8th Grade Rites of Passage, 2025

Our Class of 2025 spent the month rounding out their High Meadow experiences with our traditional class trip to Washington DC, the third annual Capstone Fair and Parade, and ongoing pursuit of an elusive 2nd-grade time capsule.

Each spring, our 8th grade students complete multi-year research projects intended to make an impact on their community, guided by 7th/8th grade Humanities teacher, Clay Drinko. Students each select a topic of personal interest, creating from their inquiry something they can share. 

"This year's 8th graders were so on the ball when it came to Capstone deadlines and progress on their papers,” Clay says. 8th grader Tedi chose to explore the impacts of community art, then connected with local muralist, Matt O’Connor, who created an original groundhog-themed mural for the garden shed. 

“I'm so thrilled Tedi's capstone project resulted in something the High Meadow community can enjoy for years to come,” Clay says. 

O’Connor completed the mural in just one afternoon, first with brush work, then using spray paint. “It was just very fast!” Tedi reflects. “I got jump-scared,” adds classmate, Avery. 

“Lark's original jazz music and Avery teaching younger students about ultra-processed foods were also highlights,” Clay adds. “I'm so proud of what all this year's 8th graders accomplished. They embody that High Meadow spirit, and I know they'll take their curiosity and resilience with them as they embark on their high school adventures." 

The class also took the train to DC for three days of exploration and fun. They went to the top of the Washington Monument, walked Arlington National Cemetery, visited the National Museum of the American Indian, where they sampled fry bread and other authentic cuisine, escaped from an escape room, and enjoyed Egyptian food.

“Sharing a room with this guy was fun,” Avery says, nudging Tedi’s shoulder. “It was also just nice to hang out with our class and just chill and not have to worry about, I don’t know, taxes,” she jokes.

Alongside their planned excursions, teachable moments arose in unexpected places. Tedi learned that “ice cream does not go in the refrigerator, and you should definitely not drink it with a straw.” 8th grader Harris offers another nugget of wisdom, based on the group’s encounter with a man reciting inspirational quotes in the busy train station: “Leadership is not what you post, it’s what you preach.”

2025 Capstones At-a-Glance

• Harris | Created educational flyers about how nutrition impacts exercise and fitness

• Lark | Created original music exploring the popularity of jazz

• Ivy | Designed a website to teach young people financial literacy

• Avery | Taught students at High Meadow about ultra-processed foods and their health impacts

• Ahzli | Educated High Meadow students about fidgets and their effectiveness and paired fidgets with students who needed them

• Tedi | Researched the benefits of community art and found a local artist to create a mural on the High Meadow quad

• Jaymin | Researched AI idea generators and taught himself how to design his own

• Eli | Taught High Meadow students about AI

• Maya | Did an experiment to see how different colored flowers impact people's mood