Village News

By Amilia, Village School Parent

Our second graders are officially engineering geniuses — at least, that’s the conclusion perpetuated by my proud-mom-bias. Last month, in a culmination of their one-month STEAM study on structures, the Surfin’ Second Graders and Wise Watermelons presented their popsicle stick bridges for strength testing in front of the entire school and throngs of excited parents.

For those of you new to Village, our second grade curriculum consists of a unit on Structures. Although science and engineering is the focus, the unit incorporates geography, art, reading, writing, public speaking, teamwork and social emotional learning. It really is a classic example of cross-disciplinary, project-based learning.

Students begin with a study of bridges. They learn about the different types of bridges, how to identify them, their design and structural integrity and the pros and cons of each. They visit the Tech Museum to learn about roller coaster design. Their focus then moves to structures around the world. Students bring in examples of structures that are meaningful to them, their families or their cultural heritage. In class, they arrange these structures on the wall by continent to get a view of aesthetics and design from around the world. They each pick a structure to research in depth, creating both a written report (showcased to parents during a publishing party) and a slideshow (presented complete with microphone and movie screen) in front of their classmates. Finally, students study science and engineering, learning about different materials and their properties, and about shapes and which create stronger and more stable structures. They are visited by an architect (also, a former Village parent), who discusses this topic in more depth and — as a prequel to their popsicle stick bridges — the students endeavor several challenges to build towers and other structures out of various classroom items for strength and stability. Finally, just a couple of weeks before the 100th day of school, students are presented with their 100 popsicle sticks to be used to build a bridge of their choice using only glue. The goal? To support 50 pounds of weight for at least 5 seconds!

Although some bridges survived and others didn’t, all of these students triumphed. Their pride and bravery were inspiring. Their joy at each others’ successes, and their empathy for those whose structures fell short of the 50 pound mark, were touching. And their love for their friends, teachers and this wonderful learning community was palpable. I felt so grateful to be a part of the experience.

A huge thanks to Teachers Chris and Elizabeth for their energy and enthusiasm. They were as excited as their students on Bridge Strength Testing Day!

By First Grade Teacher Talia

It was a typical morning. The kids were eating breakfast at a snail’s pace. “We have five minutes until we have to leave, and you still have to brush your teeth. Please finish eating!” I said to them as I walked out of the kitchen and down the hall to brush my own teeth. An all too familiar feeling of anxiety was beginning to creep in, and I silently told myself that today would be the day we get out the door without a fight. A few minutes later, Robby came into my bathroom.

“Mom, I have a ques-”

“Have you brushed your teeth yet?” I interrupted.

“No but-” he answered, trying to ask me again.

“Go brush your teeth! We’re going to be late!” I could feel my voice and anxiety rising. We were about to fall into our same routine of me shouting to get the kids to finish their tasks, and all three of us leaving the house a little grumpy.

“But Mom, can I ask you a question first?” He tried again. To be honest, I wanted to say no. I wanted everyone to just focus on the tasks until they got done, and for no one to complain or say another word. But today was going to be the day that we changed that routine, I reminded myself. I took a deep breath.

“Of course you can. What’s your question?” I said.

“If the same water has been on Earth for millions of years, then is it possible that there is a drop of water somewhere that has never been touched by a living thing?” he asked me earnestly.

Wow. Where did that come from? Although the question seemed to come out of nowhere, it didn’t really surprise me. Robby has always asked thought provoking questions, questions that I have no clue how to answer sometimes.

“Hmmm. I’m really not sure. That is such an interesting thing to think about!” I answered. “Maybe we should try to find the answer after school today.”

“Ok. I’m going to brush my teeth now.” he said.

As he walked away, I couldn’t help but wonder how many of his thoughtful questions I’d missed, simply because I was unwilling to take the time to listen. Although I do my best to use Positive Discipline to influence my parenting, I’m human and I’m guilty of sliding back into what seems easy in the moment. Taking a moment to connect with my children before offering a criticism or giving feedback sometimes seems to take too long. It’s quicker to just shout to get what I want. But that’s not what I really want. I want to build a trusting and caring relationship with my children, and that won’t happen without taking the time to remain calm and listen, especially when times get stressful.

Later that day, I saw another example of connection before correction at work. This time it was on the softball field. Aubrina is on a new team this year, with a coach who has a reputation for always having a winning team. He has a loud voice, and he always knows what every girl is doing. Aubrina is on a team with girls who are taller, stronger, and older, so it’s not hard for the coach to find things to coach her on. Watching practice that day I realized a pattern with how the coach communicated with each girl. He would first say something positive, and then afterward he would give his feedback. For example, when Aubrina fielded a ball and then threw it to first base, he said “Aubrina! Nice job getting behind that ball. Next time follow through with your whole body on the throw and you’ll have more power.” The entire interaction was simple, quick, and demonstrated that he sees the positive and not just what needs to be fixed — a way to connect before offering correction.

It’s easy to forget that as adults we don’t get a lot of feedback on our behavior from others, whereas kids get criticism and correction all day, everyday. Connecting with our kids first is one sure way to build a relationship where they feel safe, supported, and loved.
 
 
For more about the “Connect before Correct” tool card, visit the Positive Discipline web blog. For more Positive Discipline Parenting tool cards, visit the Positive Discipline website.

By Jennifer, Village and Young Triton Parent

Young Triton’s Running Club (YTRC) is a before and after-school running club and self-development program for boys in grades 1–5. In its third year at Village School, YTRC instills strength, self-compassion, empathy, cooperation, balance, character, perseverance and teamwork through a structured bi-weekly, eight-week program.

