STAR PrepAcademy  

 

Filled with school day events and plenty of new faces the Academy environment has been a buzz with exciting energy and new ideas.

 

March got off to a great start with student led conferences and a chance for some face-to-face time between families and the STAR Prep teachers. These conferences are always a great time to check in on academic progress and make sure that students are receiving all of the help that they need at home and at school.

 

In the vein of communication, STAR Prep held a parent meeting to discuss administrative updates, brainstorm about the vision of the school and discuss the value of word of mouth marketing. As a school, it was wonderful for us to have an opportunity to hear the positive feedback on the programs.  The insights of our parent community are incredibly important and we appreciate all of those that took time to join us in brainstorming new ideas for continuing to grow our programs and community.

 

March has additionally been a month for the Academy to grow and diversify its community picture with visiting students from Japan.  It was an honor to host Honaka Ihara for the entire month of March. Honaka (the students also called her “May” because she was born in May) was here from February 23rd to March 23rd as a Japanese honor recipient from the Minister of Culture.  Her joy and enthusiasm for robotics and its assistance with the aging population added to our community of learners, and thanks to her visit, some of our Prep students were also able to explore her passion in robotics. With special coding workshops and guest speaker Bob Barboza and his Nao robots, there were plenty of discoveries this month.  

 

This week the halls have been filled with the beautiful laughter of another 26 Japanese students that are visiting for the week.  STAR Prep students have been amazing “buddies”, helping them navigate the classes and special activities that our Dean of Fun (AKA Tery) has been coordinating.  From Samba classes and drum circles, to art classes, chess, and creating awesome emoji t-shirts, to flex time STEAM workshops, there hasn't been a dull moment!

 

Other notable moments in March include STAR Prep students participating in the Hackathon at Immaculate Heart, The STAR Prep Administration networking at the California Association for the Gifted Conference in San Diego, the recording class visiting Kill the Messenger Sound Studio, STAR Prep girls celebrating Women’s History Month with a special excursion to Milky’s Frozen Yogurt and the STAR Prep Coding event which was led by student leaders Thomas Suarez and Donavan Coleman.

 

This month we'll end on a high note with the performance of the Diavolo and Theatre students at Mimoda Dance Space.  These students have been working throughout the year tirelessly to hone their craft, and we are looking forward to seeing the entire community at the performance.  Watching the students hard work, leading up to these performances, has been such a reminder that the arts genuinely provide a foundation for learning by instilling grit and perseverance.  By the way, theatre space is connected to Paper and Plastik, a great little cafe, so get there early and enjoy their food (show starts at 6:30).

 

We hope you all have a fabulous break!  Due to our continuing partnerships in and around LA, we have free tickets to Magicopolis on Saturday, March 31, for both the 2:00 and 8:00 shows, 4 tickets per family, so maybe we’ll see each other there, in Santa Monica!

 

We can't wait to see you back on April 9th!  

 

Here's To Spring:

Author: Unknown

​

Hush, Can you hear it?

The rustling in the grass,

Bringing you the welcome news

Winter's day is past.

Soft, Can you feel it?

The warm caressing breeze,

Telling you the sticky buds

Are bursting on the trees.

Look, Can you see them?

The primrose in the lane,

Now you must believe it -

Spring is here again.