Happy Thursday! It's been a quite week around Googe Hall as the Middle School students are on their class trips this week! Check out this week's edition of Headlines for an update on those trips and to see the action in Lower School!

Middle School Trips

All Middle School students are on educational and fun class trips this week! All will return at appointed times on Friday. Seventh graders will be back in time for carpool pickup.

Eighth Grade

ESK Eighth Graders are soaking up the sights in the nation's capital! The trip began Tuesday with a visit to Mt. Vernon Estate in Virginia. Wednesday was a jam-packed day that included tours of the International Spy Museum, the FDR and WWII Memorials, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing, several museums at the Smithsonian and the Holocaust Museum. Other highlights for the remainder of the trip include the Arlington National Cemetery, National Archives, tour of the Capitol, National Cathedral and a Potomac cruise.  

Eighth Grade students at Mt. Vernon Estate in Virginia.

Seventh Grade

Seventh Graders have spent a busy two days working in downtown Knoxville and taking in some of the fun city tourist stops. Each afternoon of the trip, different groups of students spent time serving at one of several locations, including Second Harvest Food Bank, Habitat Thrift Store, Adopt-a-Stream and Beardsley Farm. Evening activities included a riverboat cruise, a visit to World's Fair Park, and swimming at the UT Aquatic Center.  

Seventh Graders Alexandra Musrock, Addy Bonovich, Casey Majors and Hallie Longest filling cereal bags at Second Harvest Food Pantry.

Sixth Grade

Sixth Grade students have had a wonderful time in Chattanooga! They started their trip with a visit to Red Clay, Cherokee Interpretive Center, and a stop at the Chattanooga Aquarium. Thursday's schedule includes a trip up the Incline Railway, the Hunter Museum and a Chattanooga Lookouts baseball game. The students will visit the UT Challenger Center and make a stop at Mayfield Dairy before returning home Friday.  

ESK Sixth Graders at Red Clay, Cherokee Interpretive Center in Chattanooga, Tenn.

ESK Celebrates Earth Day

In honor of Earth Day, ESK students, faculty and staff held a special all-school Eucharist in the outdoor Chapel. The service began with a presentation of the crosses that Lower School classes created from recycled materials. The students did a great job!  

Eighth Graders Riley Denton, Eleanor Tant, Sarah Jane Kline and Sean O'Tool perform a special Earth Day skit.

Afterward, Director of Sustainability Brett Tannhauser shared some amazing facts about recycling. Music Director Deb Sousa and a group of Sixth Grade students also shared a special Earth Day song with the student body.  

Lower School Director Nancy Laurence serves Second Grader Luke Vesser.

Assisting Father Josh Hill with Eucharist, as well as sharing the homily, was the Reverend John Mark Wiggers from St. James Episcopal Church in downtown Knoxville. It was a special service and a great way for the ESK family to celebrate and honor the meaning of Earth Day.  

Reverend John Mark Wiggers from St. James Episcopal Church assisted with Eucharist on Monday.

9th Annual Saints' Gala

NEW LIVE AUCTION ITEM: Dream of a tropical island hideaway, a paradise where your cares drift away with the morning dew, a magical place to soothe your soul, revive your spirit and uncover a world where time melts into a crimson sunset. Escape to The Club on Little Cayman for a week's accommodation and give yourself over to relaxation and luxury.  The three bedroom (one king, one queen, and twins), three bathroom elegant condo offered by ESK parents, Kyle and Adrienne Hooker. The condo is one of only eight condos nestled on a private beach on the south shore of Little Cayman, bordered by the South Hole Sound, a turquoise lagoon protected by the reef.    

Activities on the island include scuba diving, snorkeling, kayaking, offshore fishing and Inshore Bone Fishing and Fly Fishing, Biking, Tennis, Hiking, and feeding the Iguanas, and much more!
 
Dates are flexible, pending owners' approval.       

If you would like to be a Sponsor or buy tickets click or on the link: Join Me at the Gala! To donate an item, or just volunteer, please contact Alice Smith, Director of Special Events, at 218-4494.

