"I can't do this without you!"

Whew! The first 5th grade Culmination is over and the girls were fantastic! They've worked hard these past few weeks and with some tough talk from Ms. GreNini, they rose to the occasion and really nailed it last night. Congratulations to all the girls and to their families as well. We can only imagine what the energy has been like these past few weeks. We KNOW what it's been like at school...but now, now we can all take a big sigh of relief, congratulate ourselves and prepare for a nice, relaxing winter break.

A lot happened leading up to Culmination and even behind the scenes of the event. Perhaps our favorite comment of the night came right before the second guitar group walked onto stage. One student (who shall remain unnamed) grabbed the arm of her classmate and said, "Oh my god. I couldn't find you. I can't do this without you! Come on!"

That statement sums up exactly what Culmination is all about. It's not about the assignments or projects or the continuous practicing of speeches you think you've memorized or the constant prodding of your teachers urging you to stay focused, keep the energy up, or strive for something you don't think you can achieve. All of that is important, but what's really important is knowing that your performance is dependent on the performance of your whole group. You are a team and though you individually stand up in front of the audience, you can't do what you do without all of those standing around you.

So, while we laughed when we heard the student's urgent plea, our hearts leapt knowing that we had achieved that sense of interdependence that illustrates the importance of Culmination.

Everyone grew last night. Everyone reached a new level. Everyone showed significant improvement from the first day we started this big project and certainly, everyone has grown from that first day of Orientation when, wide-eyed, they worried that they could not perform their poems in front of such a "large" audience.

But the growth has just begun. Just wait, just wait until May when those nervous girls hit the stage at the Seattle Aquarium and knock your socks off with their maturity, growth, knowledge, and confidence. Yes, a lot of work will happen between now and then, but with the first Culmination done, the girls walk with the knowledge that they CAN even when they think they can't.

Thank you all for your contribution to last night's success. Behind every successful child we know there are supportive parents and your enthusiasm and love of your children was so evident last night it made us proud to be a part of your daughters' lives.

Thanks again and have a relaxing, safe, and enjoyable Winter Break. We'll see you all on Monday, January 7 for the next part of our journey together.

Ms. GreNini

PS -- Tomorrow, Thursday, December 20 we'll be taking the city bus to Elliott Bay Bookstore to help Ms. Gretchen spend her gift certificate (from last year's class of 5th graders). The girls will be choosing one book to contribute the 5th grade library, but they are free to bring more money if they'd like to buy a book of their own. Happy Holidays!

CULMINATOR!

Right now as I type, the girls are focused and working on all the aspects of their first Culmination. There's a bit of tension in the air -- not undue tension, but that kind of excited uncertainty, a nervous thrill that happens every year as the newest class to SGS works toward their first culmination.

Of course, it hasn't all been peaches and roses. When tension and excitement combine, some students butt heads, some shut down, and some cry. No criers yet, but it's sure to come as we get closer and closer to Culmination. We have high expectations of the girls -- in the quality of their art work, the elements of the slideshows, and in their overall performance (posture, projection, and presence). They feel us pushing them and while some rise to the challenge, others struggle -- they push back in a variety of ways: Some work slower, some work too quickly, some don't work at all.

This time of year tests us all.

But with patience and support we know the girls will rise to this occasion!

Still, we're moving forward. Culmination is Tuesday, December 18. It begins at 6:30, but we ask that the girls arrive no later than 6 so they can put the final touches on their presentations and coordinate with their groups. We also ask the girls to bring a healthy snack to share with our guests, but it's extremely important that the girls eat dinner BEFORE Culmination. The combination of nerves and excitement on an empty stomach can prove disastrous!

Culmination is scheduled to end at 8:30. We'll be cleaning up after that and if you want to stick around and help, that would be wonderful though we have it down to a pretty exact science.

We look forward to seeing all of you on Tuesday night and we're crossing our fingers (and pulling out the stern voices and optical reprimands) that all will come together for our first CULMINATOR!

It's Not Fair! by Ms. Gretchen

If there's a 5th grade mantra, this it: IT'S NOT FAIR!

Fairness is an interesting concept. My mother always says, "Life is hard, honey, but never fair." As a fifth grader, that didn't make me feel any better, but now, years later, I find myself saying the same phrase to our students.

This age (10-11) is an age of transition. Not quite children and not quite teenagers (or still children and now teenagers), a lot is happening physically to our girls. We're all aware of that as adults and Marja does a great job explaining it to the girls. But there is a moral development phase that often gets overlooked or unintentionally neglected.

In some ways, we expect the girls to go through moral dilemmas and then, with age and experience, live by their own personal code of conduct. As a society, those difficult discussions about what we value, about what motivates our actions are scarce in the adult world and practically non-existent in the world of children. Aside from individual families carrying on these complex and sometimes difficult discussions, there isn't really a national forum in which our children can participate.

Ms. Nini was sharing with me a recent viewing of the television show "Iconoclast" where a young "celebrity" interviews someone who inspired them. For instance, on the latest show, the actress Ashley Judd interviewed Madeline Albright. In their discussion, Ms. Albright explained the difference between being a nation with morals and a moralistic nation. In the first instance, a nation with morals tends to place themselves on a pedestal chastising other nations for not living by or up to their moral view.

A moralistic nation, on the other hand, lives their values because they are based on deeply held beliefs and a national code of conduct as it were. They do not dictate to others how they should live, but rather live each day by those values, letting those values inform their decisions and actions, and in the end, speak for themselves.

There are times, after hearing the thirteenth child whine, "That's not fair!" that I find myself spouting SGS morals, pointing my finger and criticizing the behavior instead of taking the time to really discuss the concept of fairness and turning the whine on its ear. I'm not sure why this happens, why I slip into "teacher as punisher" rather than "teacher as teacher" mode, but I'm sure it has a lot to do with time, the amount of work we must get done in our short time together, and being just plain exhausted from hearing "It's not fair!" a hundred times a day.

We do, of course, have discussions about fairness and the girls are very articulate in explaining their perspective. What they aren't particularly good at is explaining someone else's perspective -- seeing that fairness has more than one side.

This discussion will happen soon though as the girls are asking if they can use their iPods during work sessions. Talk about a can of worms, how do we guide the girls into seeing that the ownership of things (popular or not) is a direct reflection of fairness on a much deeper level than they might be ready to understand? We have our ideas of how we'll present this discussion, but we know it will be more of an extension of our discussion on Personal Codes of Conduct than simply the wearing of the latest, iconic device.

In the meantime, I will practice patience with the mantra and spend more time guiding the girls through the deconstruction of what they perceive "fairness" to be.

Mom was right, Life IS Hard! Even when you're my age.

That Time of Year

You have to admit that this is a wild time of year. The holidays are enough of a challenge both pleasant and exhausting, but now on top of it all is the most interesting weather, a new school with new routines and expectations, and if that weren't enough it's drawing close to CULMINATION!

A lot is happening in our classroom lately. On an academic level, the girls are pulling together all they know about ecosystems to create their Culmination presentations. We won't give too many of the details so that when families arrive on the night of December 18, they'll be surprised, amazed, and proud of their daughters' achievements, but regardless, the stress level has risen a bit as the girls work together on their projects.

But on top of all of that is the annual emotional shift the girls are experiencing. They are now deeply a part of the SGS culture. Nothing is really new, aside from their first Culmination (or Culminator as we like to refer to it). They know each other, they know the other students in the other grades, they know the staff and faculty, they know the routine, and they have created for themselves their own SGS driven routine at home.

Ironically, being "at one" with the whole SGS experience starts to make them a be melancholoy at this time of the year. Perhaps you've seen it around the house. The girls start to miss their old friends, their old teachers, their old schools even if those experiences weren't rewarding or fun. When they do get together with friends from their previous schools, often the experience feels awkward -- each girl has had such a different academic experience and grown in different ways that they have a hard time sharing their lives like they did when they went to school together.

Even though the girls know that Ms. GreNini loves each and every one of them, they miss their previous teachers and the routines of the past. While everything feels normal now -- the school, the routine, the expectations -- it feels different -- a difference that is simply a mark of change, though that's hard to decipher when you're lost in the emotion of it.

If you're seeing any of this or perhaps having conversations about such topics, we're hear to tell you that it is normal. Every December things start to shift. The girls have grown in ways they may not be able to recognize and when you grow, well, you are different than who you were a year ago or even six months ago.

Such change can make your life feel uncertain and/or unclear. Not only are you different, but your new experiences at SGS have made it difficult to connect with friends in the past and even with family members who see your old self and not the new one. It's amazing to us how cyclical this effect is. Like clockwork the girls as a group start to feel more stress, start to worry a bit more, and yes, even grow a bit sad.

