On their first day back, the 1st graders learned about the James Webb Space Telescope. They first learned about the Hubble telescope, and we were all blown away after viewing some of the most incredible photos taken by the Hubble over the last 30 years. However, our minds were REALLY blown when we learned that the new James Webb Telescope will be 100 times stronger than the Hubble! The 1st graders spent the afternoon working through some activities on the NASA James Webb Fun Pad and completing some hexagon challenges, since the mirror array on the Webb is made of 18 hexagons! They were challenged to build hexagon designs out of hexagons, trapezoids, rhombuses, and triangles.

On the 21st, we start a unit called Reforming the Heart, written by GATE instructor extraordinaire, Amy Brownlee. In this unit, we will learn about people who tried to change the world for the better. The unit will end with the students designing projects where they can practice changing the world for the better! Today, we added to our knowledge of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. We even learned a song about enacting positive change called "With My Own Two Hands" by Ben Harper and created an art piece to add to our digital portfolios.