Curriculum & Instruction Newsletter
Fair Haven Public Schools
March 2020 - Volume 2, Issue 7
This has been a very interesting month to say the least. As we continue to navigate the waters of virtual learning, I wanted to say, "Thank you!" This is very new for all of us and your patience and continued support are very much appreciated; it's certainly one of the reasons that help our teachers deliver instruction to your children as we use new tools and methods.
I also want to thank all of the staff involved in our virtual learning community! It is so hard to be away from students for a length of time, but our teachers are still fostering those special connections with students through online meetings. One phrase that we keep coming back to is, "We're all in this together." I truly believe this and as a community of learners we will be successful!
Fortunately, I was able to capture some moments when school was in session, so I am happy to share these with you and look forward to when our students and teachers return.
Sincerely,
Cheryl Romano
Director of Curriculum & Instruction
Twitter: @FHCurriculum
“Each day provides its own gifts.” – Marcus Aurelius
Celebrating Chinese New Year
At this point in the year, students in 8th grade were studying China. Our students who are currently learning Chinese started making connections between the content in their Social Studies class and the cultural history they are learning through the course at RFH. This link provided a fantastic opportunity to have our students teach their classmates about the Chinese New Year, in addition to teaching them some phrases in Chinese.
Students presented to all of Mr. Stephan's 8th grade Social Studies classes. They shared engaging videos, songs, and content with their classmates. Classes learned that Chinese New Year is a spring festival, full of tradition, that is backed by Chinese folklore. Colors that are prevalent are red and gold. Red symbolizes luck, while gold symbolizes wealth. Chinese New Year is celebrated for 15 days, ending with a Lantern Festival. Students also shared the history behind the Chinese zodiac signs and shared the story of how each animal of their zodiac came to be placed. 2020 is the year of the rat. 2021 will be the year of the Ox.
It was fascinating to learn so much from students about the Chinese culture and how they are making connections between the classes they are taking. It takes a lot of courage to teach your peers and these students rose to the occasion.
Students Teaching Students
Keeping with the spirit of students teaching students, I was fortunate enough to get a front row seat in Ms. Homyak's 5th grade class, where her student Ambroise deQuillacq, taught us all about multiplying two fractions without using a model. This is an amazing point in the year where teachers can turn the tables and have students teach their peers, illustrating the highest point in Bloom's Taxonomy, to create. This stage of learning allows students to create original work, designing and assembling it, as well as investigating ways to bring that content to peers and generate new ideas on how to do it.
There was much planning that went into this lesson. Ambroise met with Ms. Homyak on several occasions to design an engaging learning experience for his classmates, in addition to creating small group opportunities for students to continue practicing the skill he was going to deliver. He was prepared with a presentation for the Promethean Board and materials for the small groups to use.
To begin his class, Ambroise started with a math warm up activity. He led students through finding a fraction of a fraction and he had students model their responses. He also utilized Ms. Homyak's lottery system to choose students to share and all students were eager to be active participants in Ambroise's lesson.
Ambroise then segued into his mini lesson. He told students they would be learning how to multiply two fractions without a model. He began by sharing a word problem and had the class identify important information using the CUBES strategy. Ambroise asked probing questions to his classmates, such as why estimating would be a good strategy to start with when figuring out the answer to the word problem. As students began to solve the word problem and share their responses, Ambroise further questioned students about how to reduce the fractions and had them try it out.
To wrap up the lesson, Ambroise ran a center with math games to help students practice the skills they learned. He included a few options for students, including a challenge game for students who wanted to try more complex problems. Ambroise explained the games for the students and answered their questions, working with them to learn how to play the games.
After watching Ambroise deliver instruction to his class, I would say that he could definitely be part of my teaching staff! I see a bright future for him!
Pie for Pi Day!
As students geared up to learn about this fascinating number, some prepared by learning and sharing a song with the class which included the first 100 digits in Pi. Throughout the period, Mrs. Cook also shared some interesting facts about this fascinating number. 3.14 is the number of times the diameter will wrap around the circumference of a circle. This number is seen in the math behind rainbows and DNA. Also, while it was extremely impressive that students learned the first 100 digits of Pi, did you know that a man memorized the first 42,000 digits?
