Camelot Update 2/24/13

Greetings!

Congratulations to senior Lennon Klinger-Mehrbach on his acceptance to Temple University and to senior JoshPettway Hinton on his acceptance to Drexel University with an AJ Drexel Scholarship valued at $74K.

Check out our online Literary Magazine to sample art and writing contributions from students of all ages and even a few faculty pieces.  Many thanks to Ms. Erin for all of her efforts to oversee the project to this point.  We are eager to receive new works to feature and are recruiting new members to the editorial club which meets on Wednesdays. We look forward to a print publication at the end of the year. 

Here is the link to the blog: http://camelotmagazine.tumblr.com/

The Password is: camelot parent

Kudos to Ms. Amy and the NHS team that sponsored a successful Science Night for Lower School students on Friday night.  Thanks also to Mr. Dan for providing faculty support.

There is just one week left to take advantage of summer program Early Bird discounts (deadline - Monday, March 4). Check out our website here:

http://www.camelotacademy.org/summer-programs.php

Ultimate Frisbee season is right around the corner!  Student athletes in grades 6-12 may sign up through Tuesday of this week.  Sign up info is available from Ms. Wendy or Ms Krista.  Coach Carlos will start practices on Tuesday, March 5th from 3:30PM to 5:30PM at Forest Hills Park.  All of our home games and practices will also be located at Forest Hills Park. Most weeks will consist of Tuesday and Thursday practice along with a Wednesday game. The CCAL tournament is set for Saturday, May 18th and our first game is on Wednesday, March 20th at 4:00PM. The ultimate schedule can be accessed online from our athletics link.   Click here:

http://www.camelotacademy.org/students-athletics.php

There are three more games that may be added to the schedule. Those games will most likely be scheduled on a Wednesday or Friday. Please let Ms Krista know if you have any questions about the schedule and/or the season (krista@camelotacademy.org).

Foreign Language Immersion Day is also coming soon!  On Thursday, March 7 we will celebrate all of the languages taught in our school (in addition to English!).  Spanish, German, French, Latin and Chinese will all be featured in a morning of fun, food and learning. 

Please note that school closes at 12:30 PM on that day (Thursday, March 7) and is also closed on Friday, March 8 for Faculty Retreat.  Lower School students may sign up for Optional Care on a space available basis - contact Ms. Wendy for details (wendy@camelotacademy.org).

Finally, exciting news is coming to our school neighborhood!  If you are a fan of fresh produce, food trucks and healthy options then you might be interested to know that the Lo Mo truck has scheduled a weekly stop on Mondays from 5:30-6:30 PM at the corner by Morehead Montessori School (Shepherd and Cobb).  If you pick up your student around that time on Mondays you might want to walk over and check it out.  A link with more info is found here:

http://lomomarket.com/

Have a great week!

Camelot Update 2/17/13

Greetings!

I hope this email finds you having enjoyed some winter-like views through the window and perhaps even the relaxation that comes with a long weekend.  Please remember that school is closed tomorrow in observance of President's Day.

Congratulations to Module 6 Merit Award Students: 

Evan Mac Donald and Ray Palma.

                                                                

Kudos to Module 6 Honor Roll Students:

​Josh Stallings, Megan Rusconi-Warner, ​Liz Reeder, William Radcliffe, Josh Pettway-Hinton, Bri Oleson, Max Fried, Zachariah Claypole White, Feixiong Zhen, Rachel Roush, Brian Powell, Lyn Mattox, Ke Lu, Grace He, Olivia Arges, Spencer Ahn, Zack Milkereit, Fiona Castorina,  Alex Berro, Lily Wieleba, Cameron Stell, Sophie Reiter, Johnny Qian, Elizabeth Provenzale, Cole Kurtzman, Sarah Fauver, Danny Sutton, Toyin Tosh, Sprout Royal, Rachel Milkereit, David McShea, Brooke Hall, Willa Holt, Virginia Bruhn, and Christopher Radcliffe.

We had a very worthwhile and productive round of family conferences.  I was struck by the creative and flexible ideas that were exchanged throughout.  My iPAD is full of notes from these meetings and I'll spend time before Tuesday getting it all ready for follow-through.  I believe the benefit gained from all of us making this exchange with/about students a priority is among the things that make our school so effective.  I appreciate the dedication and commitment of all of my colleagues and the vision shared by the parents, grandparents, family, friends and tutors who help to make these school years an amazing foundation on which our students will build their lives.

Our summer camp enrollment is off to a fast-paced start.  It looks like Jungle Camp, Lego Camp and some weeks ofEdu-Camp may fill in record time.  Please take advantage of the March 4 Early Bird discount if you plan for your student to partake.

