Olinda Elementary students have once again demonstrated that hard work, creativity, and a passion for learning can lead to extraordinary achievements. This spring, our Eagles earned top honors at both National History Day and the California Student Media Festival, showcasing their talents in research, writing, media production, and historical analysis.
National History Day (NHD) is one of the nation's premier academic competitions, challenging students to conduct in-depth historical research and present their findings through documentaries, podcasts, exhibits, posters, and performances. This year's NHD theme, Rights and Responsibilities in History, inspired Olinda students to explore significant historical events and individuals through original projects.
Olinda's National History Day team earned an impressive collection of honors at both the Orange County and California State competitions. Students earned multiple Orange County Championships, three State Championships, and two State Runner-Up finishes. Notable accomplishments included State Championship projects by Mateo for his poster on Claus von Stauffenberg, Jaden for his podcast on Ryszard Kuklinski, and Neha, Arjun, Emma, Charlie, and Nathaniel for their group poster on the Boston Tea Party. Additional State Runner-Up honors were earned by Jiya and by the group of Sienna, Christopher, Auggie, and Lily.
The excellence of Olinda's historians extended beyond National History Day and into statewide media competition. At the 60th Annual California Student Media Festival, the nation's oldest student media festival, Olinda students earned some of the highest honors available among more than 500 entries submitted from across California.
Fifth-grade student Mateo earned the Elementary School Film/Video – Non-Fiction Award for his documentary, Claus von Stauffenberg. His project was then selected as the Elementary Grand Prize Winner, making it the top elementary media project in the entire festival. Judges praised the documentary's thoughtful perspective, innovative subject matter, and exceptional research.
Olinda students also captured the Elementary School Audio/Podcast – Non-Fiction Award for their podcast about Betty Friedan, created by Liya, Megan, Elijah, Hazel, and Carson. Judges recognized the team's technical expertise, use of primary sources, and strong media literacy skills.
These accomplishments are a testament to the dedication of our students, the support of their teachers and families, and the powerful learning opportunities that come from authentic research and project-based learning. We are incredibly proud of all of our National History Day participants and California Student Media Festival winners for representing Olinda Elementary with excellence.
Congratulations to all of our student historians, researchers, filmmakers, and podcasters for helping our Eagles continue to SOAR!