Your fifth and sixth graders have been working hard and joyfully in their first two of four movement, music, art, tech and design classes! This four-session rotation provides all 5th/6th grade students the opportunity to explore...
The final culmination of our science project took place at the Boulder Reservoir today. Students learned about buoyancy, volume, density, and mass, worked in teams of 10, created models and a science journal recording their learning in this seven week project. The ultimate test was whether your boat floated or not! Written by 5-8 Peace Jammers: Have you ever been in a situation where you have been hungry and you weren't sure where your next meal was coming from?
All around the world 815 million people go hungry. This is why on Friday, April 4th, the Horizons 5-8th Grade PeaceJam group decided to host an Oxfam Hunger Banquet to raise our awareness of this issue. When we entered the simulation, everyone drew a card at random deciding their place in society -- high, middle or low income. Depending on their status, they would be eating either rice, rice and beans, or a full meal. After eating our meals, we had time to reflect as a group on our feelings during the experience. Everyone seemed to agree that it was a very eye-opening experience, and multiple 5th/6th graders commented on the inequality of the statuses around the room. It was impactful because there were people sitting on the ground eating rice, while others were sitting at tables eating pasta and cookies. We talked about the realization that we didn't know or consider that 80% of the world's population eats much less than we do on a daily basis. Please see the list below about some ways you can make an impact on hunger in the world. We appreciate how open the 5th/6th graders have been to the experience. How can we make a difference: - Help serve a meal at Community Table or a place like this - Make a donation to groups like Oxfam, Community Table, etc. that feed those who are in need - Learn more about the state of hunger - Finish all the food on your plate/in your lunchbox/bag - Try to be less picky about what is eaten and be grateful for what we have - Only take what you will actually eat in the lunchroom, at home, etc. - Eat leftovers, (or freeze what you can for later) - Put extra, uneaten food in the lunchroom "Share bin" instead of throwing it away - Donate food to Efaa in north Boulder (they have a board with specific needs) - Have an open mind about new foods, eating seasonal foods and buying local foods when possible - Consider decreasing the amount of meat consumed - here's a recent article - Join a club (like PeaceJam or The Green Team) to take action on these issues Mark Olsky is the grandfather of two students at Horizons School. He's a doctor who still teaches emergency medicine to medical students and others at the University of Wisconsin and elsewhere. At nearly age 74, he is one of the youngest actual survivors of the Holocaust. He was born on a train and, as a newborn baby, was marked for death by the Nazis. The war officially ended when Mark was just over two weeks old, so he escaped death narrowly. His mother, three aunts and an uncle survived, but most of his family did not, including his father. He and his family lived four years in Germany as refugees. No country in the world, including the US, wanted them. Then they lived in Israel, a country that wasn't formed legally until 1948. He came to the US at almost age 14, 60 years ago. Due to limited English, he was first placed in classes for "slow" students. Four years ago (2015) a book was published about the birth of three babies, including Mark, in Nazi captivity. It became an international best seller, translated into 20 languages.
All 5/6 classes ventured over to Macky Auditorium on CU's campus to complete our program with the Boulder Philharmonic. In the fall the Philharmonic's Brass Quintet held a workshop and today we were able to experience the entire orchestra.
Music and architecture have many things in common – rhythm, texture, harmony, proportion, dynamics – and composers and architects throughout the ages have often approached their work in similar ways. Join us for the 2019 Discovery Concert as the Boulder Philharmonic and special guests explore the intersection between sounds and structures, featuring orchestral works by Bach, Britten, Mussorgsky, Ives, and more. The second set of Rotations began last week with students exploring the following offerings: Deep Dive into STEAM (self-directed STEAM projects, Frequent Flyers Aerials, Architectural Design, Fitness Bootcamp, Ukulele, Coding, and Keyboards. Our performance is scheduled for March 7 at 6:30pm in the Gym. In beautiful conditions, fifth and sixth grade students went nordic skiing, alpine skiing, and snowboarding at Eldora Mountain Resort. Each child participated in a two-hour lesson and some stayed with their parents to enjoy an afternoon of skiing and riding. The educational objectives for these field trips are: • To foster appreciation and respect for the natural environment • To promote a sense of community • To provide instruction in winter sports and opportunities for students to develop a life-long interest in outdoor physical education activities • To provide aerobic and fitness conditioning • To develop physical strength, agility, coordination, independence, and self-confidence Your fifth and sixth graders have been working hard and joyfully in their first two of four movement, music, art, tech and design classes! This four-session rotation provides all 5th/6th grade students the opportunity to explore...
Each of the four sessions involves 11 hours of differentiated instruction provided by experts and in each field:
There will two performances to showcase student learning. Below you will find the details of our performance schedule: Session #1 Both A and B classes (1/8- 2/1/19) Friday 2/1/19, 9-10:15AM @ Gym Session #2 Both A and B classes (2/6 - 3/7/19) Thursday 3/7/19, 6:30-8:00PM @ Gym Each class will share what they have learned over the course of their rotation for about 15 minutes. Some work (like deep dive STEAM/STEM and Calligraphy) will be on display with students explaining and demonstrating their learning process, and products. Films will be shown to grade 5/6 students and we hope to load them onto our grade level website. These rotations encompass our 5th/6th grade “performance”, and we look forward to all students participating in each of these two events. If you feel your student (or family) has some extraordinary circumstance that prohibit your child from participating in a performance, please notify the appropriate homeroom teacher in advance. Daily we have been inspired by the growth, learning, and enthusiasm with which the 5th and 6th grade students have been embracing these varied experiences. We look forward to helping support them as they showcase their learning. The 5-6 Team, Annie, Lynn, Rachel and Peter Scott Medina, Coordinator of Volunteer Programs, for Bridge House spoke with the 5/6 students to tell about his involvement in helping the hungry and homeless in Boulder. His story of connection and empathy inspired many students to ask questions and look forward to their volunteer opportunity this year feeding the hungry at Path to Home's new central location on 30th Street. Peter's class began in October with serving dinner with the rest of the 5/6 classrooms to follow till the end of the year. |
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