Astrophyisics Field Trip to NRAO

Discovering the Hidden Universe

Holden & Joe operating the telescope & chart recorder.       

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory in Green Bank, West Virginia is in the National Radio Quiet Zone, an area where radio interference is minimized to allow astronomers to detect low energy electromagnetic waves from astrophysical phenomena.   Green Bank is home to the largest fully steerable telescope in the world, the 100 meter diameter Green Bank Telescope.  The GBT is used by astronomers all over the world.   It is especially well-suited for studying pulsars, stellar remnants that offer unique opportunities for us to improve our understanding of Einstein’s theory of General Relativity.  The observatory is about a four hour drive from GWCS.

Contour Map

Students from Dr. Cox’s Astrophysics class visited Green Bank to tour the observatory and to use the 40 foot diameter teaching telescope.  They scanned a part of the sky that includes a star forming region (The Great Nebula in Orion) and a supernova remnant (the Crab Nebula).  Data was recorded on a strip chart.  After several hours of data reduction, they produced a contour map (shown here).  In the southern part of the map you can see the radio emission from the star forming region.  In the northern part of the map you can see the emission from the pulsar in the supernova remnant along with a background of emission from hydrogen clouds our Milky Way.  They were assisted in their observations by Dr. Cox’s husband, Dr. Schulman, who spent three years as a postdoctoral fellow at NRAO.

Thanks to parent Melissa Dana for driving and hanging out with us all weekend at the NRAO in Greenbank, West Virginia

Thanks to parent Melissa Dana for driving and hanging out with us all weekend at the NRAO in Greenbank, West Virginia

X-STEM

THE GWCS X-STEM CLUB GETS OFF TO A GREAT START!

2014-2015 GWCS STEM Club (missing from photo: Kelley, Ronan & Zach)

In February GWCS established an X-STEM club to more formally harness the talents and abilities of our amazing students. The X-STEM Club is open and available to all. Upcoming events and activities include:

  • Build A Drone Essay Contest: Deadline Tuesday, March 17th
     
  • Field Trip: Children’s Science Center Vision Statement: Thursday, April 9th at 9:30
     
  • Museum without Walls Service Opportunities: Weekly. Contact Mrs. Saile for more information.
     
  •  USA Science and Engineering Festival: Wednesday, April 29th

The following students were selected by our staff to represent GWCS at the USA Science and Engineering Fest.  Congratulations! 

 
  • Ben
  • Danny
  • Emily S.
  • Holden
  • Josh B.
  • Kelley
  • Paul
  • Preston
  • Ronan
  • Ryan B.
  • Trevor
  • Wade
  • Zach

PAC AUCTION EXCEEDS GOAL OF $15K!

GOING, GOING, GONE!

The 2015 PAC Online Auction lasted for two weeks and ended on February 25th at 10:00 pm with a Big Bang!  We broke our record of $12,400 and raised $15,523 this year making this our third year of record breaking fundraising! A huge thank you to our volunteer auction committee for all of their hard work: Deiadre Rauch, Chair, Jeanine Ferguson, Mary Beth Cole, Linda Campbell and Christina Carlisle.  Many more thanks go out to all of the local retailers (including our wonderful neighbors at King's Park Shopping Center), as well as all of the GWCS parents and friends who donated items, solicited donations and placed bids.  It takes a village to run an auction, and GWCS has the best village ever!  

There were many "Buy A Spot" items such as A Belgian Dinner, English Tea Party, Bunko Night, Dinner & Theater with Mr. Goldie and a Craft Beer and Bites night that will keep our community celebrating together for fun, friendship and laughter over the coming months.  

100% of the funds raised in the 2015 PAC Auction will be put towards our Outside the Box experiential learning program(OBX), class trips, and technology. Last year we were able to seriously elevate our OBX program and students were able to participate in a real DNA gel electrophoresis lab, team-building at GMU’s The Edge program, an actual mission at the Spy Museum and much more. Class trips included camping, Gettysburg, and the Senior Essay Writing Retreat. Technology upgrades included new projectors and speakers. This year we look forward to being able to provide high-quality experiential learning opportunities, expanded class trips, and a complete migration to The Cloud providing better stability and consistency in our computer services.

Thank you GWCS PAC (Parents Acting Collaboratively) for making all of this possible!

Sampling of some of the 150+ items sold at this year's auction...


RUN YOUR HEART OUT!

GWCS STUDENTS, PARENTS AND STAFF RAN, JOGGED, WALKED & TALKED THEIR HEARTS OUT AT ANNUAL 5K

On Sunday, February 8, 2015, GWCS families met at Fairfax Corner to participate in the Potomac River Running sponsored "Run Your Heart Out 5K" for the third year in a row.   The race was clearly celebrating Valentine's Day.  Everyone was dressed in red  and love was in the air.  GWCS participated in this 5K to raise awareness in our community for POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), a condition two of our students live with each day.   Special thanks to the 30+ GWCS community members who came out for the 5K and especially to Mr. Connelly for organizing this event for GWCS each year.  

