Post date: Dec 07, 2013 9:6:12 PM
Dear Parents and Students
A beautiful winter weekend is playing out up here in the hills. Big rain last night, windy but clear this morning, and predictions of some snow as the storm from the north moves in.
Recap:
We had a good week and I can sense some big growth on the near horizon; the class environment feels good, most of the kids seem to be learning lots, and quite a few are really stepping into leadership and action roles.
Science:
Our current unit is on "Simple Organisms" but the closer we look, the more it seems that they are anything but! After learning about viruses, invasion, and immunity last week, we moved on to some potentially less insidious creatures for this week, namely bacteria and protists. The kids learned about bacteria types, structure, and their roles in the environment/ecosystems, then we inoculated some petri dishes with "personal" and "environmental" bacteria in order to allow them to breed into visible (but contained) colonies. Moving into the kingdom "protista" meant observing some things that actually moved and have internal structures worth learning about! We looked at the amoeba, paramecium, and euglena under the microscopes and the kids have a Hall of Fame assignment to complete this weekend. Next week our unit ends with a look at the kingdom of fungi, including mold, mildew, yeast, and mushrooms. Hopefully the kids are still taking daily observations of the Fungi Fest that they started about 3 weeks ago.
English:
After months of thesis-evidence style essay writing, we finally moved into something a bit more personable -- the realm of figurative writing. I'm showing/reminding the kids how to recognize and use tools such as simile, metaphor, personification, onomatopeia, alliteration, allusion, and idioms to potentially add a bit of spice to their writings. Their current writing assignment is called the Gift I Gave, and was inspired by the heart-warming video on that page.
Social Studies:
Africa! Need I say more? Fascinating country that defies stereotypes and embodies tremendous diversity, culture, and innovation. We covered the basic geography last week and then studied a bit of the history of West Africa including the gold-salt trade through/in Ghana. I handed over the "teaching" role to the kids and have asked them to create an interactive lesson on some aspect of Africa using a tool called "Trackstar". From it they should learn to find, discern, and utilize good online resources as well as write good (important and well-stated) questions. Ask your kid if you can test their track when they are done -- hopefully the results are educational for you and affirming for them.
Coming Up:
Secret Santa (12/13): Audrey has organized a great "Secret Santa" affair that will happen on the morning of the 13th (this coming Friday). If necessary, ask your kid if they need help coming up with (or getting) a gift for their person.
Downtown San Jose Student-Planned Trip: (12/16) About 10 days ago the class brainstormed ideas for a trip to/through downtown San Jose and then researched the details of a few locations. Yesterday 6 of those kids met with Elisabeth Shepherd and myself to do some more research and come up with a plan. The result is a good itinerary, budget, and reservations where necessary. Basically we are taking VTA to downtown and going to the Tech (Star Wars exhibit), touring The Tech Shop, getting lunch, and then scootering the Guadalupe River Trail, and visiting other downtown spots (City Hall, St Joseph's, etc). There is also an optional evening component that includes dinner, skating, and (more of) Christmas in the Park. Four actions that we need from parents:
1. consider being a chaperone (email Elisabeth),
2. be willing to give your kid (or, better yet, have them earn) $25 for the day's activities (see budget),
3. make sure that they have a scooter (or skateboard, rip-stick, etc, but not bike) and a helmet,
4. be willing to pick them up at Winchester Transit Center at either 3:00 or 8:00
Last-Day Breakfast (12/20): Roseanne is organizing a great breakfast for the kids for the last day before vacation. She'll be asking for parents to send in food items including fruit, muffins, pre-cooked bacon, juice, bagels, etc. We'll also need some parents to help cook pancakes/waffles, reheat bacon, and to the set-up. I'll be running a "white elephant" gift exchange with the kids during that same time. It'll be fun and filling.
Report Cards (1/24/14): The semester closes in about 19 school days, and although grades are not the most crucial thing, it is a good idea for kids and parents to check PowerSchool and find any scores that are not up to par, and see if they can be improved. Each week the kids get an FYI list of any assignments with a 0 score in hopes that they will make them up. For low scoring assignments, students can redo them as long as they do so in accordance with the methods stated on the redo page of my website.
Walkabout II (March 18, 19, 20, 2014): Since the Gov't Shutdown truncated our trip, we will be continuing where we left off (plus some SF activities) early this Spring. We'll be using public transit (CalTrain and SFmuni) to pull this one off but I do need 4 to 6 parent chaperones and a support driver. We'll take the train to SF on Tuesday morning and spend the day walking to/through places like ATT Park, Yerba Buena Gardens, Union Square, Grace Cathedral, Cable Car Museum, ChinaTown, Coit Tower, and the Fisherman's Wharf area, spending the night at Fort Mason Hostel. The next day involves some more SF stuff and then crossing the bridge to Marin Headlands for a few more hikes, a tour of the Point Bonita Lighthouse and an overnight at their hostel. Final day involves some beach time, one last hike (to Tennessee Valley) and then back to DCS. If you are interested in coming on that one, please let me know.
Time to sign off and get outside to enjoy this great weather and day.
Love y'all!
Chris