Bernice Johnson Reagon (the founder of the vocal ensemble Sweet Honey in the Rock and music historian emeritus with the Smithsonian) says that change is often like a big storm -- you see it looming and you just want to turn around and go the other way. Knowing you can't really avoid it, you look for ways "around" it, but the only way to really survive the storm is to go through it. When you do, says Ms. Reagon, you come out the other side alive, but changed. She writes: "Life's challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they're supposed to help you discover who you are."

That's hard for adults to see, but it's even harder for "tweeners." And so, you may see some behaviors that you can't quite figure out.

It's change...

...and it's the weather...and it's the time of year...and it's the time of remembering...and it's the time of Culmination...and it's the time of expectations...and it's the time...yes, it's just simply and not-so-simply the time.

We hope to see you all at Culmination Tuesday, December 18 from 6:30-8:30 at SGS. The girls will need to arrive at 6:00 and they are asked to bring some healthy snacks to share in a snack potluck of sorts with our guests and their friends and families. We'll provide beverages and utensils. More about this later. For now, stay warm, stay dry, and stay patient!

Ms. GreNini

PS -- Check out the salmon/Cavanaugh Pond photos on the Class Photos link!

Announcements!

It's a busy time of the year. So busy we feel like we're chasing our tails a bit. No wait...that's Rubin!

We have a few announcements that we'd like to share with you this week:

1) A Weekly Light will be sent home on Wednesday. "Light" means that we'd love for the girls to complete their assignments listed, but mostly we'd love for them to focus on "family time" during the Thanksgiving break. So no, they're not pulling your leg when they say they don't have much to do. BUT...isn't there always one...BUT if they are behind on their work, PLEASE have them take this extra time to catch up. All missing assignments are listed on the Missing Work Report, which are included in this week's Boomerang only IF your daughter is missing work from Ms. Gretchen or Ms. Nini. If there is no Missing Work Report then all is good!

2) Please make certain you take a look at the contents of the Boomerang, sign the bright yellow envelope, and then return the envelope with all of the contents intact the following Wednesday. We file these assignments into their portfolio and then review them when writing report cards (see below).

3) The girls have all been asking when Marja will begin her sexual education classes. This year, unlike in the years past, Marja will be teaching these classes during an internship block beginning November 28 (the Wednesday after T-day break). Parent night with Marja is scheduled for Thursday, November 29 beginning at 6:30 at SGS. Mark your calendars!

4) Friday, November 30 is a kid's day off of school so teachers can finish up narrative report cards (6th, 7th, and 8th grade). Ms. GreNini will be starting this process on this day though our report cards aren't due until January. So again, mark your calendars.

That's it for now. If we have any last minute announcements before Thanksgiving break we'll let you know. Have a good one and be safe if you journey away from your home.

Ms. GreNini

Juggling Self

Tweeners -- kids between the agest of 10 and 12 -- struggle. They are still children in many ways and yet they are also busting at the seams to be teenagers. It's a time of transitions. Their bodies are beginning to change, their hormones are firing up, and the messages in their heads are starting to send signals of doubt -- am I cute enough, am I confident, can I do this, whatever the "this" is?

We see this struggle every day in our classroom. Often the lack of confidence and growing self-doubt begins in math classes. As the concepts get harder, more and more girls who may have felt confident in math in previous years, all of the sudden worry when they don't understand algebra concepts or can't multiple or divide fast enough to keep them moving through particular problems. Other girls struggle not with math, but with social interactions. Who is my friend, who do I want to have as a friend, does everyone like me, am I likeable...and on and on...

While we spend a lot of time teaching the academics of life, we also spend a great deal of time discussing, dissecting, and understanding ourselves and ourselves in relation to others. The latter lessons are often far more meaningful and difficult than the academic ones, but if any of our students are to learn the academics, they must have a strong sense of self first. And so, we try to spend time equally in both areas knowing that one feeds the other.

This week we spent one of our academic blocks on the more personal conversation of positive self talk. To begin, Ms. Nini read from the picture book "Up the Learning Tree" by Marcia Vaughn. It is the story of a young African American boy, Henry Bell, who lived during the time of slavery. Forbidden to learn how to read, is assisted by a teacher who secretly teaches Henry how to read. He treasures the gift and as his reading improves (and math skills as well) he gains confidence. The world opens up for Henry. Through his determination and commitment, he becomes a stronger person, his doubt and the world's negative messages melt away.

Next, we took a look at a lighter version of positive self-talk. Chris Bliss is a World Champion Juggler who performs an amazing juggling act to a classic Beatles song. (You can watch this video at http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4776181634656145640). In order to perform this juggling routine, Chris Bliss had to practice ad nauseam. "How many times do you think he made a mistake?" we asked the girls. "Do you think he ever wanted to give up? What did he say to himself to keep on practicing until he got it just they way he wanted it?"

After hearing the story and watching the juggling, we had the girls quietly write down what positive self talk looked like, felt like, and sounded like. We made small posters that we hung from the ceiling (we've run out of wall space!). Then, at the end of the week, the girls created little models of themselves who "expressed" positive self talk through thought bubbles.

What's next? Turning that positive self talk to the outside world. In other words, what does it look like, sound like, and feel like to be kind to others?

Of course, between it all there's math and reading and writing and ecosystems.

We can do it!!!!

Reminders

Today, Friday November 9, we are sending home a Progress Report for each student. You will find this Progress Report in the same envelope as their Reflection Letter Home. They should share this letter with you as they've done in the past by reading the letter out loud to you. This week's letter is a bit different in that we've asked them to write to themselves as IF they were you...their parents...offering advice after looking through their portfolios and seeing their progress reports. We ask that, as usual, you write them a letter back and perhaps take on a different personna (like your daughter's perspective when she is 30 years old or from the perspective of an employer).

In addition to writing a letter back to the girls, PLEASE sign their Progress Reports so we know you actually saw it! You may send the signed Progress Report back with your letter.

Finally, at LTMs we asked you to write a letter to your daughter (The Dear Daughter Assignment). Many of you have done so and we thank you for your efforts, but others have not. These letters mean a great deal to your daughters even though they might not tell you so. We realize adult life is busy, busy, busy, but if you could take just a moment or two to complete the assignment, we know they'd really enjoy it.

Thanks and have a great three-day weekend,
Ms. GreNini

Ms. Shady

You may hear a strange name around the house this week. That's because Ms. Shady came to visit us during math class. Ms. Shady is a tall drink of water who "squeaks" when it's time to do math. She doesn't squeak because she doesn't like math. She squeaks because she LOVES math.

Ms. Shady came to class to deliver a message: YOU CAN DO IT!

Her lesson was about Algebra Puzzles, one of the current math concepts presented in the Game Show Math Packet. Algebra Puzzles look like this:

8x + 3 = -61

Here's Ms. Shady's strategy:

Isolate the x (or the variable...they come in all different letters!)

Find the easiest part of the equation (usually the part of the equation that's addition or subtraction)

Flip it to the other side.

Now, once it's there, do the opposite.

Mathematically, it looks like this:

8x +3 = -61

+3 is the easiest to flip so write the equation this way, but don't forget to do the opposite --

8x = -61 -3

or 8x = -64

But we're not done yet! That x is still got a number with it; the 8. How do we get rid of the 8?

Same process...flip it!

The equation NOW looks like this:

x = -64
____
8 or -64 divided by 8

or to simplify it:

x = -8

There it is! That's the answer...x = -8! Now, plug that -8 back in to the original equation and see if it works (that's how you double check your answer!)

Ms. Shady led the girls through numerous examples and throughout her presentation, she heard "I can't do this!" or "I don't get it!" or "I'm not very smart!"

"Oh, no no no," Ms. Shady said shaking her fuzzy finger. "Negative attitudes and negative self-talk are rotten fruit -- as long as it's in the bowl, all the other fruit has a chance of spoiling. Don't be the rotten fruit in our classroom bowl!"

Ms. Shady was adamant: YOU WILL BELIEVE IN YOUR ABILITY TO GET IT!

To that end, Ms. Shady advised Ms. GreNini to have the girls read Danica McKellar's wonderful chapter on positive attitudes (assigned in this week's Weekly). She also advised them to no longer accept negative put downs of any kind.

"Believe you are capable and you will be capable," Ms. Shady repeated again and again. "You WILL get it!"

More specifically students should tell themselves...

*I can probably do this problem because I've done similar ones successfully.

*If this problem feels kind of hard, that means I need to try a little harder; then I'll probably be successful

*I'm usually successful when I work carefully and use the learning strategy correctly.

*If I make a mistake, I can probably find it and correct it.

"The amount of energy required by a problem," Ms. Shady continued, "is determined by the difficulty of the problem. If you look at a problem and it seems difficult, then you must work that much harder to understand it. Don't give up, give more!"

