Our AAA is underway.
We opened the program with a visit to Upland Hills School in northern Oakland County. UHS is a small, progressive school, just about our size: they have 17 students in their 7-8 class. They also have a series of Howell-like woods activities, including two zip-wires, a climbing wall, and a low-ropes course.
On Friday, October 4, we travelled to UHS for pizza, gaga ball, and outdoor exercise. Aristea, Ryan, Jianmarco and Saul stole the show by flying through the air on the high zip-wire, but all of the kids toured the campus, tried out one or more of the activities, participated in the Friday afternoon all-school ball game, a sort of amped-up capture the flag in a grassy meadow, and made connections.
It wasn't a conventional away game, which is part of the point. I played a lot of away games in school, but I never wrote a thank-you note afterward. Ours was happily received by the folks at UHS, and we are in the process of scheduling their return visit for a round of playground parkour, a tour of County Farm Park, and some mapping out of where our own equipment might be built, once our students write the project proposal that is the required first step for such an endeavor.
In other news, we are scheduling home-and-away visits with the Friends School of Detroit and a soccer workshop with professional player Kevin Taylor. We have identified two possible Washtenaw County schools to possibly step in for original partner Clonlara. More to come, of course.
7-8
Monday, October 21, 2013
Friday's PE Class
Friday I had both the 5-6 class and our 7-8 group for Wake-Up PE first thing in the morning.
The previous day, I had introduced the 5-6 class to the fantastically named fartlek, a Swedish form of exercise in which one alternates aerobic and anaerobic exercise--a fancy way of saying you speed up and slow down. We tried it over at County Farm Park in its simplest form: people walk in a straight line of pairs; the last pair in the line sprints to the front.
Earlier still, I had introduced the 7-8 class to less naughtily named parkour, a French for of exercise in which one creates obstacle courses, using found objects as barriers--a fancy way of saying you jump over things. We concentrated on playground parkour, where the students climbed on monkey bars, balance-walked around the rim of the gaga court, skipped over boulders, and jumped over fallen logs.
Friday's class was a combination of these activities. In nine mixed groups of three, the students created nine parkour events, building a course on the playground. Then each group contributed one member to a fresh group of nine, which learned and then ran the course. Meanwhile, the other eighteen students ran a fartlek around the school building, before forming a high-fiving Gauntlet of Congratulation to welcome the nine parkour runners. Then the groups rotated.
I liked this exercise for its creativity, flexibility, agility--you can do it anywhere--and reliability on the kids' efforts. Also, they were all breathing hard when we were done.
The previous day, I had introduced the 5-6 class to the fantastically named fartlek, a Swedish form of exercise in which one alternates aerobic and anaerobic exercise--a fancy way of saying you speed up and slow down. We tried it over at County Farm Park in its simplest form: people walk in a straight line of pairs; the last pair in the line sprints to the front.
Earlier still, I had introduced the 7-8 class to less naughtily named parkour, a French for of exercise in which one creates obstacle courses, using found objects as barriers--a fancy way of saying you jump over things. We concentrated on playground parkour, where the students climbed on monkey bars, balance-walked around the rim of the gaga court, skipped over boulders, and jumped over fallen logs.
Friday's class was a combination of these activities. In nine mixed groups of three, the students created nine parkour events, building a course on the playground. Then each group contributed one member to a fresh group of nine, which learned and then ran the course. Meanwhile, the other eighteen students ran a fartlek around the school building, before forming a high-fiving Gauntlet of Congratulation to welcome the nine parkour runners. Then the groups rotated.
I liked this exercise for its creativity, flexibility, agility--you can do it anywhere--and reliability on the kids' efforts. Also, they were all breathing hard when we were done.
Space Odyssey
I would like to take the kids to see Gravity in Imax during Friday afternoon homeroom time, depending on how prepared they are for next week's round of Exhibitions. Gravity is rated PG-13, so please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about it. I have seen the movie already, so I can speak specifically to what is and isn't scary about it.
Gravity is an odyssey, to be sure. Like Homer's tale, it is an odyssey that originates in a spirit of exploration and adventure, and which, ultimately, is only about trying to get home.
We'd be back to school for pick-up at 3:30.
Gravity is an odyssey, to be sure. Like Homer's tale, it is an odyssey that originates in a spirit of exploration and adventure, and which, ultimately, is only about trying to get home.
We'd be back to school for pick-up at 3:30.
