Special thanks to Mrs. Gajewski, Mrs. Weise, and Mrs. Guiliari for helping with this week's pictures!

The first grade concluded a study of communities and all of the components that are need to make a good town or city. Here are some photos from "Geraciville".

The fourth grade continued their study of colonial American with presentations from different craftsmen, such as the blacksmith, printer, silversmith, glassblower, cobbler, and many more.

Junior kindergarten put on a play about the Mayflower, and shared some soup together in a Thanksgiving meal.

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The Geodome construction is progressing and this week the 4th and 8th grade prayer buddies helped with the project. All of the framing is now up and the heating panels will be installed next.

6th grade social studies continued their study of Ancient China with the battle over the rich minerals of the Huang He River. The boys used the trebuchet which they constructed and launched the weapons to sink the ships of the invading General Qin Shidung's mercenary army.

Prayer buddies got together on Wednesday and spent timing doing various activities, including reading to each other, working on the Geodome, and organizing all of the donated Halloween candy for the food pantry.

Mrs. Walradt reports that second graders learned about wind speed by making and manipulating pinwheels.

Dr. Warms reports that the sixth grade social studies classes are finishing a unit on Ancient China. Recreating one aspect of the Warring Period is the goal as the boys wrestle with the theme of conflict and cooperation in designing a course of action to deal with a crisis. The crisis involves villagers living along the Huang He River. For hundreds of years their ancestors have farmed and worked the rich minerals into jade and bronze. Today their very existence is threatened by hordes of conscripts in General Qin Shidung’s mercenary army whose goal is possessing their land in the name of the blood thirsty general. Readings from Sun Tzu on the Art of War as well as background about Chinese castle ships and barges were referenced by the boys as they prepared a strategic plan for meeting the coming crisis. Building trebuchets are part of the boys’ preparation for confounding the plans of the evil warlord.

An all-time favorite event, this year's Lower School Halloween Parade was a big success. Once again the parade was led by Middle School drummers, under the direction of Mr. Britt. After the parade, the boys returned to their classrooms for their Halloween parties, which were planned and hosted by class parents.

Cross County coach Emily Robinson presents the 2nd place Ed Scott Invitational trophy to athletic director Paul Clewell at assembly this week. The cross country team finished the season with a record of 6-0, and 2nd place finishes in both the Ed Scott Invitational and Princeton Charter Tournaments. The trophy is displayed in the Trophy Case in the Athletic and Convocation Center lobby.

Soccer "A"
The soccer "A" team had a successful season in 2008 although the team's record did not actually reflect their effort and achievement as a team. The team was lead by the play of twelve dedicated eighth graders. At times, this group of boys showed great leadership, sportsmanship, and determination to have success on the soccer field. The team's defense stymied many opponents and even tallied a shutout. When the offense was playing its best, they were relentless. Overall, the team had a good season and coach Stevens is looking forward to next season.

Soccer "B"
This year's B team showed tremendous promise throughout the season. They never once gave up or hung their heads, even when the results didn't go their way. Spanning three grades, years, and almost three feet in height, this team had a little bit of everything. The 4/4/2 formation was a natural fit for the sprinting speed up top at striker and the wide halfbacks, the endurance of two center halfbacks and a stopper, and great defensive play of fullbacks with a fast sweeper. The record of 1-6-1 doesn't line up with the amount of progress these guys made as a team. They learned to play their positions, to work together, and to stay spread out on the field. These are lessons that go a long way in soccer, and coach Trowbridge looks forward to picking up where this team left off this year.

Cross Country
Princeton Academy's cross country team had a very successful season. We had several runners step up to fill the shoes that were left empty by last year’s graduating eighth graders. There was also some incredible leadership shown by this year's eighth graders. We were undefeated, 6-0 in our league meets. The team ran in two invitational meets and achieved second place in both of these larger competitions. The most incredible facet of this team is its depth. We had numerous team members unable to run at various points in the season due to injury or illness. Without exception, every time this happened, someone would step up to fill the hole. Each and every runner dramatically improved his times from the beginning of the season to the end. There was never a disappointing performance from this team. While we will surely miss our eighth graders next year, there is much to look forward to as our younger runners return for another season.

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What a difference a week makes! From warm sunny days and gorgeous fall foliage, to snow, rain, and bare trees! Take a look at our ever-changing campus...

The lower school environmental club presented a play at assembly this week. The play was about the differences between a landfill, a compost pile, and recycling and the types of things that belong in each. The lower school will soon start a compost pile, under the direction of Mrs. Verdu.

Prayer buddies from middle and lower school spent time together during activity period recently. They were outdoors playing games and having fun.

The 8th annual Reading Harvest Pumpkin Drawing was held at lower school assembly on Wednesday. Mrs. Dowling reported that 865 books had been read by the lower school this year! The Pumpkin Fairy, an anonymous donor, will donate $1 to the library for each book read. Mrs. Dowling will order books, which the boys will help to choose. Each boy participating in the Reading Harvest had a chance to win 1 of 7 pumpkins. Every boy received a Halloween pencil and bookmark as recognition for their participation. Mrs. Dowling said it best: "You're all winners, because you all read books!"