Ms. Shady may make another appearance in class or other guests might join in our quest to buoy up the girls' self confidence. No matter who the visitor, the message is the same: If you think you can, you can...if you KNOW you can, you WILL!

Scary Days

Halloween is one of those interesting times of the year. Crazy would be putting it lightly. The girls are amped up with the thought of candy, costumes, and more candy!

And it probably doesn't help that we're coming off a full moon (did you see it? Magnificent!).

It's this way every year, so we do our best to "understand" and "forgive" but as many of you may be experiencing too, these are wild, wild days!

We just sent a student out by the goat pen to run "laps" up and down the sidewalk to see if that expelled her excess energy.

Cross your fingers!

Meanwhile, we are trying to carry on with the learning of school. Our focus this past week has been on examining ecosystems more in-depth. While we'd love to be able to travel to the Amazon Rainforests of South America or the Sahara Desert of Africa, our budget is limited. Therefore, we're lucky we have Sir David Attenborough to help us.

Sir Attenborough, years ago, created the most amazing series of BBC documentaries on a wide-variety of topics -- birds, mammals, the ocean, and yes, ecosystems. During the week, we've taken a number of virtual field trips following Sir David to the rainforests throughout the world, the deserts and their many interesting animals, and closer to home, the wide-variety of forests - deciduous and coniferous -- found throughout the world. In these documentaries, we've learned about snakes who fly, Golden moles who are blind and deaf, and the importance of fire in the creation of fertile soil.

All ecosystems that share the same climate ranges are called Biomes. For instance, all the Tropical Rainforests (found along the Equator) in South America, Africa, and Asia make up the Tropical Rainforest Biomes. Likewise, all the deserts found around the world, in Africa, North America, Asia, Australia, and South America make up the Desert Biome.

Biomes are important because it gives us a more global picture on the health of the environment. For instance, while we may know that the deserts of Arizona are going through a drought (even less rain than normal), it helps us to compare the rainfall of deserts in Africa. Is there a similar drought? If so, what does that tell us? If not, what does that tell us? Furthermore, how are those individual ecosystems that make up that particular biome organized, or what makes them tick? Ecosystems are held together by intricate and often delicate factors. If we plant monoculture crops in the Amazon Rainforest, how might this impact the balance of that ecosystem? Is it sustainable?

This Term focuses on understanding those factors and the system of balance that has been developed over time (evolutionarily). Once we understand those intricacies, we'll focus on the "stressers" that threaten that balance during next Term.

In addition, we've continued our study of birds studying how they adapt to their particular ecosystem, their anatomical structure, and developing observational skills to be able to identify different birds in the field. We'll continue to study birds more in-depth with the arrival of the "bird skins" from Audubon, studying migratory patterns of specific birds, and identifying the "needs" birds have for healthy habitats around the world.

In math, we've slowed the homework down a bit to focus on some basic skills -- factors, graphing, and multiplication -- before we move back into the Game Show packet. The goal is ALWAYS to make certain the girls are understanding the concepts and learning them versus demonstrating them once and then moving on to the next concept.

We've finished the novel "Flipped" and the girls are working on writing their first BookTalk. In addition, they're choosing their next book to read for the second BookTalk. While reading, they need to write down Turning Points (significant points that move the story forward) the first half of which is due November 14 (check out last week's and this week's Weekly).

We've also started reading a new novel for our Anti-Bias literature focus. "The Giver" by Lois Lowry is a futuristic novel where the troubles of the modern world have disappeared (poverty, hatred, war) in an attempt to make a better world...but is it? The girls will NOT BookTalk this book, though there will be a writing assignment once the novel is over in addition to the review questions listed on the Weeklies.

Coming up, Janice Mathisen from the Seattle Aquarium will be coming in November 26 to talk about salmon habitat and the important ecosystem needs salmon require. Then, oh yes, then we'll head to Cavanaugh Pond on Thursday, November 29 to view a real-life salmon habitat as well as see a dissection of a Sockeye. It's so cool!! Check out the Upcoming Field Trip link for specific details. We'd love it if you can drive!

So, despite the whacky times of Halloween, we're continuing to move forward...even in our funny costumes...captured on our Class Photos link!

Ms. GreNini

FINALLY!

As human beings, we are ALWAYS learning. It's one of the great joys of being a human, but sometimes...sometimes it can make you feel like a fool for not knowing what you didn't know, but forgiveness is another wonderful human quality.

So, FINALLY we've learned something that will hopefully benefit everyone. Check out the HELPFUL LINKS to the right of this post. Click on CURRENT WEEKLY. Woohoo! A copy of the current Weekly so you at home can help remind your lovely daughters plan their weekly schedules so they get their homework done on time!

Sorry this took so long, but we are only human and still, STILL learning!

Our next self-lesson? Digital portfolios and online access to student progress reports! We'll alert you when we have this in place!


Next, we wanted to address homework planning. We've noticed that our students are extremely busy outside the classroom. Some are playing soccer, some are participating in dance or gymnastics, some live far from school and some do all of these -- lots of outside activities and living far away!

Last week, we talked about ways to organize one's schedule. Helpful pieces of organizing a student's week:

The Current Weekly (now a click away under Helpful Hints)

Their Student Calendar (which should be located at the front of their binder
with helpful dates and events listed)

Your family calendar (all the outside events such as soccer and dance that you
participate in).

We encouraged the girls pencil in all the family events first. These are times when nothing else should be scheduled.

Next, sit down as a family and look at the Weekly. What needs to get done, what IS done, and approximately how much time each piece of homework might take.

Finally, plug in focused homework time specifically writing down what assignment(s) will be worked on during that time.

Now, here's the tricky part: IF the homework scheduled doesn't get down, students need to reflect on their schedule again. This requires some tough questions to be asked and answered: Do I want to finish this assignment in my next scheduled homework session and bumped something else? Do I want to add more time to my homework schedule and forgo some other event in my busy life? If I were to prioritize my work (what's the most important assignment to get done?) what would that look like? Can I give something up like 30 minutes of reading tonight?

These are adult skills, we know, and we also know our students won't be perfect at it, but this is a great time to practice these adult skills in a safe environment and so we encourage you to approach it as a time to learn not as a time of reward and/or punishment.

Again, this goes back to the idea of natural consequences. A natural consequence of not finishing an assignment or only partially completing it is that their score/evaluation will be lower. The world won't fall apart and we will think no less of your daughter, but if this becomes a consistent problem, THEN we'll have a sit down meeting to talk about priorities (is there something they can give up?) and options (like scheduling a time to attend Homework Center) as well as a discussion of how we might assist them in setting up a homework calendar, prioritizing and clarifying their assignments, and getting help from a teacher if they're struggling with one specific aspect of their homework. (Whew, that was a long sentence!)

5th grade is a time of learning how to take on more responsibility. Often it's not a smooth road, but it will get smoother as the girls become more and more familiar with SGS, the homework expectations, and methods for managing their own calendars and time.


Let us know if you have any questions, need for clarifications, or concerns. We're always here...and we're always learning!

Ms. GreNini

To Be or Not To Be

There's an old joke that goes something like this:
To be or not to be...which is my apartment?

Most of our students don't get the joke primarily because they may not been familiar with Hamlet's great speech or the fact that some people live in apartments with numbers like 2B. This, of course, doesn't mean we don't tell them the joke, but it does mean we must teach them about the beauty of puns and an appreciation of cultural literacy.

This is how most lessons unfold, though. They begin with a topic we want them to know and then often become a lesson about something we didn't intend.

It happened twice last week. In the first instance, we had scheduled a quiz on many of the concepts we'd introduced in class -- biotic, abiotic, taxonomies, etc. We presented the information, constructed some activities around it, had the students take notes and then reminded them on their Weeklies to study the notes that defined the concepts.

Some students did just that, but others did not. While they took their quizzes many of them approached us contrite and worried that they would "fail" the quiz. Some hummed and hawed over their quizzes for the full 45 minutes allotted, staring at their blank pages and scrunching that space between their eyebrows together until it set itself into a permanent wrinkle.

We tried to reassure them that they could retake the quiz, that failure wasn't an option. If they didn't do well this time, they could try again until they felt successful. All our assurances were to no avail.

So we had this discussion: SGS is asking you to take on more responsibility, perhaps, than your old schools. We are asking you to step beyond 4th grade and move into 5th. This means that you must carry the load of your education with less dependence on your teachers and your families. It doesn't mean we won't be there to help, but it does mean that excuses like "I forgot to study" come with a natrual consequence -- you won't do well on the quiz and instead of twisting your hands and your face in a pitiful look, own your mistake and figure out how you're going to resolve it. (In this instance, study harder for the retake.) And then next time, yes, next time make a choice to prepare yourself better. Use that Weekly as a guide to what must get done. Find creative ways to have your families help you study be it memorizing your times tables or understanding your science concepts. YOU take responsibility and don't assume someone else is going to do it for you. That's what it means to be a student at SGS. That's what it means to be a 5th grader. That's what it means to be a leader of your class, of your school, and in the world around you.

