Summer At Friendship
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STORIES FROM FRIENDSHIP PUBLIC CHARTER SCHOOL SUMMER ENRICHMENT STUDENTS PHOTOS BY FNN PHOTOGRAPHERS MARCEL GALLION AND SKYE WEBSTER
AUGUST, 2013. Highlights from the FCA Summer Enrichment Program
The 2013 Summer Enrichment Program at Collegiate provided a variety of opportunities for students. The activities included programs such as performing arts, band camp, cheerleading, basketball, self-improvement, and more.
Towards the program's conclusion, students were given an opportunity to showcase what they learned in their respective programs on Summer Learning Day. The Performing Arts program put on an great show illustrating students' talents such as acting, singing, rapping, and modeling. The band and cheerleading programs performed a routine during half-time at the basketball scrimmage. Self-improvement showcased its students improvement in restaurant etiquette, while the Urban Video Game Academy showcased a video with each student creating a virtual image and fun facts of themselves.
In addition, the Athletic Training Program students demonstrated the proper way to tape an ankle and show an exhibit labeling the parts of the human body. Poetry and creative writing performed a variety of poems and musical stylings. The Fitness for Life program demonstrated the ways to maintain a healthy lifestyle in a video of the student’s workout sessions. The Digital Videography program put on a short film with little snippets of each program with a student representative explaining their experience in the program. Finally the Scholarship Academy allowed each student to show the appropriate way to search and apply for scholarships as well as write and effective essay. All the programs served as a wonderful learning experience for both the students and the program sponsors.
Michael Gilliam, FCA Summer Enrichment Program
Scholarship Academy Raises Funds for Teen Moms
This summer, The Scholarship Academy (TSA) student workers at Friendship Collegiate Academy looked for ways to make ourselves stand out to scholarship committees. We identified several main issues in our community and decided that we wanted to create a community service project around teen pregnancy. After conducting research, we discovered that the non-profit organization Teen Moms Fresh Start, based in Baltimore, does a lot of work to help young teenage mothers.
As our way of giving back, TSA student workers created large flyers, donation boxes and sold baked goods to raise money for this phenomenal organization. In the midst of doing community service, we also found 15 best-fit scholarships for students who do community service projects, improved our essay writing skills and got to hear from some inspiring guest speakers.
The Scholarship Academy is a scholarship preparatory program that teaches low-income, first generation students how to navigate the maze of financial aid in order to fund their college education. The Scholarship Academy was founded in 2006 by Howard University graduate, Jessica Johnson. To find out more information visit www.scholarshipacademy.org.
Tyonna Belle, 2013 graduate of Friendship Collegiate Academy and rising freshman at Penn State University in the Fall.
Smart Cookies, What a Sweet Summer! by Alexis Slewion
Close your eyes and imagine this…beautiful exotic flowers and plants from all over the world. Flying through history in 4D, seeing Japanese artwork and tasting Japanese food, seeing real life sharks, dolphins splashing water right in your face, rainbow colored fish, seahorses, jellyfish, and gigantic turtles the size of dogs at your fingertips. Better yet, picture characters from a book popping right off the page “Peter Pan and Windy” flying around with Tinkerbell in an adventure of a lifetime, and meeting the famous author and storyteller of children’s books Darryl Cobbs.
Well, it all wasn’t a dream. This summer was filled with so many spectacular treats! Georgetown cupcakes, Newseum, Freer Gallery, Baltimore Aquarium, Botanical Gardens, Imagination Theatre in Bethesda, Cameron Run Waterpark, plus Saturday explorations too!
This is what being a Smart Cookie is all about, learning while having fun. Each day we explored hands-on projects tied to a weekly theme: Community and Beyond, H20 Everywhere, Cultural Exploration, Go-Green, and Caught in the Act. I was able to make new friends from each of the campuses and document my day in a passport book with pictures and writing.I still can’t believe I learned so many cool things about fish. Seeing a poisonous frog and thinking to myself, “they look so pretty!” I said “OMG! a fish that is born a female and after ten years it changes into a male fish then dies.” I was completely blown away finding this out.
