A Timeless Message
Dear FA Families,

A year ago, we gathered around our televisions to watch gigantic inflatables meander through New York City and Charlie Brown as we ate jelly beans and popcorn. Four centuries ago, the Wampanoags shared a Harvest Home celebration with European settlers that was shrouded in politics and forced diplomacy with a goal of temporary peaceful coexistence (sound familiar?). And this week will perhaps be the strangest Thanksgiving yet. 

Each of us are pining to see our friends and relatives, but for many we are barred from seeing them. Thanksgiving should be a time for seniors to tell their relatives about college plans, for freshmen to tell them about their first year in high school, for sixth graders to do the same for middle school and for everyone younger to commandeer the kids’ table. It’s never about what is at the table; it’s about who is around it. This Thanksgiving may be difficult ... it may be different ... but we still have so much for which we should be thankful.

I know all of us seniors are thankful for what’s to come in our futures, and we are especially thankful for Frederica granting us the ability to be confident and prepared. I know the teachers are thankful for the safe work environment that has been provided for them during an unsafe time, and they are certainly glad to go home to their families without worry about infection. We all should be thankful for our teachers and administrators who have pioneered through COVID-19 and continued dedicating their lives to giving the greatest gift one can receive -- education. 

Beyond that, there are still so many ways that we can continue to carry on Thanksgiving traditions. There is nothing stopping us from frying a big ol’ turkey in our driveways. We will all still pile our plates high and traverse the mountain of ham, turkey, dressing and sweet potato casserole. We will all still fill the table with our family units, sharing laughs, loves, hopes and dreams for ourselves and others less fortunate.

So, Thanksgiving may not be the same, but let's be thankful for its variety. We are given a chance to really use this holiday for its purpose by appreciating those who appreciate us. As students, having a heartfelt conversation with our parents only comes once in a blue moon, but Thursday is the perfect setting to tell them that we love them and appreciate them for everything they do for us.

That’s what this Thanksgiving is all about -- the intimacy and connection between the smaller, finer details. We can slow down this year and acknowledge the things that we often overlook. Besides, we still will have Charlie Brown and a Turkey Day Parade. Slow down and love this year, and have a happy Thanksgiving.

As seniors, we will come together again soon for another harvest celebration. Only 174 days until May 15, 2021.

Gratefully,

James Cruikshank
US Student Council President

This Week at Frederica
Click HERE to access this week's Knights Table Menu

Sunday @ 1:00 PM
US Thespians @ SoGlo Theater
Downtown Brunswick

Sunday @ 8:00 PM
Coach Brandon Derrick Radio Show at Porch

Monday @ 10:00 AM
US Advisory Announcements

Monday @ 3:30 PM
Sociedad Honoraria Hispánica
Mandatory Practice
Sea Island Green Tent

Monday @ 4:00 PM
MS Faculty Meeting
MS Academic Center

Monday @ 5:00 PM
Varsity Boys Basketball
@ Home vs. Kings Ridge Christian

Monday @ 6:00 PM
Spring Musical "Little Women"
Movie Night
Cast + Crew Invited
Terry Thomas Room

Tuesday @ 10:00 AM
Middle School Assembly

Tuesday @ 10:00 AM
Senior Class College Meeting
Sea Island Green Tent

Tuesday @ 1:00 PM
Cultural Awareness Club Meeting
College Counseling Center

Wednesday - Friday
Thanksgiving Break

Friday @ 7:30 PM
GISA AAA Varsity Football
First-Round Playoff Game
@ Bulloch Academy
Click HERE for Playoff Bracket
Bulloch will start selling tickets online on Tuesday.
Giving Thanks
Frederica Academy will release its 2019-2020 Donor Appreciation Report in early December. The publication expresses the school's appreciation to all of the donors, supporters, contributors, and volunteer leaders who helped make last year's school year such a success. Please review a DRAFT and let Brad Hutcherson know if we inadvertently omitted or inaccurately recorded a donation. Please note that the non-COVID-compliant photos in the report were taken during the 2019-2020 school year. Thank you!
Amazon Reminder
As you start your online holiday shopping, please remember to take advantage of the school's participation in the Amazon Smile program. Amazon shoppers who sign up for the program will help raise money for Frederica Academy. Amazon will donate 0.5% of the price of all eligible purchases. Please remember to link your enrollment to Frederica Academy. Thank you!
The Knights Table Menu
Click HERE for November Menu.

