Immigration for older students

The whole school has been learning about Immigration to the United States. In addition the oldest students (grades 5 - 8) studied Ellis Island. We read a book about the history of Ellis Island and how New York came to be a major gateway for immigrants coming into the United States. We learned how and why people might be turned away and what happened to people that arrived at Ellis Island with a sickness. Next each student was given a quote from a primary source - oral histories written by immigrants who  came through Ellis Island. Each student had to highlight one or two phrases that caught the essence of the immigration experience.  Using those highlighted words, students created a piece of art using only images to illustrate the meaning of the words.  In the  final class, we put all of the highlighted phrases into a poem that expressed the feelings and experiences of immigrants coming to America.

Lunch Interviews

 Once a year all students at The New School are invited out to lunch by the teacher responsible for his/her individualized curriculum. This year we changed the restaurant from Friendly’s to A La Mode on Nottingham Road in an effort to support local businesses. Over lunch the teacher asks his/her student prepared questions. Questions include: If you came home and found a small box on the kitchen table and inside it you could find anything you wanted, what would you like to find? If you had magic boots and could travel anywhere and at any time, where would you like to go? Are you like a babbling brook and or a placid lake? List three things you are good at. It is a wonderful gift to spend an hour and half of uninterrupted time with each student. On Child Study Day, which happens approximately once a month, these interview responses are shared with all of the teachers. As we share the responses curriculum is created to meet the needs of the individual child. Often as we plan for the needs of one child, we find we can apply what we develop to one or two other children. These lunch interviews enrich our curriculum, build community and develop relationships between teachers and students. 

Family Posters

Jessica Ryan Gostin, NS parent, gave us the idea to create “Family Posters” to display in our entranceway. Families were sent a brief set of questions and asked to supply a family photograph. At school their children created a family portrait using flair pens and watercolors. Jessica then put all the pieces together and spent many hours designing a poster for each family.  Please stop by and learn more about our school community.

Quidditch for Muggles

                     

Students at The New School formed two Quidditch teams this year. After spending two afternoons practicing, the two teams came together to play in earnest. It didn’t appear to bother anyone that it was snowing! Our game had to be modified slightly but fun was had by all. The chasers were running and trying to score by throwing the quaffle through a hoola hoop. The keepers did their best to prevent this from happening and the beaters, zig-zagged around the field beating the bludgers with a tennis racket against the keepers and chasers alike. The only person complaining was the snitch. Even though the snitch is allowed to run beyond the field of play it was exhausting to keep the seekers at bay. Limiting the seekers to skipping did not solve the problem. Hmmm. 

Lexi’s and Pee Wee's Tale

Three 2^nd graders have been enjoying reading Joanna Horowitz’s books about Lexi, a squirrel and Pee Wee, a guinea pig. We started reading Lexi’s Tale. As we read the book we practiced using three comprehension strategies, ones we had been introduced to last year. We predicted, questioned and made connections. For  Pee Wee’s Tale, the second book (which we discovered was actually the first book in the series), we practiced three new comprehension strategies. This time we visualized, looked at new and interesting vocabulary, and identified the main idea of each chapter. 

Immigration

Our youngest students (Kindergarten through 2^nd grade) were part of the whole school discussion focused on immigration stories. Reading picture books helped us compare the experiences of immigrants from different countries, such as Irish immigrants escaping the potato famine or Haitians bravely boarding boats looking for a better life in America. As we read each book we considered questions such as: Where did they come from? When? Why did they come? Who came first and what did they bring? What or who was left behind? What did they expect to find? This provided us with the information we needed to compare and contrast the many different experiences.

            In addition the younger students listened to books such The Story of the Statue of Liberty by Betty Maestro. The students were so  fascinated by the sculptor’s process that we decided to mirror this experience by making our own models of the statue out of clay.

In order to get a sense of the size of the statue we measured 150 feet across the parking lot by using a yard stick and then drew Lady Liberty in chalk. It was hard for some of us to accept that her nose is over 4 feet long!

            

            Finally we decided to become immigrants ourselves! First each child had to choose a place they would like to immigrate to! We explained that this wasn’t a vacation! Then we considered what we wanted to pack in our suitcases, and what traditions we would take with us. Their ideas, in drawings and words are collected in a book to be shared with families. 

