Archives - October 2024
Creating a Culture of Kindness: Bullying Prevention & Community Building
October 25, 2024
“One of my memories from my time at RAA that has really stuck with me and even become a bit of an inside joke with my friend and family group (My “framily” as we call it), was an activity we did on Music Tour. On that particular music tour, we stayed a bit closer to home, visiting San Diego and the area around it. Not only did we play music, but we also did some educational trips, one of which was to the WorldBeat Cultural Center. At the 
center, we were taught how to play traditional african instruments, learning to stay on beat and making fun rhythms together. You’d think that a group of musicians would excel at this, but we were less than stellar, driving our poor instructor to exclaim, “Togetder! You must be togetder! Togetderness is the key to liiiifeeee.”
While we all giggled at the time and even after, it’s a good bit of advice for life. If you keep together and stay intune with not only yourself, but also your neighbor, you will stay in rhythm and harmony, working together towards a common goal.” (Ms. Kay, RAA Graduating Class of 2011)
In a lot of ways this “togetderness” that the instructor spoke of can be seen in a strong, connected community. Such a community is a place where we are in tune with each other and understand that each one of us affects the others with the choices we make.
Some studies report that one in every five students experience bullying. Chances are that this is happening or could have happened to someone you know and care about. Students who are bullied may avoid school and experience a decreased ability to focus, loss of self-confidence, and an increase in anxiety and depression. As a school, we recognize that every student deserves to feel happy, safe, and engaged at school, and we strive to reach that goal by creating a culture of kindness and giving our students tools to make wise choices.
Unity Day is one of the ways we work towards that culture of kindness and connectedness. It’s a day to not only wear orange, but also, and more importantly, celebrate kindness, acceptance and inclusion, and building a community that holds those values to a high level of importance.
This year our celebration started when a flood of orange spilled onto our sports fields. Students, staff, and volunteers from grades Kindergarten all the way up to 12th Grade gathered together with their classes, eagerly awaiting instructions from Ms. Mazo. As upbeat music wound around us from the speakers, Ms. Mazo grabbed the microphone and began to explain instructions to our first game. The first thing she had us all do was partner up the older grades with the younger grades, folding the range in half by partnering 12th grade with Kindergarten, 11th grade with 1st grade and so on. You could see the younger students start looking up as the older, taller students approached, some of them tilting their heads all the way back to look at their buddies who were sometimes twice as tall as they were.
Once we were all settled and making friends, Ms. Mazo explained our game. We were, without hands, to partner up, one older student with one younger student to take our beach ball from one end of the relay course to the other and then back again. While some students followed the face-each-other example, others had more…inventive ways of meeting the challenge. One senior had his kindergarten buddy right next to him with the beach ball at the senior’s hip and the kindergartener, showing much gumption, had the beach ball smooshed up against his cheek. No way were they going to cheat to achieve their goal!
Up and back, up and back they ran-walked, with cheers and chants coming from every direction - “3rd Grade! 3rd Grade! 3rd Grade!” - until a winner was declared. The Seniors and kindergarteners had won! Cheers and high fives were exchanged and we were off to the next activity, a sort of hula hoop musical chairs…minus the chairs. Each of the younger and older partner groups headed toward the field for a bit of a dance break, smiling and jumping around together between hula hoops. While the joyful music played, the students danced and traveled around, sometimes hand in hand with their buddies and in a lot of cases, with their buddies on their backs like a smiling, giggling backpack. This went on until the music suddenly stopped and all the students ran to the nearest hula hoop, trying to fit two feet into the tiny circle with a group of other students. Anyone with a foot out of the circle was disqualified and went to hang out and sit in the shade.
During this whole process teachers, sponsors and staff alike were running around, determining who was in and out, and taking away hula hoops at each round, making it more and more difficult to fit people in the circles. As there became less options, some of the older students would get out on purpose so their buddies could keep playing. As there were more and more younger students without buddies, you’d find them tagging along with other older students. One of the high school students ran by with a piggy-back rider, a student holding their hand, and one trailing after. The high school student ran to the nearest hula hoop shouting, “I’m adopting!” And adopt they did. By the end of the game, each circle often had only a couple older students with younger students on their backs, woven in between legs, and being held in the circle by the older student’s larger wingspan.