No excuses. No apologies. Be the person you want to be.

The next instance of a lesson within a lesson turned into a time to laugh at ourselves and a bit at each other.

As teachers, we are often asked a hundred questions a day (if not more). The questions come in all shapes and sizes and at all times of the day. Generally, we'll introduce a new concept or assignment or project and the hands shoot up before we even get a chance to fully explain the details. When we finally take those questions many of them begin with "What if...," which is a question that comes from uncertainty and a twinge of fear that the student will do something we never intended them to do. Sometimes, after taking three or four questions of clarification, we'll hear the exact same question we just answered. This happens quite a bit -- students are always thinking about THEIR questions and rarely about other students' questions let alone the answers they received.

So we jokingly decided that our jobs would be more lucrative if we were paid not by a salary, not by the hour, but by the question. Five dollars for the first question and double the money if the question is asked again. At one point, we made about $48 each in a one minute time span. At that rate, we'd be millionaires before the week's end!

We started pointed this out to the girls. "Wow, I just made 10 more bucks because I just answered that question!" While we're laughing about it all, the girls are getting it though -- listening is as important as asking. Yes, it's important to ask clarifying questions, but often it's as important to begin the process, see if you understand it, then if you don't, get individual help.



Which leads to another "unlearning" lesson: As long as you understand the concepts being reinforced in an assignment or a project, you pretty much have creative freedom to make that assignment or project your own. Check with us first, but feel free to envision the lesson in a way that makes sense to you.

Trust yourself. Believe that you are creative, competent, and capable. We're here to guide not to mandate.

The playwright, Tom Stoppard wrote a marvelous comedy based on two minor characters in Shakespeare's "Hamlet." There are times in the classroom when this lesson within the lesson feels a bit like a string of dialogue from Stoppard's play "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead."

Guildenstern: What's the first thing you remember?
Rosencrantz: Oh, let's see. . . . The first thing that comes into my head, you mean?
Guildenstern: No — the first thing you remember.
Rosencrantz: Ah. ... No, it's no good. It's gone. It was a long time ago.
Guildenstern: No, you don't take my meaning. What's the first thing you remember after all the things you've forgotten?
Rosencrantz: Oh, I see... I've forgotten the question.

In the end, we know that each day the girls are growing, maturing, stretching themselves into that leadership role we have laid before them and really figuring out who they want to be...or perhaps 2B...and that each day, more lessons within lessons will present themselves.

And don't worry...we'll grab them each time for a little impromptu examination.

What's an LTM and is it painful?

Learning Team Meetings (or LTMs) are a chance for families to discuss with their daughters and her advisor how the school year is going so far. In your previous school these meetings were often called Parent-Teacher Conferences and were a time to talk directly with your daughter's teachers. LTMs are similar in that we're discussing academic as well as social progress, but instead of the teacher being in charge, you daughter will be.

LTMs are scheduled for Friday, October 26. Teachers will be here from 10-7 and families are asked to sign up for a half hour slot with Ms. Nova (ndobrev@seattlegirlsschool.org). If none of the times works for you, we can discuss other options (other times and/or days) that might work better, but we'd love to fit them all in on Friday as that is a scheduled day for such meetings.

While Parent-Teacher Conferences in your past may or may not have included your daughter, YOUR DAUGHTER MUST COME TO THE LTM. She's in charge and will be directing the whole conference for the full 30 minutes. Yes, there will be time to ask questions of her and of her advisor, but the responsibility of communicating joys and concerns is hers and therefore she needs to be there.

So, if you haven't done so already, PLEASE contact Ms. Nova (ndobrev@seattlegirlsschool.org) and schedule your meeting. We're looking forward to sharing this time with you!

Ms. GreNini

Why Birds?

(This isn't Coolie, but this is what an American Kestrel looks like!)



(This isn't Bob, either, but this is what a Great Horned Owl looks like!)

Our 5th grade curriculum focuses on Stewardship, which frankly is a pretty broad term. There are lots and lots of examples of Stewardship we could study, but we've chosen the environment and even more specifically animals. Our level of specification goes even deeper. For the first term, we focus on Birds.

Originally, we focused on birds because the chickens were a 5th grade responsibility. Now the chickens (and the goats) are the whole school's responsibility, but we still focus on birds first because they are a great introduction of lots of First Term concepts.

For instance, we played dichotomous shoes last week. Dichotomous Keys are used by biologists in the field to identify exactly what species of plant or animal or bird they're looking at. As the name implies, species are divided by their characteristics. For instance, is it a bird with talons or not talons? Is it a plant with opposite leaves or not opposite leaves? To illustrate this, the girls created a dichotomous key for their shoes. After much discussion, they winnowed their shoes into distinct categories putting the shoes with laces in one pile and the shoes without laces in another until finally they ended up with a laceless green Puma.

Next, we introduced Carl Linnaeus' Taxonomy or system for naming the natural world. While his system is elaborate, it's used the world over to classify dolphins from chimps and chimps from humans.

Now we'll start to focus on birds because they fall nicely into simple examples of both the Dichotomous Key and the Taxonomy. For example, on Tuesday the Woodland Park Zoo returned with their beautiful raptors. The SOAR program (Save Our Amazing Raptors) brings live raptors into the classroom. We were extremely lucky to meet, Collie the American Kestrel and Bob the gorgeous Great Horned Owl. The girls got to learn all the characteristics that make a raptor a raptor and not a shorebird or a songbird. While birds are all the same species, they are a multitude of subcategories (or Phyla) for groups of birds that share similar characteristics.

In addition, the birds reinforce concepts we also introduced this week. What's a raptor's HABITAT? What's a raptor's NICHE? What other BIOTIC and ABIOTIC factors must be present for a raptor to survive in a particular ECOSYSTEM? What's the POPULATION of peregrine falcons in the United States? Where do their COMMUNITIES live primarily? Birds are a great measure of the health of our environment, too. Remember the carnary in the gold mine story? Well, scientists use birds (raptors are particularly helpful) in helping them gauge the amount of toxins inour food supply or loss of habitat in our neighborhoods.

We'll even further into different aspects of birds -- their anatomy, their habits, their field markings, their diets, their migration patterns, etc. In art, the girls are examining birds via the internet, but also by looking at Audubon specimans, which will be arriving in a few weeks. In addition, we're taking a look at world geography via the various and beautiful birds found in all corners of the globe. It will be birds, birds, and more birds all the way until December when the girls will share their bird knowledge (bird brains?) with all of you at Culmination.

We encourage you all to spend a day on the weekend looking at the local birds in our own environment. The birds are beginning to fly south for the winter and therefore we'll see some unusal birds passing through. Many birds winter here as well, so if you have a chance to go to Lake Washington or the shores of Puget Sound, you'll find an abundance of birds despite the colder temperatures.

If any of you have particular bird knowledge, we'd love for you to come in and share it! Just email Ms. Gretchen and let her know!

Meanwhile, pay close attention to those birds in your life -- they are there and they are fascinating!

A Personal Code of Conduct

This week we spent some time in class talking about the past few weeks of Stewardship study as well as an introduction to our next unit on Ecology. In between it all we've continued to read the novel "Flipped" (it's getting interesting now!), received a new math packet, and had a visit from Woodland Park Zoo's WildWise program (focused on the ecological systems of Washington State).

But that's not all we've been doing. This week we also introduced the Personal Code of Conduct -- a code devised by Rafe Esquith from Lawrence Kohlberg's model of Moral Development. The Personal Code of Conduct is a six level code that allows kids (and adults) to reflect on the choices they make regarding their behavior.

The levels look like this:

I choose to make this decision or behave this way because:

Level One: I fear punishment

Level Two: I want a reward

Level Three: I want to please someone else

Level Four: It's a rule

Level Five: I am considerate of others

Level Six: I have a personal code of conduct

Rafe Esquith calls Level Six the Atticus Finch level and in class we talked about historical figures like Martin Luther King, Jr. and Rosa Parks who decided that, despite the law, they were going to get arrested to protest the injustice of the law. We also talked about how achieving Level Six takes a lifetime and is a difficult place to be 100% of one's life.

Throughout the year we will reference the Personal Code of Conduct and have, in fact, done so every day (or 5 times a day at least) since we introduced it. While we know it's difficult for the girls to really understand the deeper meaning of each level, having a reference point in regards to behavior has opened up some meaningful conversations.

