FERNBANK NATURAL MUSEUM OF HISTORY FIELD TRIP

Students in grades PreK-2nd went into Atlanta on Thursday, December 10th to visit the Fernbank Museum of Natural History. Students began their day together with an IMAX movie all about "The Wonders of the Arctic". They were able to learn about life living in the Arctic including the humans who work there and the animals who live on the land and in the Ocean. It was an awesome experience seeing these videos on the giant IMAX screenreally bring life in the Arctic to our real life.

After the IMAX film, our students split up into groups and ventured out to visit all of the awesome exhibits in the museum. While traveling around the museum, students were able to see decorated pine trees representing many different countries around the world that lined the museum's hallways. One exhibit students visited was all about Science - students were able to explore different science tools and activities. They were able to create LARGE bubbles, view light refraction, see themselves on a TV screen, see optical illusions, and so much more. All of our FSAPS students really enjoyed spending some time in this exploration room. At the bottom of the museum was a prehistoric exhibit where our students were able to see dinosaur replicas..... this was a huge hit with ALL of our students! However, I think all of our FSA teachers would agree that one of the major highlights of this trip for our students was also having the chance to explore and play in the museum's nature playground. This playground was filled with so many fun things to explore: complete with tree houses, bridges, optical illusions of moving water, real lizards and alligators, and SO MUCH MORE. This portion of our trip was definitely a major highlight for all of our PreK-2nd grade students.

We had an awesome day together exploring this museum. A big thank you to our parent chaperones who helped make the day special for our students! It was a great day to be an FSA student!

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RECYCLING ASSEMBLY

FLL team Syntax Error( Robotics) hosted an educational and entertaining Recycling Assembly for the 4th-8th grade students on Tuesday, December 8. The students explained how our community and our school participate in a single-stream recycling program. This program means that we can place all of our recyclables into one bin, and they will be sorted into categories (paper, glass, plastic) at the recycling plant.

The students learned all about what types of items we can and cannot recycle, and were quizzed on interesting facts from the presentation. For example, even though they are made from cardboard, pizza boxes cannot be recycled because they are soiled with grease. Only clean items should be recycled.

FLL team Syntax Error giving the presentation talked about different ways that our FSAPS students can help the environment, save energy, and keep our school green. Students should always take advantage of the separate in-class bins, and should heed information written on the large three-sort bins placed throughout the hallways. The presenters also put on a great show of catchy jingles and dance moves to help our assembled student body remember the rules of recycling. At the end of the assembly, our students gave suggestions for ways they can help keep our campus clean and green.

Thank you to FLL team Syntax Error and Mr.Kaya for the wonderful presentation! Parents, please help us stay green by continuing to encourage recycling at home!

2ND GRADERS ENJOY STEM FRIDAY!

Happy STEM Friday! Students in Ms. Minor and Ms. Przedpelski's 2nd grade classes enjoyed their fun STEM activity this past Friday. Our 2nd grade scientists worked hard to practice the design process by creating a splint for a broken bone. They used celery as a representation for a broken finger. It was a great way to end our week together! We have some very creative scientists at FSAPS :)

Roswell Youth Day Parada Was Lots of Fun!

What a diverse school we have become over the years. Our families and students are talented in very many different and creative ways. Please see some pictures of our school's presence in Roswell Youth Parade this past Saturday. This picture definitely deserves a good place in this year's yearbook. Very creative! We are very proud of our geniuses and their many talents! 

Math Team Won 2nd Place in Varsity Level

FSAPS Middle School Math Team did a spectacular job on Saturday, October 10th during the North Fulton Math Tournament at Alpharetta High School in the junior varsity division! Over 200 students participated at this competition at junior varsity and varsity levels. Our team competed at junior varsity level against middle and high school students and received 2nd place as a team. 

As a young 7th grader, Holden Watson received 2nd place individually among all junior varsity participants! Isn’t that amazing?

FSAPS Team @ North Fulton Math Tournament

· Holden Watson

· Charlie Furniss

· Vishaal Ram

· Tyler Hecht

· Arul Selvakumar

Fulton Science Academy Math Olympiad Workshop

FSA Middle School Math Olympiad Team had a fun-filled workshop at FSA campus on Friday October 2nd from 5:00 pm until 10:30 pm!

Mrs. Duzyol’s Mathmagicians were asked to discuss critical thinking provoking questions and to present their solutions on the board after a Mock Math Competition Session. Our team had great discussion on Gauss’ Formula for finding arithmetic sums. Mathmagicians had delicious food and snacks, played dodgeball & volleyball in the Jim! Mr. Kaya was holding a Robotics lock-in as well and he joined FSA Math Olympiad Team during games we played at the jim. Mathmagicians had lots of fun playing and the sweetest end of the workshop! We enjoyed the ice-cream treat of Mrs. Karen Boyd (Holden’s Mom)!

Pre-K Students Love Character Education

Our focus has been welcoming new students into our classroom, including our two new puppet friends who we named Max and Gertrude. We introduced ourselves to our new friends, and brain-stormed ways to make them feel more comfortable in our room. We suggested giving them a job, inviting them to play and giving them a buddy to show them around the school. We were so excited about our new friends that we also sang them our own classroom's welcoming song! We hope Max and Gertie feel right at home at FSAPS!

We've also been learning how to learn with our whole bodies.

EYES are watching

EARS are listening

VOICES are quiet

BODY is calm

Atlanta Maker Faire Was Lots of Fun!

A large number of our student body and staff braved the rain (again) to attend this year's Atlanta Makers Faire in downtown Decatur last weekend.

