Beginning of April

Thank you all for an exquisite Author's Tea! We heard many genres of high quality writing, full of insight, in-depth research, and playful fiction. The Red Fox Clan has set its sights on the next big project: A Weather Show. We are finishing up our investigation of the basics of weather and will begin mapping out and recording an informational show to teach the basics of weather. Winds, jet streams, air masses, fronts, clouds, rain, lightning and thunder and frost and ice have been topics we have explored since the last blog post. Students have continued to take notes off the board and draw a plethora of diagrams. I very much look forward to the creative process that lies ahead.

We have had our first two Flying Deer sessions with Devin. Among the projects underway already is another lab following the scientific method. This time, students brainstormed questions they had. We spent time as a whole group discussing each other's questions and guiding each other to form hypotheses. Students then continued on to writing their procedure and materials they will need. We have begun gathering data and will continue to do so through May. Please ask your child what they have chosen to study!

The Red Fox Clan continues to roll along in math, with one group studying speed and simultaneously reviewing the year's curriculum. Another group is in the thick of fractions and is currently adding and subtracting mixed numbers.

Another project we have taken on over the last few weeks is inspired by Marshall Rosenberg. Marshall holds the perspective that we can either play the make life wonderful game or its opposite. I split up the Red Fox Clan into groups to brainstorm ways they can make life wonderful for our clan, the other clans in the school, and the adults in the community. They came up with some ideas but quickly reached a wall. I then provided the students with a needs list from Nonviolent Communication, and the ideas began flowing. We have a nice list hanging on our wall of ways we can make life wonderful for others while meeting their needs. Students have spent small chunks of time over the past few weeks consciously trying to make life more wonderful for others at the school. Perhaps you would like to create a similar list for playing the game at home.