Talent Show Coming!

Save the date for the ESK Lower School Talent Show scheduled for Tuesday, April 30, from 1:30-3 p.m. in the Kline Gymnasium. For more information, please contact Ghadeer Musharbash: 803-2424 or Ghadeer3@aol.com.

REMINDER: Early Dismissal on Friday, May 3

ESK is providing the venue for The Rotary Club of West Knoxville's First Annual Rocky Top Hummin' & Strummin' BBQ Cookoff on May 3 and 4. Because of the size of this event, school will dismiss at 11:30 a.m. on May 3. Please make this change on your calendars!

ESKamp

Looking for something to do this summer? ESK has just what you're looking for: ESKamp! During the month of June, ESK will be offering a number of enrichment summer camps ranging from technology and art to musical theater and dance. Open registration began this week! Reserve your spot NOW! The camps will run from June 3-28 with a morning and afternoon session. All camps, except for the all-day Music Theater camp, will be $150 per student. Online registration is now available at eskamp.org.

All-School News

Yearbook Orders

The 2012-13 ESK Yearbook will be delivered on Monday, May 13. There's still time to purchase one! Fill out an order form (available online and in the LS and MS offices) and return the form to Communications Director Melissa Anderson. You can order up until the day the books arrive! The cost for a yearbook is $40.

Speech Services Offered at ESK

ESK is proud to offer the services of Speech Language Pathologist Stacy McLemore to our students and families. McLemore is on campus two days a week and can offer a wide range of services including Speech/Articulation Evaluation and Treatment, Language and Auditory Processing Evaluation and Treatment, Behavior Rating Scales and Phonological Awareness Treatment. For more information or to schedule a time to meet with Mrs. McLemore, either contact the LS office or email mclemore@esknoxville.org.

"I have 15 years experience working with school-age children and truly love the work I've done with students at The Episcopal School," McLemore said. "It is a great environment and I look forward to the opportunity to work with more ESK students."

Upcoming Field Days

All families - please mark your calendars for upcoming Field Days! All field days are 12-3 p.m. More details will follow. Parent volunteers will be a must to make these annual events a success! Please contact Lower School Gym Teacher Pansie Evans via email at evans@esknoxville.org , with any questions. Mrs. Evans is in need of the following items: baby wipe containers, giant stuffed animals, clown costumes/props. Check your basements and attics to see if you can donate to the fun!

3-5th Grade: Friday, April 26 - MINUTE TO WIN IT!

K-2nd Grade: Monday, May 6 - UNDER THE BIG TOP CARNIVAL

Middle School: Friday, May 17

Annual Fund Celebration!

Win this happy bash! As an incentive to achieve 100% participation in the Annual Fund, the development office is offering a party to the grade with the highest parent participation level by May 9. Only three weeks left! Parents of the winning class will be invited to a reception in the Siler Great Hall at 6 p.m. on May 15, hosted by members of the Executive Committee of the Board. The evening will include light fare and drinks with childcare provided by our Aftercare staff. Everyone will have a good time!

Here are the current participation levels for each class:

K -- 37%

1 -- 37%

2 -- 43%

3 -- 39%

4 -- 51%

5 -- 30%

6 -- 34%

7 -- 35%

8 - 27%

Please keep in mind that a Gala Sponsorship or donation goes toward Annual Fund participation, and that tables are still available for sponsorship at the Gala. Click here to DONATE ONLINE.  

Lower School News

Cades Cove Ranger Visit

After rainy weather caused the cancellation of a Second Grade field trip to Cades Cove, the students got a nice surprise when Rangers Laura, Dakota, and Mike dropped by ESK on Friday! The Rangers shared with the Second Grade classes some of what they have would experienced on their field trip. The students were given the opportunity to play with old toys that might have been common with the first settlers in Cades Cove. Students then created their own toy out of a piece of a string and a thin slice of the branch of a tree. They had a great time learning how to make it work!  

Ranger Mike assists Second Grader Anabel Wilson with her handmade toy.

