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 Citywide 7th Grade Poetry Contest at the Regional Arts Commission
We are very proud to have had one of our 7th grade students, Lan Troung represent SLCS at the citywide poetry reading contest held on May 4th. Please read her beautiful and thought-provoking poem below. SLCS congratulates her on a wonderful job!
Till Death Do Us Part
It’s something everybody faces,
leaving a scar that never erases.
It’s a disease you cannot heal,
a painful, hard ordeal.
We all see it coming,
never a point in running.
Life catches up to us,
so don’t be in a rush.
We’ve all lost in the past,
only to feel that sharp contrast.
What does it feel like when you’re the one,
losing a friend, grandpa, mother, or son?
A heartache that can’t be defined,
harsher than a Valentine you can no longer call “mine.”
All that is known is “Till death do us part,”
while the rest lies deeply within our hearts.
-Quynh-lan Truong
This event is the result of the nation’s first all-inclusive 7th grade poetry writing contest held in a major city, in which invitations to participate were extended to every charter, parochial, private and public school located in the City of St. Louis, Missouri. Of the 48 schools with 7th grade classrooms, 43 voluntarily asked their students to submit their best poem to have a chance to be declared the winning 7th grade poet in their school. In addition to the winning poets selected by the schools, two students were named “Honorable Mention” by the organizer of the event. The 45 poems read the evening of May 4, 2011 represented and welcomed the diversity of creativity, wisdom and emotions that 7th grade students can share with their peers and their community. During the poetry reading event, guests got to hear the voices in written words come alive. The event was filmed to provide an opportunity for others to share in the experience and to learn from it. The film of the event will first air on STL TV, the cable channel of the City of St. Louis, and then will be made available for viewing on YouTube, giving the world access to this type of educational literary arts programming. Each winning poet received a $25 cash prize and a book containing all 45 poems. A copy of this book will also be provided to each school’s library and to every branch of the St. Louis Public Library.
International Space Station Contact An Out-Of-This-World Experience!
On Thursday, November 11th one hundred lucky middle school students were selected to make radio contact with astronauts aboard the International Space Station! The students gathered in the Intermediate Cafeteria to have a unique opportunity to learn about wavelength and frequency, the solar system and benefits of having the International Space Station, as well as developing critical thinking skills as scientists.
The permanently orbiting space lab was orbiting directly over our area, allowing our students to make radio contact and participate in "space talk" with the astronauts. Pupils in grades 6-8 prepared 20 questions to ask the astronauts. Students in the rest of the school were provided an audio link so they could listen to their classmates participate in the conversation with the astronauts aboard the International Space Station. Parents were also welcomed to attend this amazing opportunity that was three years in the making!
The following writing samples are from the SLCS students who recently were given the rare and exciting opportunity to talk live with the astronaut aboard the International Space Station.
"The Space Station opportunity seems like a once in a lifetime experience! It was pretty cool observing students asking an astronaut, who was actually in space, questions."
Kara, 8th grade student
"This was an incredible experience for me! I thought it was amazing how we could talk to the astronauts while they were in space! I learned many new things about the I.S.S. such as: they are 300 kilometers from Earth and that they have to take sponge baths!
Sydney, 8th grade student
"When I was able to ask the astronaut questions, I was thrilled because I knew that this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! It was especially incredible knowing that the astronauts were in space, right above our heads! I will never forget this experience!
Endri, 8th grade student
 
We would like to thank everyone who helped make this very special learning opportunity happen. We would like to extend special thanks to Amy Perrot, 6th grade science teacher, Callie McAleenan, 7th grade science teacher and Carrie Viviano, 8th grade science teacher in partnership with Brian Grider and Amateur Radio on the International Space Station (ARISS) www.ariss.org.
   
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Where Our Graduates Are Headed
A few words from Dr. Schrimpf
As Head of Middle School, I feel a great sense of both honor and responsibility in helping shepherd our students through their final years at SLCS. A big part of this is helping students prepare for high school. Families who are new to SLCS often ask where our graduates attend high school. The best answer I can offer is that our mission is to prepare our students academically and socially to pursue any path they choose for high school and beyond. We want our students to be able to attend the high school of their choice and thrive there. As a result, we measure success by the number of competitive entrance or "choice" high schools that our students attend each year. Past SLCS students have been accepted to the following high schools:
Bishop DuBourg
Career Academy
Cleveland Junior Naval Academy
Confluence Academy
Desmet High School
Lift for Life Academy
Metro
Notre Dame
Soldan International Studies
Cardinal Ritter
Central Visual & Performing Arts High School
Christian Brothers College High School
Construction Career Center
Gateway High School
McKinley
Nerinx Hall
Rosati Kain
St. Mary's High School
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