Thursday, June 21, 2007

Fort Belvoir Elementary ends year with graduation

Kindegarten students graduated with a celebration of songs on stage at Belvoir Elementary. Each class performed before a gym filled with proud parents and relatives.

After 183 days of classes, Fort Belvoir Elementary School let students out for the last time in the 2006-2007 school year on Monday. 

Enrollment totaled 1,269 kindergarteners through sixth graders. Many of those students already have big plans for the summer including traveling, swimming and reading.

“I like [being able] to spend time with family,” said Jacob Demeritt, 9.

The third-grader is especially looking forward to visiting with his grandmother and aunt who are coming to visit from Tucson, Ariz. He also plans to spend his summer days swimming and having water gun and water balloon fights with his sister and two brothers.

“My favorite part [of summer] is I don’t have school,” said fourth-grader Renisha Wiggins, 10, who will travel to Florida as part of her family’s yearly vacations. Last year they all traveled to Connecticut.

For the sixth-grade students, this year marks their last in the elementary school. During the transition to middle school many will go to several different schools in Fairfax County and some friends may even be separated, but many will keep in touch at Fort Belvoir’s Youth Services over the summer.

Imani Graves, 11, and Spencer Moore, 12, are both sixth graders that will spend most of their summer at Youth Services enjoying a multitude of activities.

“Youth Services is my favorite place [in the summer],” said Graves, who will also go to her aunt’s house in Newport News, Va.

Moore will spend time in Kentucky with his grandfather and enjoy the fact that there are “no teachers to chew you out when you do something wrong” during vacation.

The teachers also enjoy their summer vacations and use their time in a variety of ways.

Frank Weiss, an art teacher, will spend his summer working on his house, taking an art class at Virginia Commonwealth University, visiting friends and working with his horses.

“It’s nice getting a change in routine,” Weiss said. “Changes in routine are very important and [everyone] should enjoy their summer break that fewer and fewer schools are doing.”

His advice to children over the summer is to enjoy building sand sculptures at the beach and get out in nature. Weiss highly recommends summer camps that can lead to jobs for older students and new friends for everyone.

Deborah Conley, a first-grade teacher, uses the summer to prepare for the next school year.

“[I’m looking forward] to gearing up for next year and looking ahead to the fall and the unknown,” she said.

In addition, she will spend vacation time with her own children by taking them to Kings Dominion, swimming pools and the library.

As for the next school year the doors will reopen in September and another year of learning and teaching will begin, but this year will never be forgotten.