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.

Shared Power

Fostering a sense of belonging is one of the most important things we can do in our classrooms. When students feel seen, known, and valued, they become free to take on new academic risks and challenges. 

At Saklan we extend the importance of belonging beyond SEL curriculum, morning meeting, or advisory. In Project Based Learning students bring their authentic wonders and ideas to the academic day, peer feedback, and collaborative work. 

Through showing the value of what they have to offer to the learning experience, students are reminded that we all have ways we can help support our community, ways our community can help us, and, most importantly, none of us alone is smarter than all of us together!  

Shared power is a core equity lever of projects at Saklan. By sharing power the class takes ownership over their growing knowledge which deepens the students’ sense of belonging and purpose in the classroom. 

Authentically incorporating students’ unique interests and talents, providing them options and agency in making decisions within the project, and creating a sense of interdependence among the teacher and students are all ways shared power show up in high quality project learning. 

Here are a few examples of how students are bringing their own unique identities, ideas, and questions to support academic learning in our projects. 

Owlets: Voice and Choice in Rainforest Representations 

Choice is provided for even our youngest learners. In their rainforest project unit, Owlets have had the freedom to respond to their growing knowledge in a variety of ways. After a visit from a reptile expert, students created models to represent what they learned. They chose an element of the experience that was exciting to them and selected which materials they would use to create the representation of what they learned. 

Owlets see the importance of their voice by developing their own wonders. The teachers reinforce student voice by making space to respond directly to these authentic student inquiries. One Owlet wondered how much rainfall there is in the rainforest each year. After some research the class discovered there is an average annual rainfall of 7 feet in the rainforest. They collaboratively made this chart to show 7 feet of rain! They even measured themselves (and their teachers) against all this rainfall!

We hope you can join the Owlets for their rainforest culmination celebration where you can see all they have learned about rainforests on May 31st after CLAS!

6th grade: Interdependence Through Critique, Revision, and Co-Creation of Rubrics

This PBL unit requires students to create a final product based on their own unique interpretation of the driving question, “How are we still connected to Ancient Greek culture, language, and mythology today?” 

While building knowledge and pursuing individual research paths, students also develop a deep sense of belonging and shared power in the classroom through interdependence. One major aspect of this was co-writing their grading rubric for the project through generating, sorting, and refining criteria and rubric language together. 

Throughout the project they receive feedback and support from peers and teachers through small group work and feedback protocols like Big Paper and a modified version of the Charrette Protocol. 

This critique and revision cycle is designed specifically to show students that their ideas matter. These practices intentionally lift up student voices, ideas, and opinions within the guardrails of our content standards and teacher learning goals. 

#SaklanPBL

Teacher Appreciation Week 2024

Teacher Appreciation week is next week! The Parent Association has planned lots of fun and unique ways to celebrate the Saklan faculty and staff, but they need your help!

Meals for the Saklan Staff

One of the beloved Saklan Teacher/Staff Appreciation Week traditions is themed potluck lunches from the parent community!  If you are able, please sign up to bring something yummy for the teachers and staff by clicking on the button below.

Help provide lunch for the Saklan staff

Teacher & Staff Kind Notes

Additionally, we are collecting quotes from students about all of the things they love about the Saklan faculty and staff members. Use the button below to see a list of all teachers and staff at Saklan with a link to a Kudoboard for each one. Please have your student click on the links for the staff members that make differences in their day (think Music, Spanish, Miss Shay, and the list goes on!) and write what they love about those individuals.

Saklan Staff Kudoboard Links

Thank you for helping make this year’s Teacher and Staff Appreciation Week extra special!

SaklanPA #SaklanTeacherAppreciation

Student-led Socratic Discussions

In their Languge Arts classes, the 6th and 8th grade students participated in Socratic-style seminar discussions to showcase their understanding of their class novels. The discussions were 100% student-led with 0% teacher involvement.

In a Socratic seminar discussion, students ask and answer all of the questions. The teacher remains silent. The students sit in a circle or around a seminar table where every participant can make eye contact with all other participants while speaking or actively listening. The discussion moves freely as the students answer one another’s questions, build on the commentary of others, and, of course, invite one another to contribute to keep the discussion going.

The 8th graders wrapped up their reading of the novel Uprising with two Socratic discussions inside the “fishbowl.” The novel Uprising tells the intersecting stories of three young women before and during the tragic fire in the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory in Manhattan on March 25, 1911. Along with reading the novel, the students analyzed the benefits and downsides of the Industrial Revolution in American life at the turn of the twentieth century. 

To prepare for the discussion, students generated their own questions about the novel’s main themes, especially characterization. The 8th graders also shared their analyses of meaningful passages from the novel and real historical events before inviting other participants to add to their ideas.

While one-half of the class participated in the discussion inside the fishbowl, the other half sat around the room outside the discussion table to observe and listen to their peers. The discussion lasted for 20 minutes before the two groups switched roles.

While the discussion was underway inside the fishbowl, each observer tracked specific elements of the discussion in their Observer Notes. They logged specific types of commentary as they occurred, including when a speaker connected the discussion topic to a broader theme, when someone built on another person’s comment, or when an analytical question was asked to the whole discussion group.

