For 150 years, Atlanta Public Schools (APS) has taught, nurtured, employed and cultivated generations of citizens who contribute to society, both locally and globally.
Throughout this school year, we will highlight students, faculty, alumni, and many others through our I am APS campaign to celebrate the rich and diverse experiences, backgrounds and contributions of the Atlanta Public Schools family. Together, we stand in solidarity of our shared admiration of APS and the mission which guides us as a family.
By leading with C.A.R.E., APS is creating a culture of compassion, accountability, respect and empathy. This culture weaves its way into every life we touch, and we believe storytelling lies at the heart of preserving our legacy as a district that prepares its students for college, career and life.
Our journey to identifying our first I am APS feature led us down the halls of Springdale Park Elementary School (SPARK), a flourishing and energetic COGNIA STEM certified school with over 400 students, nestled within the Virginia-Highland, Inman Park, and neighboring communities.
APS had the pleasure of sitting down with two of SPARK’s vibrant scholars, Rya Van Voorhis and Malcolm Guise, to learn how their favorite lessons have prepared them to be fully engaged learners who are resourceful and driven.
RYA VAN VOORHIS
SPARK’s charismatic 9-year-old, fourth grader and future celebrity baker
Do you have a favorite subject?
No, but I love to read. I’ll do that for fun. And I love writing. I could write all day if you make me.
I also like science. I just love it. I especially like chemistry where I made rainbow snow one time. I would take food coloring, put red dye into the snow, and then pour it in a jar, and then layer it. All of a sudden, it’s like rainbow snow! You could roll it into balls and it would look like snowballs. It was really fun.
How do you think your family experience has translated into your school experience?
I think that I’m good at partnership. I want to work and present with [others] and research together. For example— [me, Marina and Fred]. Me and Fred would come up with ideas, combine them, and then Marina would translate them into a fourth-grade word because she knows a lot of vocabulary.
What is something you wish you could incorporate into learning?
Have you ever heard of hands-on learning? That’s what I wish social studies was. There’s some computers where you can touch it and say, ‘Oh, that’s what happened!’ And connect the dots and actually see it and pretend you’re in the actual world. I wish that there was a program where you could [create] yourself and then pretend that you’re in these places. So you feel what they’re talking about.
In my summer school class, we used VRs. That’s what I wish social studies was.
What do you want to be when you grow up?
I want to be a baker, and I really want to go to America’s Test Kitchen. When I was four, my dad showed me this episode of the old America’s Test Kitchen. It’s new now, and I absolutely loved it. They tested how to make lemon bars. They made the recipe and ever since then, I’ve been trying to bake stuff. And honestly, I like cakes. People always say the best part about baking is eating. And I say, the best part about baking is baking.
Do you think you have learned anything at school that will help you become a baker one day?
Yes, reading. You need to read recipes. Writing. If I’m going to be a baker, I need to write recipes. Science. I need to know the science behind it because [in the past] people would just have apprentices and they would just learn it not knowing how it worked and why it tastes delicious. I want to know [how it all works together].
MALCOLM GUISE
SPARK’s multi-talented 10-year-old, fifth grader and future herpetologist
Hobbies and Extracurricular Activities
Science Olympiad, Kung fu, and playing the cello, guitar and piano.
What is your favorite subject and is there a specific lesson you really liked?
Science is my favorite subject. I love learning useless random animal facts and facts about anything. In GATE in third grade we did a project at the beginning of the year where we talked about if we could be a scientist, what type we would want to be. By then, I hadn’t really thought about it too much, so I just put zoologist in general, and I wrote about a few different animals. [Now] I’m [deciding] between a herpetologist, which studies reptiles, and an anthropologist, which studies insects and many other creatures.
What do you find fascinating about reptiles?
They’re so much different than us, and even though it seems like we know a lot about them, they’re still some of the most mysterious creatures. We still aren’t sure exactly where they could have evolved from. And some of their skeletal structures work in a way that are much different [from ours].
Another thing that’s very interesting about them is some people have considered that some types of snake venom can be used as medicine. So I want to know how that works and different antidotes for things.
What are you doing to further along your interests?
Well, I’m trying to focus on reading more advanced books, learning more information. I’ve been trying to read for two hours every day. I’m currently reading Hamlet, the original version. And also, I want to improve both my long-term and short-term memory. Because if I learn a lot of information, I don’t want to just forget it.
Are your teachers helping you to be more involved in your interests?
Some of my teachers have recommended different fields and ways of learning, like certain clubs, certain teams that I could go to. Also, sometimes they give me special projects to work on, so I think they do understand [and are] helping me.
