Wendy Readling, coach of the "Food Science" team for Davidson IB's Science Olympiad, watches Jacob Pilsbury test chemicals for proteins.

Take out your rulers and put on your goggles — this week’s Around Davidson is dedicated to science and math and some of the people in our town who help make those subjects exciting for kids.  We’ve chosen this special focus because Saturday will be a day when both subjects will be on display in a special way for Davidson folks.  Math professors at Davidson College will give their own twist to bracketology by offering “March MATHness” to the 6th through 12th grade crowd.  Kids and teachers will be able to learn math through mime and more and there’s still time to register.

Meanwhile, keep your fingers crossed for Davidson IB Middle’s Science Olympiad team, which will be competing at UNC-Charlotte.  We spent an afternoon with some of the the team members and were dazzled by their high-tech science skills.  Good luck, DIB Dragons! Read the full story

The flurry of departure for parents of Davidson Elementary fifth graders was made a bit easier by Steve Vetrone, who set up a free coffee stand in the bus loading area. Mr. Vetrone is a manager at Summit Coffee and the father of Morrigan Vetrone, one of the fifth graders on the 2010 D.C. tour.

A caravan of buses rolled out of Davidson Elementary at 6:15 Wednesday morning, headed for the nation’s capital. The school’s entire fifth-grade will spend the next three days in a whirlwind tour that will take in the Smithsonian museums, Arlington Cemetary, the Holocaust Museum, national memorials, the White House and even a meeting with Congressman Mel Watt on the steps of the Capitol. Trip coordinator Thomas Underhill said this year’s tour includes a total of 216 students, parent chaperones and teachers.

We hope they all stay warm!  Meanwhile, School Notes this week has reports on the new library at McKinney Academy, recognition for Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools’ North Area Superintendent Monique Gardner-Witherspoon, poster contest winners at Woodlawn, a new LKN Rotary Club scholarship for high school seniors, and a Davidson IB teacher in the news.  All that plus a calendar of events, including the upcoming Run Too Overcome 5K.

The predawn departure of four busloads of Davidson Elementary fifth-graders, bound for a three-day tour of D.C.

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The 3 presenters for the Davidson IB Middle Future City team posed with judges and their winning model. From left, judge Catherine McKalip-Thompson, Emily Yue, judge Kenny Warren, Luke Churchill, judge Sanna Gaspard, Ruth Swallow, and judge Blaine D. Leonard. (Vera Yue photo)

By LAURIE DENNIS
DavidsonNews.net

First came the breathtaking news that they were in the top five, announced at a gathering in a hotel conference room in Washington, D.C. and immediately passed along by emails and cell phones to friends and family back in Davidson.

Then came a final round of presentations before a panel of judges. Finally, at a mid-morning awards ceremony Tuesday, Davidson IB Middle’s Future City team was named the best in the nation. Read the full story

A special Thanksgiving meal for the staff at Community School of Davidson.

Parent volunteers at Community School of Davidson used the Thanksgiving holiday as a chance to offer a special “thanks” to their teachers, serving up a full holiday meal during a “Thanks for Giving” luncheon (see photo at left).

The charter school does not have a separate cafeteria, so teachers usually eat with their students in their classrooms.  The Nov. 18 luncheon transformed the gym into a dining room, with elegant place settings and a buffet line.

“This gives the teachers some time together,” said parent volunteer Eileen Simon.

School Notes this week includes news of state chorus honors for two Cannon students, Joanna Copio and Stephen Metz, plus an update on the charity golf tournament organized by two Woodlawn students, Scott Murr and Darius Knott, and news of a special plaque for Gethsemane Baptist from Davidson’s newest football team.  We have the honor roll from Davidson IB Middle, and calendar listings of events at “Christmas in Davidson” and more. Read the full story

Our school notes this week include the dates for upcoming flu clinics at local public schools, and also news of Ben Wyatt of Woodlawn’s winning poster in a local Lions Club contest and Michael Sanders of Cannon’s successful golf season in U.S. Kids Golf.  We also have a calendar of upcoming events, including North Meck’s 3rd annual Chili Cook-off, set for Thursday afternoon. Read the full story

What's with all the ping pong balls being dropped onto Woodlawn School? See below to find out.

Fall is fund-raiser time for area schools.  We have several to report on, including Woodlawn‘s “Fun at 5,” and the Bailey Middle kids at the farmer’s market.  We also have news below of Davidson Day artwork on display, a meet-and-greet planned for the principal of the new Bailey Road High School, CMS school board election updates and classes being offered through Davidson Parks & Rec for the CMS school holiday next week.

In sports, find out about Davidson Day’s volleyball tourney, Woodlawn’s successful soccer team and Bailey’s undefeated girls sports teams.  We have all that plus an events calendar that lists the Davidson IB fall fest Friday, a seminar on “Internet Safety,” a holiday bazaar at Cannon and more.

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Davidson Elementary Tigers on the Prowl program founders Lynn Hennighausen and Walter Rabb had plenty to smile about at Friday's kickoff event.

School calendars are now in full swing, and ours is bursting with events – from the McKinney Academy Golf Tournament to the Woodlawn School Family Fun fundraiser to the North Meck horticultural club pansy sale and the Bailey Middle community blood drive.  Whew!

Besides our monthly calendar, we have news this week of a special honor for Davidson IB math teacher Cameron Swallow, the  IB students named Samaritan’s Feet ambassadors, times for local school board candidate forums, and news of AP scholars at Woodlawn.

All that, plus Tigers on the Prowl photos and sports scores. Read the full story