The 8th grade science classes have been studying the trees on Princeton Academy's campus to determine which species are native to the area and which trees have been introduced to the area. They recently presented their scientific findings to the lower school.

Click to download and print a PA athletic jacket order form.

PRINCETON ACADEMY ATHLETIC JACKETS

Order by next Friday, November 7th for holiday delivery!!

Boathouse Sports Jackets
Two color jacket: navy blue bottom & forest green upper
Princeton Academy logo on upper left front
PRINCETON ACADEMY ATHLETICS silk screened on back
Optional personalization (name) on upper right front
Suplex fabric - water repellent/extremely breathable
Fully lined with moisture wicking mesh
Orbital shoulder gussets
Open cape back for added ventilation
Welt pockets & elastic cuffs
Drawstring waist / full zipper

Base Price: $82.00
Personalized: $5.00 additional

Must return order form with check by next Friday, November 7th for holiday delivery!

Checks should be made out to Princeton Academy & returned to Mr. Clewell's office with the order form.

Click to view Athletic Jacket ordering information.

On October 20th, The Feast of Mater prayer service included a special blessing on our Mater silk painting. Featured speakers were Mr. Kalkus, Stuart headmistress Sr. de la Chapelle, and Juanita Yoder, the artist who created the silk panels. Sr. de la Chapelle spoke about the story of the creation of the original Mater Admirabilis fresco, and Ms. Yoder read from her journal, which she kept as she painted the panels. A blessing was bestowed by Father Pat Connor.

The prayer service also included the blessing and dedication of the meditation chapel, which was named for Dolores Sipprelle, grandmother of Scott Sipprelle, and great grandmother of Princeton Academy alumni, David '06, and Stephen '08. Father Charles Krieger offered a prayer of dedication and blessing, and board chair Bob Monsour introduced Scott and Tracy Sipprelle. Mr. Sipprelle shared some wonderful stories about his grandmother, her deep faith, and her profound influence in his life and the lives of his family.

Foundation work began this week for the installation of a geodesic dome, which will be constructed in the orchard field to the right of the Manor House gardens. The structure is a "green" greenhouse and will be heated and cooled by solar energy. Once constructed, the greenhouse will be incorporated in to the science curriculum. The greenhouse was made possible through the generosity of the A.P.Kirby, Jr. Foundation and a gift from a Princeton Academy family.

The 2nd grade celebrated Winnie the Pooh day with a variety of activities, including honey tasting, puppets, and lots of reading!

The 2nd grade welcomed Yaw Attah Edu-Bekoe to class this week and heard him speak of his native country, Ghana.

Last Friday, Princeton Academy celebrated Founders' Day at a special Friday Thank Yous ceremony. Founding board chair Steven DeRochi, and former board chairs Dr. Lou Tesoro and Tom Byrne were guest speakers. They each offered special memories of the early days of Princeton Academy, which was incorporated in 1998 by the founding board of trustees. The ceremony marked the kick-off of a year-long celebration of the school's 10th anniversary, which will culminate next September at the opening of school.

We are grateful to Princeton Academy parent Tasha Gajewski for providing us with these photographs from the Founders' Day ceremony.

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The fourth grade moved outside to identify the different types of clouds. Here, they are seen identifying cumulous clouds.

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The fifth grade science classes conducted an egg drop this week, and learned about the scientific process involved in experiments.

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The campus is beautiful this time of year. These were taken on a recent misty morning.

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Be careful when you drive on campus: the lower school boys made harvest figures in art class and hung them around the grounds.

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The lower school boys learned about honey bees this week as Mr. Hewins explained the workings of honey bee hives.

Today, Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart begins a year-long celebration of its 10 year anniversary. In October 1998, the founding trustees of the Academy filed incorporation papers with the State of New Jersey and the journey began. Doors opened to 34 boys the following September and ten years later we are educating 228 boys in the ways that boys learn best. Throughout the year we will mark this milestone with various activities. Today, we proudly display our new anniversary banners which commemorate our ten years.

This week we see a variety of photos, taken both indoors and outdoors, but all showing that the boys are learning-by-doing. Below, you will see photos of the fourth grade experiencing new foods. It was part of a study on different cultures around the world.

Fall sports are in full swing and cross country and both soccer teams are working hard to improve and succeed. Be sure to check out the athletics page for up to the minute schedules and results.

Each fall, the eighth grade prepares for high school visits and interviews with a Mock Interview Day at Princeton Academy. The boys are interviewed by our own faculty and staff who serve as Associate Director of Admission at "Mockbrook Academy." Afterwards, the boys receive feedback from their interviewer. At the end of the day, Mr. Kalkus presented the boys with Princeton Academy ties, which they can wear on their high school interviews.

7th grade environmental science classes are working to identify the most common tree species on Princeton Academy's campus by conducting line transect studies.

Practicing penmanship can often be tedious and boring. At Princeton Academy, boys can practice penmanship right on their desks by forming their letters on a desk surface covered in shaving cream!

