I hope everyone is doing well. I have decided to stay in Washington and did not travel with the students to Spain. They all arrived safely and made their first visits to the host school. Tomorrow, they have a hike planned and according to messages from Oyster families and chaperones, they are having a wonderful time and their flight, train ride and layovers went well. Below please find some highlights from this week and updates on future happenings.

Our 4th graders visited Philadelphia earlier this week. They had a great time and learned lots about the history of how this country was founded and about the critical role Philadelphia played in that history. I also wanted to shout out to the 4th grade team for how they handled some difficult logistical issues on their return. There were issues with two of the three buses scheduled to provide the return service for our students and because of the issues students ended up waiting for hours for new buses to arrive in Philadelphia to bring our students back home. The 4th grade team did a wonderful job of improvising to provide entertainment, food and safety for our students during this unexpected pause to their trip. 4th Grade team and parent chaperones, thanks for being at your best when we needed you the most.

Today we finished up our CAPE science testing with grades 5 and 8. They are the only students taking the Science portion of the CAPE test. AP Hawkins and AP Morad have done a great job getting the testing started and working through the technical glitches that always present themselves at the start of these types of tests. Also, I wanted to send some love to our teachers and teacher partners who have supported our students during this week’s testing. Remaining calm and supportive for the students is the first step in ensuring our students’ success. Next week we will be beginning Math testing for all students in grades 4 and 5.

Shout out to Anika Pinol who is in the 6th grade and whose artwork has been chosen to be displayed on Metro buses throughout the DC metropolitan area. She is one of 15 students through the district who submitted art and had her artwork selected from hundreds of other applicants. Congrats to Anika and her family as she continues to amaze us with her artistic talents.

Just as a quick reminder that there is no school for students tomorrow April 5th. Teacher and staff will be on site receiving professional development, making final adjustments to the final units for term 4 and grading the last of the term 3 student work in preparation to submit term 3 grades that should be ready to publish the week of April 22nd.

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to visit the Oyster Science expo. It was the highlight of my day. The projects the students created in grades Pre-K through 3rd were wonderful. Students created some cool simple machine such as pulleys and ramps, there were display boards with ideas of how to practice the 3Rs (Recycle, reduce and reuse) to improve the environment, models of sturdy bridges, composting displays and many as well as many other thoughtful projects. A special thanks to Mrs. Bustios, Ms. Starks and Mrs. Hurtado for the work in organizing and executing this Science expo as well as all the teachers at Oyster who provided the opportunity and support to our students and making this a successful experience for all our students at Oyster.

This week was Assistant Principal Appreciation Week. I wanted to publicly thank my three APs for all the work they do. I know that Oyster Adams would not be what it is without their strong commitment to our mission and vision as well as the love they have for our students and community. Rosa, Daniela and Kendrick, thanks for everything you do. If you have the opportunity, please reach out to our APs and let them know that they are appreciated.

The two track meets that were scheduled this week have been cancelled due to the weather. Once there are make-up dates communicated to us, we will let families who have students on the Adams track teams know the make-up dates.

At the main entrance there is a wonderful display that summarizes the history of the oyster campus, and this project was students led and supported by teachers at the Oyster campus. The project was also supported by a DC based non-profit called The Story of our Schools. With the help of Mr. Burch, Alice Sheldon, and Emma Arons we have applied to have a similar display constructed at the modernized Adams campus. The application was submitted earlier this week, and we are waiting to see if we are selected to take on this project and allow our students to learn more about the history of the Adams campus building and the Adams Morgan neighborhood. Wish us luck on being selected.

Wishing you all a great rest of the week.