No Screws Loose!

We cooperate to screw and glue the dowels onto the base.

WOODWORKING 001
Today we completed our first wood working project. The students were very excited to find out what it is for.

We also used our newly developed woodworking skills to repair a problematic piece of furniture. Too many times to count, our sofa in the playhouse has collapsed with enthusiastic seating. The brace that suspends the seat panel routinely popped out. Prior to disassembly we examined what looked wrong. Two students identified the disconnected brace. I asked them to look at what held the brace in place. Even they were surprised to see it was only 6 brads (very thin nails). This week's practice with screws lent an easy solution that is proving to be very sturdy!

TODAY'S ACTIVITY
We made a fresh batch of bright turquoise blubber. As always, our process is part recipe, part scientific observation. We measured and added the "magic solution" of water and Borax to the mixture of water, glue and color. As the solution blended, the soupy mix coagulated to form a gelatinous, extra jiggly, stretchy batch of tactile nirvana.

One side activity was counting how many seconds it took for the blubber to stretch to the floor from the table surface. Of interesting note is how quiet even our most enthusiastic participants became when watching a particularly slow ooze.

TODAY'S STORY
Honey..Honey..Lion!, an African folktale illustrated by Jan Brett. Honeyguide is a little bird who follows bees to their hive. Honey Badger follows Honeyguide and opens the hive. In gratitude, he shares the gooey sweetness within. This is the way it has always been...until one day, for no reason, he did not share. The disappointed Honeyguide then led him on a grueling trek that ended at an Acacia Tree, where there was a LION! The Lion swiftly chased Honey Badger a long way back to his burrow. So that is why, to this day, Honey Badger always shares with Honeyguide.

Will It Sink or Float?

Will it sink or float?

TODAY'S ACTIVITY
If this question piques David Letterman's curiosity, you can imagine how compelling it is for a dozen people four and five years of age. This experiment goes through four stages, featuring critical learning skills they will rely on for the rest of their lives.

1) Prediction:
What do you think WILL sink or float? Examine the items. Pick them up. Feel them.

2) Evaluation:
One by one, place them in water and observe what happens. Did it sink or float? Did it happen fast or slow?

3) Conclusion:
Were your predictions correct? What other items could you try? How are those items like those you already did? Repeat the experiment with new predictions.

Firefighter Jana Wakefield

WHO IS THAT MASKED MAN?
That ain't no man! That's Officer Jana Wakefield of the San Francisco Fire Department! She is one of the many wonderful parents at our school. Officer Jana visited our class and showed us what firefighters do when they hear the alarm. The students marveled at how quickly she got into her uniform and, of course, the mask! Now all the students have learned firsthand that girls can grow up to be firefighters, too. (Our girls already knew...now the boys do, too!)








TODAY'S STORY
When I Grow Up, by Charise Mericle Harper. What do we think we want to be when we grow up? All too often, the answer to this question is an occupation. In this book, the answers are virtues. When we watch them exploring at school (and as you have gazed at them at home and about), the last thing that comes to mind is a "set dresser", "plumber" or "I.T. guy."

Our focus is on those that guarantee a full and meaningful life. Every student is brave, thoughtful, caring, adventurous, fair, generous, optimistic, imaginative, patient and/or lucky at any given time in the course of our day. Being able to nurture and appreciate this is why we do what we do.

All these virutes add up to one thing we want them to be when they grow up - HAPPY.

The Rasp!

Luca uses a rasp to round and smooth the edges of a freshly cut base.
His friends won't need to worry about splinters or sharp edges.

THE RASP
The past couple days we've been using a new tool - The Rasp. The students have nicknamed it "The Cheesegrater." It is a tool that operates much in the same way. It is used to smooth very rough edges and form the wood.

My description as a hand-tool with hundreds of tiny, razor-sharp teeth (like a pirhana - from a Magic Treehouse Story) inspired appropriate caution for our young woodworkers. Safety is of utmost importance with all our tools, and this one is particularly nasty if mishandled. With this one, we are especially cautious. The students made two very interesting discoveries:
1) "If you do it right, it makes lots of curly shavings bigger than sawdust." - Luca
2) You can rub the (smaller) wood on it (reversing the usual method) and it still works, and it sounds like music.

So true. We used exactly that method to round the ends of the dowels we cut last week.

Hmmm...a base and twelve rounded dowels...I wonder what it could be?

TOOL SURVEY
As a math lesson, we took a survey of which tool the students enjoyed using the most. Here are the results:

7 - Drill
7 - Miter Saw
4 - Hammer
2 - Rasp


TODAY"S ACTIVITY
Usha prepared the hands-on science experiment, exploring density with water, oil and salt. The students selected their own colors and performed them independently.

The alternate group played a new game, "Buddy Bowling" in the multi purpose room. One class mate in the center of the room tries to roll the giant green bouncy ball into each buddy, one by one. The buddies stands in their own 18" ring and may move any way to avoid the ball, as long as they remain within the ring. All had their turn and loved participating in each role.