This past week was short but chock full of learning. Having visited Apple Hill near Sacramento, I had a bounty of apples and we used them as an opportunity to try different treats and have a taste test. I used this recipe from Smitten Kitchen to bake an apple sharlotka (a Russian apple cake). This recipe just had apples, eggs and sugar beat into almost meringue texture with flour folded in, and a splash of vanilla. Some Temescalians thought it tasted “fluffy”, “apple-y”, and “sweet”.
The next day, I brought in “Mom’s apple cake” that had more familiar flavors of cinnamon and sugar mixed in with the apples. This was my first bundt cake and I was so glad to share it with the Temescalians. Many liked this apple cake better than the apple sharlotka. You can try these recipes out at home and see which you enjoy more, but each recipe calls for 6 apples.
To round out the apple-mania, we did an apple taste test. I picked golden delicious and empire apples from trees and bought empire, fuji, and mutsu apples. We practiced mindful eating, nibbling at each apple slice so that we could have a little leftover to compare with others if we wanted to. As we munched, we asked the Temescalians to notice the thickness of the skin, the sweetness of the apple, its crunchiness, and the texture of the apple itself. Temescalians then voted for their favorite apple (they could only choose one for this survey) and then we turned the data into a graph and made observations.
Inspired by our apple graph, some Temescalians decided to survey the class about who had grapes for lunch because they noticed that everyone at their table had grapes for lunch. They decided on the categories: red grapes, green grapes, purple grapes, raisins, and no grapes. Then they surveyed the class, took turns collecting data for each type of grape, and the whole class made connections and observations of our grape graph. An interesting turn of events was that a few individuals had a mixture of green and red grapes so our data was skewed! But as we always say, unexpected results always lead to learning. The next time, Temescalians said that they would create a “mixed” grape section so that our results would reflect just 18 votes and we could be even more specific with our data.
We continued to practice two-digit addition with number lines and number trees. A habit that we want the Temescalians to have while using number lines is to draw an arrow to indicate which direction they are “hopping” on the number line. We also introduced a new game called “Carrot Grab” where strategy is needed to figure out how to hop to tens so that they can collect a “carrot”. They roll dice to indicate the ones and spin to see how many groups of tens they can hop. If, for example, they are on 148, roll a 4 and spin 30, the Temescalian needs to be able to break up the 4 into 2 + 2 so that they can hop to 150 (and grab a carrot), hop 3 more tens (and grab three more carrots), and then 2 more spaces. So at the end of their turn, they are on 182 and have 4 carrots! This game may be easier to understand in person, so we invite you to join us on a Family Reading Friday to play this math game and look through your Temescalian’s portfolio.
We also introduced a “Handy Tool” where we touched upon proportions and how many adult hands have approximations of measurements that they can use if they don’t have a ruler/meter stick/yard stick at hand. For example, the width of two fingers is about an inch. The length of your knuckles on your index finger is about an inch. The width of your pinky is about a centimeter. The width of an adult palm, by the 4 fingers, is about 3 inches. We talked a little about how long ago, people used their hands to measure things like horses because many people’s hands were about the same size. Ask your Temescalian how they had to place their hand on the paper in order to trace their own hands to show these measurements. (It’s like the Vulcan salute, but not.)
Finally, we wanted to highlight the calendar that is an integral part of the Bridges math curriculum. There are so many patterns and mathematical connections that can be had by looking at the calendar. The initial days of the month may not yield as rich conversations, but later in the month, when more of the pattern is revealed, it is quite amazing to see what Temescalians notice. For example, in the September calendar, the focus was on different ways to show multiplication. There are different models of this: loops and groups, a picture, ratio table, and array. Within these patterns, there are other layers of patterns! When we were looking over the month of September, a Temescalian noticed that the color of the array was a pattern, but so were its dimensions! The red and blue arrays always had 4 rows of squares, but the yellow arrays always had 3 rows of squares! The language used in the September calendar will helpful when we embark on our multiplication unit in the coming months. The calendar for October features shapes, which lends itself to a richer discussion when we come to our geometry unit. When you come into the classroom, ask your Temescalian about the patterns that s/he sees and make predictions about what may come next, the next Friday, two Tuesdays from today.
