Every year the 4th grade students take a scientific excursion to Cerro Koi to observe the unique rock formations there as part of their earth science unit. Our environmental explorers took their science notebooks with them to make observations in the form of diagrams, notes, and questions as they observed the geology of Cerro Koi. Students also learned about native plants, some of which have uses in terere, and the animals that inhabit the national park. Well done 4th graders!

Our amazing 5th grade students once again impress us with their solar system models! Every year our 5th grade class explores the solar systems and culminates this investigation with a physical model. Students present these models to their classes, share fun facts about the planets, and give constructive feedback to each other. Projects like this are researched and developed both in class and at home. Students are encouraged to consider their parents as partners in the learning process, but it is the students who are responsible for the products of their learning. 

5th grade students are using the elementary Lego robotics kits to simulate how robots can be used in space. This interdisciplinary project combines their science class with STEAM to design, build, and code a Lego robot that would model the function of a robot in space. Ideas that students created are lunar rovers, mining machines, security machines, and more. Well done 5th graders!

Learning to code is so much more than numbers and symbols. It’s a way to create new ideas, solve problems, and collaborate with classmates. Students in elementary, middle, and high school all have opportunities to learn to code within their classes and as part of extracurricular clubs. Block coding is an accessible start for all students due to its simplicity and ability to share. Block coding has all the basic functions of text-based coding, such as loops and conditional statements, as well as additional functions for interfacing with physical robots or objects. Go ahead and ask your child if they’ve been coding lately! I bet you’ll be surprised by their response.

The amazing 5th-grade students recently created biomes using some soil, plants, containers, and their imagination. This science project explored what would occur in a sealed or open container to organic materials. Students hypothesized their ideas and then put them into practice by creating their own biomes. Check them out!

All 6th-grade students showed their ability to make connections between subjects and their personal lives by recently presenting their interdisciplinary passion projects. Students created bilingual presentations showcasing a passion project and its positive impact on themselves or their community. They integrated language arts skills, made the presentations bilingual, and highlighted the role of math and science in measuring their project's progress. Here are a few of the specific components of the projects and their relevance to student growth

STEAM: Data collection, analysis, budgeting, adaptation, and/or measurement. Inclusion of science concepts and standards previously learned.

Humanities: Design a bilingual presentation that includes text, visuals, and multimedia elements in both English and Castellano

Global Readiness: Integration of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals to make local and global connections

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL): Integration of the "7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens"

Middle school students put their engineering design skills to the test with the annual Egg Drop Challenge! Students designed ways for an egg to survive a fall from the top of the STEAM building. Students typically build a cage to soften the impact of the egg or a parachute to reduce the fall speed, but every year we see unique and creative ways to protect the egg. The ASA Design Cycle is based on the NGSS engineering process where students must define the challenge, develop a solution, and then optimize their model based on data feedback.

6th grade students in middle school are studying geology through hands-on exploration! Kids are exploring the three different types of rocks, the forces that create them, and how you can determine historical information through rocks. This sort of hands-on learning is a key component of STEAM learning where students are immersed in real-world experiences. We all know that ASA Middle School Rocks!

Students in 6th-grade art have been experimenting with using a safe chemical process to emulate the process of photography. This process is called cyanotyping and the unit is led by our very own Mrs. Fiorella Giannattasio. Cyanotype photography is a camera-less technique that involves laying an object on paper coated with a solution of iron salts before exposing it to UV light and washing it with water to create stunning white and Prussian blue images. This is a great example of what is possible when science and art come together to create works of beauty.

Every year students in 7th grade create neighborhood improvement designs focused on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This is an example of an outcome-based assessment that is authentic and meaningful for students. When students are given the guidance and choice to investigate meaningful ideas, they can truly reenvision our world to make it a better place. This process is supported by the ASA design cycle and cultures of thinking. Student ideas include community gardens, health initiatives, nature-based apartments, community clean-ups, and more, and could be created through physical models, publications, presentations, or digital creations. 

8th grade students took their chemistry studies to a new level by visiting the FLUODER chemical plant in Villeta this week. Students learned three different chemical experiences at the site. The first was how sulfur as a ras material is imported and heated to produce sulphuric acid after a series of chemical changes. The second was how salt is combined with water to create a brine which can be energized to separate the sodium and chlorine elements, each of which can be used to produce further chemical products. The third was how these products are tested for purity and quality using laboratory equipment to ensure that final materials are fit to be sold and used by private and public companies. This experience was undoubtedly popular with 8th grade students who saw that industrialization and chemical engineering are both very interesting and profitable career opportunities here in Paraguay.

ASA 9th graders took their biology and Guarani learning into the field with a recent trip to the Centro Experimental de Recursos Medicinales. Students took a hike through the forest, found native plants, practiced their names and uses, and tried various fruit juices grown locally. This field trip was an interdisciplinary collaboration between the subjects biology and Guarani, part of ASA promise to create meaningful and relevant learning experiences for students. We’ll done 9th grade team!

Students in middle and high school have more opportunities to participate in English language math competitions this year due to the hard work of Mr. Travis Reynolds and Mr. Juan Enciso. Our high school students recently participated in the annual University of Waterloo Centre for Education in Mathematics and Computing (CEMC) math contests as part of their standard classwork. These contests are available for students from grades 7 to 12 and are all named after famous mathematicians, including Gauss, Pascal, Fermat, Euclid, and Caylay. Mathematics and computing contests are a fun way for students to grow their problem-solving skills, build confidence and get creative with math and computer science. CEMC contests are written by students around the world, designed by teams of expert educators for Grades 5 to 12, and are a great fit for students with a range of abilities—from learners who want to explore math and computer science and develop their confidence to advanced students who want to stretch their limits. Go ASA Mathematics!

ASA alumni continue to give back to the community and make our school a better place. AP Physics and AP Calculus students were recently visited by Dr. Eduardo Galiano Riveros, an alumni from 1979, for a special presentation on the life and career of a physicist. Dr. Galiano shared his early influences from ASA, his university experiences in physics and medicine, and his career journey as a physics professor and medical researcher. Currently, Dr. Galiano is the head of the Paraguayan Radiological and Nuclear Regulatory Authority. We warmly look forward to future collaborations with Dr. Galiano and other ASA alumni in STEAM careers to ensure that we truly do prepare our students to make Paraguay, and the world, a better place.

We are proud to share that ten ASA juniors and seniors successfully completed their STEAM Pathways Capstone presentations. A Capstone presentation is similar to a thesis or dissertation defense where students complete an extended research project or community internship and present their learning to a panel of specialists for approval. Their Capstone must align with the STEAM Pathway they selected: Biomedical, Engineering Design, Data Analytics, Entrepreneurship, or Digital/Fine Arts. Check out images of the various internships and projects that our Pathway students completed. Congrats to all the successful presentation defenses! 

Jakob Usandivara - Biomedical

Daniel Lee - Data Analytics

Ramiro Pascual - Data Analytics

Ilan Maurer - Data Analytics

Nathan Maurer - Data Analytics

Devin Wang - Data Analytics

Dana Hong - Engineering Design

Valentina Caniza - Entrepreneurship

Anna Chung - Entrepreneurship

Melody Lee - Digital/Fine Arts