Digestive System

After spending six weeks studying the skeletal system the youngest students turned their attention to the digestive system. First we listened to the book What Happens to a Hamburger? As we read this informative and funny book children followed the journey of what happens to our food from the moment we start to chew. In the process they learned vocabulary words such as mouth, saliva, esophagus, stomach, small Intestine, large intestine, and of course the anus, Children took part in centers where they measured how long the small intestine is. They observed an experiment showing what happens in your stomach to food, and how food dissolves in liquid. Finally children collaboratively created a three dimensional model of the digestive system which was presented to the rest of the school

Halloween Skits

On Halloween the whole school gets into the spirit by creating skits based on their costumes. The skits had to include music, props, and be non-violent. In addition they were challenged to have at least one of the characters immigrate! You might ask what do a panda, a bounty hunter, Hiccup from How to Train a Dragon, a green ghost and a zombie have in common? Turns out the zombie is a recent immigrant from Germany, there is a missing necklace and the green ghost turns the zombie into a breakdancing zombie. While Hiccup is entranced by the breakdancing the bounty hunter retrieves the missing necklace. After practicing for two weeks, parents were invited to watch their performances.

Mystery Guest

To support our current study of Aboriginal Art, Jessica Ryan (Maia and Lola's mother) came in to share an original painting she and Craig bought in Australia. The children were truly inspired to see an original painting and to hear more about this amazing art form!

Block Spot

Gross motor and fine motor play is an important part of a child's learning.  Building, creating,discovering, problem solving, imagining and more (!) happen when children work together to play with blocks, tinkertoys, legos, lincoln logs, trains and tracks, marble runs and plastic people.  At the New School, Children in grades Kindergarten and First Grade get a chance to daily stretch their muscles of imagination and cooperation as they work with peers on these types of projects.  Children in 2nd grade get the same opportunities twice a week.  Children in the upper grades also get a chance to play during the afternoon.  Play provides children of all ages the opportunity to develop social skills as they share materials and ideas. 

School Quilt

Every year we have a tradition of creating a paper quilt. Each child is responsible for creating one of the squares in the quilt. This year we designed our 32 square quilt to reflect our school wide study of immigration. The students were asked to identify four places they would like to explore (identified on the sails of the ship), and then a place they could teach their friends about (written on the hull of the ship.) Our quilt, which is hung in the entranceway, will be there all year to welcome families, visitors and friends.

Art from Around the World

       To kick off a yearlong appreciation of visual arts from around the world we first looked at the word “continent.” What is a continent? How is it defined? We soon discovered that people around the world do not all learn that there are seven continents. Some places teach there are 5 continents with North America and South America combined as a single continent called the Americas. We also discussed how if we believe “a continent is a large, discrete land mass separated by large bodies of water” there are only four continents:  Antarctica, Australia, Americas and Afro-Eurasia.  We discussed how many people take geography, politics and history into account when deciding how to split our world up into continents.

       Our first stop is the continent of Australia. Here we looked at the art created by aborigines, most notably their amazing dot paintings rich in color, pattern, and symbols. Children are currently creating their own dot paintings using dowels of different sizes and tempera paints. 

Birthday Art

At the start of school children were asked to draw a portrait of their family using flair pens and watercolors. These pictures will be part of a family poster where families share traditions, favorite activities, books and more. These posters will soon be posted in the school entranceway.

Oral History Project at The Nottingham

Last spring the older students interviewed seniors at The Nottingham. These oral histories supported our study of local history. The students brainstormed 14 questions they wanted to ask and video taped the interviews where these questions were asked. 

Describe how life was difficult when you were little.

v  How did you get around? Describe the forms of transportation you had.

v  Describe some changes that you have seen in Syracuse in your lifetime.

v  When you were little did all kids go to school? What was school like? What was punishment like? What type of school work did you do?

v  What toys and games did you have growing up? Did you share toys?

v  What do you remember about the Erie Canal?

v  Did you wear dresses? Describe your clothing and popular hairstyles.

v  Did you go to camp?

v  What were the most important buildings in Syracuse when you were a child?

v  Describe a typical day at home. Did you do chores? What books did children read?

v  What was communication like back then? Did you have a telephone?

v  How did Syracuse look different when you were a child?

v  Was it hard to shop? Where did you shop? How much did things cost?

v  What jobs did your parents have back then?

v  How have laws changed?

Students learned that what they did is called historical research. They used documents, photographs, artifacts and primary sources to learn how life has changed in Syracuse. They discussed and wrote about how life in Syracuse has changed for the better and worse.

