Students in the second grade are travelling around the world and learning about the 7 continents and oceans. While in Asia and visiting China, students learned Mandarin and expressed themselves by painting Chinese characters using calligraphy. Each character represented how a student viewed themselves. For example; courageous, caring, thoughtful, charismatic, etc.
Children have completed their 3-d design unit and have created a variety of structures and figures. To earn the privilege of using glue and tape, kids first had to show they could build things using different attachment strategies. Even after glue and tape were given to them, students continued to build small creatures and plants using their newly learned attachment strategies. I decided to put all of their creations together in a display that we call “The Glueless Forest.” The results are impressive and speak for themselves.
Solar System Showcase
Last month students began thinking about the concept question, “What can we learn by exploring different communities?” Their interest in various communities led to their fascination about space. They wanted to explore MORE about space, the solar system, and specifically the planets. Throughout the past month and a half students researched their planet of choice while learning about the solar system. They learned about the planet’s location in relation to the sun, other planets around their planet, if their planet is an outer or inner planet, and special unique facts about their planet. In addition, in Jewish Studies, students learned more about the Jewish calendar and the earth’s moon phases. To celebrate their hard work and expertise, students invited fellow students in grades K-4, along with their parents to our culminating Solar System Showcase. During this showcase students shared their handmade 3D representation of their planet using various materials, held mini presentations in small groups to teach others about their planet, and also put on a “skit” to show the different phases of the moon in the Jewish month. It was out of this world!
JCDSRI Second Graders think:
Our eyes see, and help us appreciate the world around us and communicate lots of messages to others.
Our mouths speak, eat, and breathe.
Our spine helps us walk to so many different, interesting places, stand up straight, and do gymnastics.
Our hearts pump blood through our bodies, help us have feelings, and help us love our world.
Each of the four species that we bless on Sukkot represents one of the above body parts. The second graders had a great time making creative Four Species People decorations for our school Sukkah that incorporated the image of the eyes looking like a myrtle leaf, the mouth looking like a willow leaf, the spine looking like the palm branch and the heart looking like an etrog.
With our whole selves we appreciate the beautiful world that God has created for us. On our holiday of thanksgiving, we are truly grateful!
Acrostic Poetry- The Planets of Our Solar System
In the NEWS- Students are learning all about the solar system, specifically the 8 planets, along with many dwarf planets. They are working diligently as they prepare for their poster presentation and 3-D model sharing. Event TBA!
Election Time!
Students will be holding an and ELA Election in just a few weeks! We are learning all about the election process and will be voting soon. Who is telling the truth in the very popular story The Three Little Pigs? Is it Mr. A. Wolf who tells his story from his point of view? Or is it the 3 Little Pigs told in the third person? HMMMMMM?
Shalom,
I am Rotem and I am so excited to teach Design Lab to JCDSRI students from PreK to 3rd grade (and learn with them!). We just ended our fourth week in Design Lab and I would like to share with you some highlights of our time together.
We began by asking: What do we do in Design Lab? How can we think like designers?
The students had great ideas: we build things, we create, we take something and make it into something different. Everyone loves to create and to explore the materials in the room, to build with Lego, K’nex, Lincoln logs, cardboard and more.
In Design Lab, we are learning about the process of Design Thinking. Design Thinking is used to solve problems and create change in our world. The first step in this process is to look for problems. While not an easy task, the students were still able to share some great problems they are interested in solving:
We also started practicing paying attention to details. In Hebrew the expression for being empathetic is Lasim Lev — “putting your heart,” meaning we make sure to look with our soul and not only with our eyes. We played different games in which the students had to pay close attention to small details.
For example, I asked students to change one thing (the way you hold your hands, tuck your shirt in, untie your shoelaces, etc.) and can your partner notice the change?
Another was a visual memory game – who is missing from the class? What color is their shirt?
A long journey is ahead of us and it will be an interesting one.
Lehitraot (see you again)
Rotem
At JCDS our goal is for students to view the manner in which they behave through a Jewish lens. Our tradition is steeped in important values about how to behave with kindness, generosity of spirit and caring. This year we have identified a number of values that we will explore in an integrated manner in both general and Judaic Studies.
Our first all-school value is “You should love your neighbor as yourself, V’Ahavta Lirayacha Camocha.” We explored ways that this value could be understood by second graders by asking the following questions: what does it mean to love yourself, how can you show love/respect for another person, and how can you be a good friend?
The second graders generated many answers to each of these questions. Our culminating project for this was to make a class collage of the speech bubbles that the students filled out with their responses.
Taking this one step further on Open School Night when parents came to hear an overview of the curriculum for the school year, they, too, had a chance to explore these questions and make a parent collage. The students loved comparing their parents’ replies with their own the following morning upon their return to school!
Recently we’ve been working on ear training and trying to recognize pitches and scales. In this activity, students with bells are the “instruments” and the other students must help to organize them according to pitch. Here are our second graders organizing themselves into an ascending major scale! (Plus a small celebration afterwards).
As another school year comes to an end, our first graders spent their last music class practicing and performing on some of the instruments they’ve learned this year. They chose to perform “Another One Bites the Dust” as they head into summer with style.
Here’s a challenge for you: quickly sketch a scientist. Easy, right? You might be thinking lab coat, eyeglasses, crazy hair, test tubes everywhere, computers, and oh… male.
While I may be making an assumption here, research has proven that this is
how many people envision scientists. Here is an article explaining these findings.
In design lab this week, students in preK, kindergarten and first grade were given the same challenge I gave to you: draw a scientist. Some drawings were consistent with what researchers have found.
Others were not so consistent.
The article above suggests that “students who visit real scientists or engage in hands-on inquiry activities tend to draw less stereotypical images of scientists.” This is why all schools need programs like our Design Lab and design thinking curriculum; so that we can change our stereotypes and create a brighter future. At each grade level, students are engaged in projects that involve hands-on inquiry inside and outside of Design Lab time. Students at JCDSRI aim to solve real world problems while learning that we can all make a difference in the world, whether you’re a girl, a boy, have crazy hair, wear a lab coat, or none of the above.
