pre-K4 class rode the bus from the EYC to the main campus on a Monday to enjoy the traditions of Mass. They practiced saying prayers and learning about the different parts of Mass before attending. The students were complimented for their participation and outstanding behavior. They enjoyed it very much and are looking forward to attending Mass again in the Spring.

Second Graders Perform in their first ND Academy Musical

ND Academy’s Fine Arts Departement has taken a big step forward and has added Theatre to the Lower School curriculum. Last week, 2nd grade students presented “Spaced Out!”, the school’s first Lower School Musical. During this process, students learned about staging, blocking, vocal techniques, and singing as well as many facts about our solar system.

Congressman Rob Woodall Visits ND AcademyRohan Soni, Upper School Student

On October 18, Congressman Rob Woodall of the 7th Congressional district came to visit Notre Dame Academy for a speaking event due to him being an integral part of my International Baccalaureate (IB) Middle Years Programme (MYP) personal project. Getting Congressman Woodall to speak at Notre Dame Academy took almost two months of hounding after different members of his campaign staff. Bringing a member of Congress to Notre Dame

Academy was one of the most surreal experiences of my life, and I can confidently say it was the most impactful day of my life as it gave me insight for the future. This all started during the summer as I was debating with myself over what would provide the most impactful personal project not only to me but also the school and our community here at Notre Dame Academy. As I started narrowing my idea, I realized I wanted my project to involve a Congressman and thus the wheels in my head started turning. I pitched my idea to my personal project supervisor, Dr. Walter, who helped me through the whole journey. After working out the logistics of the whole project, I approached Mr. Spann, and he provided tremendous support and was a key factor in this even working out. Once the week of the 18th arrived, I took in student questions that I then asked Congressman Woodall in a town-hall style meeting. This experience is one that I will cherish forever, and it truly made a resounding impact on me as well as the Notre Dame Academy community as a whole.

We are hoping to sell many products with rainbow buck currency that will help the earth in some way. Our student-created products will be made from recycled or natural materials. After learning about the scope and effect of pollution during the IB recycling unit, our students see this opportunity as a great way to continue to take action to help our planet.

2018 ND Academy Book Fair Co-Chairs We want to say a huge thank you to our 2018 Book Fair co-chairs! EYC Co-chairs are Mei-Ling Oxendine (mother of Willow & Ivy) and Emma Heyden (mother of Maeve). Our Lower/Middle School Co-Chairs are Evelyn Groves (mother of Ian) and Suzette Rodriguez (mother of Antonio) ND Academy’s Book Fair is next week (December 3 – 7) at the EYC and Schroeder Hall. Support our school while purchasing books for Christmas as well as your child’s classroom.

6th Grade Students Raise Money for We Help Two This fall, 6th grade students spearheaded an extremely successful fundraiser in the Middle School with the help of an organization called We Help Two. Students purchased colorful, funky socks to raise money for the purchase of artificial limbs for children in need. They also received a package of warm socks for every package of fun socks sold to donate to a local organization. As a result of the fundraiser, We Help Two along with their partners Mend and Legworks will provide legs to five amputees, who would not be able to afford them, giving them a second chance at life. Students sold 310 packages of socks! In addition, the program made it possible for us to donate 389 pairs of warm socks to Fr. Lee’s ministry for the homeless. Students will eventually learn about the people who benefit from the prosthetics after they have been chosen and fitted.