by Kimberly
For one of my after school programs I decided to teach students about shapes and how to make them look 3D with marshmallows and toothpicks. I also showed them how they can do it on a flat piece of paper. Students were so excited and thought that it was easy, as I started my lesson they would continue to talk and say "I know how to do this it's easy". As I continued with the lesson step by step, it started to challenge them. The first shape they learned was a cube made out of squares. They were engaged and very helpful to each other while building.
4/3/13
4/1/13
Segue Salon
by Angelica
As we finish up the quarter in hair braiding, the students are really beginning to showcase their skills. We have even been given the name "Segue Salon." It has been great to see the ladies and gentlemen successfully complete several types of braids: rope braid, French & Dutch braid, fishtail braid, and the waterfall braid. I believe the hardest challenge for some students was handling all the hair in their hands. I know when I first started braiding, it was difficult to figure out the right hand placement that would allow me to keep a good grip on the hair, but still allow me to move my fingers as need be. It can be a little tricky! Although we as a group have not fully accomplished every braid, we had a great time challenging ourselves and using our creativity to creative fun hairstyles. We even incorporated yarn into some braids!
3/29/13
The Dancer
by Dianny
If I say popsicle stick, what's the first word or image that comes to your head? If you are like me, well....it might be the image of a melting popsicle in your tongue! But that might not be necessarily the image during this time of the year; at least not outside. On the other hand, if you are more of an artistic and crafty person then you might be thinking of the millions of crafts a popsicle stick would inspired you to do.
This Friday was the usual arts and crafts Friday in ICS' after school program. The students went from table to table doing different activities and among them was one of my favorite, the popsicle sticks table. In that table they had fabric, markers, thread, googly eyes, and popsicle sticks (like you didn't know that by now). And with those materials they did what their imagination allowed them to do, from super heroes to flying brooms. All of their work was simply magnificent; I didn't know second graders could be as detailed and creative as they were. I loved it!!! But my all-time favorite was the dancer/cheerleader doll, although I'm still not sure if it is a dancer or a cheerleader (who am I fooling? It might not even be either) I loved it. The doll looked awesome, it had: red lipstick, a designer worthy outfit, pom poms, and even a beauty mark above the upper lip. That's just the beauty of a great imagination and the magic of a popsicle stick. I'm looking forward to seeing what else these students come up with during the arts and crafts time.
If I say popsicle stick, what's the first word or image that comes to your head? If you are like me, well....it might be the image of a melting popsicle in your tongue! But that might not be necessarily the image during this time of the year; at least not outside. On the other hand, if you are more of an artistic and crafty person then you might be thinking of the millions of crafts a popsicle stick would inspired you to do.
This Friday was the usual arts and crafts Friday in ICS' after school program. The students went from table to table doing different activities and among them was one of my favorite, the popsicle sticks table. In that table they had fabric, markers, thread, googly eyes, and popsicle sticks (like you didn't know that by now). And with those materials they did what their imagination allowed them to do, from super heroes to flying brooms. All of their work was simply magnificent; I didn't know second graders could be as detailed and creative as they were. I loved it!!! But my all-time favorite was the dancer/cheerleader doll, although I'm still not sure if it is a dancer or a cheerleader (who am I fooling? It might not even be either) I loved it. The doll looked awesome, it had: red lipstick, a designer worthy outfit, pom poms, and even a beauty mark above the upper lip. That's just the beauty of a great imagination and the magic of a popsicle stick. I'm looking forward to seeing what else these students come up with during the arts and crafts time.
3/27/13
Co-Teaching Climate
by Angelica
Sixth grade science has been studying climate for the first half of the third quarter. With this topic, came many opportunities for co-teaching and experimental projects for the teachers and students. During this unit, students have had the opportunity to learn to forecast weather, and even give a daily forecast for the whole school to hear. This unit also brought along the opportunity for me to teach a lesson on the difference between the climate in Rhode Island and my home state of Texas. In the classroom that I work in, I have had the chance to co-teach with the teacher, but this was my first time planning and teaching my own lesson for all four science classes. It was great to create a PowerPoint with pictures and interesting facts for the students to understand the climate in Texas. The PowerPoint included facts about the semiarid climate, as well as details on the climate during the four seasons. My presentation went along great with our brief study of tornadoes. The students were able to experiment with tornado simulators at the end of the presentation.
