The Upper School’s seven teams of ninth grade students nabbed numerous top awards at the city wide DC STEM Fair. at Dunbar High School. In the area of Biomedical and Health Sciences, Jakai McIlwain and Mia Wilson earned second place for their evaluation of the physiologic effects of E Cigarettes and their tobacco analogues and a Merit Award in the Public Health Service Award. In the Earth and Environmental Sciences category, Owen Fox-Whelpton earned first place for testing artificial and natural turfs for heavy metal contaminants and Joseph Claire earned second place for his study of rain barrel water quality vs. environmental factors in Takoma Park. Claire also earned first place for the Federal Water Quality Association Award and Fox-Whelpton snagged third place in both the Geological Society of Washington award and the Public Health Service Award. In the Physical Energy category, Harry Hirsch and Benny Weinberger earned first place for their study of field strength of Solenoids vs voltage. In the materials science category, Sara Auriemma earned first place for testing the effectiveness of food additives on meringue stability. These students were advised on their research by physics teachers Mr. Alpert and Mr. Torrence. Meanwhile, in the middle school citywide STEM Fair, sixth graders Liam Murphy and Owen Doherty won first place for studying bridge angles and decomposition. Sixth graders Adelaide Pfueffer and Meerabela Kempf won 3rd place for their study of salty ice and optical illusions. Liam also got an honorable mention for the Aerospace Corporation’s Robert H. Herndon Regional Science Competition Award and first place for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), DC Chapter special award. The sixth graders were advised on their research by science teacher Ms. Dobler. All of these winners had earned honors at our school’s fair in February.
Eighth graders Lucien Anderson, Miles Tiller and Ketan Mampara won the youth contest at the DC Environmental Film Festival for their short film, “99 Cents.” Their brief movie focused on the price of soda bottles and their permanent impact on the environment, in terms of polluting local waterways and causing risks to marine animal and plants. The Environmental Film Festival will host a free event on March 22 at American University in which the student films will be presented. For more about the upcoming event, check out this link. All three students will share the cash prize from their short film.
Last weekend the Latin Voices and Honors Choir traveled to New York City to compete in the Fame Concert Choir / Show Choir competition. This competition also is held in Orlando, Chicago and Hollywood. Choirs came from Ireland, Jackson Mississippi, and Albuquerque, among other locales. Washington Latin’s choir was named the Concert Choir Grand Champions for the 2017 New York Competition! The school brought home the trophy for Best Choral Sound, Best Choral Repertoire and Overall Grand Champions. Under Ms. Nevola’s directions, the choir has performed on stages in New York City, in Pittsburgh, and even at Nat’s Stadium.
Students in Ms. Smith and Ms. Jesseman’s College Writing Class visited the African American History and Culture Museum Tuesday and had the chance to see various exhibits about the impact of African Americans in American history. Students will use these experiences in various writing assignments as they develop the key writing skills for college papers, analytical essays, and short narratives.
Sixth graders this week took a trip to the National Mall to visit the Capitol and the Natural History museum. In the Capitol, students took a tour and considered how aspects of the civics curriculum about the founding of the American government and its philosophical pillars are expressed through statues and architecture. At the Natural History Museum, students evaluated rocks, gems, and minerals to coincide with their scientific studies of geology and plate tectonics. Because of our location in the Nation’s Capitol, at Washington Latin, teachers try to capitalize on all the amazing museums and learning opportunities just beyond our doorstep.
