Classes Finish with Projects, Presentations, and Unique Learning Experiences

Students in several classes were allowed to focus their final projects on topics that interested them and to present those topics in ways that played to their strengths, allowing them to demonstrate their learning to the best of their ability. This is a great example of what Foxcroft does best — intentionally designing our classes for how girls learn best: through context, collaboration, and solving real-world problems.

In the Mars STEAM Building, students in Dr. Anderson’s Chemistry classes designed and performed experiments to test hypotheses based on work done earlier in the semester. Mr. Northrup’s AP Environmental Science students could choose one of several options: riparian tree planting on campus with the Goose Creek Association, building owl houses to be installed on Big Track to attract owls and help control the groundhog population, harvest honey from the Foxcroft hives and compare to past years as a study of the impact of spotted lantern flies on the honey, placing/studying trail cams to see what animals live in the bamboo forest, or planting a pollinator garden near the bee hives. Ms. Fisher's Engineering Projects in Community Service (EPICS) class finalized their Goose Creek Watershed game by playing it with the Goose Creek Association representatives who requested it. The game aims to educate elementary, middle, and high school students on how various pollutants affect the Goose Creek Watershed.

Back in Schoolhouse, Ms. Young’s AP World History students used historical events to prove or disprove common proverbs and then presented their findings. In her AP U.S. History class, students had the option of doing podcasts (like one team’s Nuclear Weapons podcast interviewing Theodore Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson, Jane Adams, and Sandra Day O’Connor), rap battles (like the one featuring George Washington vs. Alexander Hamilton), a "museum of the marginalized" (examples include exhibits on Women’s Autonomy and the Black Panther Movement) and/or create a superhero or supervillain of a historical figure (one student created a comic book story about Robert Oppenheimer, titled Robert Oblivion). In her World Religions class, students offered presentations comparing Scientology to religions, philosophies, and dangerous cults. 

Students in Ms. Page’s Foundations of the Modern World class channeled their passion for a topic of their choice by researching its history. Topics included sustainable empire building, the role of gods in Ancient Athenian society, NASCAR, the objectification of women in music, World War I propaganda, the Stanford Prison Project, the Great Divide in the Black community, the psychological effects of slavery in modern Black families, and more. Students in Ms. Mora’s U.S. History classes chose an area of U.S. History that interested them enough to do a deep dive and presentation, choosing subjects like the California Gold Rush, Japanese-American Internment during WWII, and Women in the Civil Rights Movement, to name a few.

Participating in peer review and feedback, which took place in several classes, is also a valuable learning experience for students. In Dr. Sweeney’s Financial Algebra class, students created mock businesses and presented them to a group of student/faculty “investors,” a la "Shark Tank", to win their investment. Businesses ranged from a Glam Van (hair, makeup, and nails that come to you), Chill’d non caffeinated drink, Baddies + Balance pilates targeting African American adults and featuring music genres that appeal to them, One Heel at a Time removable high heels, and The Beep Bot programmable censorship of vulgar language and scenes from shows and movies on streaming services. 

In Ms. Sweet’s Advanced Topics in Art Class, students created artworks for display in the Dining Hall, and their final project was to hang and critique their works. Ms. Riley’s Video Production I students hosted a film screening to view two short films they made; view them here. Students who took private music lessons or sang with Chorale performed at Morning Meetings or the year-end Spring Recital; view video of their performances here.

Whether articulating their knowledge on an exam, through a presentation, or with a hands-on project, Foxcroft students ended the academic year with a strong showcase of academic excellence that was as interesting (and sometimes entertaining) as it was educational.