Thursday
January 14
Outside
Applications Due
Monday
January 18
Martin Luther
King Jr. Day
NO SCHOOL!
Wednesday
January 20
Board Meeting
6:30pm
Friday
January 22
Assembly
9:30am Featuring 2nd Grade
Spirit/Pizza Day
Movie Night
Featuring
The Cat Returns
5:45pm
Thursday
January 28
Experience Learning Night
6:30pm
Friday
January 29
In-Service Day
No Classes; Childcare Available
January 14, 2010
Donate to the SPIRIT Auction
Family Movie Night Next Week
Spanish and Chocolate Teach History in 3rd Grade
5th Graders to Learn Tae Kwon Do
Did You Know...?
Donate Now to the SPIRIT Auction 2010
By Kate Petrich & Roshele Allison, Auction Procurement Chairs
Donate now and be entered into a drawing for $100 gift certificate to Cactus! All procurers who turn in forms by January 28th will be eligible.
Our auction season is off to a terrific start - thank you to everyone who has already turned in some excellent items! Do you still need a donation idea? We’ve heard from a parent who is frantic for gardening help - how about donating light gardening hours and advice? Or, maybe you’ve got credit card points redeemable for restaurant or hotel credit? Here are some more examples to help inspire your imagination:
• Host a family camping trip or a backyard camping party for kids
• Etiquette class for kids (sign us up!)
• Sailing party - perhaps the gents are the crew and the ladies the guests
• Catered parties - football, Oscar parties, game night!
• Spa party, gingerbread making, birdhouse building, salsa-lesson party, etc. Either host the party or package it to go.
• Fine wine
• Allotment of labor hours for repairs, light hanging, cabinet making, etc.
• Homemade items, fresh baked bread, cookies, dinners or a seasonal supply of garden vegetables
To submit your donation you can:
Pick up a donation form from the office or fill one out online. Donation items and forms can be dropped off outside the main office.
Don’t have time? Email or phone in your item description to Kate or Roshele.
Once you have your donation, please drop it off outside the school office. And thank you for your thoughtful generosity. Our success is fueled by such Westside family mojo!
Questions? We are at your service: Roshele (daveroshele@comcast.net, 938.1989) and (katepetrich@gmail.com 988.5820)
Family Movie Night, Friday, Jan. 22
Featuring: The Cat Returns (G)
5:45pm-Doors Open for Pizza
6pm-The Cat Returns
Free Admission!
By Kate Petrich, WPO President
Invite relatives, neighbors and friends to “journey to a magical world” at our second Movie Night of the year! Everyone is welcome at this gigantic Westside playdate, and admission is free. Come hungry and leave dinner to us: Pizza Gallery pizza, popcorn and snacks will be available for sale. Pajamas, pillows, sleeping bags, teddies are all fun, optional gear. Mats will be set-up on the gym floor, and adult chairs will be set-up for parents behind the mats. Late seating is not a problem.
A “G” movie that older kids will enjoy? We think so! Made by the same crew as the Academy Award®-winning Spirited Away (Best Animated Feature Film, 2002), The Cat Returns is a visually dazzling Japanese animation with an Alice in Wonderland type of adventure. Younger kids will surely enjoy the talking animals and animation, and older kids will likely find “cool appeal” and excitement in Haru’s high school situations around feelings of not quite fitting in.
In the middle of being annoyed by how her life is going, Haru saves the life of an unusual cat, and is suddenly transported to the Kingdom of cats. “The Cat King rewards her good deed with a flurry of presents, including a very shocking proposal of marriage to his son....To change her fate she’ll need to learn to believe in herself and, in the process, she will learn to appreciate her everyday life.” Featuring the marvelous voice talents of Anne Hathaway, Cary Elwes, Tim Curry, and Elliott Gould, The Cat Returns “is a magical animated adventure that will delight and inspire everyone.” For more information and clips, please click here.
There are still volunteer opportunities for the evening. If you’d like to pitch in, please contact our Movie Night Chair, EmilyAnn Hindle, at hockeymomea@comcast.net. Hope to see you there!
How Spanish and Chocolate Teach History in Third Grade
By Ashley Kloess, 3rd Grade Teacher
There is a buzz of excitement in the air each time I approach the 3rd grade portable. The children are learning all about the Aztecs, even managing to creep out their Spanish teacher with tales of human sacrifices! While at times it can be necessary to be very creative in integrating classroom curriculum to my Spanish lessons, it’s easy when the theme is Aztecs! As a student, I learned about the Aztecs by visiting the ruins in Mexico City, or Tenochtitlan as it was known by the Aztecs. I couldn’t bring our students to the ruins so I brought the ruins to them in the form of pictures. I showed our 3rd graders pictures of the Aztec pyramids, temples, and of the Spanish cathedral built literally on top of some of the ruins.
Though the Aztec people are no longer actively organized in Mexico, they played a big part in shaping history. We value global education at Westside so it seemed fitting to point out the impact of the Aztecs to our students. After all, it is important to learn how history transpired in order to understand how the world came to be as it is now. One of the most interesting (and delicious) ways the Aztecs influenced our everyday world is in sharing chocolate! However, the chocolate we eat is nothing like the chocolate consumed by the wealthiest of the Aztecs.
In class, we discussed how the Aztecs got chocolate from the Mayans and how Aztec leader Montezuma II shared chocolate with the Spaniard conquistador, Hernán Cortés who shared it with Spain. I announced that we would be dining on chocolate, Aztec style, and shared samples of unsweetened chocolate. The class could be heard exclaiming, “It tastes like dirt!”; “It’s pure bitterness!”; “I don’t even have words for how bad it tastes!” Our students had no idea that chocolate in its plainest state does not taste sweet! I made it up to them by supplying Hershey kisses to get the bitter taste out of their mouths. We then discussed how the Aztecs flavored their chocolate with chili pepper, honey, and cinnamon. Though chocolate is of relatively low importance in the history of the world, it’s amazing to think that if it weren’t for the Aztecs, we might not have it at all! Our students thoroughly enjoy learning about history when we can make it come alive for them.
Visiting Korean Teacher Alex To Teach Tae Kwon Do to the 5th Grade
On Tuesday, January 19th, visiting Korean teacher Alex Kwon will teach Tae Kwon Do to our 5th grade students. This martial art originates from Korea and is traditionally part of the curriculum in Korean schools. Alex is a specialist, and will teach some of the more traditional ves to the class. Dignitaries from Korea will be here to watch Alex’s lesson and visit Westside School.
Did You Know...?
Current events and the 4th and 5th grade research projects are integrating this week and creating some very interesting discussions. Each student picked a country to study in-depth, and student Larissa picked one that is topping the headlines - Haiti. She has been doing lots of research at home on the recent Earthquake and crisis there, and is coming to class with information that is sparking some great classroom conversations.