Author: The Saklan School Friday Blog

The Saklan School is a private Pre-K through 8 school located in Moraga, CA. Our mission is to think creatively, act compassionately, and live courageously.

The Mayflower

The second grade students have been learning about the Mayflower. They learned that the ship was 90 feet long and carried 102 people. They also learned who those 102 people were and why they were sailing on the Mayflower. Additionally, the second graders learned about life on the ship, including the sleeping accommodations, what the passengers ate, and how long the journey took. The students each identified and wrote down five key facts about the Mayflower, and then used their facts to write a paragraph about the ship. Finally, the second graders each created a picture of the Mayflower using construction paper and glued it above their Mayflower paragraph. Their work was then hung in their classroom for their classmates to enjoy!

#SaklanAcademic

Duffel Bags for Foster Kids

Saklan’s 8th grade students completed another Pledge to Humanity activity last week. This time they partnered with Together we Rise, an organization dedicated to improving the lives of children in foster care, to decorate and fill duffel bags. Each student got to be creative and spread a unique, positive message to kids in the foster system through the decorations on the bags. After decorating the bags, the eighth graders stuffed them with a teddy bear and coloring books for the foster kids to enjoy.

Thank you to Kim and Jack D. for taking the lead on this project. 

#SaklanCompassion

Head’s Corner

COVID-19 Travel Guidance

Dear Saklan Community, 

On Monday, we enter our third week of having all grades on campus. It has been a heavy lift with many moving parts, but it has been absolutely worth it. Your children are engaged in their learning, their spirits are high, and our teachers walk with a purpose. 

Overall your children have been fantastic in understanding the importance of wearing their masks and are cooperative beyond our wildest expectations. As parents, you have done a fantastic job with the screening, have kept your children home when they are not feeling well, gotten tested when asked, and been incredibly supportive of our teachers.  

As I am sure you know, COVID infection rates are on the rise across the nation. While California has done well comparatively speaking, there is a concerning rise state-wide and in Contra Costa County. We continue to be vigilant on campus. While knowing we will not be able to 100% stop the virus from coming to campus, we feel our safety protocols significantly mitigate its spread.  

But this system is only as good as its weakest link. It is up to our entire community to be dedicated to reducing the possibility of COVID-19 from entering campus. Rising numbers and the holidays will only lead to increased cases across the state. I know of schools that have had to close because their community members let down their guard, attended get-togethers, or joined small parties. I am sure they all felt they were being safe enough. 

For those of you planning travel, the California State Government has issued a travel advisory asking those who travel outside of California to self-quarantine for two weeks upon return. Saklan will apply this policy to our community. If you have to travel outside the state, we request that you quarantine for two weeks upon your return. We will work to keep your child caught up with their school work through distance learning and/or assignments. The advisory also recommends that Californians refrain from all non-essential travel during this period; therefore, we encourage families not to travel until the advisory has been lifted. 

Educating your children in person is our number one priority. If you have to travel, we understand, but please help us stay in person by quarantining. Help us give your students the education they deserve by remaining vigilant. If we have our priorities straight, we can have a pandemic and school at the same time.

Stay well,

David

#SaklanInPersonLearning

Veterans Day Study

The second graders have been learning about Veterans Day, why we celebrate it and how it is different from Memorial Day. The students learned that it dates back to World War I, and was originally known as Armistice Day, before being renamed to Veterans Day in 1954. Veterans Day is a day to honor all military personnel that have served the country.

The students learned about the 5 branches of the military: Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force and Coast Guard, and what each branch does. They also discussed what it means to be a hero and wrote about how we can all be heroes every single day. Some ideas the students wrote about included:

Caring for other people.

Telling the truth.

Being nice to people, even if they are being mean.

Saying a nice compliment.

Additionally, the second graders talked and wrote about what it means to be brave. Each student’s ideas on being brave and a hero, as well as the information they learned about veterans and Veterans Day, were assembled into a graphic organizer, and hung in their classroom.

#SaklanCompassion

Dependable

At Saklan, November is all about being dependable! This month, the family group activity included watching a video the eighth graders created to show students what it means to be dependable. After watching the video, kindergarten through seventh grade students brainstormed ways they can be dependable. Each student then wrote about one way they will work to be more dependable on a festive pumpkin, turkey, or leaf paper. The papers were all collected and used to create family group wreaths. Check out the wreaths below!

