James River Day School photos are available for JRDS parents on SmugMug.com. We will be updating this frequently as new pictures are taken, so check in from time to time. To see the photos go to http://jrds.smugmug.com/ and enter the password that was sent out to parents. The password is case sensitive. If you need the password, please call or email Ann Parker (434.384.7385 or parker_a@jamesriverdayschool.org).
To safeguard our children, James River commits that: 1) We do not and will not put a child's name with a photo of that child. 2) We will password protect the SmugMug site and only give the address/password of our SmugMug website to JRDS parents and faculty/staff.
We ask that this login information be kept private. Please don't forward the web address and password. If you'd like to share a photo with friends or family members, you do have the option to purchase the photos, which also helps support James River (4x6 standard prints are 49¢ each or 89¢ each for metallic finish).
Each event is listed with the date and time on the first line, and the event name appears on the second line. Click on the blue event name for event details. For a list of important dates in the next school year, please follow this link.
Practice schedules are subject to change on a weekly bases due to home games. Please be sure to refer to the information provided by the coaches through weekly e-mails.
Coaches send weekly e-mails informing parents of practice and game schedules. Please let the Athletic Director know if you are not receiving e-mails from the coach. NO PRACTICE WHEN SCHOOL IS CLOSED DUE TO HOLIDAYS OR WEATHER.
If for some reason you have missed the weekly email, you can always find a link to it here.
If you are not receiving our weekly email for parents and families, but would like to, please join our mailing list. Click "read more," then fill in your email address in the "Join Our Mailing List" box.
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First thing Thursday morning, December 1, our Cardinal Buddies met to create colorful ribbon ornaments for our holiday tree. Watching the older children helping the younger children with their projectsis always fun. Mrs. Fielding commented that when it's a Cardinal Buddy event, you never have to worry about the children's behavior. The older children take their roles as leaders seriously, and the younger children are excited to have an older buddy come to work with them. These mixed-age-group activities are one of the many joys of the K-8 school model. Click Read More to see a couple of pictures.
I am so excited to share our landscaping update with you. We had super hard workers, lots of energy, and gobs of fun. Thank you to all who were able to come out Saturday, December 3, and help us "renovate" three of our planting beds. We are excited that what we did today is part of a bigger plan to beautify our school and create sustainable beds. Let me say, we are fueled by our enthusiasm, humor, spirit, expertise, community orientation, and sheer strength. The front bed now has laurels, hollies, and pansies (and will have more pansies in a day or two). Flag Pole Bed now has only an assortment of hollies and lavendar. We will add more lavender in the spring, and transplant those that are there to truly circle the flagpole. In the "juniper bed" near where the bus is parked, we added transplanted the junipers that had previously been planted between parking lot and Boonsboro Road. Most of our front trees have been pruned by the talented Heidi Gondi. The areas we renovated will be mulched by Wednesday. Click Read More to see full article and pictures.
Students in the VES FTC Robotics Class entertained and educated the entire James River Day School 7th grade class on a recent Thursday morning with an introduction to robotics engineering and programming. Proving that science can be intellectually rewarding and entertaining, our robotics students marked out a series of mazes on the floor of the Van Every Athletic Center. JRDS students then divided into teams to mathematically analyze the mazes and feed data into computer programs designed by the VES robotics class. JRDS students measured distances, calculated speed and generated instructions for our computer programmers, who then downloaded instructions to robotic vehicles. The vehicles then navigated to the mazes to test the results of the collaboration. JRDS students learned about the fundamentals of programming and practiced math skills while collaboratively working to solve a challenge. VES robotics students shared their interest and expertise in robotics and practiced skills of perseverance, communication, and teamwork. Thanks to JRDS math teachers Mr. Anderson and Ms. Elmore for helping to organize the outreach. See photo below.
The farmer and his family couldn't stand it! The chair creaked, the door squeaked, the wind whistled... So, they asked the wise men what to do. Each wise man told them to add a new animal to the farm. Soon the family was hearing a great deal more noise! Finally, the wise men told the farmer's children to get rid of all the animals and they returned to the blessed quiet of the chair creaking, the door squeaking, and the wind whistling. What did we learn? Quiet is relative (ask any teacher), and sometimes being wise consists of knowing when things are just the way you need them.