Before students headed into the all purpose room for the second phase of Pi Day, Mrs. Cook read the story, Sir Cumference and the Dragon of Pi, to the class. This was a great addition to this special day and students quickly learned that the solution to the problem posed in this book was a potion measured in Pi. One student even commented that this was a very specific measure and wasn't sure that it was possible.
To bring the activities to a close and prior to enjoying real pie, students took part in an activity that brought the lesson full circle. The notion that Pi is infinite and non-repeating was demonstrated in students created beaded bracelets. For each number, 0-9, students choose a bead color. Using as many digits of Pi as they could, they strung the beads onto a lanyard for a visual of this non-repeating number. This lesson was so much fun! There were facts and knowledge shared, hands-on experiences to be had, and it was also interdisciplinary with its ties to literacy. I can't wait to come back again next March 14th!
La Famille - Learning About Families in French
One question that teachers think about is how to hook their students into a lesson and engage them. Madame Amabile does some pretty creative things with her class, from relevant current events to fun jokes, but today, she brought in one of the most popular families, even stemming back to when I was young. Madame Amabile uses a portrait of the Simpsons to help students identify key members of a family, the roles they play, and even includes their pets. Using the SmartBoard, students label each individual. This may seem easy, but there are nuances in the French language that we do not have in English, such as noun gender. For instance, students have to remember if dog is a feminine or masculine noun, preceding the word with "le" or "la" to indicate this. In English, we just say, "the dog," while in French, they say, "le chien," making it a masculine noun regardless of the gender of the animal.
Students had a great time labeling the Simpsons, which led into some great conversation. Madame Amabile turned the questions onto the students, asking them about their families. Students shared if they had brothers or sisters and how many of each they had. Students talked about their pets too! This fun activity lent itself to the class conversing with one another, practicing their speaking and listening skills. Students learned a lot about each other in this short time. What a great way for them to connect with each other!
Preschool Builders Preview School Plans
Part of the curriculum lends itself to community involvement. Visitors, which can range from family members to local business owners, share their experiences with the students for each specific study. Preschoolers get to see how their studies tie back to the real world, broadening their knowledge base. This particular study on building led Mrs. DiPasquale to invite some very special visitors into her class. To show students about some of the logistics behind building, our very own Superintendent and Business Administrator joined Mrs. DiPasquale's class to show them the blueprints and plans for the renovations that will take place in their very own school!
Mr. McNeil and Mr. Joye are our local experts on buildings and plans, so who better to share this information with students? Mr. McNeil shared the building plans with the students, as well as full color drawings of what the building will look like once completed. The students sat and listened attentively as details of this large-scale project were shared.
A memorable part of the lesson was when Mr. McNeil asked students for feedback on how structures that impact them should look. He asked students what they should have in a new playground. Students, if placed in charge of this project, would include video games in their playground. They would also recommend posters of Darth Vadar. Those are bold decisions that would make for a unique playground! One response, which touched me personally, was when a student shared that they should do a "playground study." When the student shared this, Mrs. DiPasquale looked at me and we both knew that this curriculum is really making a difference when students are using the language of the program and applying it to a new situation. Being that a "study" aligns with the content delivered to students, it was pretty awesome to see that terminology used by our youngest learners in the appropriate context.
Thank you to Mr. McNeil and Mr. Joye for bringing such a relevant topic and materials to our preschoolers. While the suggestion of chocolate fountains may not make the cut for the new building, perhaps some of the others will!
Cross-Curricular Arts Integration
Students began by creating a head/body for their character, wrapping a balloon with Plastercraft. Once dry, they began to learn how to create armatures to support this Plastercraft. They are now in the phase where they give their Plastercraft personalities. Students used acrylic paints and patterned paper to adorn their creations in a way that fit with their stories. While some students had a story in mind when they were making their puppets, others took a more organic approach, letting their puppet guide the story.
As students worked, they were discussing their stories with each other, sharing details about their characters, the plots, and challenges their characters might face. There was a very diverse set of stories brewing, with characters that took the shape of monkeys, zebras, people, penguins, dogs, witches, and mummies. It was amazing to watch students work and add intricate details to their puppets, as well as watch them provide their peers with feedback on what would make their characters best fit the stories.