Monday, October 14, 2013
SK's Odyssey
| IN ITHACA | ||
| Penelope | Lily | Odysseus' wife |
| Telemachus | Jianmarco | Odysseus' son |
| Antinous | Denali | suitor |
| Eurymachus | Isobel | suitor |
| Amphinomus | Kaeli | suitor |
| Ctesippus | Karenna | suitor |
| Leiodes | Adi | suitor |
| Halitherses | Ryan | hapless prophet |
| Phemios | Sydney | musician |
| Eumaeus | Danny | Odysseus' loyal swineherd |
| Eurycleia | Aristea | Penelope's loyal maid |
| Suitors | 3s & 4s | |
| AT SEA | ||
| Eurylochus | Jonathan | sailor |
| Eurybates | Saul | sailor |
| Polites | David | sailor |
| Elpenos | Matthew | sailor |
| Antiphus | Luke | sailor |
| Circe | Mike | witchy goddess |
| Polyphemos | Trent | one-eyed monster |
| Aeolus | Marcellin | kindhearted king |
| Odysseus | Maya | adventurer extraordinaire |
| Tiresias | Emma | shade |
| Anticleia | Margaret | shade |
| Shades | 3s & 4s | |
| Sailors | 3s & 4s | |
| IN THE CLOUDS | ||
| Gods | Ks, 1s & 2s | |
Sunday, September 29, 2013
UP Packing List
PACKING LIST: POINTS NORTH
OCTOBER 2-4, 2013
- one bag lunch for the bus ride on Wednesday
- one tent (optional) -- the kids can share tents, or sleep alone in them, or sleep outdoors in the open, or in the house; however, for those who want to share, I will determine who sleeps in which tents (I'd rather take everyone's blame than risk hurt feelings)
- one sleeping bag & pillow (even those sleeping indoors will need these)
- toothbrush etc (the house has three showers)
- plenty of layers (it's Michigan; who knows how cold it'll get?) -- I always suggest extra socks
- a bathing suit
- good shoes for walking; hard-core hiking boots aren't necessary, but we will be walking on woodland trails, clambering over rocks, and running on sandy beaches
- a water bottle
- a little backpack
- electronics are welcome for the bus ride; as with Mammoth Cave and Scattergood, I will tally them up before we leave, and the kids will give them to me every night
- no giant suitcases (we won't be gone THAT long, and the bus doesn't have unlimited space)
As for food, we will plan meals together and do our grocery-shopping at the local supermarket. When the trip is over, I'll tally up the bill and ask for equal contributions to cover this expense.
Odysseys
At present, we are reading eight Odysseys. One is a conventional translation in free verse. One is a gorgeous children's version, which the third and fourth grades are also reading. One is a theatrical rendition. Two are graphic novels. One is a simplified telling of the tale. One has a Caribbean setting and was written by a Nobel Prize-winning poet. One is a screenplay set in the 1930s American South.
Our play this winter will be adapted from the theatrical version. We will cast the play next week, after our return from the Upper Peninsula and before our trip to Howell. As with last year's production, all seventh and eighth graders will participate; younger students may opt to. We have a few new tricks up our collective classical sleeves.
Our play this winter will be adapted from the theatrical version. We will cast the play next week, after our return from the Upper Peninsula and before our trip to Howell. As with last year's production, all seventh and eighth graders will participate; younger students may opt to. We have a few new tricks up our collective classical sleeves.
Odyssey authors and illustrators:
Simon Armitage
Joel and Ethan Coen
Gillian Cross
Robert Fitzgerald
Gareth Hinds
Geraldine McCaughrean
Li Sidong & Fiona Macdonald
Derek Walcott
Friday, September 20, 2013
Themes and Exhibitions
We have four themes on the docket this year: Explorers, Cities, Identity, and Mythology.
For each unit of study, the first month will be spent in some formal excavation of the many definitions and angles of the theme. Thus far, Explorers has seen us looking at missions to Mars (fictional and actual), the Buddha under the Bo Tree, Richard Feynman looking at a flower, Wallace Stevens looking at a blackbird, disastrous treks across the Antarctic, mapmaking, Diana Nyad's swim, Vasco da Gama, Cheng Ho and the usual suspects from the Age of Exploration. We'll also be looking at the amazing tale of Etienne Brule, the first European to explore Michigan. He was sixteen years old when he set out west from Champlain's camp way up the St Lawrence.
Where have we found these (and other) fascinating angles? In the coursepack, entitled Explorers of the World, 140 toothsome pages of writing, from Grace Ogot to Bruce Catton to Homer to Sara Wheeler. When a new theme is introduced, a coursepack like this one will be handed out. All seventh and eighth graders will be expected to read the coursepack, cover to cover, over the course of the first month of the unit. (The Explorers collection should be finished by October 2.) At that point, when the kids have processed the theme from a number of different perspectives, I will meet with each student individually to make plans for Exhibitions.
Exhibitions will take place at the end of the theme unit. Each of the two lessons in the Exhibition will show the student's new knowledge about the theme. We will conduct our Explorers Exhibitions over the last week in October and first week in November.
For each unit of study, the first month will be spent in some formal excavation of the many definitions and angles of the theme. Thus far, Explorers has seen us looking at missions to Mars (fictional and actual), the Buddha under the Bo Tree, Richard Feynman looking at a flower, Wallace Stevens looking at a blackbird, disastrous treks across the Antarctic, mapmaking, Diana Nyad's swim, Vasco da Gama, Cheng Ho and the usual suspects from the Age of Exploration. We'll also be looking at the amazing tale of Etienne Brule, the first European to explore Michigan. He was sixteen years old when he set out west from Champlain's camp way up the St Lawrence.
Where have we found these (and other) fascinating angles? In the coursepack, entitled Explorers of the World, 140 toothsome pages of writing, from Grace Ogot to Bruce Catton to Homer to Sara Wheeler. When a new theme is introduced, a coursepack like this one will be handed out. All seventh and eighth graders will be expected to read the coursepack, cover to cover, over the course of the first month of the unit. (The Explorers collection should be finished by October 2.) At that point, when the kids have processed the theme from a number of different perspectives, I will meet with each student individually to make plans for Exhibitions.
Exhibitions will take place at the end of the theme unit. Each of the two lessons in the Exhibition will show the student's new knowledge about the theme. We will conduct our Explorers Exhibitions over the last week in October and first week in November.
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