With the start of the 4th Quarter of the 2018-2019 school year, we begin our countdown to graduation for our Class of 2019! To celebrate and recognize our soon-to-be graduates, we will once again be running a "Meet Us Monday" series introducing you to each of the members of our ILS Class of 2019.
In this series, our wonderful 8th grade students have been invited to reflect on their time at ILS and share both favorite memories as well as some of their future plans. Please enjoy getting to better know our delightful ILS Class of 2019!
Meet Us Monday: Abigail A., ILS Class of 2019
1. How long have you attended ILS? 9 years. I’ve seen so much happen and so many changes at ILS as it’s gotten bigger and bigger– good changes!
2. To what house do you belong, and how have you developed as a person by being involved in it? I belong to house Athanasius. Our motto is “In unity is strength.” Our house on the whole does a good job of working together. This has been my house for four years and I’m captain for my 8th grade year. It’s really taught me how to value other people’s ideas and incorporate them and work together.
3. What was your favorite House competition? When I was in 6th grade, some of our alumni captains set up a scavenger hunt in Del Ray and across the campus. It was so fun and taught us how to work together. Marina and Bemnet, our Athanasius captains, were hiding with the other captains in a park across the street from Ms. Habrecht’s house. The game was to answer a series of clues that would lead us to their hiding spot so we could “rescue” them and get them back to the school before any other house. We felt so free to run around without the captains bossing us around. It was really fun and the captains did a great job of creating the whole hunt.
4. What is your favorite ILS memory? (Or, which ILS tradition will you remember the most?) I probably have to sum this up into three main memories, just because I’ve been here so long.
First. In 4th grade with Mrs. Barnett, we made a radio show when we were studying World War II. Radio shows were light-hearted and something you would listen to then. So we wrote a detective story and all wrote different scenes and assigned ourselves parts. I was the smart and pretty Carol Quebec (they were all Canadian-inspired names). Kendall played the not-so-smart and annoying detective Hugo Slavia and he had a deep voice. I actually listened to it again last night. AJ and Jonah co-played “Lord Timmy” the villain. We thought it was hilarious that Kendall was the boy character and had to speak in a slow, deep voice.
My second memory was when, in 5th grade, Mr. Schultz helped me dig deep and unlock my psychic powers. Did you know that I’m psychic? Because I am. I am psychic. He basically snuck me a card that said “the magic number =4. Magic word = pencil.” He asked everyone for the magic number and then when I said 4, he said “OH my gosh, how did you know?” But then when he asked for the magic word and I said “pencil,” the boys lost their minds and Mr. Schultz started telling them I’m psychic. Then, weeks later, we did it again, except I solved an unsolvable math problem.
My final favorite memory was in 4th grade when we stole Mrs. Barnett’s keys. We had just learned this fable about mice that tried to put a bell on a cat to know when it was approaching. But in the fable, when one mouse asked “who’s going to put the bell on the cat?” their whole plan fell apart. So we decided we wouldn’t be like the poor mice. We’d bell the cat, the cat being Mrs. Barnett. Hence we decided to take her keys. Kendall distracted Mrs. Barnett by asking her questions, and then I snuck behind her and pulled out her keys. On the way back to class, we kept passing the keys between our lunch boxes, and then Mrs. Barnett caught on and we gave back the keys. Looking back now, I don’t think we understood the fable!
5. Which event did you most look forward to during your 8th grade year? Probably the graduation party we do each year. It’s celebrating how far we’ve come, and it’s the one day beside my birthday that will be a celebration of me. Do you think they’ll know I’m joking? My mom is going to be upset I said that.
6. What was your favorite class at ILS, and why? My favorite subjects are logic and theology. Logic because we play fun games and because we’re taught how to recognize fallacies in our minds and also in what we come across, like in television or media, which is really helpful. We play this game when Ms. Kramer is the Empress Supreme and we divide by gender. We have to go in order and try to identify fallacies faster than the other side. If no one gets it, Ms. Kramer gets the points. She just makes up the rules as we go so it gets hilarious.
Theology, because we talk about interesting ideas. It’s very easy to go off topic, especially with Pastor Esget. He’s really funny and always tries to make jokes. He makes up poems and tells us about them. He makes theology interesting. We all are different denominations so we have lots of discussions about what different people believe and why. For example, one day we were talking about saints and whether or not Christians are saints. But the people in our class who are Catholic were all insistent that not every Christian is a saint. It was feisty and we were all trying to prove each other wrong. It was fun, and intense. We still talk about that class to this day.
7. What was your favorite ILS field trip? My favorite field trip was in 4th grade when we went to Mt. Vernon. We got to roll down this huge hill. Well, Kendall and I wanted to roll down but the boys laughed at us, and then Kendall got queasy halfway down so she just held still and laid there for awhile while I tried to finish rolling down. Everyone was laughing at us.
8. Where are you attending High School? Bishop Ireton. I’m going from being a lion to a bird (cardinal). Whenever we drive past, my mom will say “Abigail, look, your future school, your future friends.” I’m a little sad to leave ILS and all my teachers and friends.
9. What will you miss the most about ILS? 100% Miss Kramer, who is asking me these questions. She’s been with me since I was in 1st grade. Right, Ms. Kramer, right? Do you think they’ll know that’s a joke? Oh, I mean, it’s not a joke!
But really, I’ll miss all the teachers. You develop a relationship with every person here and the teachers. There is always someone to talk to. I will miss my friends, even those that I’ve just gotten to know because I feel like I’ve known them for years.
10. What is something a teacher told you that you will never forget? I’ve been told I have a lovely personality. Mr. Schultz always told us that he believed in us. Miss C. Davis never fails to tell us that Athanasius is the best (She’s the house sponsor of Athanasius). Ms. Habrecht’s favorite word is vocation and always reminds us of our vocation.