The James River Day School operating budget depends on our annual Cardinal Fund. The Cardinal Fund pays our school’s expenses for about one month of each year. I am so appreciative of the on-going generosity of all our Cardinal Fund supporters, and I want especially to thank our Board of Trustees for their 100% participation in the Cardinal Fund again this year. Our Trustees’ willingness to give our school so much time, energy, wisdom, and financial support humbles me. Many thanks to all who give to the Cardinal Fund – we would not have the excellent program we have without your gifts. Go, Cardinals!
As a part of a Life Science unit, the fourth grade class took a closer look at the building blocks of life during a visit from Dr. Matt Foster. Dr. Foster is a pathologist with Pathology Consultants of Central Virginia. He studies diseases, their causes, and how they impact us. As you might guess, he knows his way around a microscope.
After a study of plant and animal cells, Mrs. Rhodes’s students further explored cells by swabbing the inside of their cheeks and preparing slides using a quick-dip dye. As true scientists, they observed the slides under a high-powered microscope and were amazed see well-defined nuclei, cell membranes, and even bacteria. (The bacteria are the tiny dark specks in the photo at left.) They learned that cytoplasm is the stuff of a cell outside its nucleus. Dr. Foster spent time answering questions from the students, and we all enjoyed this up close look at our cells! Thank you, Dr. Foster, for helping us see our own cells firsthand. It was fun and oh, so, interesting. More pictures from our lab day are shown below.
Double your spending power! There are so many programs where you (and any grandparents, alumni, friends) can automatically help the school! Take a look at what a difference we can make with just a little effort: Read More ...
In my general reading about education and schools, I find several technology-related themes that I believe are worth considering. First, today’s young adolescents are immersed in technology and use computers, iPods, and cell phones as easily as their parents and grandparents use watches, televisions, and telephones. Secondly, communication over the Internet or via e-mail and text-messaging is fast, easy and feels anonymous. Ironically, it is much less anonymous or private than face-to-face, real-time telephone, or hard-copy written communication. When we communicate on the Internet, we lose control over that communication the moment we push “send” or “share.” Third, while new technologies make information more available and communication faster, they don’t make people smarter. Read More ...
Please find the link below for the particular form you need. These are in .pdf format. You will need Adobe Reader to open them. It can be downloaded free of charge at http://get.adobe.com/reader/.
At James River Day School, we value all of the friendships that have been made here throughout the years. We welcome you back to campus for a visit or to support one of our many programs.
Need help to properly cite your sources for that next paper? Then go to Son of Citation Machine, http://citationmachine.net/, and choose the MLA format.
Marty Wilmer, our technology teacher, has put together a website, http://protopage.com/jamesriver, of fun and useful educational resources for students, teachers, and parents. Mrs. Wilmer also recommends the following sites.
We have a very vigorous Parents' Association (PA) and encourage all parents (and even grandparents, aunts, and uncles) to participate. If you'd like to volunteer, please contact Natalie Langley, our Volunteer Coordinator.
Please feel free to contact any of the PA officers or committee chairs listed below with questions or suggestions.
James River Day School cherishes children and challenges them to become scholars, leaders, and citizens for the 21st century, in a community of academic excellence.
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As a part of a Life Science unit, the fourth grade class took a closer look at the building blocks of life during a visit from Dr. Matt Foster. Dr. Foster is a pathologist with Pathology Consultants of Central Virginia. He studies diseases, their causes, and how they impact us. As you might guess, he knows his way around a microscope. 
After a study of plant and animal cells, Mrs. Rhodes’s students further explored cells by swabbing the inside of their cheeks and preparing slides using a quick-dip dye. As true scientists, they observed the slides under a high-powered microscope and were amazed see well-defined nuclei, cell membranes, and even bacteria. (The bacteria are the tiny dark specks in the photo at left.) They learned that cytoplasm is the stuff of a cell outside its nucleus. Dr. Foster spent time answering questions from the students, and we all enjoyed this up close look at our cells! Thank you, Dr. Foster, for helping us see our own cells firsthand. It was fun and oh, so, interesting. More pictures from our lab day are shown below.