Feb 20, 2020
Sixth graders took a trip to the Natural History museum this week to learn about how Earth has changed over time. They visited the exhibits on Plate Tectonics, Rocks Gems and Minerals, and fossils. They will be collecting data that both connects to and deepens what they have been learning in science class with Ms. Dobler. Throughout the year students are engaged in a study of local waterways, but will use this knowledge to get a deeper understanding of what is happening to the planet.
Feb 20, 2020
Students in eighth grade history are evaluating the work and achievements of the first five presidents this quarter. Students considered the framers of the constitution’s ideas about the role of presidents in the new nation, and evaluated how the presidents met these goals, through their international treaties, growth of the new nation, trade laws, and attempts to avoid continued war. In history classes at Washington Latin, students use critical thinking skills like comparison, evaluation, and synthesis to draw conclusions about the meaning of historical events, rather than simply memorizing dates on a timeline.
Feb 20, 2020
Over the weekend, senior Kim Montpelier presented at the annual Paideia conference in NYC. Her talk was on Faltonia Betitia Proba, a 4th century female Roman poet. Kim delivered this speech in LATIN! She is the only high schooler ever to have presented in Latin at the conference. Kim has continued to work on her studies in both Latin and Greek over the summer in Europe through grants from the Paideia Institute.
Feb 20, 2020
Seniors Shelby Ferncrombie, Maddy Katz, and Sara Auriemma and sophomores Nalla Diallo and Benjamin Southworth earned verbal commendations an honorable mention at the Model UN conference in early February. The conference, held at American University, was also attended by sophomore history teacher Ms. Hamd, who advises the club, and Mr. Janick, the Urban Teachers intern who participates in her class. Many other upper school students attended the conference, which focused on the Carribean.
Feb 14, 2020
The middle school science fair last Thursday allowed students to share their original research, as the fifth, sixth, and seventh graders showcased their experiments and the results. In fifth grade, Nora O’Donovan and Rina Saxon came in first with a study of the sugar content of soda, sports drinks and orange juice. Avis Weeden and Jesse Sweek came in second, with a study of the distance traveled by soccer balls filled with air and water. Finally, Gideon Chaffee and Christopher Amaya Camacho earned third place with their research about which liquid evaporates faster: water, milk, coke, or gatorade. The fifth graders, advised by science teacher Ms. Dorsey, completed their own tests of their hypotheses, recorded data, and displayed their results to outside judges. In sixth and seventh grade, students in Ms. Dobler and Ms. Hinkson’s classes competed. First place was Preston Olander, second place was Sam Wilkinson, third place was Kai Pfeuffer, fourth place was a tie between Sophia Showalter and Nina Harris and Nora Durcan. Fifth place went to seventh graders Summer Romney and Sophia Smith.
Feb 14, 2020
Upper school students in Ms. Foley’s English class worked with Poetry Out Loud teaching artist Regie Cabico to help prepare them for their poetry recitations. He taught them warm-ups, invited students to perform poems, and helped share performance critiques with the students. Next week students will be participating in their classroom Poetry Out Loud recitations The winners will compete for the schoolwide title, and proceed to the citywide competition. They have memorized poems for recitation, working on diction, emotion, pacing, and expression. Several teachers and administrators will participate in the judging, showcasing our school’s reverence for the spoken word.