The Gift of Giving

Holiday Gifts for those in need...

The GWCS community embraced the Holiday spirit this year by giving to those less fortunate. We sponsored families that would otherwise have no holiday gifts, and purchased clothes, games, and toys tailored to individual wish lists. Moreover, we contributed new and gently used items to a “Holiday Store” so that these needy children could experience the gift of giving as well.

Delivering the items to the Holiday Store was especially inspiring, as one young man was so excited to lay away items he wanted to “purchase” for members of his shelter.

How wonderful is it to not only be generous, but to allow others to be so as well.

Coyotes, you make a difference!

IT'S THE... HERITAGE FEAST!

The Heritage Feast is a GWCS tradition that began in 2010 when a student asked Ms. Warden if the GWCS family could have a Thanksgiving dinner together at school.  Ms. Warden, who always says yes to a good pot-luck dinner, endorsed the idea and a tradition was born. 

In the beginning, families contributed their favorite traditional thanksgiving dish.  A few years ago, to celebrate the diversity of our school community, we spiced it up by asking families to send in food that represented their heritage and changed the name to Heritage Feast.  Ms. Warden also created a catchy Heritage Feast jingle that is echoed around school the month of November.

This year's GWCS Heritage Feast took place on Tuesday, November 25th.  The buffet table was loaded with scrumptious home-made food from around the world and the cafe was comfortably crowded with current students, parents, siblings, staff, and a record breaking number of alumni!  We were all one big happy family with plates loaded, bellies full, and an abundance of gratitude expressed.

DRILLS FOR DISASTER

GWCS VICTIM ACTORS FOR CERT

Last spring GWCS was introduced to CERT, the Fairfax County Community Emergency Response Team. We participated as victim actors in a large-scale disaster scenario that allowed CERT members to practice all phases of disaster response. Coyotes were hooked, and the photos and video that circulated after the event had everyone wanting to participate at the next event.

On a frigid morning, November 15, 2014, GWCS students, staff, families, and alumni showed up in record numbers to participate in another large-scale disaster drill. The location was the abandoned Lorton Juvenile Prison. The situation was dire. A massive tornado had torn through northern Virginia leaving a path of absolute destruction. Professional special effect makeup for the victim actors and the decrepit outbuildings strewn with debris and broken glass set a powerful stage for the four-hour rescue mission.

After a complete safety briefing, we took our places armed with instructions on how to perform a realistic portrayal of our injuries, which ranged from compound fractures, to severe lacerations, to traumatic head injuries. This powerful training exercise provided a valuable experience for CERT members, and many lessons were learned.

The GWCS actors were so convincing that we were personally asked to perform again the following week (November 24, 2014) at a similar drill at the Fire Training Academy in Fairfax. Again, Coyotes showed up in force and evinced our value of service for this incredibly important and worthwhile event.

At GWCS our world is our classroom and we celebrate the opportunity to provide service to our community

THE YIN & YANG OF PLANTING & PULLING

Community Service Event  with Earth Sangha

GWCS Community Service Events are one of my favorite ways to come together as a school.  There's something invigorating about working outside in the fresh air along side students and parents as we tug, pull and plant to improve our greater community.  On Sunday, November 2, 2014, we had a wonderful time despite the wind and cold at the Earth Sangha planting event at Rutherford Park in Fairfax, VA!  Along with Chris and Linda Bright (Earth Sangha Founders) and many other area community members, we finished the planting of native shrubberies in record time and then focused our efforts on removing pernicious Porcelain Berry from the flood plain. (We did more un-planting than planting!) Everyone worked tirelessly and we had a great time. I was especially impressed by all of the parents who participated!  ~ Ms. Warden

“We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. ”
— Aldo Leopold, A Sand County Almanac - 1949

Junior Trip to Gettysburg

Every year Mr. Goldie takes GWCS juniors to Gettysburg, PA for an overnight trip to take in the history.  Highlights include the Visitors Center Museum, the restored Cyclorama Painting & film, watching the really, really, really, really, really, really long Gettysburg movie, touring the battlefields, walking the Gettysburg National Military Park, and remembering those who gave all in Gettysburg at the Soldiers' National Cemetery. 

 

"The Battle of Gettysburg was a turning point in the Civil War, the Union victory that ended General Robert E. Lee's second and most ambitious invasion of the North. Often referred to as the "High Water Mark of the Rebellion", Gettysburg was the Civil War's bloodiest battle and was also the inspiration for President Abraham Lincoln's immortal 'Gettysburg Address'."  -National Park Service



intensity

Lake Anna Senior Essay Writing Retreat

intensity

 noun in·ten·si·ty \in-ˈten(t)-sə-tē\

: the quality or state of being intense : extreme strength or force

: the degree or amount of strength or force that something has

It was with great intensity that GWCS seniors spent three days in October writing their college application essays.  Away from Fakebook, League of Legends, and Trivia Crack; and along the shores of beautiful Lake Anna canopied by the vibrant fall foliage, we turned a potential stressor into a source of comfort. 

