Welcome to Spaces and Moments: The Unquowa Blog Page

Something is always going on at Unquowa and this is the place to keep up with all the exciting happenings. Whether in the classroom, the makerspace, on stage, or at play, every space and every moment is a chance to discover, connect, learn, and have fun. Check here frequently for news, campus-wide events, and other highlights from around campus, all posted by our inspiring teachers!

Officially Alumni

Posted by Jacqui Mudre

Congratulations to this wonderful Class of 2026.

We are proud of each and everyone of you and wishing you all the best!

Enjoy our latest About Us newsletter – Volume 29 Issue 3

Posted by Jacqui Mudre

The Journey of Change 4 Change

Posted by Sarah Raggio

Change 4 Change message from ~ by Micah Esteves Cooper, Ali Mesiya, Harper Smith, Maddie Theodore and Grace Toolan.

Hi Unquowa!

We are the original members of the Change 4 Change community! We have been collecting your loose coins for Change 4 Change for a long time, and it has become a tradition.

Since second grade with Mrs. Young, we have been donating to Save the Children. It all started when we made refugee cards to send to refugee camps. We thought it would be a good idea to create an organization that would support kids in need. It was clear that we needed others’ help to make this possible. We put up posters around the school to inform others about what Change 4 Change was all about. We would like to continue this tradition until we graduate from Unquowa.

Our announcements at the weekly Wednesday assemblies reminded our fellow schoolmates and parents to donate. It was fun to write the scripts and make the announcements. This year, we also wrote and performed a rap with Mrs. Hall for a little added inspiration.

We chose Save the Children because we wanted to help kids around the world like us. We have been donating to Save the Children for three years now. It has helped them a lot, and we hope we have made a difference in their lives. We donated money to help buy food, clothes, and other essential items they needed. This would not have been possible without you.

We all worked together by sorting the money into pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters, and  then putting the coins into coin wrappers. Every year, we have done this, and it has been so much fun. We all helped each other count, sort, and roll the coins!

Thank you all for your donations over the years. This community has helped thousands of people through their challenges. This would not be possible without our Unquowa community.

We would like to thank Mrs. Young again for helping us start Change 4 Change. Thank you for everything! This year, we raised $411.55! We are so proud of our class for carrying on this tradition!

_________________

Change 4 Change Update: All of the rolled coins the kids counted were taken to the bank and the check is in the mail! Go Gators!

Hula Hoop Number Bounce!

Posted by Maureen Diallo

To celebrate a wonderful year of monthly math meet-ups, our 1st and 4th grade buddies ended the year with a fun game called Hula Hoop Number Bounce!

Students tossed a playground ball into hula hoops labeled with numbers counting by 5s. Wherever the ball landed, buddies created math equations to match the number. Our 1st graders practiced addition and subtraction, while the 4th graders used multiplication and division facts.

For example, if the ball landed on 15:

• 1st grade: 10 + 5 = 15
• 4th grade: 3 × 5 = 15

The activity was a fun way to combine movement, teamwork, and math while celebrating the friendships and learning shared throughout the year!

NEW EDITION – Pen & Paper – Volume 16 – Skies Askew

Posted by Eric Snow

Dear Unquowa Community,

The next volume of our back-to-back-to-back Gold Crown-winning literary and art magazine, Pen & Paper, is here!

This year’s edition, “Skies Askew,” is intended to offer complimentary images and words as well as some jarring juxtapositions that subvert the reader’s expectations. As in life, things make sense until they don’t, but as people, we are always trying to make meaning, whether the skies are bright and clear, cloudy and dim, dangerous and threatening, or a mixture that upends our previously held conceptions (like sunshowers or daytime lightning). The intent throughout the magazine is to offer commentary and insight into what it means to be human, through the eyes of middle school students and their artwork, poetry, short stories, videos, and photography.

I hope you enjoy this volume! Our Editor-in-Chief, Nora Mulvehill, and her Assistant EIC, Ines Alexander, as well as the entire Pen & Paper editorial staff of 7th and 8th Graders worked very hard on this, especially in the last month before publication. This magazine is truly their creation – my only work was to support, make some final edits, and input their selections into InDesign. (Special thanks to Mrs. Ponden for turning Maxim’s stunning photo into a gorgeous cover design!)

Now it’s off to the printer! When those arrive later in the summer, the main office will mail hard copies to all Class of 2026 graduates. The editorial staff will receive their own copies when Pen & Paper Club begins next school year. (Please join the team, rising 7th Graders!) For everyone else, there will be print copies available for sale ($20 each) when school returns in the fall. In the meantime, please enjoy this online version which, as always, is free to view and share.

Congratulations to everyone who was published! Please look for your name and work in the table of contents!

Happy reading!

Eric Snow
Pen & Paper Advisor

PreK Helpers!

Posted by Faith Barbuto