As we reached the final round it was clear that students, K-12, would have continued to work together to fit as many students in the hula hoops as possible, making it impossible to declare a winner. So, instead of going on and on, we listened to the popsicles calling our names, and headed back to the shade to enjoy them together before heading back to class.
While Unity Day is one day, we continue to encourage our students to “Do Good on Purpose” because “Intentionality Matters.” We give them opportunities for mentorship and connection as well as giving them tools to make good decisions, aiming to make “togetderness” the key to life.
A Decade of Dreams Fulfilled: RAA's Flag Football Championship
October 17, 2024
Under the bright, Saturday night lights of the Loma Linda University Drayson Center, the Redlands Adventist Academy Boys’ Varsity Flag Football team lines up to start their next play. Only a yard away from the endzone, junior quarterback Benson Hayton calls the hike. Senior center Drew Lauer snaps the ball to fellow senior upback Noah Gatling, who catches the ball and takes a knee. Under normal circumstances, that was a wasted play, 
and Redlands just squandered an easy chance to score. But these are not normal circumstances. Gatling’s knee may have cost his team a couple of yards, but it also means that the last remaining seconds of the game will run until time expires. The Bulldogs—now leading the Newbury Park Adventist Academy Gators, 24–13—maintain their composure, waiting for the lead referee to make his signal. Nothing but seconds stand in their way. It is inevitable now. Smiles are starting to crack. Arms are starting to lift toward the night sky. The referee looks up from his watch, nods, and waves his hands in the air. “Ball game!” Finally. Running. Jumping. Screaming. Crying. It’s over. They’ve done it. RAA has just won the championship.
A season ago, Redlands played in the same championship game against sister school Loma Linda Academy, losing 14–6. That was the first time the Bulldogs had made it to the championship game of the Loma Linda Academy Tournament (now called the “Fall Frenzy Flagball Tournament”) since the mid-2000s and the first time ever under head coach [and Athletic Director] Lemar Sandiford.[1]
“Control the controllables.” That was the mantra constantly repeated by Coach Sandiford to his players throughout this season. “After losing in the finals last year, we focused on learning from our mistakes, watched countless hours of game film, and emphasized controlling the things that we actually have control over.” Coach Sandiford credits his players and their mindset
going into every practice, game, and tournament. “These players were hungry, more united, and committed to finishing what we started.” Senior safety Sammy Gomes goes further, explaining that last year’s loss was never spoken about once this season. “That loss was irrelevant… We knew what we had to do, and we knew we had the team to do it.”
The team started the 2024 season on an 8-game winning streak, including a statement win over Loma Linda Academy, 19–6. Redlands suffered its first (and only) loss of the year against Newbury Park Adventist Academy, 13–20, at the Fresno Adventist Academy Tournament. RAA would face NPAA once more in the regular season, this time surviving 20–12. But after two games against each other, both teams recognized that they would likely play each other one more time for much higher stakes.
In this year’s LLA Tournament, RAA was seeded as the number one team, and they soundly won their first three games against Woodcrest Christian School, San Diego Academy, and Mesa Grande Academy. Then, their chance for redemption arose: they would play Loma Linda Academy in the tournament semifinals. The rematch of last season’s championship game went back and forth, with both teams scoring almost at will. But it was the Redlands offense that would win out, led by senior captains Carter Kerstetter and Drew Lauer, who each scored two touchdowns. Lauer, whose play on both offense and defense played a major role in the semifinal win, reflects on the effort that led to the team getting back to the championship game: “We knew we could get there if we put in the work. And guess what? The work paid off.”
Newbury Park. The only team to beat Redlands this season was fittingly their finals opponent. But it was the Bulldogs’ experience from the prior season that gave them the edge. “We understood much better this year the emotions of being in a championship game. We were prepared, and it made all the difference,” says Coach Sandiford. A fantastic effort and several big plays by NPAA gave them a 13–12 lead at halftime. But RAA never wavered. The Redlands defense denied any further scoring in the second half, led by senior cornerback and transfer Emerson Ayala, whose championship experience with LLA the prior several seasons was on full display. And in the last several minutes of the game, it was senior captain Noah Gatling who stole the show and sealed the RAA win with a 45-yard touchdown.