Also this summer we are once again partnering with RTP-ICE to provide a Chinese Immersion student experience and a host family opportunity for our families.  Information on all of our summer programs can be found on our website here:

http://www.camelotacademy.org/summer-programs.php

Here's what is coming up this week:

Tuesday - classes and after school clubs resume

(Note - Lower School iPAD/Tech club and Middle/Upper School Lit Mag club will allow new members this week)

Thursday -  4-5:30 PM - Open House for prospective families and for our own families that wish to learn more about upper level classes.

Friday - Lower School Science Night - sign up in the Big Hall or via an email to Ms Amy (amy@camelotacademy.org) by end of day Wednesday.

Have a wonderful week.

Best,

Camelot Update 2/10/13

Happy Chinese New Year!

We continue with our abundance of Class of 2013 news to cheer!

- Congratulations to senior William Radcliffe on his acceptance to the Honors College at the University of Connecticut with a $60K Academic Excellence Scholarship.

- Kudos to Bri Oleson on her acceptance to Virginia Commonwealth University with a $74K Presidential Scholarship.

- Congrats to Josh Pettway-Hinton on his acceptance to The City College of NY.

- Correction - Josh Stallings' acceptance noted last week was to the University of Miami (not Miami University) - think suntan oil, not snow!

- Senior poet extraordinaire Zachariah Claypole White has again garnered many prizes at the Southeast Writing Region-at-Large for Scholastic Art and Writing Awards 2013. His work earned three Gold Keys, one Silver Key and two Honorable Mentions plus a Silver Key for his senior writing portfolio.  Many of his poems will now advance to the national competition.

Congratulations to our Camelot basketball Knights and Coach Carlos who just wrapped up a great season.  They won their final regular season game on Thursday night and were thrilled and appreciative of the fan base at the final home game on Tuesday night.

Thank you, thank you to EVERYONE for making Thursday night's pie supper such a hit!  Special hugs to Ms. Wendy who managed our ever-expanding family dinner with great expertise.  She was ably helped by the large crew of parent helpers to whom we are all grateful.  Huge appreciation goes to the teachers who worked for many weeks with our students to help them shine - Ms. Denise, Ms. Liz, Ms. Amanda, Ms. Erin, Ms. Judith and Ms. Michelle.  Also, thanks toMr. Scott for hosting our many prospective families and to all of our current families who were very welcoming to one and all.  I was very proud to see our Upper School students so genuinely supportive of our "younger half" - such exchanges exemplify our school at its very best and it means everything that so many families made the evening a priority in their busy schedules.

Another  “thank you” goes to our generous community for supporting the bake sale spear-headed by fourth grader Olivia Goldsmith to support birthdaywishes.org.  We surpassed the $400 goal and are proud to once again sponsor a birthday party for children at a homeless shelter.

Please remember to support our young thespian, third grader Ephram Oliver, in the musical production of Space Pirates! The show plays again next weekend - details here:

http://durhamfamilytheatre.wordpress.com/

Camelot Summer Programs are now open for sign up!  The ads are out and Mr. Scott and Ms. Amanda had a lot of interest at the camp fair held yesterday at University Mall. You can get all of the info on our website (link below) or pick up paperwork from our office or at your family conference later this week.

http://www.camelotacademy.org/summer-programs.php#edu-camp-details

ITEMS TO NOTE THIS WEEK:

- Classes run on Monday and Tuesday - ONLY.  We are closed for classes on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Middle and Upper School students will have homework assigned.  Optional Care is running on those days for Kindergarten- sixth grade students.  Please email Wendy to check on availability -  (wendy@camelotacademy.org).

- All Kindergarten, Jr and Sr MAPP and Middle Grades families are to schedule a conference.  Sign-up sheets are posted outside the classroom doors.  Upper School conference slots are fully booked.  Please email Ms. Lynne to be on a wait-list for any openings that may occur (lynne@camelotacademy.org).

- Please be sure to arrive a few minutes early as our time slots are tightly booked.  Middle and Upper School families should allow time to review student work before the conference.  Please be sure to come with your thoughts, comments and questions - we want this to be a valuable experience!

Please Note:  ALL MIDDLE AND UPPER SCHOOL STUDENTS ARE REQUIRED TO ATTEND THEIR CONFERENCES.

There are NO CLUBS THIS WEEK - including on Monday and Tuesday.  This is as per the published school calendar. When clubs resume next week we will welcome a few more members to Literary Magazine or the IPAD club.  Please contact Ms. Wendy if you are interested (wendy@camelotacademy.org).