Click HERE for PK, K, and 1st Grade Lunch Order Form
TUESDAY DEADLINE
Cleaning Supply Drive
The Humane Society Teen Board is hosting a Cleaning Supply Drive for much needed cleaning materials for our Humane Society. The collection will run from Wednesday November 11 to Wednesday November 25. Please consider items such as paper towels, Clorox wipes, Fabuloso, Pine Sol, bleach, laundry detergent, Dawn dish soap, mops and Windex. Donation boxes are located in the Upper School Front Office.  

FRIDAY
Football Playoff Game
Bulloch will start selling a limited number of tickets to the game online starting on Tuesday. Please stay tuned for details.
NOVEMBER 30
FA Christmas Card Contest
Golden Isles FCA is offering the opportunity for a student in Middle School or Upper School to win a $100 Academy Sports gift card as well as an FCA Bible and a devotional.

Interested students are asked to design and submit an original Christmas Card for the 2020 Christmas season. The winning entry will be used by Golden Isles FCA (GIFCA) to send Christmas greetings to our supporters both by mail and online. By submitting an entry to the contest, all contestants give permission to GIFCA to reproduce and distribute their entries and the decisions of the judges are final.
 
Artwork submissions must have a Christmas message or theme, and the name of the artist needs to be included somewhere on card.
 
Mrs. Graham will engage FA Teachers to vote and select a winner from the Frederica submissions. Middle School and Upper School submissions are considered separately. FA's winning MS and US entries will be submitted to GIFCA, which will select an overall winner. Each school winner will receive either an FCA Bible or FCA devotional book.
 
The deadline for submitting your artwork to Mrs. Graham is Monday, November 30. 
DECEMBER 4 DEADLINE
Lands' End Sale
Congrats, Cate Seymour!
Cate Seymour was honored as this month's Student of the Month by the Rotary Club Brunswick last week during a virtual ceremony. Cate selected Mrs. Walbridge to join her as her Teacher Representative. She was also joined by her parents, Alisha and Jeff Seymour '87.

US Debate Club
On Saturday, the Upper School Debate Club participated in the Asheville High Cougar Classic, a multi-state, online speech and debate tournament sponsored by the Georgia Forensics Club Association league and sanctioned by the National Speech and Debate Association (NSDA).

Club President Roy Boyd, and Vice-President Spencer Sullivan competed in the Public Forum debate discussing the topic "No First Use" of nuclear weapons. In Speech events, sophomore Sydney Carroll entered the informative speech category and spoke about subliminal messaging in advertising. Debate Club co-advisors Dr. Nielsen and Ms. DiCenzo served as judges throughout the meet.

This year, debate meets are moderated online through the NSDA online campus. The club plans to attend future debate meets in December and January, as well as the GISA Literary tournament in March 2021.

US FCA Huddle
Taylor Childers was the guest speaker at last week's FCA Huddle. He spoke about thankfulness and reminded FCA members in attendance to find ways to thank themselves, thank others, and thank Our Father in heaven. Taylor serves as the Chaplain of the FA varsity football team.

Open Mic Night
Thank you to all of the outstanding performers and enthusiastic spectators who attended the Open Mic Night last week!
MS Spanish
¡VE DE PESCA!  

Sixth Grade and Seventh Grade Spanish students played ¡Ve de Pesca! or Go Fish using their vocabulary.
Third Grade Engineering
Third Grade students have been exploring solutions to reduce the impact of severe weather. Seawalls are an example of these solutions that are found in our community. Students use the engineering design process to imagine, plan, create, and test seawalls that may be found in other coastal communities. 
Second Grade Field Trip
Second Grade students had the opportunity to learn about their coastal home during a visit to Village Creek Landing last week.

Brooke Vallaster of Coastal Outdoor Adventures provided the students with hands-on experiences with coastal plants and animals, and Kathryn Vinyard guided students in a watercolor project depicting the area. Students learned about types of plants and animals that inhabit the marsh by collecting examples. The most exciting activity was participating in a dock study, where children gathered animals and plants with dip nets, cast nets and their hands. The field trip was a great opportunity to gain an up-close appreciation for our area.
Second Grade Star Students
The Second Grade Star Students last week were Olivia Hoover and Brelend Smith. Olivia and Brelend shared their "All About Me" posters with their classmates. Both Star Students worked hard to decorate their posters and did a wonderful job!
Our Stars also invited a guest reader. Olivia invited her brother Jack, who is in the Fourth Grade at FA. He read the book, There was an Old Lady Who Swallowed a Rose! 

