NOVEL ENGINEERING EXHIBITION

Our sixth-grade engineering, technology, and application of science classes partnered with our eighth-grade technology, engineering, and integrated lab science classes for a semester-long project that merged science and reading. The students read survival-themed books and autobiographical and biographical STEM narrative books to identify problems facing the characters and then presented their engineered solutions, prototypes, and demonstrations to the Dawson community in a culminating Novel Engineering Exhibition. The sixth and eighth graders also partnered with our Early Childhood students for a similar cross-grade-level PBL project called Novel Engineering, Jr. in which they read picture books to small groups of EC students and helped them engineer solutions to a problem for each story’s character.

Veterans Day

While most schools across the nation observe Veterans Day as a holiday, Dawson holds classes and joins together for an in-school commemoration to honor those in uniform for their dutiful contributions of sacrifice and service. Our community spent the day in reflection; we held a morning meeting in which we raised the American flag with military members and student helpers, recited the Pledge of Allegiance, and enjoyed a student-written poem and “The Star-Spangled Banner” sung by our advanced vocal ensemble. Students participated in critical and purposeful discussions in the classroom and with retired and active military members about the history of Veterans Day and what it means to be a veteran. Students wore red, white, and blue clothing in unity and created bookmarks and wrote letters to veterans thanking them for their service.