I am so glad that I was chosen to be in the gifted and talented program. I feel like I’m gifted and talented just because I learned so much everyday. I went on free field trips all across the city. I think this has been the BEST summer ever! When you are in the Smart Cookie program that means you are doing very well in school and you are advanced in reading and math. This is my second year in Smart Cookies and I look forward to another summer of exploring.
Alexis Slewion, 4th grade, Friendship Woodridge Academy.
Poetry, Creative Writing, and Hip Hop Impact Today’s Youth
Two Sponsors at Friendship Collegiate Academy (Jazzmine Ellis and Emerald Green) produced an enrichment program titled Poetry Creative Writing and Hip Hop. This enrichment program has impacted many youth in the school, and has allowed room for creativity and expression. The classroom setting was very diverse with many talents to expand upon.
Both sponsors helped us as a whole to overcome our fears of writing and expressing ourselves. They taught us how the Hip Hop culture started and what political aspects were involved with this. We read many stories about how Hip Hop isn’t just a music industry, but that it is an entire empire of wealth in stocks, bonds, fashion and the African American community. We learned that Hip Hop isn’t just a “black thing” but it is a thing for everyone. The poetry aspect of the program allowed for us to become comfortable with writing and learning to creatively expressing our words on paper. We were taught ways of reading and how to understand the text better. I think this will help us gain better knowledge for our future education.
Towards the end of the program we were able to show the talents that we gained in a showcase in front of an audience. I thought this was very successful and helped to prove that we actually did learn something. Each lesson will be carried out even after this program ends. I appreciate our sponsors taking time out to help us every day. Not many people have the patience to do this and that is why I am grateful.
Teyawna Moore, senior, Friendship Collegiate Academy.
Robotics Engineers Design, Develop and Deliver!
The BOE-Bot Robot As an introduction to programming, we downloaded the Parallax software basic stamp editor to computers in order to program the BOE- Bot (Robot). We were able to program the BOE-Bot to do the following three tasks: light LED lights, play music through the piezo-speakers and make servo-wheels spin in order to move the BOE-bot forwards, backwards, veer and turn. Our final project included integrating a program to do all three tasks simultaneously and in sequence. Malik even programmed the piezo-speaker to play the songs “Ode to Joy” and The Super Mario theme song.
The Cyclone Rollercoaster We took many small parts and built 3 large sections to make a rollercoaster frame. We then added more parts to make the structure stable. Our next step was to build a motor and the chain to transverse a rollercoaster car to the highest point of the rollercoaster. We then added tracks and made adjustments to the heights and loops to garner the best potential energy and kinetic energy so that the car travels on the rollercoaster without manual assistance. Briante made several tweaks and added hoops to the tracks to create the momentum to obtain continuous movement.
Automotive Car Build First we read instructions to determine how to put together a car. We worked in teams to build the two cars and were able to build the basic chassis structures in order to test the mechanics of how it worked. Much effort was made to make the cars run with all of the components connected and working. Ozzie and Tyron worked very hard with their team members to build the cars. Ozzie also had to perform exceptional maintenance and repairs in order to get three cars running smoothly. In conclusion, we had a wonderful summer learning a lot about technology, the engineering process and automotive robotics. Tyron produced a wonderful pictorial history of the telephone which was shared with a 6th grade STEM summer program
The Automotive Robotics Summer Enrichment Team – Tyron Coulter, Malik Frye, Briante Gulliory, Justin Jefferson, Ozzie Tidmore
“The World is My Stage”
This summer at Friendship Collegiate Academy I participated in the Performing Arts Academy. In this academy we participated in creative writing, acting, singing, dancing, and playing musical instruments. Everyone was actively involved in the learning process and applying the principals that were taught. Some activities were more exciting, but overall very informative as well as enjoyable.
In the Performing Arts Academy, you have no choice, I repeat, no choice but to perform. Some student artists could sing and others could act. Some student artists were more interested in dance, where other student artists wanted to play instruments. No matter what the discipline, everyone had to take center stage and perform. This helped us with confidence and nerves while overcoming any fears.
Everyone has a time to own the spotlight. Each student artist had his/her own unique ability and the instructors made sure that the instruction was understood. Without the help of Ms. Maimouna Youssef, Ms. Marquita Benton, Ms. Samantha McElhaney and Ms. Tamara Fingal, those unique skills wouldn’t glow as bright as they do now. They inspired and lead the way for us to becoming better performers.