"Arul had lot of fun attending Maker fair. It was very unique and filled with science and technological wonders. Thanks for letting us know about this program." A Happy Parent

Maker Faire is the Greatest Show (and Tell) on Earth—a family-friendly showcase of invention, creativity and resourcefulness, and a celebration of the Maker Movement. It’s a place where people show what they are making, and share what they are learning.

Makers range from tech enthusiasts to crafters to homesteaders to scientists to garage tinkerers. They are of all ages and backgrounds. The aim of Maker Faire is to entertain, inform, connect and grow this community.

Middle School Science Olympiad Gears Up for Next Competition

Middle School Science Olympiad Team members are busily preparing for their first competition with many exciting activities. Last weekend, Disease Detective students, led by parent coaches Mrs. Bhatt and Ms. Chirumamilla, traveled to the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta to visit the CDC museum. In addition to learning about epidemiology, a highlight of the trip was the opportunity to dress in hazmat suits! Students in Mrs. Walsh’s Elastic Launch Glider class are learning the finer details in constructing, launching, and flying balsa gliders. Mr. Parlak’s students are designing, constructing, and testing various bridge designs to determine the lightest bridge that can carry the heaviest load.

Next month, students will have additional opportunities to study and make FSA history as they hold the first ever lock-in on the new campus. It will be nearly 20 hours of non-stop science! Students will break bridges, fly gliders, launch bottle rockets, conduct food experiments, watch movies, and stargaze! It all begins on Friday, October 23 at 4:30 and runs through Saturday, October 24 at noon. Cost of the lock-in is $25. Permission forms are available from Mrs. Walsh or Mrs. Stathos and are due by Monday, October 20.

Fulton Science Academy Students Help Clean Local Streams

Fulton Science Academy students had fun “playing” in the mud and rain on September 26 at the annual Rivers Alive clean-up event. FSA students, FSA National Junior Honor Society club, teachers and family members picked up a lot of trash along the Riverside Park trails and removed a record amount of Chinese Privet from the wetlands by the Chattahoochee Nature Center. The middle school students learned about Chinese Privet, an invasive plant species in the wetlands of Chattahoochee Nature Center. Students and their families pulled, dug, and trimmed the privet in the mud and rain...and students had so much fun, they asked if we could help out every Saturday!

Fulton Science Academy was also awarded the Wet & Wild Award for the most privet removed! Thanks to everyone that participated which included over 30 students who earned 3 Volunteer hours each! 

A big THANK YOU goes to one of our wonderful FSA parents, Mrs. Tamara Stevens for organizing this event.

What is Rivers Alive?

Rivers Alive is Georgia’s annual volunteer waterway cleanup event that targets all waterways in the State including streams, rivers, lakes, beaches, and wetlands. The mission of Rivers Alive is to create awareness of and involvement in the preservation of Georgia’s water resources. Rivers Alive is held annually each fall and is a program of the Georgia Environmental Protection Division.

Thank you to all who braved the rain and participated in this community outreach event representing FSA in such a positive way!

ANIME WEEKEND ATLANTA FIELD TRIP WAS LOTS OF FUN!

This past Saturday, FSAPS students interested in Anime traveled to the AWA convention in Atlanta. Students and chaperones participated in workshops, selected to attend various panel presentations of interest, and watched shows where artists used Anime as a springboard for dramatic, visual, and/or musical interpretation. 

Some of the favorites were “Anime Blinded Me with Science” where we learned that some sci-fi anime gets the science more correct than we think, “Shakespeare as told by Anime” where actors dressed as Anime characters reenacted famous Shakespeare scenes, and the ever-popular panel “Japanese Confectionary Corner” where panelists covered the cultural history and importance of sweets as well as how to prepare some of the more popular desserts! We are already pumped for next year’s AWA convention. Only 362 more days to go…

FSA is a Big Family Through Home Visits

Experience and research from all over the United States shows that the interaction with the student’s family at their home is a very effective way to help student’s academic and behavioral progress.

Here is a recent feedback:

Thank You for a Lovely Home Visit

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for spending your Sunday afternoon with us and visiting my daughter here at our home. It meant so much to her, and to our entire family, to have you visit. As we said during our time together, we have utmost appreciation and respect for all that you do for our children. My daughter's transition into the new school has been wonderful, and we can't thank you enough for making such a positive impact on her life, and ours as well.

How can you schedule a home visit?

Very simple. Please send an e-mail to our home visit coordinator, Mrs. Unal at junal@fultonscienceacademy.org and give us three available dates for your child's home visit program. We will get back to you and confirm a date. Depending on our teacher’s availability, at least two teachers will be together to visit our students and parents at their homes. 

For any questions you have about this program, send an e-mail to junal@fultonscienceacademy.org. The best times to schedule a home visit are weekdays after 5:00 pm, and anytime during the weekends except Sunday mornings.

Fulton Science Academy - Apple

This week kindergarten students learned about how the apple became the symbol for the start of school and enjoyed many apple activities- Making "Apple Pie Parfaits" and creating a "Counting Seeds" apple math book!

FSA Destination Imagination Team

Our Destination Imagination teams are forming and students are excited about the new challenge options this year - it's proving to be a difficult decision for some! 

Are you on an academic team? No? Would you like to try DI? The middle school DI teams are looking for additional members - Join NOW!

Fulton Science Academy Grandparents Day

A wonderful time was enjoyed by students, parents, grandparents, and teachers last Sunday lunchtime. It began with a school tour followed by a luncheon for grandparents of our students, school video and advices from our grandparents to our students during National Grandparents Weekend on Sunday, September 13, 2015.

This day had a threefold purpose:

* To honor grandparents
* To give grandparents an opportunity to get more information about their grandchildren’s school
* To help children become aware of the strength, information and guidance older people can offer

Thank you to everyone who attended. Please see some pictures here: