IMPORTANT
DATES
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May 9
10am
Veritas Family Day
at the Castle
May 22
Last Day of School
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FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL
August 31, 2015
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Iowa Tests Next Week
Students in the 3rd-6th grades will take the Iowa Test of Basic Skills next week. The Academy administers these tests solely to gauge our students' progress vis
à
vis our high standards. We do not report test results to anyone but parents, nor do we spend time studying for the tests. Your child should not feel apprehensive about these assessments. The students have done a marvelous job learning challenging material throughout the course of the year, and that is where our focus lies.
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Meeting at
Mount Olympus
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Recently a council was held at Mount Olympus (aka Victory Place) wherein the Greek and Roman gods and goddesses gathered to discuss important current issues. Celebrities in attendance included Athena, Eris, Achilles, Hermes, Hades, Poseidon, and others. Presiding over the proceedings was Zeus. Special thanks to our Latin teacher, Miss Andrews, for organizing the council.
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Spring Has Sprung
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Our school is filled with the sights and sounds of Spring. This week, a clucking cluster of baby chicks visited the preK through 2nd grade students.
In Mrs. Gale's class, the students are studying, observing, and writing about their class tree as it blossoms, as well as how butterflies change as they grow. The class has been watching 10 fabulously creepy, crawly caterpillars evolve from caterpillars to chrysalis to butterflies.
The 3rd and 4th graders have been busy spreading organic fertilizer for our garden and planting their germinated seedlings. They will soon "welcome" a shipment of 1000 worms that will go to work making our soil rich for our herbs, fruits, and vegetables.
Mr. Dschida's class gave presentations on the proper use of field guides (for flowers, trees, birds, and mushrooms), collected samples from our campus, and then classified them.
All in all, the students at the Academy are busy studying and experiencing the wonder of Spring.
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National Day of Prayer
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Today is the National Day of Prayer, an annual observance designated by Congress as a day to "turn to God in prayer and meditation." To teach us a little bit about the history of this day, Rev. Rodney Lord gave a short presentation and led us in prayer during the morning assembly. The picture above shows the "Appeal to Heaven" flag commissioned by George Washington during the American Revolution.
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Welcome to Veritas Classical Academy! Our mission is to develop the academic potential and personal character of each student through an academically rich educational experience.
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Sonnets, Shipwrecks, Songs, and Soliloquies
Our inaugural Spring Into Shakespeare was a beautiful event. To experience the Bard through a child's performance is a special experience. The video below captures many of the night's highlights. Thank you to all the parents, volunteers, and supporters for their help, and a big applause to our students and faculty.
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Spring Into Shakespeare 2015 |
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Thank you, Miss Andrews
Miss Kelsey Andrews will be leaving Veritas Classical Academy to pursue a graduate degree this fall. We thank her for her dedication this year and her Christian example. We wish her all the best.
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Check Out Our Full Curriculum!
Know what your kids are learning.
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Composer of the Month
Antonio Vivaldi
Perhaps best known for "The Four Seasons" violin concertos, Antonio Lucio Vivaldi was more than just a musical genius. He was a Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher, and cleric. Vivaldi received musical training and religious instruction from an early age. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1703. Because of his red hair he was nicknamed "il Prete Rosso" (the Red Priest). However, a chronic shortness of breath and other health problems prevented him from celebrating the Mass and he soon left the priesthood. The 17th and 18th century musician was a prolific composer, writing hundreds of works. He became one of the most influential and renowned figures in European classical music.
In celebration of springtime, enjoy Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" which begins with the Spring movement:
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Vivaldi - The Four Seasons (Nantes 2003) Europa Galante, Biondi |
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Steeped in Poetry
Iambic, dactylic, trochaic. spondaic, and anapestic meters - sound familiar? The 5th and 6th grade students are currently studying two of these poetic meters employed in the English language.
The students have learned how sound can help tell a story as in Edgar Allan Poe's "The Bells." They studied the iambic pentameter and the sonnet form while having a philosophical discussion about the fleeting nature of worldly greatness through Percy Bysshe Shelly's "Ozymandias." They mimicked the dactylic meter in Alfred Lord Tennyson's "The Charge of the Light Brigade" by "galloping" to every syllable and halting at each incomplete foot, and then they listened for the galloping effect in Franz Schubert's "Der Erlkönig". Poetry is anything but dull in Mr. Dschida's class!
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Learning About Russian Culture
Mrs. Rehl's 3rd and 4th grade students have started a new lesson in Russian history, this time, the rule of Catherine the Great. To supplement their history lesson, they had a special guest this week. Mrs. Diana McGraw, who grew up in Russia, shared with the class a little bit about Russian language and traditions. She then taught the students a Russian folk song, as well as some dance moves. Thanks, Mrs. McGraw, for sharing your lovely heritage with our students!
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"Truth can understand error, but error cannot understand truth."
- G. K. Chesterton
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Thank you again for your interest in our school. Please contact us if you have any questions or would like to schedule a private meeting.
Sincerely,
Kevin & Khadine Ritter (740) 629-7467
Austin & Wendy Rehl (740) 710-9045
Naresh & Melissa Nayak (740) 516-1784
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IUSTITIA PRUDENTIA FORTITUDO TEMPERANTIA
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