Without a doubt YTRC is about far more than physical performance. This year’s curriculum was Mindcraft-themed. That’s not a typo but an intentional play on words as the boys collected bricks in their inventory and strengthened their minds while training for the Run. Sweat. Love. 5K.

Teaching young boys to become well-rounded, feeling, and caring young men requires role models that demonstrate the behaviors we hope to see them develop. We are extremely blessed at Village to have 6 dedicated parent coaches.

Coach Caesar shares his experience with YTRC: “The impact of the program is very personal to me. Not only do we as Coaches get to share our passion with the children and watch them develop before our eyes, but we also get to build relationships. Most parent participants are moms at Village. Having some “Dad Time” gives us the opportunity to make friends, share experiences and start new relationships that probably would not have happened without YTRC,” explained Coach Caesar. “[My son] sees that I go out on runs but rarely makes it to my events. When we first started doing our runs, he would not push himself nor would I want to push too hard and discourage him. Now running with 15 plus friends, he loves to run, loves to push himself and loves to help his teammates!”

Results of the program: 68 Happy Hearts, 136 Strong Legs, 34 5K Teammates, 6 Dedicated Coaches and 23 Young Tritons who have discovered that the finish line is just the beginning. 

By Amilia, Village Parent

I like to consider myself a world traveller. I love to visit new places where the language, culture, food, geography and general way of doing things are different. But, despite a good deal of experience on the global scene, the second graders at Village have me beat on at least one intriguing measure. Although I have visited a fair number of countries, I have certainly never created my own.

Yes, you heard me correctly! Our second graders created their own countries, complete with constitutions, laws, national flags, currencies and even national anthems. What sparked this exciting undertaking? 

Well, our second grade teachers, Chris and Elizabeth, started with a unit on Government. Students learned about how our government is structured, from our school, local (city) and state governments right up to our national government. They learned who the current people in charge are (president, governor, mayor, etc.), about the three branches of government, about how we vote in elections, about rules and laws and why we need to follow them. They studied government jobs — police, fire, teachers, librarians, park rangers, etc. — and even took a field trip to Campbell City Hall to meet some of these government workers, seeing firsthand where they work and how their offices are structured. 

While at city hall, students toured the police station, quietly observing the 911 Call Center, and more boisterously exploring a fully-loaded police car! The most memorable part of this field trip, though, was when students had the opportunity to conduct a mock city council meeting. They were assigned parts — City Council members, Secretary, Fire Station Chief, Police Chief and concerned community members — and given an agenda item to debate, ‘Should the city spend available funds on 2 new fire trucks or 5 new police cars?’ It was a delight and surprise to see how creative and bold our 7 and 8 years olds have become, and how thoughtfully they were able to consider and analyze the issue at hand. All voices having been heard, the ‘mock’ City Council member voted and passed a motion to purchase the police cars, rather than the fire trucks.

In past years, this is where our second grade unit on government would have concluded. But, not this year! Our teachers discovered a delightfully tongue-in-cheek, but informative, book about, How to Build Your Own Country by Valerie Wyatt and decided that, indeed, that is what our second graders should do!

And so, their foray into government and all of its institutions culminated in this final project — to create their own countries, complete with a name, a population, a location, a government, a constitution, laws, an economy, neighbors, a flag, currency, a national anthem, national holidays, etc. In full disclosure, students only had to choose a handful of these elements to develop, but the results were a dazzling array of interesting, creative, and often funny lands, and a wonderful insight into the thoughtful and honorable citizens whom we are raising… not to mention, a host of new and exciting places to add to my bucket list of global travel destinations!

Here are just a few of the many creative and inspired countries that our second graders envisioned:

• The Kingdom of Donuts, where the citizens are donuts of all different colors and types, the language is called ‘donya’ and whose neighbors include the Republic of Cupcakes and Cookie Land
• Empire of Vikingland, whose currency is in denominations of the lucky number 7, the President is chosen by Ro Sham Bo, the capital city is Hawking (named after famed physicist Stephen Hawking), and there are absolutely no guns allowed. 
• Candyland, whose people are only a few inches tall and where everything is made of candy
• Circus Land, where every citizen 10 or older must work in the circus once per month and the day cotton candy was invented is celebrated as a national holiday
• United Gabes of America, where everybody is named Gabe and you must have President Gabe’s permission to use the restroom
• Drawing Land, which is ruled by King Mateo and is the only monarchy created by the second grade class
• Ultraland, an island in the Pacific Ocean where there is free housing and free education for all. They also manufacture tree houses as their primary export.
• Costanzoe, which is the biggest and most powerful country in the world and whose land is under great threat of super volcanoes
• Pokeland, a republic located on a planet called Pokeworld. Leaders are voted into power and citizens are not legally allowed to use weapons.
• Loveable Land, where there are no laws and red roses everywhere
• Super Trio, named for a combination of the student’s favorite superhero (Superman) and favorite number (3), where everybody over 4 is required to go to school and you are not allowed to swim in a pool unless you are 6 years or older.
• L Island, where the most important law is that you cannot hurt anybody or use weapons.
• Baile, which is an island country known for its dancers, where everybody is welcome and everybody has freedom of speech. Pomegranates are the most popular produce and, by law, all citizens must respect each other. Also, all young people must go to school, but can attend any school they choose.
• Beachside Land, whose population of 900,000 all have equal rights
• Living Joy, located in the student’s living room. No pets are allowed.