In other words, the honeymoon is over (as it is every time this year). The excitement and newness of SGS has rubbed off and now we bump into each other a bit more and instead of being overly nice, we sometimes (though not all the times) complain. Such is the evolution of community and we'll continue to evolve throughout the year. Having a Personal Code reference point helps us navigate through this emotional minefields and solve social issues that normally occur in our all-girl environment (which would also occur in an all-boy or co-ed environment, though it would look and sound a bit different).

This daily reflection can be both physically and emotionally exhausting. We're certain the conversations we've begun at school are spilling over into family conversations and that's precisely why we've decided to pursue them. "It takes a village," while sometimes an overused adage,is at it's core so very true. You are the greatest influence in your daughter's life and as the discussions from school filter home, clarifying your family's values is, developmentally exactly what these girls are craving.

So, we invite you (if you haven't all ready) to carry on this discussion about Personal Codes of Conduct. It makes for a very interesting point of conversation and we've found it fascinating to hear how the girls think about such important moral journeys.

Ms. GreNini

PS THERE IS NO SCHOOL ON FRIDAY, OCTOBER 12 OR MONDAY, OCTOBER 15. WE'LL SEE EVERYONE AT THE REGULAR TIME ON TUESDAY, OCTOBER 16. HAVE A GREAT FOUR-DAY WEEKEND!

Coffee with Marja

Marja shared with us on Friday the valuable feedback you provided during your coffee session. First, thank you so much for the warm, supportive, and kind words about our classroom and your daughter’s experience. It’s great to have such positive feedback from our families. We’re falling in love with your daughters so please know that the feelings are mutual.

There was, of course, constructive feedback as well reflected in some concerns expressed in the get-together. We wanted to take this time to address them as they are questions that delve deep into our philosophies and expectations, which despite Curriculum Night, we never really have time enough to discuss.

Homework Philosophy:

Recently, there has been a great deal of national discussion on the value of homework, or school work assigned to be completed at home. Last year, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer published an article outlining the debate (http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/local/287317_homework03.html). In addition, author and educator Alfie Kohn has recently written a book on the subject (The Homework Myth: Why Our Kids Get Too Much of a Bad Thing http://www.alfiekohn.org/books/hm.htm). We are perhaps in the middle of this debate both figuratively and literally. Literally in the sense that unlike parents, our “family of students” consists of more than one or two children. For instance, our classroom currently has 19 students each coming from their own rich educational, family, and social experiences. Some students are involved in soccer and dance; others have music lessons or swimming competitions. And still others are not involved in any outside activities. When we sit down each week to figure out exactly the amount of homework we are assigning for the week, we must take into account these experiences as well as many others such as commitment to family time or even “play” time, family involvement in other communities such as church, and expectations for bed and meal-time.

Figuratively, our philosophy is very much informed by the current research, but also by our own personal belief that family trumps education always! In other words, we honor the priority of family time first, then homework time. In addition, we believe firmly that the quality of homework is more important than the quantity. Think back to your own middle school or junior high experience. What was the main focus? It was very much a social time – a time to figure out who you are as an individual, but also who you are in relation to other people. True, you may have had a class or a teacher that inspired you, but when we first think back to those pre-adolescent years, our memories are more about the people in our lives than the academic subjects.

Incoming 5th graders at SGS (especially in the first month) are overwhelmed by a new school, new classmates, new students in other grades, new expectations, a new focus on academics that may be very different from their previous experiences, as well as adjusting to new teachers and their particular expectations. Given all of this we try to ease our students into the year by “going light” on the amount of work we assign outside of the school day.

For example, just the other day we overheard a student say, “I like all these field trips, but they make me tired.” We’re lucky. We get to go out into the world and actually see the subjects we teach in action. The biologist at the Aquarium not only has to know her marine biology, she must also know how to work with others on her staff, manage her time, communicate with the public, write proposals for others to read, keep up with current research on marine biology and aquariums, be aware of the historical decisions and political ramifications of those decisions, and organize budgets and meetings. Or in academic terms, she must know the science, language arts, social studies and math of her job requirements. When we meet such people like this biologist, we not only see the value of education, but we get to see that education in action and that is perhaps one of the greatest motivators in our classroom.

So yes, while going on field trips is educational, they are also rich with experiences that make us mentally (and sometimes physically) tired. Reflecting on those experiences is vital for it gives our brain time to process what we’ve learned or in brain research terms, it allows our brains to literally make synaptic connections that are crucial in creating patterns used to navigate through our world as well as setting us up more to learn more. We could certainly add “assignments” on top of what is required during the field trip or later during the school day, but research has shown that this does not always yield “more” or “better” understanding.

A phrase we use often in our classroom is Mastery Over Time. For some students, we’ll be introducing new words, concepts, language, and ideas they’ve never heard of or interacted with before. It would be unrealistic of us to expect our students to “get it” the first time they are exposed to it. To illustrate this, we often use the analogy of learning to walk. When they first tried walking how did you (as parents) react? Did you say, “Good job…oh, you fell. I guess that means you’ll never learn to walk. You are such a failure.” Did you say, “Good job! Now do more. You are scheduled to do 2 hours of walking each night. I don’t care if you know how to walk, you must do two hours as practice.” Or did you say, “Yippee! You’re a walking! Don’t worry about falling, it’s all part of the practice. Soon you’ll get it and then we’ll move on to something even more fun – running and skipping and skiing and dancing!”

We imagine that all of you took the final approach – you saw it as a process. This is very much how we see learning and that homework must reflect the mastery over time process. So yes, practice your multiplication facts until you master them. Once they’re mastered, let’s work on algebra and geometry and other ways multiplication might be useful. Furthermore, let’s give you time to reflect on what you’ve learned. By reflecting, you learn the value of what you’ve learned and how it applies to your life.

Unfortunately, as the case of multiplication tables illustrate, not every student in our class of 19 is on the same page. Some have the tables nailed and others are still trying to master them. The same is true for writing and spelling and their knowledge of history or science concepts. Teaching then becomes this dance where we must challenge those who have it, nurture those who are new to it, and keep that tension of expectation tight for those kids in the middle of the two extremes. In addition, current brain research has supported the notion that reflection is as important as actually doing the assignment or learning the new concept.

Throw all of that together with all the research about students’ brains and the current discussion about how Americans are busier now than they’ve ever been and you can see how creating your daughter’s Weeklies becomes an extremely complicated dance.

So, what does all this mean for your daughter? It means that we are committed to the whole child. We want them to be challenged, but we don’t want them to be unduly stressed. We want them to know that, at times, they’ll be working very hard during the school hours and need to relax and play and spend time with their families and all their other activities after school. And some times, they’ll moan and groan because they’ll think what’s been assigned is far too much and overwhelming. And here’s the kicker – every single girl will experience these things at different times throughout the year. We’re seeing that even now. Some girls feel overwhelmed already, while others are not feeling challenged enough.

And to complicate it all even further, parents have their own expectations. We overheard a recent conversation between a mother and a daughter that went something like this:

Parent: My daughter has finished her math packet and needs more to do.

Daughter: No, I don’t need more. I just wanted to see if I could work through my math packet on my own ahead of the rest of the class. I didn’t finish it all so I could get more. That’s what you want.

Yes, even for parents it’s a complicated dance. How much do I challenge my daughter and how much do I let her relax and reflect?

Now, multiply that times 19.

In short, our philosophy is this: Attempt to challenge each girl to “stretch” her brain at a rate that neither overwhelms them nor bores them INSIDE as well as OUTSIDE of class. It’s an ebb and flow. Right now we’re ebbing, but the flow is coming…as well as another ebb followed by another flow. Please know, though, that your daughter’s learning is our first priority.

What about Spelling?

While you may think the homework discussion is complicated and long, spelling (a more specific focus) is even more complicated. And yes, we know you may disagree with us, but that’s the beauty of communicating with each other – we can carry on this conversation outside of this blog.

Unlike some areas of study, we believe that spelling is NOT developmental. It’s not really about mastery over time. What’s mastery over time is conscientiousness. Good spellers are good because that’s how their brains work. They see patterns and spelling is all about patterns and those nasty rules that make the English language one of the hardest to learn. Sure, we can teach kids all the “rules” for spelling (which we’ll do…well, not all of them, but some of the of the most important) and that will help, but if they don’t take the time to apply those rules or better yet, to proofread their work and seek out a variety of editors (the conscientious part) than they’ll still be bad spellers.

Last year a parent emailed the following message:

“My daughter is a horrific speller. Are you going to teach her how to spell? At her previous school she got spelling assignments three times a week. Will you do that this year?”

The answer to this question lies right in this message. Her daughter received spelling lessons three times a day for an entire year BUT her daughter is still a horrific speller! What does that tell us?

From our experience, the students who do well on spelling assignments and spelling tests are the students who are already good spellers. Occasionally, the spelling tests will yield positive results for bad spellers, but they don’t retain the information over time. While they may spell “would” correctly on the test, they’ll still write “whould” on their assignments.

