Extracurriculars End for the Season

Since last fall, the extracurricular activities at Woodward Academy have taken place after school, 4 nights a week.  This time around, the goal was to produce a "final product" that students could work towards while engaging in the various activities.  Last Friday marked the end of this extracurricular cycle and each group was able to show off their products in the afternoon as other students viewed their presentations.  Read more after the jump to look at this year's events.

Art Club:
Art is something that is intrinsic in a lot of students at Woodward Academy.  As an extension of the art class, this after school activity is a structured way for students to explore different methods of art and are able to express themselves in a variety of ways.  It is taught by the art teacher, Cassie Kendzora, and takes on a more student centered, hands-on, exploratory way of learning.

One of the most notable activities included their clay molding work.  In lieu of a kiln, Ms. Kendzora supervised the firing of the student's clay work in a metal trash bin.  In her opinion, it was a suitable substitute and in itself served as a good teaching tool for students in that art form.

Last week an art exhibit was set up in the school library and on Friday, as a part of the final day festivities, many of the art students dressed up and showcased their pieces.  They talked with other students and staff members and explained their artistic process.  To see more of their work, they also created an online website that you can view by clicking here.

Journalism:
Developing journalistic skills can be very valuable to students as it helps them intertwine a number of different skill sets into one product.  Combining concise writing, photography, and interpersonal skills, students developed the online and print form of an on campus newspaper called "The Knightly Inquirer."

Borrowing from his own journalism experience, extracurricular and economics teacher Tushar Rae helped students acquire the necessary skills to develop such a large product.  Rae really wanted to use this structured opportunity to mask the fact that he really wanted to give students additional help in writing.  But students really took to the idea and made it their own.  

Taking a newspaper's approach to documenting news, students were divided into different sections where they specialized in one area (sports, photography, opinions, etc.).  In the end, they produced a great snapshot of WA life over the course of their extracurricular time and have it documented in print and online.  On Friday, they gave presentations of the work they did and you can view the website they built by clicking here.

Drama:
One thing that comes out of teen-aged boys is the fact that they often like to be loud and express themselves.  What better way to do that than through a theatrical performance.  Megan Vorwald, case manager on Mountaineer Hall, got a handful of boys to do just that by recreating the perfect adolescent boy story, "The Sandlot."

From reciting lines, to costumes, to set production, the Sandlot turned out to be an enjoyable experience.  They presented the play on campus on Friday and turned around and did it again for parents and guests the next day on Saturday.  One of the more remarkable aspects of it was how great they really were.  Drawing on cues from one another and moving different set pieces around for various scenes, the production reminded you of the 1993 movie that is timeline in many of our minds.

Reflecting on the performance, Vorwald said "My entire goal with performing a play at Woodward Academy was to give the kids of sense of what it would be like to perform a production in a traditional high school setting.  I feel that this was accomplished, not by me, but by the effort and energy that the group of students presented throughout the entire extracurricular."

You can view more images from from last Friday by clicking here.