Weekly Update #2

We have had a fantastic week two of DECATS!

We are currently experiencing a high number of late arrivals and early pickups, which has created challenges in ensuring student safety and adequate staff coverage.

To help us keep all students safe, we are asking families to follow these updated procedures:

• Late Arrivals: Students arriving late should be dropped off at 12:00 PM (noon). This allows us to ensure staff are available to receive them properly.

• Early Pickups: If a student needs to leave early, they must be picked up at 12:00 PM (noon) as well.

We do not have any front office staff, and we have had situations where students were dropped off without anyone being notified or present to receive them. We’ve also had parents waiting at the front doors without assistance, which creates safety concerns.

By consolidating late arrivals and early pickups to noon, we can ensure someone is available at the front doors and maintain a safe environment for all.

Thank you for your understanding and support as we work together to keep our students safe.

Thanks for allowing us to work with your kids this summer. We look forward to more fun next week!

6/13 - Tacky Beach/Tourist Day

This week, scholars put their engineering skills to the test by designing and building 3D marble mazes using paper, cardboard, glue, and lots of tape. They focused on creating dynamic features like sharp marble drops, swirling bowls, and tight twists and turns.

Scholars design and test their launchers (slingshots, catapults, and trebuchets) seeking the right combination of forces to engineer fun and challenging levels of DECATS Angry Birds.

This week at Brain Teasers, students put their minds and teamwork to the test with an outdoor marble relay and a variety of puzzles, including plexers, Wordle, and math pyramids. Through collaboration and creativity, they sharpened their problem-solving skills while also having a fit of fun competition!

This week, scholars worked together to build a paper bridge strong enough to hold a given weight requirement.

This week in Codezilla, our campers are diving into the world of coding! They’re learning how to animate characters, add dialogue, and create movement using beginner-friendly programming tools. It’s been amazing to see their creativity come to life as they build and explore their own digital stories. Even better—they're sharing their discoveries with friends and helping each other problem-solve along the way!

Scholars design and create bridges in minecraft, and work together to share each other’s world.

This week at DECATS Camp, our students have been learning different methods of evidence collection. They have practiced using hair, fingerprints, teeth impressions, and tool marks to identify the culprit.

Scholars studied house floor plans and architectural design symbols before creating floor plans for their own dream houses. They produced detailed drawings that included both exterior views and interior layouts.

In Week 2 of Broadway, we explored a variety of play styles from the rhythmic beats of Space Travel Rap (a class favorite) to the classic folktale Stone Soup. Students experimented with storytelling, character voices, and movement, building confidence and creativity on stage.

This week we started learning about different spells and charms that could be used in duals or just everyday life and they created their own or ranked current ones on Monday. On Tuesday each student took a Patronus test to see what their unique Patronus is. A Patronus is the animal that is presented and acts as a shield when a witch or wizard is in contact with a Dementor. Wednesday, the students finally got to put their magic to use and participated in friendly duals against each other. Thursday the students created their own Howlers, wrote a message, and released them outside. Howlers are a magical letter that witches and wizards receive and is read out in the writer's voice. Lastly, on Friday, the students will finally be able to participate in the feast!

Students used coding to program robots to follow patterns, sense when to stop, and push materials from one place to another.

Students chose a country to represent in the Olympics. They learned about the traditional order of the games and prepared for the Opening Ceremonies.

Aeronautical engineers in the house! Scholars used thrust, drag, weight, gravity, air and lift to create a form of flight to save Jack and his treasures from the Beanstalk.

This week, students engaged in a variety of interactive role-play activities inspired by the Middle Ages. On Monday, they began designing and building Viking ships. On Tuesday, they tested their creations by placing them in water and measuring how far they could travel in 15 seconds.

On Wednesday, using the swords they crafted last week, students made shields and bows and arrows in preparation for a reenactment of the Battle of Hastings (1066 CE).

Thursday’s activity focused on the medieval tax system. Students were assigned roles and acted out how taxes were collected: serfs produced goods on their farms, knights collected from the serfs, nobles gathered taxes from the knights, and ultimately, the nobles paid tribute to the king.

Finally, on Friday, students began constructing castles inspired by designs from the Medieval period.

Through the DCATS World Cup, the athletic scholars are working with teammates to develop formations and strategies that benefit the collaborative effort of the team on the field.

1. If your student needs a fork or spoon for their lunch, please send it with them. We do not have access to any of these.
2. Follow the Advanced Academics page on Facebook for pictures.