#SaklanFamilyGroups

Visiting Moraga Garden Farm

This week, first and second grade classes took the first field experiences of the school year to the Moraga Garden Farm. Field experiences are valuable learning opportunities typically central to education at Saklan. Since March, Saklan has postponed this time-proven ritual, but that did not hamper the kids’ enthusiasm and curiosity while off campus.

The farmers were busy winterizing the farm, and the children saw the community members hard at work. They discussed the many benefits of community farms, such as health and wellbeing, land conservation, shared knowledge, human connection, volunteerism, and being close to the food process. They learned about other types of community gardens worldwide, such as multigenerational allotment gardens in the UK/Europe, market gardens in developing nations, urban gardens and school gardens.


Most trips to the Farm happen during primary growing seasons of late spring and summer, but there was no shortage of exploration and investigation in the winterized version. Students got their hands dirty in the fertile soil while searching for evidence of decomposition and composting. They walked in large composting bins showcasing several stages of organic soil generation. Saklan students learned how organic farming methods can avoid chemicals ending up in the food. Fortunately, the field experience timing was perfect to see the cover crop that had just been planted – fava beans. Fava plants input nitrogen where summer vegetables have depleted the soil, as well as provide weed control, safe harbor for beneficial biodiversity, and reduction in rain erosion.


Lastly, a trip to the Moraga Garden Farm is not complete without a visit with the chickens. Students were extremely curiuos to see chickens during molting season, where old feathers are replaced by new feathers to prepare for winter. This experience was best summed up by a second-grader saying, “you can really see how chickens descended from dinosaurs and maybe aliens too!”

#SaklanExperiential

Element Fashion Show

The eighth graders have been learning about the periodic table. From researching what all the symbols mean, to understanding what the atomic number and atomic mass tell us about each element, the students are quite knowledgable about the massive amount of information the periodic table has to offer.

As part of their periodic table study, each eighth graders picked one element they wanted to research and learn more about. The students then designed t-shirt to showcase their element of choice and the information they learned. The eighth graders then modeled their element t-shirts for their classmates. Click below to see our eighth graders showcasing their periodic table research, art and modeling talents!

#SaklanInquiryInspiresCreativity

And the Winner Is…

After hearing the story I Voted, by Mark Shulman, and learning about the U.S. presidential election from Scholastic’s Let’s Find Out magazine, the Kindergarten students took part in their own election. With a voting booth, a ballot, a ballot box, and an  “I Voted” sticker, the children decided which animal the president should have in the White House, a dog or a cat. With an overwhelming majority, the children voted for a cat! There were a few tears of disappointment, but overall the Kindergarteners were excited to be part of the election process.

#SaklanExperiential

Pumpkin Seed Estimation

The Hoot Owls practiced their early science and math skills by estimating how many seeds were inside a large pumpkin. Their guesses ranged from 4 to 100,000! After determining their estimates, the Hoot Owls needed to collect data, so it was time to start scooping out the insides of the pumpkin. While not all students participated in the messy job of getting the pumpkin seeds out of the pumpkin, all the Hoot Owls helped in the data collection by counting out at least 10 pumpkin seeds into muffin tins.

Once all the seeds were sorted by tens, the class worked together to count by tens all the way to 367! After all the seeds were counted, Ms. Traci roasted the pumpkin seeds, which the Hoot Owls enjoyed tasting during their Halloween celebration.

#SaklanHandsOn

Outer Space Exploration

The first graders have been learning about outer space. They practiced their informational writing skills by creating pop-up books with facts about the planets. The students also created books filled with facts about the sun, moon and stars.

After learning about stars, the first graders had fun using their imaginations and creativity to create their own constellations. Examples of constellations they created include a unicorn, pyramid, sunset, and a mask. The first graders shared their constellations and practiced their public speaking skills by presenting the facts and stories behind their individual constellations to their classmates.  Additionally, the first graders enjoyed learning a star song: 

Star light, star bright.

Constellations, what a sight!

The song was a fun way to wrap up their outer space unit.

#SaklanAcademic