This fall these same students reviewed the tapes and added more details to their transcripts. They brainstormed follow up questions and wrote personal letters to the seniors, thanking them for the experience, sharing photos and drawings and asking for more information and photos. Later in the year we plan to develop an exhibit documenting this project, which will be shared with the seniors at The Nottingham.

Imagine

After defining the word ‘imagine’ the older students listened to John Lennon’s song, Imagine. They then shared what they thought John Lennon was saying in the song. They described what he believed. Then students watched a part of the closing ceremonies of the Olympics where the same song was performed. Students shared why they thought the Olympic committee chose to use this song. Then they read and discussed a letter written to the editor of the Post Standard criticizing the selection of the song in the Olympics. Finally the students were asked to respond in writing to this letter either supporting or opposing the author’s view point. 

Biography Book Club

Students in this book club read a biography of their choosing over the summer. 

When they returned to school this fall, they had to answer questions about their biography and create a poster advertising a speaking engagement by the subject of their biography. 

Students then had to write a paragraph summarizing the book and create a poster.

Habitats

                Students in Kindergarten through second grade have been learning about habitats and the different species that live in them.  So far we’ve read “A House for Hermit Crab,” written by Eric Carle as an introduction to what a habitat is.  We’ve compared our own habitat to Hermit Crab’s habitat. We have discussed how different species need different things in order to survive in their habitat.  Students did a Visual Thinking Strategy (VTS) activity with a partner to learn about ocean life.  Each pair was given a picture from the story “Flotsam,” by David Wiesner and they were asked to write three sentences describing the ocean life they observed and to draw their own picture.  On our Highland Forest field trip children listened to “Chipmunk on Hollow Tree Lane,” a story about a chipmunk preparing for hibernation.  On a hike, students in pairs worked together on a scavenger hunt to find various elements of a forest habitat.  Although we were unsure the students would find chipmunks we came across a family, along with wild mushrooms, burrows and nests.  It was a great time!  The goal of this class is to have a broad understanding of habitats and how they relate to the species that live in them.  The students have been engaged and interested in the lessons and activities.  

                  

Hope in my Heart

               Four children have been reading “Hope in my Heart,” a diary written by Kathryn Lasky from the My America series.  They have been developing new vocabulary using context clues to help understand words we aren’t sure of.  Each class we have a discussion to ensure comprehension.  The novels they’ve been reading are diaries of young immigrants which supports our social studies unit on Immigration.  The students have been working really hard in and outside of class.  They worked on a graphic organizer to compare and contrast the novels they read over the summer.  From the readings the students have developed a better understanding of the experiences that immigrants have endured.  Students also watched an interview of a recent immigrant and compared their experiences to Sofia, the main character in "Hope in my Heart."  They are now discussing metaphors and symbols.  Their last assignment compared the past and present view of the Statue of Liberty and they will be using some of the words that represent the Statue of Liberty to write a metaphorical sentence.

Writing Workshop using Wordless Picture Books

             Third grade students have been discussing the stages of writing and practicing prewriting and drafting.  For the first prewriting class we created a story map as a class using a picture book without words.  This gave the students an opportunity to see how to begin writing a well organized story.  After we did the story map as a class, each student has been assigned a picture book without words to create a story from.  Using the story book provides some structure and content to start from, but allows them to add their own ideas.  Most importantly it shows them how the beginning, middle and end of a story are organized.  We’ve begun the drafting stage by organizing our story map into a beginning, middle and end.  Each student has begun writing out their story and they will work on revising them on the computer using spell check.  

Human Body

Students in all grades have started exploring the human body. We begun by studying our skeletory system. All of the classes started with a jump rope activity where they explored what moved when they jumped. This led to a discussion on the "hard" things inside our body that we can't see, but know are there. We tried to count our bones by feeling our own legs, arms, head and torso. Then we looked at posters to get a more accurate count. More recently we tried to assemble skeletons made of paper - it was harder than we thought. Many people were confused as to why it looked like we had "two" left hands! This led to a great discussion on how our wrist works!

Lyle the Crocodile

Students in Kindergarten and First Grade are exploring the fun of Bernard Waber's loveable crocodile, Lyle. Each week we read a Lyle book and then draw and write about one part of the book. Students love predicting what will happen in the story from the pictures, discussing vocabulary and drawing their own pictures for each story.

Mystery Guest

Asomgyee Pamoja was our first mystery guest of the year. He recently came to school to share his experiences as a recent immigrant (from Jamaica to England and then to the United States.) He also shared pictures and stories about his visit to Ellis Island with his son Muta. We are a nation of immigrants.