Math:
The Marionettes had 3 lessons this week: expressions vs equations, exponents, and prime factorization. We also played I Have, Who Has, a matching card game, and exponent connect 4. On Wednesday, the Marionettes went to visit the Gammas 2s for Ms. Lorrie’s bottle flipping challenge. The Saplings worked on reviewing for their check in Monday through Wednesday. Thursday they started the check-in. The Vroomshrooms had lessons over simplifying square roots including square roots with variables. On Wednesday and Thursday they reviewed for their check-in on Monday.
ELA:
Students have spent the past four weeks reading class novels that tie in to our theme about the French Revolution and recording elements of literature in their reading logs: plot, characters, settings, imagery, and vocabulary. This has been an intense journey. Monday morning we could finally say, “We finished!” Of course we celebrated this massive accomplishment with confetti and a toast to their hard work (Sprite in fancy champagne flutes). My message to them was “You did a hard thing!”
For the entire week all classes got imaginative and artistic–from digital design to old fashioned crafting. The Marionette’s and Sapling’s just finished an incredibly dense book called In the Reign of Terror. Their challenge was to look at the plot summaries they wrote in their reading logs and pare them down even more to just the main events. They drafted, edited, and peer edited on a Google doc, and all 15 chapters had to be squeezed onto an accordion book that fit into an Altoids mint tin! They lined the tin with fabric and created tiny illustrations for the book.
The Vroomshrooms extended their learning by pouring through the novel, Around the World in Eighty Days, and finding text evidence to chart the main character’s trip around the world. They turned that information into a passport complete with stamps and an authentic-looking ID. Such a fun week of digging deeper into literature!
Theme:
Vive la Révolution! This week we came to the conclusion of our investigation on the French Revolution. And boy…did we send it off on a high note!
We began the week by donning our Phrygian Caps, the symbol of the freedom the French people fought for, and adorning them with cockades to show our allegiance to the struggle. Students also created revolutionary characters to represent themselves in our activities. Those characters came under fire as we simulated the Reign of Terror, a period of fear and violence as various French political clubs fought for control. The activity allowed students to accuse others of betraying the revolution, with some facing prison, while others met a more permanent fate.
We had an awesome experience with a visit from Ms. Cara, mother of one of our students, who lent her expertise on France and the city of Paris. She gave us a tour of the city of lights through videos recorded by family members who live in both France and Switzerland. We learned some cool phrases, some interesting slang words in French, and ate some Belgian chocolate. Delicious!
The week ended again on a culinary note. Students mixed and made their own crepes with toppings ranging from honey to nutella with strawberries and bananas, students dined in French style. They also created models of the guillotine, one of the symbols of the revolution. We will be using the models to transition between the French and Russian revolutions. Stay tuned!
Recess always provides Delta students with opportunities to stretch the imaginations, including simulated hair treatments!
Top left: Marionettes matching verbal expressions to mathematical expressions
Rest: Bottle flipping challenge with the Gammas
Top: Saplings and Marionettes work on summaries for their tiny books. Bottom: Marionettes in mid celebration acknowledge their hard work.
Top: Marionettes work on their tiny book project. Bottom: Vroomshrooms create Phileas Fogg’s passport.
ELA students create projects that showcase what they have learned in their novels.
The Vroomshrooms use text evidence to create a giant passport and get a bonus geography lesson.
At top, Sapling students perform a public execution after simulating the Reign of Terror phase of the French Revolution. The execution modeled the political chaos of the era. Above, Vroomshroom students create models of the revolution, including cockades and guillotines.
Ms. Cara Houshmand gives students information about Paris during her presentation. A fluent French speaker and frequent visitor to France, she provided students great insight into the country and the city, including French customs and travel tips. Ms. Cara’s relatives sent videos for students to watch, giving them firsthand experience.
At top left, Vroomshrooms students make crepes to celebrate the concluding week of investigating the French Revolution in Theme class. At top right, Saplings tackle using cardboard and other supplies to create models of the guillotine. Above, Marionette students burst out in laughter as they describe their revolutionary characters while having a “meeting of the minds” before their simulation on the era known as the Reign of Terror.
