Tuesday Tasting

Today the kids continued pickling, tasted homemade infused water and made some salad dressing for Friday's BBQ.  We will do some taste testing Thursday to ensure tastiness! Their last week of school has become a culinary adventure.

El Desfile De Moda

The grade 5 did a great job today in Spanish. They picked out at least 6 outfits and described them for the class. 

A welcome visitor.

Today we got to meet baby Jack! Jen and I previewed the Spring Sing. You are all in for a great show tomorrow! 

Tuesday Tasting Food Research

Today the Grade 5 finished presenting the foods they researched during the month of May. After having myself and Jen present a food each Tuesday from September to April, it's nice to see the kids take over and present and share about a food that they're interested in. Most of the students chose fruits. Today Zafir and Zachary shared about Sea Urchin. Carly and Nika shared about Chocolate Fruit, an idea they got from their former Spanish teacher. Josh and Sam shared their findings on Passion Fruit.

Dissection Day

Today the 5th graders had the opportunity to dissect a sheep's heart. In pairs of two they were given a heart to study and analyze. The class pointed out the different parts and what functions each part is responsible for. They gained a greater appreciation and understanding of what the heart does. The smell of formaldehyde was a bit strong for a few 5th graders but the dissection process is an educational experience I'm sure they won't forget!

Getting Ready for Community Meeting

The fifth graders are gearing up for leading the TCS Community Meeting this Friday morning. They decided to share the fruit research that they have been doing. They have chosen some interesting fruits and I'm sure it will be both an entertaining and informative presentation. We hope to see all of you there!

Spring

The 5th graders have been working hard this spring on PLPs, ERBs and getting ready to host Spring Sing. I am happy to observe them working hard in math, spelling, humanities and their other weekly assignments. They continue to improve their skills and grow academically and still make time for a bit of fun. The photos are from our Skateworld Outing, Spirit Day and our trip to the JCC to see Nika in Tarzan.

Teacher Outing

April 22 is Earth Day. We will be talking about ways to help and preserve the earth tomorrow in class. I encourage you to also have a "green" conversation at home. The TSC Green Team sent this list of ideas to the teachers as discussion topics or categories to start brainstorming from.


Ways to Help the Earth

Brought to you by Green Team

Saving Water

-Turn off water while brushing teeth

-Turn off irrigation system during a rainy week

-Take shorter showers

- Turn down water pressure when using your sink or shower

Saving Energy

-Turn off lights and electronics when not needed

-Unplug things not in use, ie cell phone and computer chargers

-Install solar panel

Trash/Recycling

-Bring reusable tray/container for Ki’s lunch

-Bring reusable water bottle, utensils and containers in your packed lunch  

-Buy reusable bags for groceries and shopping

-Use scrap paper whenever possible or use whiteboards etc

-Use both sides of the paper

-If you see a piece of trash pick it up and put in proper place

-Put your own trash/recyclables in appropriate bins

-Start a compost bin OR save your vegetable and fruit scraps for San Diego Compost Pickup

-Use email/computers instead of paper whenever possible

Reduce Pollution

-Ride a bike, walk, take the bus or carpool whenever possible

-Avoid pesticides when possible

-Buy “Green” biodegradable cleaning products

-Clean up after your pets

Other Ideas

-Teach others what you know about helping the Earth

-If you see someone do something to hurt the Earth, politely teach them what they can do to help

-Donate money to environmental groups such as Greenpeace or Conservation Fund

-Hug a tree

-Eat less meat (it takes many more resources to grow than other foods)

-Plant succulents/succulent garden

Great Artist hard at work

The grade 5 has been been painting, photographing, digitalizing, writing

and set designing in preparation for next week. I'm sure you will enjoy their finished products. Here are a few photos of them during the process.

3-20-14

The fifth grade has been working hard an doing a great job in music. They performed in class this week and sounded wonderful. If you get a chance ask to listen to their recordings! 

Bangers and Mash 3-11-14

We enjoyed a hearty English lunch today! The students did a great job with peeling and mashing the potatoes. Te dishes brought in were greatly enjoyed and appreciated! 

3-10-14

There's a new tree in the classroom. Our Poe-try has sprouted with students' favorite poems and forms that they produced. The leaves have sonnets, haikus, lyric poems, limericks and free verse forms on them.

Read Across America

3-4-14

The grade 5 participated in an all school reading session yesterday. Some of them read to the younger grades and others enjoyed reading in the warm sun.

Lunch Update Starting February 10, 2014

On Monday, 2/10 Ki's will begin serving lunch to your NMY kiddos in the courtyard. Tables will be set up at the walkway adjacent to Kelly's office/in front of Todd's office windows. This will allow access to the outlet, without having an electrical cord in a pathway.  This set up can be adjusted as needed, but it's what we'll try to begin with.  

We are hoping that having this line will alleviate the rush and wait that for some has been a deterrent to participating in the hot lunch offerings.  

Please let me know your thoughts and give me your feedback (and that of the kids) as this moves along.  Always a work in progress, but we are grateful to Ki's for their willingness to make this happen.  

Enjoy your weekend!

1-30-14

A Message from Lisa A.

As you may have guessed, we are in the midst of cold and flu season.  Many students have been sick, absent or fighting off illness. In order to keep illness from spreading to other members of our community (parents, teachers and siblings), please keep your ill child at home until they are feeling well enough to participate in all their school activities.  Most parents have utilized our Illness Policy as their guide for keeping children home.  Recently, we have been seeing colds (runny nose, cough, body aches) that have been very contagious. These symptoms accompanied by lethargy are good reasons to keep your child at home until they have enough energy and stamina to make it through the school day. 

Teachers and students are reviewing good hand washing practices here at school.  Please take this opportunity to connect school to home and do the same review with your family.

The good news is, we have no more confirmed cases of pertussis on campus.  Let's keep our track record moving in a positive direction by being a bit more vigilant and keeping ill children at home.

If you have any questions, please feel free to email or call me at school.

Thanks for your help with this matter!

1-24-14

"Step-Up"

Friday the fifth grade did a wonderful job showing the fourth graders what to expect when they are in fifth grade. Each fifth grader spoke with 2-3 fourth graders for 15 minutes. There was a larger group question and answer that was very informative for the upcoming group. They talked about what they have learned, field trips, what to expect for homework and laptop usage. They were able to convey 5th grade life effectively and positively.

1-24-14

This week has been another busy and short week. The students are continuing to work hard in their studies. They enjoyed a Tuesday Tasting of garlic and tried and rejected a taste of salt pork in Humanities. Sam, Zafir and Josh are working extra hard after school at practice and in games. If you have been around after school on a Tuesday or Thursday you may have seen them playing games. They are on quite the winning streak and we are very proud of them. There are a few games left so come on out and support the Comets!