Keith and Tiara were the two people who caught my attention. Keith is a rapper so the words he spoke left me speechless, saying to myself, “Wait a minute, did he just say that?” Keith has amazing skills and I believe if he keeps working hard, he will rise and his voice will be heard worldwide. The same thing happened with Tiara. She is quite talented and with her lyrical ability, she also can go very far.
Overall I enjoyed this summer program and I truly appreciated all the help given to push, motivate and help me and other student artists go forward. I personally think that the performing Arts enrichment camp was and is the best academy this summer. We are the future stars of the entertainment world. “THE WORLD IS MY STAGE” no one knows how to put on life’s show like we do!
Joseph Yusuf, graduate, Friendship Collegiate Academy.
Hands on Athletic Training at FCA by Brianna DeSilva
Here at Friendship Collegiate Academy SYEP workers were able to get hands on experience in the athletic training field through the Athletic Student Training Aide Program. Led by Ms. Tina Benson, students interacted with athletes and got medical experience like CPR training and how to treat, tape, and assist with rehabilitating athletes.
Over the summer we were able to learn how to tape multiple areas of the body—such as the wrist, foot, and ankle. We learned the proper way to do these things and why they are important. These things ensure safety and protect against sprains and other injuries that could come about during practice or a game. To assist with our learning, alumni, Malencia Devine helped show us tips and tricks to get things done quickly and efficiently.
Students were also able to learn about treatments and rehabilitation. We were required to memorize focal body parts where injuries are more likely to occur. We were allowed to treat athletes under Ms. Tina’s supervision with treatments like electrical stimulation, ice compression, and ultrasound. Although we were unable to treat athletes on our own the experience was still thrilling. There was never a dull day in the athletic training room.
You can see the athletic trainers in action during the season at all major sports events. The students who participated over the summer all have the option to stay throughout the school year to work alongside Ms. Tina which will be beneficial if they plan on going into the medical field in the future.
Brianna DeSilva, junior, Friendship Collegiate Academy.
Self Improvement
I signed up for self-improvement, because I knew that I would learn some helpful, and insightful tips that could benefit me later on life. I remember when Ms. Washington and Ms.Jackson stood in front of the auditorium to tell what the program was about. Initially, I thought that this program wasn’t for me, because I am very respectful and I know how to be respectful to others, as well as myself. But then I realized that I can use self-improvement have more confidence in myself and everything I do. I need to stop giving up so quickly, when things go wrong, or when I feel like I’m out of options. I also wanted to improve my speech skills and learn to articulate my words. After careful consideration, I looked at this program in a different way and actually thought that it could have a big impact on my life. So, I signed up.
I learned a lot of things I didn’t know before such as dining etiquette, interviewing skills/ etiquette, and professional attire. And I had the opportunity to be on a step team. I was surprised at the many things that I didn’t know about dining etiquette. I learned how to properly set a table, how to use different utensils for a four-course meal, what to do with your napkin and utensils when you finish your meal, and how to excuse yourself from a table, if needed. This is important to know because you don’t want to go to a business meeting, or a wedding and not know the proper way to eat. In self-improvement, we learned the importance of separating your personal life, and business professional.
Another thing that we learned was interviewing skills etiquette. This is highly needed, and important. We also, learned how to get professionally dressed for an interview. Professional attire for females would be a skirt, a dress, or slacks. An important tip for wearing a skirt is that it must be fingertip length. That means if you put your hands down to your side, your fingers, should reach the same length of your the skirt. If not, then the dress is to short. For guys it's appropriate to wear a suit, or a polo shirt and khaki’s, and dress shoes. Anything baggy or with inappropriate language is not good. And you should stay away from clothing articles that are too revealing. Learning all this information was fun, but most importantly it was helpful. We had activities that taught us the value of teamwork, self-control, and leadership.
At the end of the summer we had a “dress for success” fashion show to display different types of professional attire and campus causal attire.
This program was inspirational and helpful. I learned a lot and became aware of the things that I have to work on personally. This is a great step for me. I would definitely recommend this program for anyone else. It will be a process and will not change you overnight. But it is possible to change, if you have the right mindset, and goals for yourself.
Kiana Williams, FCA Summer Enrichment Program