In reading, we revisited the predictions that we made either in our own books or from The Wainscott Weasel, the class read aloud. We hope to develop the practice of not only making predictions, but going back in our Reading/Writing journals to note if our predictions were right, and if not, what really happened. We encourage interaction with storylines so that the Temescalians are not just passive readers, but thinking as they take in the story.
Our Rocket Write involved writers to either write whether they believe in aliens or ghosts, or if they could create a theme park, what rides would they have and what would be offered at the park. Our Temescalians seem to really enjoy writing and sharing their creative writing. We pulled 3 popsicle sticks and found three willing writers to share their Rocket Write entries, much to the class’s enjoyment. Ask your Temescalian to share his/her Rocket Writes with you!
We also used some time for Student Reflections, which we share with grownups at the parent-teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday. So many Temescalians were excited about typing, cursive, multiplication, Spanish, and Art. Many enjoyed the Mid-Autumn Festival celebration that we had, and the Rocket Writes. There was also a positive trend of growth mindset language in their writing about areas they need support in: “I don’t know __________ yet.” We are so glad that so many have such a fantastic approach to learning and patience with themselves.
We rounded out our week of writing with an introduction to Christopher Columbus. It is surprising how so few know about Christopher Columbus who “sailed across the ocean blue in 1492.” We presented two sides to his arrival to the New World. Encounter by Jane Yolen depicts the European arrival from the perspective of a Taino boy. We also watched a BrainPop video that presented Christopher Columbus’s contributions to trade and the Columbian Exchange, as well as the repercussions of claiming land that was already occupied by indigenous peoples. We listed good and bad results of Columbus coming to the New World, and asked the Temescalians to write an opinion piece: Which holiday would you observe? A day honoring Christopher Columbus and remembering his exploits and expeditions for trade, or a day honoring the indigenous peoples of the Americas and remembering their culture. We introduced a topic sentence and closing sentence, and asked that the Temescalians use linking words to connect ideas together.
We wrapped up our observations of celery in food coloring and asked the Temescalians to record observations and start to draw conclusions, using examples to support their ideas. Many concluded that pink food coloring was especially bad for celery because all of the celery in a mixture of pink food color looked more withered, shriveled, limp, and droopy. We were asking the Temescalians to be specific and define what made a celery “look better” and describe how a “bad” celery looked.
A few other glimpses from our short week:
We also watched a video on the youngest Master Penman in the world: Jake Weidmann. The practice and concentration he has when doing calligraphy is impressive and a sign of the dedication needed to be a master penman!
Finally, it was such a pleasure to talk with you all during our parent teacher conferences on Thursday and Friday. We also really appreciated the treats, both savory and sweet, that you dropped off for us to sustain us through the day! Thank you also for the potted succulents! They’re so cute, and will blend right in with our growing greenhouse!
Many Temescalians were wondering what happens on a Professional Development (PD) day. This time, colleagues volunteered to teach workshops on a variety of topics: Orff workshop, Literacy Continuum, Looking at Student Work, Using iPads, Bringing Pop Culture and Current Events into the Classroom, and more! Our full faculty from the ECC to middle school teachers offer such a wealth of knowledge. It was lovely to learn alongside and from each other on Monday.
This is just a snippet of our Orff experience workshop led by Owen! (To view the video, use password: TemescalCreek! )
Upcoming events:
– Due on 10/17: We will be walking to the West Branch of the Berkeley Public Library. Please send in your child with his/her Berkeley Library card by this date. Each individual may only use his/her own library card to borrow books. (If you filled out an application and sent it back to class, we’re bringing the applications over for you and the librarian will have a card ready for your Temescalian on the day of our visit.)
– Due 10/18: Please send your Temescalian with a pumpkin by Thursday, 10/18. We will be scooping them out with parent support on Thursday, 10/18 and carving them with our Buddies on Friday, 10/19. Expect to have them sent home on Friday. Again, the pumpkin should be one that your Temescalian can comfortably carry independently. Please contact our classroom coordinators, Miranda or Tim if you can join us to help out on Thursday from 1:00 to around 2:00pm.