Brelend invited his Dad, Breon Smith, and he read the book, Roar of a Snore. Congratulations to Olivia and Brelend!
Second Grade Heads West!
In reading, Second Grade students have been learning about the American West. First, they read a narrative nonfiction book detailing the fate of the buffalo during the Westward Expansion and their comeback under the oversight of President Theodore Roosevelt. Next, students read an informative text detailing the history and culture of the Plains Indians. Then, the students read a tale about the journey of a Pioneer family moving to the Oregon Territory in the time of the Westward Expansion. Finally, students read a legend about the Comanche People and a young girl who makes a decision to sacrifice her most important possession in order to help her tribe survive. Second Grade students made tipis and covered wagons, got to spend time reading in the class tipi, created booklets, and learned about arrowheads and the buffalo nickel. The students also watched the Little House on the Prairie pilot movie to learn more about life as a pioneer. Second Grade will continue with this module after Thanksgiving and continue to read a variety of texts that will increase knowledge about this time in American history.
First Grade Gives Thanks
First Grade students enjoyed a Harvest Celebration ceremony hosted by FA parents Valerie and Kevin Dunn on Friday.

Native Americans who first encountered the "pilgrims" at what is now Plymouth, Massachusetts play a major role in the imagination of American people today. Contemporary celebrations of the Thanksgiving holiday focus on the idea that the "first Thanksgiving" was a gathering of two disparate groups who shared a meal and lived harmoniously.

First Grade students have learned that the assembly of these people had much more to do with political alliances, diplomacy, and an effort at rarely achieved, temporary peaceful coexistence. These students now have a better understanding that the Thanksgiving celebrated today is more a combination of Puritan religious practices and the European festival called Harvest Home, which then grew to encompass Native foods.
First Grade Snowmen
Mrs. Cathey's First Grade class made snowmen last week in Art class. The highlight was using a sponge to stamp on the snow at the end!

Tinker Time
Students enjoyed building and creating together one last time during the after-school club Tinker Time. Cardboard creations were a favorite with this group! 
FA Athletic Schedules
December Events
November 30 @ 3:15 PM
Spanish Honor Society Induction
Sea Island Green Tent

December 2 @ 3:30 PM
All-School Faculty Meeting
Gym

December 4

December 5 (Morning)
SAT Exam at Glynn Academy

December 5 (Afternoon)
Middle School Chorus
Brunswick Christmas Parade

December 7 @ 6:00 PM
Middle School Treble Choir
King & Prince Hotel

December 8
NHS Induction Ceremony
(State Cross Country Runners)

December 8-10
MS + US Exam Review

December 10
Kona Ice Truck @ Lunch

December 11
9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
MS + US Science Exams + Early Dismissal

December 11
First Grade Christmas Celebration
Jekyll Island Club Resort

December 12 (Morning)
ACT Exam

December 14
9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
MS + US Math Exams + Early Dismissal

December 14 @ Noon
Photos with Santa (Kindergarten)
Sea Island Green

December 14 @ 1:00 PM
Jingle Bell + Giving Tree Celebration
Grades 2+3
Sea Island Green

December 14 @ 1:45 PM
Photos with Santa (Grades 2+3)
Sea Island Green

December 15
9:00 AM - 11:00 AM
MS + US World Languages Exams + Early Dismissal

December 15 @ 11:00 AM
Photos with Santa (Pre-K)
Sea Island Green

December 15 @ 11:45 AM
Early Dismissal (PK, K, 1, 2, 3)

December 15 @ Noon
Jingle Bell + Giving Tree Celebration
Grades 4+5
Sea Island Green

December 15 @ 12:45 PM
Photos with Santa (Grades 4+5)
Sea Island Green

December 15
Early Dismissal for Grades 4+5
(Conclusion of Christmas Programs)

December 16
MS + US Make-Up Exams
Faculty + Staff Workday

December 16 - January 6
Student Christmas Break

December 17 - January 4
FA Employee Christmas Break

December 29 (Evening)
First Semester Grades Posted

January 4-5, 2021
Faculty + Staff Workdays
FA Social Media
Click HERE to access the 2020-2021
At-A-Glance Master Calendar.