By Kandice Kimmel, Latin & History, 5th-8th

The sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students have been working hard in preparation for the National Latin Exam. We kicked off our seventh grade Latin class with a friendly Roman numeral challenge. Roman numerals are important in Latin and history, and we still see this ancient numerical system that uses Latin letters to represent numbers today! Roman numerals often denote book chapters, are seen on clock faces, movie credits for copywrite dates, names, and in major sporting events such as the Super Bowl and Olympics.

The greater danger for most of us lies not in setting our aim too high and falling short, but in setting our aim too low, and achieving our mark. Michelangelo

This inspirational quote is a driving force of many of the projects for our students, and the Renaissance Research project In Mrs. Kandice’s history class was no exception. Each student had to choose a pivotal figure during the Renaissance time period, research the history, the life, and the accomplishments of each person. They then had to create a collage and present their project to the class. They learned about famous playwrights, artists, inventors, and rulers such as Galileo, Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, William Shakespeare, Gutenberg, Copernicus, and Queen Elizabeth I.

By Kandice Kimmel, Latin & History, 5-8th Grade

Project based learning is a teaching method in which students gain knowledge and skills by working for an extended period of time to investigate and respond to an authentic, engaging, and complex questions, problems or challenges.

To wrap up our world geography unit, our seventh and eighth grade students hosted an International Fair. They were each assigned a country to research, and designed a display, brought an international dish to sample, and presented for all of the students and teachers at St. James Day School. I am so incredibly proud of each and every one of these students!

‘Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn’ -Benjamin Franklin

Seventh grade students participated in a fun, interactive mini project this week as we continue our study on the Renaissance. Their instructions were as follows: Decorate your bag as you imagine your Renaissance artist would and put items in the bag-quotes, images, replicas, documents, or anything that accurately represents the core ideas of your artist. The students then presented their research to the class.