Sixth grade science has been studying climate for the first half of the third quarter. With this topic, came many opportunities for co-teaching and experimental projects for the teachers and students. During this unit, students have had the opportunity to learn to forecast weather, and even give a daily forecast for the whole school to hear. This unit also brought along the opportunity for me to teach a lesson on the difference between the climate in Rhode Island and my home state of Texas. In the classroom that I work in, I have had the chance to co-teach with the teacher, but this was my first time planning and teaching my own lesson for all four science classes. It was great to create a PowerPoint with pictures and interesting facts for the students to understand the climate in Texas. The PowerPoint included facts about the semiarid climate, as well as details on the climate during the four seasons. My presentation went along great with our brief study of tornadoes. The students were able to experiment with tornado simulators at the end of the presentation.
3/25/13
Checkmate!
by Leah
Checkmate!
This session during after school at ICS I am offering a chess class for anyone interested in capturing a king or two. I decided to do chess after our school director gave me a couple books on teaching it to kids, and honestly, there’s so much more to teaching chess than I thought. Apparently learning chess benefits students in countless ways – language, mathematics, patience, attention, planning ahead, spatial skills, even social skills. Who knew chess was even more awesome than we all thought it was before?
My class is made up of all boys in K-5th grade; some of them came in knowing nothing about chess, and some were old pros (and very impressive ones at that!). We started class by introducing each piece and reviewing how to set up the board within ranks and files. Did you know that the pieces in chess (as well as their moves) are based on real-life characters? There’s a lot of tricks to learning chess, such as remembering that a pawn (kind of like a little soldier) attacks at the diagonal because in battle the soldiers would swipe their enemies at an angle rather than straight on. Similarly, the diagonal slant in the bishop’s hat or the horizontal and vertical cross in the rook’s top gives clues as to how those pieces move. These hints definitely help out when trying to remember the moves.
A challenge that I’ve had in this class is trying to engage the kindergarteners, who are particularly impulsive when they have a board full of pieces in front of them. Kindergarteners are old enough to understand the game (something I didn’t believe before researching more about chess), and I have a 6-year old who could probably beat me. However, there have been other students who struggle with the rules, so I have been pairing them up with older students to reinforce the strategies we learn during the lessons. I’m hoping to get the kindergarteners on board even more in the last few weeks of chess!
Teaching chess has opened my eyes this year to incorporating games into school in order to build social and academic skills. And really, who doesn’t love games? In the book I have been reading “Teaching Chess”, the author pushes for a chess curriculum in schools, and there’s a lot of research out there that suggests it will be beneficial. For now, I am glad to introduce a love of chess in after school in order to spread that enthusiasm around a bit more. I hope this old school game can make a comeback in the years to come!
Checkmate!
This session during after school at ICS I am offering a chess class for anyone interested in capturing a king or two. I decided to do chess after our school director gave me a couple books on teaching it to kids, and honestly, there’s so much more to teaching chess than I thought. Apparently learning chess benefits students in countless ways – language, mathematics, patience, attention, planning ahead, spatial skills, even social skills. Who knew chess was even more awesome than we all thought it was before?
My class is made up of all boys in K-5th grade; some of them came in knowing nothing about chess, and some were old pros (and very impressive ones at that!). We started class by introducing each piece and reviewing how to set up the board within ranks and files. Did you know that the pieces in chess (as well as their moves) are based on real-life characters? There’s a lot of tricks to learning chess, such as remembering that a pawn (kind of like a little soldier) attacks at the diagonal because in battle the soldiers would swipe their enemies at an angle rather than straight on. Similarly, the diagonal slant in the bishop’s hat or the horizontal and vertical cross in the rook’s top gives clues as to how those pieces move. These hints definitely help out when trying to remember the moves.