Coach Sandiford, who took over the team in 2013, instilled a team motto at the beginning of his tenure: One Team, One Goal. The phrase simply means that every member of the team is united in everything that they do in pursuit of a common goal. In the decade since, RAA Boys’ Varsity Flag Football has pursued the goal of a championship. And despite not reaching it until now, the motto has never changed. “This championship represents a goal that we have had not just for the past year, but for the past ten,” says assistant coach Ben Korompis (Class of 2014), who has coached the team with Coach
Sandiford and his brother, Brandon “BK” Korompis (Class of 2014), since graduating RAA. “During the semifinal and final games, there were many alumni watching, most of whom had played football for RAA in years past,” recalls Coach BK. “But they were not just watching. They were invested, giving advice to coaches and players on the sidelines and cheering their hearts out. It was as if they were in their Bulldogs jerseys and still on the team.” Junior receiver Carter Leichty III echoes this point, “It has been Redlands’s goal to win this championship for a long time. So it felt like we got the glory not just for this 2024 team but for all the other teams before us.”
ADDITIONAL QUOTES
“This championship is the result of hard work, perseverance, and belief. It validates all the sacrifices and tough moments along the way. More than the trophy, it’s about seeing the players’ joy and knowing that the life lessons they’ve gained will stay with them forever.”
– Coach Lemar Sandiford on what the championship means to him
“This was way more than just a championship. There’s been so much work that’s been put in for the past ten years, and we were finally able to finish the job. It was amazing to get this for our coaches as a way to say thank you to them for all the work that they put in.”
– Senior Sammy Gomes on what the championship means to him
“It felt to me that [after winning the championship], there was a bar set, almost an expectation that something is starting… Whatever it was, it was greatness.”
– Freshman Hudson Hayton on what it felt like winning the championship
“It was a little scary because I saw how good you have to be to win a championship… I saw the dedication that each captain and starter had each practice and each game. You could really tell how badly they wanted to win.”
– Freshman Greyson Ayala on what he learned from being on a championship team
“The brotherhood among these players is unlike any other year that I’ve coached. From senior to freshman, captain to backup, this team head-to-toe was so connected in their mindset both on and off the field… Most fun group of boys I’ve been around!”
– Coach Brandon Korompis on what he admires most about this team
[1] Because boys’ flag football is not a CIF-recognized sport, there is no officially administered regular season or playoffs. The LLA Tournament has traditionally been recognized by participating Seventh-Day Adventist schools as the playoffs and championship for the SDA flag football season, though there is no official designation.
3rd Grade Multiplies their Fun/ Positively Bonding: A High School & 3rd Grade Science Adventure
October 11, 2024
Third Grade Multiplies their Fun
Under the dappled light of one of the many fruitless mulberry trees on campus, young voices filled the air with song. Hearing that you’d think the third-graders were practicing for the upcoming Christmas concert or singing worship songs, but no. They were singing their nines multiplication tables for math class. As they felt more comfortable with their nines, they paired up and began working in groups on another fun activity designed to help them practice their nines in real time… Dots and Boxes with a spin…literally… where they spun a wheel to figure out what number they were multiplying by nine, earning them the chance to draw their next line.
In third grade math, learning isn’t just about textbooks and worksheets. It’s also an exciting adventure filled with games, music, laughter and real-life problem-solving. This dive into interactive math makes it fun, engaging and helps students develop a love of the subject that keeps it from being on the “not my favorite class” list.
According to Ms. Roxy, one of the teacher’s aides, one of the ways that they make things fun is playing math games. From racing against the clock, solving multiplication problems, to cracking number puzzles, these games turn learning into friendly competitions. Students work in teams, cheering each other on and celebrating their victories, often exclaiming “We can do this!” as they compete in a game where teams must race to solve problems at different stations. It’s so fun to see them practice their teamwork and support each other during challenges.
Music also plays a role in learning. Students learn their times tables through catchy songs, making multiplication facts easier to remember as well as fun to sing. Occasionally, as you watch students play games or test their knowledge, you can hear them whispering the different times table songs under their breath.
And it doesn’t stop there! To help put things into perspective, students are also challenged to use their math knowledge in mock real-world situations. They calculate prices in a pretend store, measure ingredients for a recipe, and other situations that the students can understand and even get excited about. Ms. Miller finds mini Lego sets on sale for $9 each (what a good deal!), but she needs to buy three for the deal. How much money would she need to spend? 9 times 3 is…insert students quietly singing their times table songs. Watching the students realize how these math concepts can be used in the real world is always exciting!
