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Additional Academic Opportunities
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Nativity School enhances our academically challenging curriculum with additional opportunities for academic engagement in each grade level. Many of these opportunities are treasured Nativity traditions that students look forward to year after year. Most are built into the school day and are offered to all students in the focal grade(s). These opportunities include:
- Art Adventure (Grades K-5): Offered in partnership with the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, the Art Adventure program encourages creativity, critical thinking, and global awareness through in-depth explorations of art across various cultures and time periods. Students complete six 30-minute sessions in January-February, each introducing students to works of art and facilitating an art activity. Sessions are facilitated by trained parent volunteers.
- Cultural Extravaganza (4th Grade): Every spring, each 4th grade classroom works together to deeply research a country of the world, and prepare group and individual presentations that showcase what they have learned. The project culminates in a showcase presentation to other students during the school day and families in the evening, which includes classroom presentations, individual poster presentations, and a Taste of Nations reception featuring classic foods from each featured country.
- Fifty Nifty (4th Grade): As part of the 4th grade Social Studies curriculum, students learn the names and capitols of the U.S. states. At the end of the year, students complete the Fifty Nifty test, which asks them to identify each state, its spelling, and its capital. Students' learning is celebrated with special awards.
- Geography Bee (Grades 6-8): All middle school students participate in the Geography Bee each fall, with classroom winners progressing to the middle school-wide competition before Christmas break.
- History Day (7th Grade): Nativity 7th graders research a historical topic related to the annual History Day theme and showcase their research through a variety of formats, such as a performance, building a website, producing a documentary, or creating an exhibit. Students may progress to present at State and National History Day events.
- Library Reading Challenges (Grades 3-5): Students can opt into year-long reading challenges through the Nativity Library, including the Classics Challenge (Grade 3) and the Newbery Challenge (Grades 4-5). Students who complete the challenge are recognized with special awards.
- Math Masters (Grades 5-6): Each spring, students in grades 5-6 take a screening test in class and top performers are invited to join the Math Masters team. Teams practice weekly after school late February through April to prepare for the Math Masters competition, where students participate in individual and team rounds. Our teams have historically performed well with both individual and team placements!
- Science Fair (8th Grade): During the fall, 8th graders complete a science fair project as part of the science curriculum. Students develop projects across many disciplines, including biology, chemistry, food science, education, behavioral and social sciences, animal sciences, microbiology, computer, physics, earth and environmental sciences, material sciences, mathematics, robotics, physics, and astronomy. Many student projects are selected to compete at the Minnesota Science and Engineering Fair in the spring, where students have the opportunity to meet, present to, and discuss science topics with other students from across the state and professional scientists who practice in their field of study.
- Wax Museum of Saints (4th Grade): Each year in early November, our 4th graders present a Saints Wax Museum. Each student prepares a biography of a chosen saint and gives a brief presentation. At the Wax Museum, students dress up as their saint and share their knowledge with families.
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