One of the best parts about being a student at St. Bede is that there are so many opportunities to learn in fun and interesting ways. Students retain much more information when they are able to take part in hands-on experiences where they can be immersed in the concepts they’re learning. St. Bede’s campus offers teachers the chance to expose students to modes of learning that are rare in most other schools. 

在圣彼得学习的最大乐趣之一在于，学校为学生提供了许多有趣、多元的学习模式。当学生能够参与实践经验、沉浸在他们学习的概念中时，他们会更多地汲取信息和知识。圣彼得的校园同样为教师提供了机会，让学生接触到在大多数其他学校中少见的学习方式。

One of the students’ favorite teachers, Mr. Fitzpatrick, is always doing interesting things in his Chemistry and Environmental Science courses. These classes really take advantage of the opportunities on St. Bede’s property and facilities. Recently, the students took part in helping to cultivate and hatch baby chickens! Needless to say, the students loved being able to be part of the process, but the most important thing is that they were learning along the way. Injecting the embryos with dye was a particularly entertaining aspect of learning about the chicks’ growing environment, as the students were able to see the chicks hatch in a bunch of different colors.

学生最喜爱的老师之一，Mr. Fitzpatrick，总是在他的化学和环境科学课程中设计一些有趣的环节。这些课程真正充分利用了圣彼得的场地和设施。最近，学生们参与了小鸡的培育和孵化！学生们对能够参与到这个过程感到兴奋，但最重要的是，他们在过程中能深刻体会到学习的乐趣。在胚胎中注射染料是学习小鸡生长环境一个特别有趣的方面，因为学生们能够看到小鸡以不同的颜色孵化出来。

Mr. Fitzpatrick also emphasizes the importance of understanding the world around us. He often takes his students on “nature walks” where they are able to explore campus together. In the Spring, that means “mushroom hunting.” He leads his students to locate, identify, and collect different species of mushrooms. To take this idea one step further, he even guides the classes on how to grow their own mushrooms. This is just one of dozens of species of plants his students learn to grow.

Mr. Fitzpatrick还向学生强调了理解自身周围世界的重要性。他经常带学生们进行“大自然漫步”，一起探索校园。在春天，这意味着“寻找蘑菇”。他带领学生们寻找、辨认和收集不同种类的蘑菇。为了进一步深入这个想法，他甚至指导班级如何种植自己的蘑菇。这只是他的学生学会种植的数十种植物之一。

学生们种植蘑菇

This year also brought one other unique opportunity during the school day: a solar eclipse. While St. Bede isn’t located in a place that was in the “path of totality” of the eclipse, students were still able to go outside and use protective glasses to witness the moon’s path across over 90% of the view of the sun. Having a teacher who can turn wonderments like these into unforgettable learning experiences is a big part of what makes St. Bede a special place to learn.

今年学生还经历了一次独特的体验：日食。虽然圣彼得并不位于“日全食路径”上，但学生们仍然可以外出，使用防护眼镜目睹月亮在阳光视野中穿过超过90%的轨迹。拥有一位能将这样的奇观转化为难忘学习体验的老师是使圣彼得成为一个特殊学习地点的重要原因之一。