Second Graders Service Project

The Second Grade classes raised $568.10 for the Friends of the Smokies by sponsoring Green & Blue Dress on Earth Day and through their school store. Friends of the Smokies helps Great Smoky Mountain National Park improve education, natural resource protection, historic preservation, and wildlife protection. 

Caught "Red" Handed

Third Grade students in Mrs. Jenkins' class were hard at work last week trying to solve "The Mystery of the Stolen Celery Man." The students worked down their exhaustive suspect list and collected clues around the school to narrow the list down. After the hard work, the students caught Middle School gym teacher Red Waller with "Celery Man" in his office. Great job to the Third Grade detectives for closing the case!

The detectives in Mrs. Jenkins' class worked hard to solve "The Mystery of the Stolen Celery Man."

Docents at James White Fort

ESK Fourth Graders spent time Thursday morning serving as docents at James White Fort. In colonial dress, the students told visitors to the Fort, located at 205 Hill Avenue in downtown Knoxville, all about how James and Mary White lived when Knoxville was in its infancy in the late 1700s. As a part of their Tennessee history studies, the Fourth Graders went on a fact-finding field trip earlier this semester.  

Fourth Grade students served as docents at James White Fort in downtown Knoxville on Thursday.

Fifth Grade: Williamsburg Trip Update

When Fifth Grade students return from Williamsburg, Va., next Friday, the BBQ competition being held at ESK will be in full swing and therefore parking at the school will not be available. In light of this, there will be an alternate location for parents to pick up their students upon their return. The Fifth Grade will be dropped off at Garden Ridge Home Superstore located at 11221 Outlet Dr. (across from Cotton Eyed Joe). The Garden Ridge west parking lots (on the left as you face the front of the building) should provide plenty of space for the bus and parents. Fifth Grade should be arriving back around 5 p.m. Students will call their parents when they are about 30 minutes from Knoxville.

Middle School News

Portfolio Project Benefit Concert

ESK Eighth Grader Eli Fox hosted a benefit concert Friday night to support radio station WDVX, 89.9 Clinton, 93.3 Seymour, and 102.9 Knoxville. The concert featured current ESK students Chandler Buhl, Devin Badgett and Alex Daley; former ESK students Briston Maroney and Rhetta Botts; ESK faculty member Curtis Bower and special guests Ed Wing and Zach Fox.  

Current and Former ESK students Alex Daley, Eli Fox, Briston Maroney, Chandler Buhl and Devin Badgett perform at a benefit concert last Friday night.

Fox organized the concert as a service component of his Portfolio Project. The evening was a spectacular event and raised nearly $500 for WDVX.

Square Foot Poem

Students in Mrs. Lancaster's English classes celebrated Earth Day by writing poems about one "square foot" of ground outside on the front lawn at ESK. Students were tasked with examining the square for what they could see, hear, smell and feel and using as many adjectives as possible to describe their square. Then students took the images they wrote about and composed a poem. They could choose any type of poem they wanted, from acrostic to haiku.  

Sixth Grader Paige Gleason works on her square foot poem on the lawn in front of Googe Hall.

Pond Observations

Seventh and Eighth Grade students in Mrs. Busby's science classes also got in on the Earth Day fun with a morning of pond observations on the ESK campus. The students found a spot near the stream and pond and were asked to answer the following questions: Using your senses, describe what you observe; how has this place changed since the fall; how do humans affect this area; and how will humans affect this area in the future. It was a great opportunity for the students to explore the beauty of nature right on their own campus.  

Seventh Grader Grace Taylor records her observation near the stream and pond on ESK's campus.

Interact Club

ESK Interact Club president Devin Badgett and vice president Alex Daley recently accepted a check for $1,300.51 for the Africa ELI program on behalf of the club. A West Knoxville Rotary Club member and Interact Sponsor gave the check to the club at their last meeting.     

Interact Club officers Alex Daley and Devin Badgett accept a check for the Africa ELI from the West Knoxville Rotary.