So where does that leave us with spelling and our philosophy? Yes, you’ll see spelling homework though never spelling lists. More importantly, you’ll see the girls go through the writing process that involves multiple drafts and a final draft that must be publishable and that includes correct spelling. As the girls work through this writing process, we’ll encourage them to use as many resources as they can to check their conventions – spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Their resources might include writing guides, dictionaries, computers, each other and adults (like you) to give them guidance and feedback. The more conscientious they are about seeking these resources, the more you’ll see improvement not only in their writing, but also in these conventions.

Will they be perfect at it? No, but in reality is anyone? Well, if you’re a professional writer you might have a better handle on it all, but even then there are a multitude of resources at your fingertips including helpful people who sit down with you and provide valuable and helpful feedback.

Whew…that was a long post, but we hope you find it helpful. We’d love to talk more with you about all of this on an individual basis, so don’t hesitate to call or email with any questions, concerns, or clarifications.

Again, we thank you for the amazing support we heard via Marja and the wonderful support we’ve already seen from all of you since school began. This community is developing into a wonderful group and we feel lucky to be a part of their educational journeys. (Hey, “journeys” is a tough word to spell, isn’t it? No “ies” on this word! Good thing we were conscientious and looked it up to make sure it was spelled correctly!)

We'll see you Monday!
Ms. GreNini

All Answers Lie Within

Another successful field trip came together today. It was touch and go in some regards (transportation, mainly), but we arrived at the Microsoft campus right on time and thanks to help from Keith (Josie's dad), we made our way to a nice lunch with Danica McKellar followed by a short talk she gave in the Conference room.

There was a great deal of "giddyness" on our students' part -- the excitement of meeting a real life actor -- but the girls held it together and did an admirable job asking questions in the large conference room amidst the Microsoft employees who'd come to hear Ms. McKellar speak.

We're still processing all that Ms. McKellar said today, but one clear message came at the very end: Don't ask others to tell you who you are. They don't know who you are, only you do. All answers lie within.

Yes, there were messages about the importance of math, the need for young girls to feel empowered by math and not afraid of it. Messages about valuing your intelligence and using your brain power to help you gain confidence. But of all the messages, the "all answers lie within" really resonated throughout the room.

We hope our students walked away not only with a autographed complimentary copy of the book "Math Doesn't Suck" by Danica McKellar, but we also hope they walked away with the understanding that they live in a time where, as women, they can really set the world on fire if they so choose and Ms. McKellar did a wonderful job encouraging them to CHOOSE such a path.

Now, if you want to have some fun this weekend, rent "The Wonder Years" or turn on an episode on Nick at Night. See that pretty young girl who Kevin is so ga-ga over? Well, she's a beautiful young woman now, with something even better than an acting career -- she's got brains and wit and confidence and a passion for math that we hope inspired your daughters to believe in themselves as much as we do!

From Horse Poo to Celebrity Stew...

Last week we found out we had the opportunity to hear Danica McKellar speak on the Microsoft campus on Monday, October 1 (thank you Keith for making this happen). We put our parent driving network into action (thank you Gail for jumping on the transportation). Many of you responded, volunteering to drive and we so appreciate your willingness to do so.

In the meantime, Rafael (our Assistant Head) received an invitation from Microsoft to bring some of our students to the luncheon with Ms. McKellar as well as attend her presentation. Now, because so many of our students will be attending (the entire 5th grade class, for instance) a bus has been ordered and our transportation issues are solved!

Thank you to all those parents who were more than willing to drop everything and take us to this great event. You are still welcome to come with us, but you'll need to ride the bus with the girls (and their teachers) and will only be able to attend the speaking engagement as reservations for the luncheon are limited. This will mean you'll need to wait for about an hour or so before being allowed into the venue.

While it would be wonderful if you could drive your own car and not depend on the bus and its awkward schedule, unfortunately parking is limited and requires a pass all of which had to be obtained earlier.

Complicated? Confused? Yes, we must apologize for all of that, but everything came together so quickly we had to scurry, scurry, scurry to make it all work. We apologize for any inconvenience this may have caused our families. Hopefully, it all makes sense now...hopefully.

But don't sign off of this blog yet...there are a few more details about Monday's event:

First, it's a luncheon...at Microsoft...with an actress/mathematician therefore the girls will need to dress appropriately. Nothing too fancy, but certainly nothing too casual either.

Secondly, we'll be giving the girls a brief lesson on how to eat when there is more than one set of silverware on the table, but if you want to review Western-influenced table manners that might be a good idea.

Finally, we know that some of the girls have particular food needs so it might behoove you to pack a sack lunch for your daughter that she can eat BEFORE we attend the event to ward off any frustration and hunger in the afternoon.

We're very excited about this presentation and are thankful so many people worked to make it happen. Danica McKellar is not only an actress (as seen on "The Wonder Years" and more recently "West Wing"), but she is also an accomplished mathematician whose new book "Math Doesn't Suck: How to Survive Middle School Math Without Losing Your Mind or Breaking a Nail" is currently Number 5 on the NY Times Bestseller list. Check out her website at www.danicamckellar.com.

Thanks again for being so flexible and willing to "go with the flow" during all of this confusion. We're excited about the opportunity and we're sure the girls will have great stories from the event.

Perhaps we'll have them write a comparison paper titled: What I Learned From Shoveling Horse Poo and My Time with Danica McKellar.

Have a great weekend!

P.S. A special shout out to all the parents who drove and went with us to Peggy's farm on Friday. Another successful field trip that couldn't have happened without all of you!

P.S.S If you have any photos you'd be willing to share with us from Friday's field trip at Peggy's farm, we'd greatly appreciate it. Just email or send a CD with photographs into school.

Ms. GreNini

ATTENTION!

This week we have TWO, count 'em TWO field trips to three different locations.

First, on Thursday, September 27 we'll be heading out, bright and early, to hop on a city bus to REI -- a local business who practices Stewardship. This will be a two hour presenation after which we'll eat lunch. SO PLEASE, HELP YOUR DAUGHTERS PACK A HEALTHY SACK LUNCH (nothing microwaveable). If the weather is not nice, we'll eat at REI. If it IS nice, we'll hop on another city bus and head to the Seattle Aquarium where we'll eat our lunches on the waterfront before heading into the Aquarium to meet with the employers and see some of the Stewardship that happens there.

We'll be home by 3:30 and if we're late, we'll make certain to call the front desk and let them know...it all depends on the city bus being on time!

On Friday, September 28, we have yet another field trip that will require an EARLY ARRIVAL to school. We'd love for the girls (and the parent drivers) to be here by 8 so we can head out the door ASAP. Traffic heading south/east can be horrific and if we arrive late, we have less time to spend at our destination. Our destination is, of course, Silk Purse Farm where we'll be meeting and working with Peggy Gilmer and her magnificent horses.

We'll spend the day at Peggy's farm doing many activities -- art, mucking stalls, grooming horses, as well as working with them and with Peggy -- so again, plan to help your daughter PACK A SACK LUNCH (nothing microwaveable). In addition, you may want to pack a little extra as the girls tend to get hungry after working so hard.

In addition, the weather for both of these field trips doesn't look too promising. Comfortable, close-toed shoes is a must especially around the horses and layers of clothing as well as a raincoat is vital. It's a miserable job when you're picking horse poo out in a pasture in the pouring down rain =-) or standing on the city street waiting for a bus. Please help them come prepared for any kind of inclement weather.

Finally, that pesky traffic we muddle through in the morning is also the same traffic we muddle through Friday afternoon. While we plan to leave from the farm at 2:30, if we are delayed or traffic is horrible, we'll call the front desk and alert you to any late arrivals.

We're excited about both field trips and we know we'll continue to learn more about Stewardship of the earth as well as of ourselves in all three experiences.



While this is a picture of last year's class at Peggy's farm, we'll have many, many pictures to share in our Class Photos link (on the sidebar) from our own trip on Friday.

If you have any questions, feel free to email or call or come on by...have a great week!

Ms. GreNini

Naked Chocolate

Our most recent field trips have exposed us to many different topics, but perhaps the most interesting was our trip to Theo Chocolates where we learned about Fair Trade, Organic ingredients, and yes, Naked Chocolate.

The purpose of the field trips is to gain a shared understanding of the concept of Stewardship so on our adventures and in class, we've been talking to (or listening to) different Stewards. We started the endeavor by watching a video on Dr. Jane Goodall and her amazing work with Chimpanzees. While Dr. Goodall has spent most of her life in Kenya, she left her beloved chimps to actively become a steward, traveling around the world educating children on how they can make a difference in the world through her foundation and her Roots and Shoots organization.

Next, we travelled to our own Carkeek Park where we met with many of the employees to learn about the purpose of the park, its history, and how their work is an example of daily stewardship of our local environments.

