Look what has hatched in the art room! 

Lower elementary art students have been learning about life cycles in their classrooms and this prompted our current art project.  Large eggs were created out of paper mache.   Students learned an inexpensive and natural way to make paper mache.  They may want to create this recipe at home.   It is a simple recipe of equal parts of flour and water.  I usually start with 1 cup flour and 1 cup water.  Mix to get a paste like consistency and add water if too thick and flour if too watery.  The students enjoyed mixing the recipe and getting it just right.  So fun and so messy!  Take a look at the process.

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The following week they created either a snake or a caterpillar hatching out of their egg.  This has been a great lesson for students to practice patience while working on a 3 dimensional  art project that took many weeks.  They are excited about completing their final art piece.  Be on the look out for these marvelous creatures!

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Students have also worked on scenery for their upcoming program about life cycles.  Here is a sneak peek of one of their pieces.

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“I want to live in a way that lines up with my values."

Bridget Lavender, GMS alumna Class of 2010 and currently a sophomore at Davidson College (NC), says she loves interdisciplinary studies and was drawn to Davidson because of its passion for and commitment to liberal arts education. According to Bridget, Davidson College espouses the same philosophy of learning as GMS. “I’ve always had a love of learning. And I believe that education has intrinsic value, and is not just a means to an end,” she says.
While at Davidson, Bridget is pursuing a dual degree in Communications and Gender Studies with a focus on Social Justice. The 2012 valedictorian of Weaver Academy has been honing her oral and written communications skills for a long time, and in addition to her academic pursuits, she also works as a news writer for the Davidson College Communications Office, tutors at the campus writing center (offering support to fellow undergrads), and serves as an ambassador and tour guide for the admissions office. Not only that, but she gets plenty of opportunity for public speaking as president of the college Democrats. She was propelled to this role after interning for the 2014 campaign to re-elect Kay Hagan to the US Senate.
Being an advocate for social justice is something that lives at Bridget’s core. “At Montessori, I was surrounded by people who helped me realize that I could change the world,” she says. “We studied people who made a difference in the world and there was always a respect for all living things.” When she was in 6th grade, her family lived in New Zealand for a short time and she says that she will never forget her visit to a Greenpeace boat. That experience cemented her passion for animal welfare; a passion carries through to her current initiative as a founding member of the Davidson Animal Welfare Group (DAWG, for short).
 When asked “where do you see yourself in the future?” Bridget shared with us that she could see herself continuing to work with a non-profit organization that is committed to advancing the cause of animal rights. “I’ve always been an empathetic person, and I want to live in a way that lines up with my values.”
Bridget and her younger brother, Spencer, enrolled at GMS in 2002 when their family first moved to Greensboro. She is the daughter of Larry Lavender and Beth Ritson Lavender. Spencer is currently a senior at Greensboro College Middle College. We look forward to sharing more about his rock climbing expeditions and upcoming college plans very soon.

Volleyball begins right after our winter holiday break for students in the Elementary and Middle School. The classes focus on teamwork and communication in volleyball. Lower El is working hard on basic serves and hits. Upper El is playing without the need of a training ball (they are using one of the 2 pictured below) and middle school is midway through their ISL competitive volleyball season. Go Panthers! Championship game is Thursday, February 11.

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Volleyball is a great team sport and makes the kids rely on their fellow team players in a way that other sports don't. It is rarely the case that a player can just hit the ball hard and score a point. In volleyball players must be able to hit the ball with some accuracy or at least be able to bump the ball straight up to set it for the player who can hit it over the net.  Communication is essential to success! Sometimes it is challenging enough for youngsters to just get a good hit on the ball. But the other big challenge is to have enough confidence in your teammates that they will assist in the volley in order to get the ball over the net.  In the end, whoever wins or loses doesn't matter, because the main lessons are about teamwork and good communication.

Following our unit on volleyball, we will move directly into basketball season. March Madness... here we come!!!

Thanks, Terry

 

 

Educating the Whole Child Research confirms that students perform better in school when they are emotionally and physically healthy. They miss fewer classes, are less likely to engage in risky or antisocial behavior, concentrate more and attain higher test scores.

January was a busy month in our Spanish classes, but we also had time to learn about Día de Reyes (Three Kings Day), a Spanish tradition  celebrated on January 6 (the 12th day of Christmas) that commemorates the story of the three wise men who traveled from afar bearing gifts for the newborn Jesus.  Hispanic children often set out symbolic goodies for the Kings and hay to feed their camels as well as a place to leave their shoes. When morning arrives, children discover that the camels ate the hay, and there are wrapped presents waiting beside their shoes.

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Rosca de Reyes

Did de Reyes observance comes to a close with another Spanish Christmas tradition: a typical breakfast of Roscón de Reyes, a ring-shaped cake decorated with fruits symbolizing the precious gems that adorned Los Reyes Magos' clothing.

Our kids observed this tradition by sampling the Roscón de Reyes.

 

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Griffin, Beck, Alexander dressed up as The Three Wise Men.

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Willa delivering the Holiday cards to Well Spring Retirement Community made by Lower El students

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Luke and Ryan very excited about the Rosca de Reyes

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Javier, Mahinda, Komei as the Three Wise Men

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Andrew, Albert, Mohamed enjoying the Three Wise Men Day

 

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Middle Schoolers also enjoyed the Rosca, pictured Chloe and Theo

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Bella and Lola ready for the Rosca