Online math games are another hit where students can earn points for correct answers. The atmosphere in the classroom when students play these games is filled with excitement as the students compete for the highest scores. You can often hear students exclaim, “Just leveled up!”, sparking a wave of enthusiasm that motivates the other students to improve their scores. The sense of achievement, camaraderie, and light-hearted competition fosters a joyful and positive learning environment that can help even students who struggle with math feel empowered and confident after winning a game or solving a difficult problem.
Positively Bonding: A High School & 3rd Grade Science Adventure
Mrs. Smith’s high school chemistry class brought back a classic Ms.-Williams-turned-Mrs.-Smith project this year: creating children’s books, this year, about the structure of an atom. These books, a colorful and creative mix of digital and hand-drawn illustrations, were designed with a 3rd grader’s understanding of science in mind, which was perfect because… The high school chemistry class traveled all the way across campus to read their stories to the eager third-graders in Ms. Katrina Miller’s classroom, who happens to be learning about cells, nuclei and the “stuff” that holds us all together.
As the door opens and the high school students walk in, you always get a rumble of excitement from the younger students as they recognize the older students from seeing them across campus, or, in one special case, recognizing one of them from the Pep Rally. The excitement isn’t just one-sided either, as the high school students love spending time with the third-graders and presenting their books.
Figurative nerves present or not, the high school students definitely brought their A-game and used all their cellular nerves to create fun stories that helped the younger students understand the complicated structures and forces that exist in atoms. One book even turned the different parts of the atom into a family, with the mom being a Proton because she was always positive.
To ensure that all the students had a chance to enjoy multiple stories, the high schoolers rotated so they could share their books with different groups of third-graders. The cross-grade collaboration lasted about 45 minutes, and at the end, some of the high school students had fun quizzes that tested the third-graders’ understanding of the “stuff” that makes up all of us.
The next day, some of the third-graders were eager to put their new knowledge to the test. On their own, they chose to draw atoms, complete with protons, neutrons, and 
electrons. It’s so fun seeing these tiny building blocks of matter build larger networks and bond students from different grades. And to add another layer of special: Many of the high school students had previously been in Ms. Miller’s third grade themselves, so they were able to travel down memory lane and visit their old stomping grounds.
Yo Hablo Español ¿Pero Realmente lo Entiendo? Cultural Studies in Spanish Class
October 04, 2024
“Last week our class had a presentation on multiple Spanish-speaking countries covering either art, food, or music. We had people bring coloring sheets, tres leches, but my favorite ones were the music presentations done by my classmates Justin and Erika. They played music from the country, and we all followed the dance they showed us on screen.” (Lana)
Saludos, RAA Family!
I’m Andrea Turner and, as the new high school Spanish instructor, I'm excited to share the incredible work that my students in Spanish 1 and 2 have been doing. We just wrapped up Hispanic Heritage Month, during which our class explored the rich cultures of Spanish-speaking countries through a series of multimedia presentations.
Each student chose a country and focused on one of three themes: music, art, or food. The presentations were not only informative but also interactive, engaging the audience with music, visuals, and even taste tests. For instance, Noah, delighted us with a video in which he made his family’s arepas, a traditional Colombian dish. He also brought a sample of the final product, which his classmates eagerly taste tested.
The music presentations were also memorable. Ella captivated the class with her performance of "Dos Oruguitas" on the ukulele, a popular song from Encanto. Justin and Erika, classmates in Spanish 2, projected a lively dance to Latin music, teaching their peers the steps and encouraging everyone to join in.
Beyond the interactive elements, the presentations have been a valuable language-learning experience. Students have been practicing their grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation as they deliver their presentations in Spanish. The improvement in their language skills has been remarkable.
Spanish is a widely spoken language, and it's wonderful to see our students connecting with different cultures. Whether it's through personal heritage, a desire to travel, or simply a curiosity about the world, these presentations have brought the larger world into our classroom.
I'm proud of the work my students have done and the enthusiasm they've shown for learning about Spanish-speaking cultures. ¡Fue una linda experiencia para tondos nosotros!