Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Happy fall ya'll


By: Madeline Seiberlich
The weather is getting cooler, pumpkins are being sold, and leaves will hopefully start changing soon… This can only mean one thing; it’s time for the Fall Festival! On Thursday, October 18 from 4-7pm be sure to make your way to the back field to enjoy some fall time festivities! Whether you love playing games, getting candy, or doing arts and crafts the St. John Fall Fest will have it all! This is event is for everyone so be sure to invite your friends and family members! Hope to see you there! Happy fall ya’ll!

Forensics with Mrs. Fontaine


 





Have you ever wondered what it would be like to solve a crime scene? Well now you can right here at St. John! Mrs. Fontaine has started a new class on forensics this year for seniors in high school.
This class is all about solving crimes through the means of science.

Mrs. Fontaine wanted to start a very hands-on class that was available to non-science majors. She hopes it will peak student interest in science in college. The class is very hands-on and has many fun and educational labs to keep the students interested in the subject, while teaching them about the criminal justice system.

The course is fun, but it also requires a lot of work and thinking capacity. Mrs. Fontaine thinks the students will be most challenged by using their deductive reasoning skills to solve criminal cases.

The course will cover plenty of topics regarding forensic science. Mrs. Fontaine noted that a few topics covered in class will be trace evidence, criminal sketching, blood and bone analysis, and plenty more. Each chapter includes a hands-on lab that focuses on forensic investigation. For example, the class does do crime scene sketching, digital photography, and activities like that. In each chapter there is a criminal case that the class has to solve by using the forensic skills they learned so far in this course. This class also gives the students knowledge about the criminal justice system.

"Class has been very exciting so far! The students have been talking on Facebook and discussing results on the summer murder case that they tried to solve in class," said Mrs. Fontaine


Mrs. Fontaine seems very excited to teach forensics.  Eddie Cruz is a student in Mrs. Fontaine’s forensics class and he said, “I am looking forward to learning a lot more about criminology. I’m also interested what it’s like to investigate crime scenes. Class-wise,  I’m looking forward to labs and investigating crime scenes.”

High school students, be sure to check out forensics class when you’re a senior at St. John! 

Musical Visitor Entertains Our Elementary


An Artist Visits St. John
 
by Britani Jurkowski
The Pied Piper got to wear a cool hat and hold a recorder
                On Tuesday October 1st, the preschoolers and elementary school students were visited by a special guest: a professional musician by the name of Ms. Donna Wissinger came to share her music and stories with the children. She prepared several fun activities, such as acting out the story of the Pied Piper. All the preschool through second grade kids were able to participate as they acted out parts like the mayor, the rats, the villagers, and of course the piper! Another cool activity she led included the children placing their hands on their heart as she played different tunes on her golden flute. The children were then asked how the music made them feel. They came up with great words like “amazing,” “happy,” “soothed,” and “excited.”
           The third through fifth graders had a great time as well, especially when they learned how different materials and sizes create different musical sounds. In addition, Ms. Donna told the students the legends of William Tell and Robin Hood. Through her music and stories, she encouraged the children to read and write in order to learn new things. Her legends had a moral of always putting forth your best effort and never quitting. At the end of each assembly, the musician played “Yankee Doodle” on the piccolo while the students marched in rhythm back to their classrooms. Ms. Donna’s high energy and talent made for a wonderful event. The students had a great time and are so thankful!
The "rats" got to wear hand-made masks!