Tomorrow (Monday) all Camelot athletes have been asked to attend a fundraising meeting with Ms. Krista from 3:15- 3:30 PM.  Please adjust your pick up time accordingly.

Please note that we are closed NEXT Monday, February 18, for President's Day.

UPCOMING:

Also, please mark your calendars for Friday, February 22nd from 5:30-8pm at which time the Camelot National Honor Society is hosting a science-themed Parents’ Night Out (we watch the kids - parents get a Friday night break!). This is perfect for a date night, catching up on errands, or just a relaxing evening at home. Kids arrive at 5:30, or just join us at the end of after-school for science games and activities, and dinner including pizza, juice or water, and a treat. PLEASE SIGN-UP ON THE SHEET POSTED IN THE BIG HALL.

Parents: send $5 for one-slice dinner or $7 for two-slice dinner.

Additional donations support Urban Ministries homeless shelter, soup kitchen, and rehabilitation center. Suggested donation: $10.

I look forward to seeing you in conference. Have a great week.

Camelot Update 2/3/13

Greetings! 

We had a great Open House yesterday - one of our biggest ever.  Thanks to Mr. Scott and all of the teachers for making it a successful event.  There's a lot of excitement and interest among people wanting to join our Camelot Family!

Exciting college news continues to roll in!

Congratulations to senior Josh Stallings on his acceptance to Miami University with a Presidential Scholarship of 96K!

Congratulations to senior Josh Pettway-Hinton on his acceptance to Baruch College of the City University of New York.

Congratulations to Liz Reeder on being awarded the 88K AJ Drexel Scholarship at Drexel University.

We send the showbiz wish-of-luck of "break a leg" to third grader Ephram Oliver.  He is performing in Durham Family Theatre's production of the musical Space Pirates! which runs the next two weekends.  Check out the theater website for more info:

http://durhamfamilytheatre.wordpress.com/

Last call for CLUBS - sign-up was due Friday but we'll accept forms on Monday morning before closing enrollment.  You can print out a form from our website here:

http://www.camelotacademy.org/admin/editor_assets/documents/2013s-clubs.pdf

Our birthdaywishes.org bake sale continues this week - and we should reach our fundraising goal in a few days! Please continue to send in individually wrapped baked goods.  This week Ms Amanda's class will once again manage the sale.

This week is going to be BIG, BIG, BIG!!

Monday:

Conference sign up opens for the whole school. 

- All classes are suspended for family conferences on February 13-15.

- All Lower and Middle School families are asked to schedule a conference. 

-In the Upper School we require conferences of juniors and also schedule times with students in other grades by faculty and family request. 

HERE'S HOW CONFERENCE SIGN-UP WORKS:

1) Lower and Middle School:

Kindergarten, JR MAPP, SR MAPP and Middle Grades teachers will have a sign up sheet posted outside their classroom as of PICKUP time on Monday afternoon.

NOTE:  There are a FEW Optional Care spaces available for K-6th grade students on these days.  Please contact Ms. Wendy (wendy@camelotacademy.org) to sign up, first come-first served!

2) Upper School

Families that wish to request a conference should send Ms. Lynne an email at lynne@camelotacademy.org  with some indication of day and time preference.  She'll confirm with you.

Tuesday:

Final Basketball Home Game and Spirit Day (wear your purple and gold!) and please send an email for Middle and Upper School students to be transported to the game as cheering fans!  Pick up at the JCC at 5:15 PM.  Congrats to the team on their Wednesday win!

Make Up Picture Day and sports team picture day.  See separate email sent this week from Wendy for details.  ONLY STUDENTS WHOSE PARENTS HAVE SENT AN EMAIL TO WENDY REQUESTING A PICTURE MAKE UP WILL BE SCHEDULED FOR A PICTURE.

Wednesday:

The Achieve Portal for parent grade access will close until Mid-Semester. 

Thursday:

PIE SUPPER - a HIGHLIGHT of the year - this unique Camelot potluck tradition is coupled with the Lower School Academic Fair.  ALL ACTIVITIES ARE HOUSED AT THE LYON PARK REC CENTER (1309 Halley St.). Please bring a pie (sweet, savory, pizza, etc) to share and plan to participate according to the schedule below.

5:15-6:15 - Lower and Middle Grades Families Dine

6:15-7 PM - Academic Fair projects open for viewing by the whole school (Lower School students are at their display boards "presenting" them to parents, family and friends.

6:30- 7:30 PM - Upper School Families Dine

I'll look forward to seeing you Thursday night at the Lyon Park Center.

Best,

Thelma