Our final stop was to the acclaimed Theo Chocolates in Fremont, the only Fair Trade organic chocolate factory in the country. There we learned what Fair Trade means, how chocolate is made, we actually watched it get made, and again, talked about how a business can also be an example of Stewardship.

We ended the week analyzing our "data" and collating our interviews creating a list of words that bring to mind the kind of Stewardship we've been studying. "Compassion" and "Responsibility" and "Commitment" were just some of the concepts the students generated, but our scientific work is not yet done.

Next, we travel to REI, another local business, and then to the Seattle Aquarium (next Thursday, September 27) followed by a trip to Peggy Gilmer's Silk Purse Farm to learn about Stewardship of the self in relationship to others. Our last Stewardship trip will be to the Woodland Park Zoo after which we'll create a working definition that we will use for the rest of the year.

Every year it takes us awhile to really get to know our girls and to define the personality of our class, but this year it hasn't taken us too long. Yesterday, Belinda Chin of Carkeek Park told us that our girls were bright and unafraid and Nicole at Theo Chocolates said we were the most amazing school group they've ever had on a tour. We, too, have noticed how bold and outspoken our students are and are so excited about the upcoming year -- how we can take that energy and bravery and willingness to speak up and use it to empower ourselves, each other, and the world around us.

Oh, and about the "naked chocolate"...this is simply chocolate without any additives. They girls tasted it, but few were impressed. "It tastes like chalk," one student exclaimed. Still the term, "naked chocolate" was too hard to resist as a title!

Have a great weekend,
Ms. GreNini

Ms. GreNini ...by Gre...

This morning I was asked if I wanted to run the Community Meeting in Marja's absence. I agreed because I had an observation I wanted to share with our community, one I didn't realize I needed to share until my recent experiences these past few weeks.

I began the community meeting this way --

A number of years ago I was roped into going to the Puyallup Fair by a number of friends. Fairs aren't my thing. I don't like large crowds and I don't even like looking at carnival rides let alone getting on one, but these were good friends and they convinced me we'd spend the bulk of our time in the barns petting goats and cows and bunnies. That was something I enjoyed.

Little did they know the day would be unbearably hot. Sweltering hot and so I found myself not in the barn at all, but in a long line of customers waiting to purchase an ice-cold hand-squeezed lemonade. In front of me in this extremely long queue was a boy about 7 years old. He clutched his $5 bill in a sweaty hand and looked as if he would melt away any second. We both were craving something cool and icy, sour and refreshing.

Eventually we go to the front of the line and when the clerk looked up, she didn't see him, she saw me and asked, "May I help you, ma'am?"

The boy whirled around as fast as he could and gave me a look that was both pathetic and pained, as if to say, "How dare you!"

I spoke up immediately. "No, he was first," I said to the clerk and pointed down to the boy tight-fisted in front of me.

"Oh," said the shocked clerk, "I didn't see him."

This is one example (and I have a million more) of privilege. I was an adult and I am tall so I tend to be seen in a crowd since I take up so much space. The boy, on the other hand, was just that -- a boy, young and short and in our culture, easily overlooked or invisible.

Recently at SGS, I've noticed a similar overlooking or "not seeing" and it's disturbed me.

When we decided to hire Ms. Nini as my new teaching partner, I was thrilled for many reasons. One, Ms. Nini is an amazing teacher who cares and is concerned about each and every one of her students and their learning. Another reason was because she was young and had fresh ideas to liven up this old nag (me) who'd been teaching for a long, long time. Next, and yes, this was extremely important to me, she had a sense of humor and anyone who's been in this profession for any length of time knows that without a sense of humor you don't last long.

Finally, and even more importantly, Ms. Nini was a teacher of color and I knew this was not only enriching and valuable in my own life and learning, but was extraordinarily important for our students, our families, and our students.

When we first started working together, Ms. Nini and I decided to talk about what we would like to be called by our students. I have always been called Gretchen, but Ms. Nini felt that she needed to "claim her space" a bit more and garner a bit more respect since she was young (as well as shorter than me). I agreed and thought nothing more about it until the students arrived and all of the sudden being called simply Gretchen afforded me more respect and familiarity than it did for Ms. Nini to be called Ms. Nini.

So we regrouped and decided I would be called Ms. Gretchen, not because I needed more respect, but because we wanted the girls to see that Ms. Nini and I were on equal footing.

But even deeper than that was the underlying notion that I was granted more privilege not just because I was on a first name basis with my students, but also because I was taller, older, more experienced both in teaching and at SGS, and yes, I was white. We wanted to address that privilege and the way we did it was to use similar names.

Today I told the students in Community Meeting that by calling me Ms. Gretchen, they were doing some very important work. First, they were seeing Ms. Nini and claiming a space in our community for her and not forcing her to have to claim it herself. Secondly, they were no longer (and rather unintentionally) making her invisible (as the clerk had done with the boy at the Fair). They were seeing her and most importantly, they were seeing her as an equal to me, as valuable to their education as I was.

This, I told them, is the important work of those with privilege -- we must do the seeing and not force those we have not seen to have to jump up and down to be heard or seen or treated with the same respect and fairness with which we treat certain other groups in our society.

By calling me Ms. Gretchen they were showing their respect for Ms. Nini.

As my students now know, I do not like public speaking. Still, there are things we must do that make us uncomfortable in life and today's Community Meeting made me very uncomfortable, but I felt like I had to say it. Later that day, Ms. Nini came up to me and whispered, "More girls have said hello to me than any other day."

That made me smile and I'm glad the message was heard and I'm thankful the boy at the fair in front of me gave me that look -- "Hey wait a minute! What about me?" He taught me a lot, yet still there is a lot left to learn.

Thanks for Coming!

Thanks to all of those who took time from their busy schedules and lives to attend our Curriculum Night last night. We had a great time sharing with you our exciting curriculum. We know that it might still be a bit confusing (it's difficult to pare down 9 months of education into 90 minutes), but if you have any questions or concerns, please free to contact us.

We're thrilled to be working, yet again, with a wonderful group of girls. Their energy and humor has started the year off on the right foot and we look forward to helping and watching them grow throughout the year.

We've added two new features under "Helpful Links" -- a page that lists out for you our upcoming field trips and another for recent photographs. These field trips are also listed on your daughter's calendars, which should be in their binders. Next week we'll be organizing the binders into sections so it will be easier to find homework, assignments, and calendars. We apologize the for the delay in this, but there is so much for us to introduce them to that organization has yet to be addressed. But have no fear...it will be addressed.

Again, we appreciate your attendance last night and all of your thoughtful questions. We look forward to getting to know each of you better and are thankful we have such supportive families and amazing students.

Have a great weekend!
Ms. GreNini

3 Days of Creativity, Chaos, and Challenges

Student: This is hard!

Teacher: Yep, that's why they call it work!

Student: But we were having so much fun, why do we have to do work?

Teacher: Because our job is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.

Student: What?

If teachers were to record the conversations from the beginning days of school in September we'd never have to record them again...we could just hit replay at the beginning of every school. It's amazing the our students are surprised that work can be followed by fun and that fun can again be followed by work. It's amazing that after four years of schooling they haven't seen a pattern yet in their lives that school is at times excitingly fun and at other times unbearable work.

Much like life, yes?

As we wrap up our first week of school (albeit only 3 days) the familiar refrains are reverberating through our classroom. Some students LOVE art while others feel frustrated and chant the "I can't" mantra over and over.

Teacher: No "I can'ts." Instead try, "I'm experiencing techinical difficulties."

Student: Technical whats?

Some students LOVE to write, their pens fly like hummingbirds across their page and they race to show us their thoughts or ideas or finished poems. For other students, writing is like pulling teeth. In fact, they'd rather sit in a dentist chair than face a blank page on their desks.

Student: This is all I can think of.

Teacher: Good start, but let's try to expand on this idea. What's an elephant look like when he's tired?

Student: I don't know.

Teacher: Sure you do. Close your eyes and picture a tired elephant. What does his head look like?

Student: It's down.

Teacher: Great! So what's another way to describe "down"?

Student: Like hanging down?

Teacher: Brilliant!

Blood often comes easier from a turnip, but still, these are the conversations we have hour after hour, day after day until one day (and that day WILL come) the students say, "Oh, I get it...it's like this!" And we get to say, "I knew you could do it!"

Comforting the afflicted; afflicting the comfortable. That's why they call it work!

A Few Reminders

Week One is almost done...whew!

In addition you'll find this important Reminders:

1) On Monday, Sept. 10 we'll be taking a hike/walk to Mt. Baker Beach. We'd like to eat lunch a bit early, which means that, yet again, we need the girls to bring a non-microwaveable lunch.

2) If you haven’t done so, please sign and turn in your daughter’s gym waiver.