"Experience is the teacher of all things." Julius Caesar

FIVE SHAKESPEARE PLAYS, A CLASS, A TOUR AND A MUSEUM IN FOUR DAYS

2014 GWCS FALL TRIP, STAUNTON, VA

The Hook:

So, here’s the deal.  I have been to hundreds of theatre events in my lifetime.  I have seen Shakespeare performed on stages from Los Angeles to London.  I am an aficionado.  I may not be the best judge, but I say this in all sincerity: The Blackfriars Playhouse at the American Shakespeare Center in Staunton Virginia is the home of the finest productions of classical theatre that I have ever seen.  There.  I said it.

In addition to performing theatre arts at the highest possible level, it should also be noted that this is a traditional performance troupe.  That means that all five plays are performed by the SAME EIGHT PEOPLE!  It is a mind-boggling experience!  They also pick popular songs from the last fifty years that are reflective of the themes of the plays and then sing and play music LIVE before each show and at intermission!

We will stay at The Stonewall Jackson Hotel, a five star hotel (4.2 on Expedia.com), attached to the theatre, two blocks away from downtown Staunton.  Breakfast is included in the price, and the meals in town are reasonably priced! 

Furthermore, there is an amazing special treat this year.  We are going to leave on Thursday, October 2nd and stay in Staunton long enough to see ALL FIVE SHOWS!!!  On Thursday night we will see Pericles, Shakespeare’s gritty parlance into Greek tragedy.  On Friday we will tour The Frontier Culture Museum during the day and then see Macbeth at 7:30 pm.  On Saturday we will take in the matinee of Edward II and Saturday night’s show is A Comedy of Errors.  The Sunday matinee is Cyrano de Bergerac.  It is almost too much good fortune to run across in a single lifetime!

If you like live theatre, this is just about the coolest four day weekend you could possibly experience! 

With that in mind, I would like to introduce you to the 2014 GWCS Fall Trip Itinerary:  

Mr. Goldie

~      ~      ~ 

Highlights of the 2014 trip not mentioned in the introductory letter above include:  Split Banana Ice Cream every evening after the theater and many great restaurants such as Mill Street Grill, Baja Bean, Cranberry's Eatery, Shenandoah Pizza and The Depot Grille.  We also had an incredible Backstage Tour of Blackfriars Playhouse and a class in Shakespeare Play Production including an opportunity to act out a dramatic death scene from Julius Caesar. 

2014 was the fourth consecutive GWCS Fall ShakespeareTrip to Staunton, VA.  Clearly, this is now a GWCS tradition!

~      ~      ~ 

Enjoy this slide show of the 19 students and 9 adults who were hooked by Mr. Goldie's description and immersed themselves in good theater, good food and good fun with good friends on the GWCS Fall Trip to Staunton, Virginia from October 2-5, 2014:

CARE PACKAGES FOR CLASS OF 2014 GRADS

Mrs. Saile, this year's GWCS PAC President, helped us kick of the year with a very thoughtful community service event.  Mrs. Saile organized care packages to be sent to all of the 2014 GWCS graduates!  After all of the students signed all of the cards for all of last year's seniors, a group of students then stayed after school to decorate the cards.  Families baked dozens of homemade cookies and a group stayed after school another day to make a snack mix to add to the packages with the cookies.   By September 23rd the packages were in the mail.  The really fun part for us was hearing from the alumni as they received their surprise care packages!  See below for a few of the Facebook quotes and images: 

Current Students decorating cards for Class of 2014 care packages...

Status quotes on Facebook from a few of the alumni after receiving their surprise care packages...

Maria

“My high school is better than your high school. Thanks GWCS!”
— Maria S., Kenyon College, Ohio

Jack

“At first, I thought only Maria was getting one after I saw her post on Facebook. Which would have made sense because Maria is fantastic. Receiving my package absolutely made my week and I’m so grateful I have such a comforting community back home. College has been wonderful and I can’t wait to see everybody soon!”
— Jack V., Pace University, NYC

William

“Yay free stuff! Just got a carebearstare package from my high school, GWCS! Thanx everyone, that note is definitely going on my wall! P.S. as you can see, my quilt has been very useful up here in the far north! ”
— William M., St. Francis Xavier University, Nova Scotia, CA

Theo

“I just got my package! Food is awesome, especially since I have been eating cafeteria food for a month. Thanks so much, the card brought back so many good memories of GWCS. I don’t think bugles are sold in Canada so those were a real treat.”
— Theo V., Quest University, British Columbia
The GW Community School Graduating Class of 2014

The GW Community School Graduating Class of 2014