The fifth grade is learning about archeology in an interesting and fun way. They have unearthed relics from a site at the fictional Hotel St. Lawrence. They have uncovered many objects, including a glass door knob,remnants of pottery, and pieces of broken cd's. The boys are learning about cataloging their findings and the techniques that archeologists follow while on an archeological dig.

Prior to Tuesday's soccer game vs. Trenton Charter School, a brief ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to mark the first game played on our expanded soccer field, which is part of Varsity Field. After brief remarks from Mr. Kalkus, the ribbon was cut and the game started. Princeton Academy's mascot, The Hawk, was on hand for the ceremony. The Hawks went on the win the game 6-3.

The cross country team has been impressive in their first three meets and is undefeated. Be sure to check the website for the athletic schedules.

We ended last week with our first liturgy of the year, the Mass of the Holy Spirit.

Our cantors helped lead singing, and Mr. Kalkus and all our faculty members prayed for our community.

Our 8th grade students' P.E. classes are in full swing with what one student has dubbed the "8FL".

Other images from around the classroom and the playground:

Writing stories with the first grade!

Learning music with Mr. Britt!

How our Kindergartners get ready for school!

Fun on the playground!

Today, we are launching a new and improved web site for Princeton Academy. As we move into our 10th year of service to the community, it is vital that we develop a consistent set of messages for our community and keep pace with this rapidly changing communications medium.

While the site may look and feel different, for those familiar with the prior site, you should be able to find your way around as the organization of the information has not changed dramatically.

You'll see that the site looks quite a lot like the new print ads that have been showing up in Town Topics, the Princeton Packet, and other papers. Our message that "Boys learn differently" and "Values matter" are at the heart of our mission as an institution. These messages can also be seen on 4' x 5' billboards at the Princeton Junction train station.

Please take a look around and get familiar with the new site. There are a couple of changes worth noting, particularly for regular visitors to the site:

• The home page has a bit less information on it, but we've kept links to the athletic schedules and results and the current week's events right at your fingertips. The "snow day" and "athletic practice cancellations" will also continue to be displayed here.
• The Parent Association section (PAPA), which used to be on the main navigation has been relocated to the section titled "For Parents," an obvious choice.
• The Admission section has been expanded to include richer descriptions of who we are as a school, as educators of boys, and as a community. We hope you'll find things on these pages that you can share with friends with sons.
• The "login protected" areas that held the listings of the PAPA executive committee members and the class parents are not currently working and have been temporarily removed. This is temporary and we hope to have those back online shortly.
• The Class Web Pages are located in the For Parents section and do not require a login for access. We know how important these pages are for our parents and students.
• The "monthly" calendar view has been removed from the calendar, leaving the "list" view as the sole calendar view. If you were a lover of the "monthly" view, please let us know at webmaster@princetonacademy.org and we'll revive it. Deadlines being what they are, something had to give.
• We've implemented some new technology to make it easier to read stories and other items. Perhaps the best instance of this can be found on the Headmaster's Journal page, under The School section. Check it out and see how easy it is to skim the essay titles and show or hide the text of the essay you want to read. The News section operates this way as well, with the first full news story being visible on the page, and the headlines of the next 15 stories just a click away from view (by clicking on "show / hide the story" on the first story). The PAPA page opens up to the most recent news from PAPA in a similar manner.
• On the Directions page, you'll see that we've added a live Google map. This had been recently added to the "old" site, but it's a great place to point friends or other parents who want to find out how to get to Princeton Academy.
• And last, but not least, on most pages, you'll find a mini-slideshow of images of our boys in action. These complement the wonderful selection of short videos, which have been moved to the Admission section (there's even an easy way to share the videos with a friend). We hope to keep the images fresh and changing as the year progresses.
• As with any new web site project, feedback after the launch is very important. If you see anything that looks like it's not right, please let us know at webmaster@princetonacademy.org.

Enjoy the site and please share it with others.

Classes are well underway and boys are busy sharing books and stories that were discovered over summer vacation.

Our new faculty and staff are settling in to new classrooms and offices. Pictured from left to right are Matt Trowbridge, MS faculty; Shweta Choudhury, MS faculty; Cathy Schnitzler, LS teaching assistant; Kate Jinks, LS teaching assistant; Rose Walsh, LS faculty; Leslie Duffy, Director of Development; and Dudley Cunningham, LS faculty. Welcome!

"We did our first science lesson today to discover some of the properties of air," reports second grade teacher Mrs. Walradt. The boys learned how air can move things and how air takes up space.

ORIENTATION AND FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL

Princeton Academy welcomed new and returning students to orientation on Tuesday and classes began in full session on Wednesday. We enjoyed seeing how the boys have grown over the summer and also enjoyed seeing all of the parents again! Welcome Back!

Princeton Academy's annual summer Clown Academy recently concluded its Clown Academy with a circus performance for family and friends. The performance featured members of the Clown Academy who have been learning circus arts at the school since June 30. Performers were in full clown make-up and costumes and presented skits, balance acts, and juggling.