A challenge that I’ve had in this class is trying to engage the kindergarteners, who are particularly impulsive when they have a board full of pieces in front of them. Kindergarteners are old enough to understand the game (something I didn’t believe before researching more about chess), and I have a 6-year old who could probably beat me. However, there have been other students who struggle with the rules, so I have been pairing them up with older students to reinforce the strategies we learn during the lessons. I’m hoping to get the kindergarteners on board even more in the last few weeks of chess!
Teaching chess has opened my eyes this year to incorporating games into school in order to build social and academic skills. And really, who doesn’t love games? In the book I have been reading “Teaching Chess”, the author pushes for a chess curriculum in schools, and there’s a lot of research out there that suggests it will be beneficial. For now, I am glad to introduce a love of chess in after school in order to spread that enthusiasm around a bit more. I hope this old school game can make a comeback in the years to come!
3/22/13
Stepping Out of My Comfort Zone
by Nellie
This year Charter Corps held its first February Vacation camp, with the theme of space. All our members were assigned to different subject areas of study; art, science, math, and literacy. The camp was open to Highlander students in kindergarten through eighth grade, and they had a great time! I am used to working with middle school students for the past three years, so being asked to work with kindergartners and first graders was something completely new to me. I was really nervous and anxious about working with this age group for an hour and a half, and in addition to that I was doing art projects based on different themes throughout the week. On Monday we studied constellations and created our own using marshmallows and toothpicks, we also made our own galaxy of constellations using q-tips and white paint. Tuesday we learned about Earth and the seasons and how it connects to the Earth, we drew our favorite seasons and talked about what was different about each one. On Wednesday we studied the sun and the moon. The kids were able to make their own interpretation of the sun using red, and yellow tissue paper. We went over the phases of the moon and were able to use Oreos as a visual for the kids to understand better. Thursday we made a mobile with planets on it was well as UFOs made from Styrofoam balls and cds. Camp on Friday comprised of having a rocket launch party and countdown, and rocket launches led by the upper school students. To end the camp experience there was a mysterious space shuttle that crashed outside of the school and the students had to go around the school following clues, problem solving, and decoding messages to figure out who let an alien inside of the school. Several weeks later students have come up to me saying how much of a great time they had at space camp and they want to come back!
This year Charter Corps held its first February Vacation camp, with the theme of space. All our members were assigned to different subject areas of study; art, science, math, and literacy. The camp was open to Highlander students in kindergarten through eighth grade, and they had a great time! I am used to working with middle school students for the past three years, so being asked to work with kindergartners and first graders was something completely new to me. I was really nervous and anxious about working with this age group for an hour and a half, and in addition to that I was doing art projects based on different themes throughout the week. On Monday we studied constellations and created our own using marshmallows and toothpicks, we also made our own galaxy of constellations using q-tips and white paint. Tuesday we learned about Earth and the seasons and how it connects to the Earth, we drew our favorite seasons and talked about what was different about each one. On Wednesday we studied the sun and the moon. The kids were able to make their own interpretation of the sun using red, and yellow tissue paper. We went over the phases of the moon and were able to use Oreos as a visual for the kids to understand better. Thursday we made a mobile with planets on it was well as UFOs made from Styrofoam balls and cds. Camp on Friday comprised of having a rocket launch party and countdown, and rocket launches led by the upper school students. To end the camp experience there was a mysterious space shuttle that crashed outside of the school and the students had to go around the school following clues, problem solving, and decoding messages to figure out who let an alien inside of the school. Several weeks later students have come up to me saying how much of a great time they had at space camp and they want to come back!
3/20/13
Edible Rocket Ships
by Naomi
During Space Camp my kindergartens and first graders made an Edible Rocket ship with carrots, bananas and apples. They were pretty excited about this activity, students were very creative making their rocket ship. At the end students had a delcious healthy snack.
During Space Camp my kindergartens and first graders made an Edible Rocket ship with carrots, bananas and apples. They were pretty excited about this activity, students were very creative making their rocket ship. At the end students had a delcious healthy snack.
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