3) Picture Day is Tuesday, Sept. 18 and picture packets went home on the first day of school. If you want pictures, please fill out the form and have your daughter’s turn it in at the front desk.

4) Next week we’ll officially begin Health and Fitness Classes. It’s important that your daughter’s have gym shoes. We have a place to store them, but if you want to just have your daughter wear them on those days, HF will be on Tuesdays and Fridays.

That’s it for now! Hope to see you all this afternoon at 4 for the girls’ performance and then later at the CAP picnic at Powell-Burnett Park at 5.

GreNini

One Done...Lots More to Go!

Well, we're exhausted...how about you? And that was just day one...imagine how tired we'll be in June? But we're having so much fun now, we may never even notice how tired we are.

Yesterday was a time to get to know each other, getting to know the school, and as you can see from the photograph, getting to know ourselves in a whole different way. The students not only worked with us, Ms. Nini and Ms. Gretchen, but also with our illustrious art teacher, Ms. Trina. The girls are making masks as representations of the Animal That Lives Within each of them. We laid down the base layer of the mask yesterday and today we're researching the qualities that animal has and how they connect with who we are as people.

It's not as easy as it sounds. Often we feel an affinity to an animal, but only because we like it, but really the animal doesn't match our personality. So, who are we? What qualities do we possess and what animals in the natural world might best represent those qualities.

Once the research is done, we'll go back to working on the masks and turning the basic shape into a "spirit animal" or the animal that truly represents our inner spirit.

Meanwhile, though, it's time to make a mess, be creative, and really get to know each other!

What a great group of girls!

Tomorrow!

Well, we woke up to rain today, which is a sign that perhaps summer IS officially over and school should begin. We hope you had a great Labor Day Weekend and are all ready to begin the work of the upcoming school year. We're here putting the last pieces together and feeling the giggle of excitement in our stomachs. We hope you are, too!

Please check the link on the right. Book-It Theater is a local organization that puts on amazing performances. Check out this year's schedule. It's great family fun.

See you soon!
GreNini

For Your Calendar and A Call for Drivers!

Good morning,

We're busily scheduling our first few weeks with educational activities and plenty of field trips to a variety of locations around the city (and outside, too). For some trips, we take the city bus, but for others, we depend on parent drivers.

Listed below are the field trips we have planned for September. In addition, we’ve designated which field trips require drivers. If you are able to transport students to any of the field trips, please email Gretchen (gdietz@seattlegirlsschool.org) and let her know.

Thursday, September 20: Carkeek Park AND Theo’s Chocolates DRIVERS NEEDED!
Departure: 9:00 from SGS
Arrive: by 10:00
Purpose: 10-12 spend time with the Carkeek Park staff to talk about how the park models stewardship
Lunch: 12-12:30 at the Park

Departure: 12:30 from Carkeek Park
Arrive: 1:00 Theo’s Chocolates (Fremont)
Purpose: 1:00 – 2:30 Tour of the facility and interview workers about how the business models stewardship
Departure: 2:30

Arrive home approximately 3-3:15

Thursday, September 27: Seattle Aquarium NO DRIVERS NEEDED — We’ll take Metro

Departure (by Metro Bus from SGS) Approximately 12:30 (depending on the weather, we may have lunch on the waterfront)
Arrive: 1:30
Purpose: 1:30 – 2:30 Meet with Aquarium staff to discuss how they model stewardship
Departure: 2:30 (by Metro Bus)
Arrive: 3:30

Friday, September 28: Silk Purse Farm, Enumclaw DRIVERS NEEDED!

Departure: 8:15 am (this is before school actually starts!)
Arrive: 9:30
Purpose: 9:30 – 2:30 Work with Peggy Gilmer, a certified horse whisperer who uses her skills and her horses to teach the girls about leadership, goal setting, and positive ways to “claim their space” in the world. This is an amazing field trip and every parent who has gone, has found the trip to be enlightening and extremely fun.

Departure: 2:30 (ish) Traffic is often not so great on the way home, but we do get to travel in the carpool lanes, so that helps.
Arrival: 3:30 (ish) We do our best to return by 3:30. If we run into a snag, we alert the front desk and then parents can call to find out if we are on time or running a bit late.

That’s it for September. Again, if you are interested, please email Gretchen (gdietz@seattlegirlsschool.org) and she’ll gather all the particulars (size of car, number of seats, etc.) In addition, please make certain you have all your volunteer paperwork filled out and a copy of your driver’s license and current insurance card for our records.

If you notice that you received two of these emails, please forgive us...we’re trying to figure out which “group” address system works best.

Thanks again and we’ll see most of you (and all of your daughters) next week!

Gretchen and Nini (GreNini!)

Who We Are

Nini Hayes holding a Chinook salmon in the waters off Sitka, Alaska. "It took me a long time to reel it in!" says Nini.



Gretchen Dietz and Rubin kayaking on Lake Wenatchee. "Poodle and lab...I guess that makes for a true water dog!" says Gretchen.

As you can see, we've had some big adventures in our life. Nini's have been more worldly than Gretchen's, but we're both very passionate about the outdoors, nature, and anything wild!

The countdown begins as we are now 9 days away from the official start of school. We know many of you got a chance to meet each other this summer in a variety of get-togethers sponsered by CAP (Community Association of Parents). If you didn't get a chance to attend the events, we'll spend a lot of time the first few weeks geting to know each other as well as the ins and outs of SGS -- zap cards, Community Meetings, goats, chickens, and yes, our day-to-day education.

Stay tuned for more updates and once school starts, this is the site for keeping up-to-date on 5th grade events and activities.

See you soon!
Gretchen and Nini (GreNini for short!)

We're BACK!

Warm Greetings to all new 5th grade Families!

While we have met some of you during Open House and New Student Orientation, we wanted to officially introduce ourselves and let you know how excited we are to be two of your 5th grade teachers this year. This will be Gretchen’s fourth year teaching 5th grade at SGS. Gretchen Dietz loves to learn new things. She spent her summer training her 6-month old Labradoodle puppy, Rubin and taking short trips to the mountains for hikes and and a trip to Michigan for an all-female family reunion. Nini Hayes just joined the SGS 5th grade team after teaching for the Seattle Public Schools last year. Nini spent her summer traveling to New York City and visiting family in the Philippines. She’s excited to share her travel stories with you!

While we’ve had a great summer we hope that yours has been enjoyable and relaxing as well. It’s always difficult to transition back into the classroom, but not to worry! As new 5th graders at Seattle Girls’ School, you’ll be spending many days outside exploring the world so hopefully the transition won’t be so dramatic.

Since we go on quite a few field trips in 5th grade, we often rely on the help of parent drivers. If someone in your family drives even once during the school year, we would love it if they would fill out the Volunteer Application Packet and return it to Nova at the front desk by Friday, September 14. Packets can be picked up from Nova as well.

The first three days of school, starting Wednesday, September 6, is Orientation – What Lives Within. During these days you will learn about the school as well as meet your new teachers and classmates. We have lots of exciting activities planned for our three days of school and at end of Orientation, you’ll get a chance to show your families what you’ve learned about SGS and specifically about the 5th grade curriculum during our Orientation Opening Ceremony scheduled for Friday, September 7, from 4 – 5 p.m. in the Community Meeting room.

In preparation for Orientation – What Lives Within, please come with the following:
o Wear comfortable clothes you can get messy in – we’ll be doing some outside and art activities.
o Bring a sack lunch for the first three days. In addition, bring a healthy snack for break time. (Nothing microwaveable for the first three days, please.)
o Bring a choice Reading Book (a fiction “chapter” book) that you would like to read or are currently reading.

This Blog site – Tahoma Times – will be your personal link to the 5th grade classroom. Once a week we will post helpful information as well as links to important topics. So, bookmark this site and get into the habit of checking it at least once a week. In addition, we send a lot of emails to families so make certain we have all your correct email addresses or any additional addresses that let us contact you either at home or at work (if appropriate).

We are very excited for the upcoming year and are looking forward to getting to know all of you. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us. Either Gretchen or Nini will be calling you in the next few weeks, so that’s also a great time to ask any questions or voice any concerns.

Have a great rest of vacation!



Gretchen Dietz and Nini Hayes
709-2228

gdietz@seattlegirlsschool.org
nhayes@seattlegirlsschool.org

Vacation Patience

I can only hope your vacations are going more smoothly than mine. As the picture illustrates, I've been stuck on planes (mostly in Chicago, but also in Salt Lake and various spots in Wisconsin) making my way to and from a family reunion in Michigan.

Now home, I hope to relax and enjoy the silence of summer.

Rubin is growing and sends his wet kisses to all families. Here he is with his buddy, Lulu, who was also a guest in our classroom last year.

Hope all is going well this summer! And before you know it, we'll see ya again!