[Best_Wordpress_Gallery id="32" gal_title="20161106InTheClassroom"]
El Dia de los Muertos (The Day of the Dead)
As part of our Spanish program we celebrated the Day of the Dead this week in traditional Mexican style, with tamales, Pan de Muertos (bread of the dead), Alfeñiques (sugar skulls), and of course the Ofrenda, the altar where loved ones who have passed are celebrated and honored. One of our moms even brought Halva, a traditional Iranian Day of the Dead sweet to share with everyone.
Halloween Parade!
We had some amazing costumes this year! Thanks to all the parents who came out to watch the parade and hear our song. Did you do the Hokey Pokey? That IS what it's all about!
Early Childhood Moment
Early childhood students are busy preparing for their lantern walk on November 12th!
Early Childhood: Hike Day
Ms. Lauren Moretti and baby Avi joined us on an early childhood hike day. They were crowned with a ring of gold!
1st Grade: Painting
First graders recently enjoyed a painting lesson after a color story and talking about seeing the geese in the sky at this time of year.
1st Grade: Number Land
First Grade has created Number Land on its classroom walls. Soon there will be 84 number houses lining the streets, with 546 residents.
How can King Counting help us keep track?
1st & 2nd Grades:
Here we have our first and second graders turning the soil and compost during Farm & Garden class. We are getting the ground ready to start planting some winter crops. The hens are helping!
2nd Grade: Multiplication & Painting
Second Grade is working with multiplication tables in a variety of ways. Oral practice using sequencing, rhythm, and repetition helps students to remember the number relationships. Careful and consistent practice of writing the patterns develops numeric penmanship. Bonus: In our painting lessons we have been exploring the different moods of fall!
3rd Grade: Time & Measurement
Once they meet all of the exciting tradesmen and their important skills needed to survive on the earth, the third grader learns about time and measurement. How do we know when time passes? The seasons tell us when a year has passed. The sun tells us if it is early in the day, or late. How tall should we build that house? Who decided how long a foot is? These are important and necessary questions for the growing child at this age, and ones that come organically for the students through the beauty of this curriculum. If you pass a third grader in the coming weeks - ask them what time it is!
4th Grade: Northern Lights & the Kalevala
The fourth grade has begun a new block which will focus on stories from the Kalevala (an epic from Finland). A part of this block looks at the landscape and climate of Finland—an area where the Northern Lights (or the Aurora Borealis) can often be seen. These paintings are each student's interpretation of what the Northern Lights might look like.
5th & 6th Grades: Volcanoes
The fifth and sixth grades are currently studying geology. A major theme of this year's curriculum is studying the roots and foundations of things: how to get to the bottom of how things work and observing natural phenomena. Studying volcanoes is a perfect component of the geology block because it shows something that can be both stagnant or still and active. While most students may never see a volcano erupt, they can connect to it through story or myth, which is an important aspect of this block, as well. As we move into the age of scientific discovery in the upper grades, there is still an important emphasis placed on the role of story and culture around something as it has lived through the centuries.
7th & 8th Grades: Science Fair
The seventh and eighth grade students held a science fair this past Saturday and wowed us with their skills. Flames, goggles and fun were had by all!
8th Grade: Chemistry
After exploring the process of combustion we moved into other chemical processes such as oxidation, crystallization, and how acids and bases combine to form salts.