The 6th graders finished reading the novel Flowers for Algernon, which is about a mentally disabled man who triples his intelligence through an operation. For their cumulative project, the class also held a Socratic Seminar. In the discussion, students evaluated the various themes present in the novel, such as the relationship between EQ and IQ. Students made connections with the nonfiction topics discussed in class, such as the story of Adam and Eve, Plato’s Allegory of the Cave, and eugenics. When reflecting on their performance, the 6th graders were most proud of their ability to support one another’s intellectual thinking. 

In both grades, the students were surprised at how quickly time flew by inside the fishbowl. The discussion participants in both grades asked if they could have more time to continue as they felt they had much more to discuss.

Be Resilient

Saklan’s final social-emotional learning topic for the 23-24 school year is to be resilient. During the month, all Saklan students are discussing what resilience means and looking for ways to show their resilience on campus and at home. On Friday, May 31st, the 1st through 8th graders will join with their family groups to participate in Field Day activities. Field Day activities allow the students to an opportunity to not only show how they can be resilient, but also to showcase many of the other SEL traits they have practiced this year

#SaklanSEL

The Power of Learning by Doing

Embark on an exciting journey with Saklan Middle School’s Learning by Doing (LBD) program! Every Thursday afternoon, students have the unique opportunity to delve into new interests, discover new skills, and make new friends as they choose from a wide array of LBD classes. These vibrant sessions, tailored to student interests, needs, and teacher passions, provide a platform for hands-on learning.

Imagine your student diving into chess strategy, challenging their knowledge with Geography quiz games, or learning about the richness of Indian culture and cuisine. From the rhythm of West African drumming to the camaraderie of basketball, there’s something every student can engage with and enjoy. Also, the fourth Thursday of each month brings the excitement of off-campus lunch—a favorite among students!

What truly distinguishes Saklan is our commitment to nurturing a community of lifelong learners. Our middle school faculty leads engaging LBD classes and invites parents and students to share their expertise. Imagine your student learning and teaching their peers, sparking passion and curiosity in others through their LBD class. This is the spirit of collaboration and inclusion that defines our LBD program.

This year, our sixth-grade students have showcased extraordinary creativity and courage by stepping into the role of LBD instructors. Stephen, Rebecca, and Aliya used Saklan’s new i-Pads (made possible by generous fund-a-need donations to last year’s auction) to film short video skits that were scripted joyfully in the first LBD class. The laughter and fun of each LBD period was palpable. The students learned how to edit by adding sounds and music and incorporating text and images to make their videos silly and fun. Although the film topics were completely student-created, they learned invaluable filming and editing techniques.

Another excellent sixth-grade LBD class just finished this week. It was titled “Rice and Reading,” which are two things that Sam loves. In each class session, Sam brought a new delicious rice dish to share. Students ate the yummy food and then rested in comfort to read their favorite books.

Join us in celebrating the spirit of innovation and empowerment that defines Saklan Middle School’s LBD program—a true highlight of the middle school experience!

Hoot Owl Space Exploration

The Hoot Owls have continued their space exploration! They been been discussing gravity and its effects in space, as well as talking about astronauts. They learned that there are astronauts living in the International Space Station. The astronauts grow plants, do experiments and send the information back to Earth. The class watched videos to see how astronauts go about their lives up in space. They saw a tour of their kitchen, their sleeping quarters and their bathroom. The Hoot Owls also learned that astronauts need to be very strong, and continuously exercise to keep their muscles and bones healthy.

The Hoot Owls recently went on a field experience to the Chabot Space and Science Center. The students brought journals with them to record things they saw and what they learned. The class watched a show in the planetarium about gravity waves and were excited to see parts of rocket ships. The students also enjoyed seeing the different space suits that have been used through time, and some of the Hoot Owls even designed their own!

The Hoot Owls will share their learning with the community on Thursday, May 9th during their Space Unit Culmination event. All Saklan community members are invited to join us to learn about their project!

Pan con Tomate

In Spanish class, students often combine aspects of the Spanish curriculum with other subjects to show how learning a language goes beyond the classroom. Take Spanish and food, for example. Students’ knowledge evolves when they are exposed to different Spanish-speaking countries in the classroom, but that doesn’t compare to tasting what it would be like to be in Spain. Sometimes, the best way to learn is through different experiences, and students love food! In the Middle School Blue Block Spanish class, students prepared pan con tomate, a typical appetizer of Cataluña, a community in Spain. It is a relatively simple recipe with few ingredients required, but the payout is outstanding; the students learn vocabulary while eating and sharing the food they prepare themselves! 

Rainforest Scientists

The Owlets have been very engaged in learning about the rainforest!

Many Owlets were aware that a rainforest is home to a wide variety of plants and animals, as well as being damp and rainy. However, they heard in science class that scientists often pose questions about topics they are not previously familiar with. The Owlets got to practice becoming excellent scientists by brainstorming what they would like to know. These brainstorms were then added to their Wonder Wall.

The rainforest scientists began their investigation by learning that a rainforest is made up of various zones or “stratas” At the top is the emergent layer, followed by the canopy, the understory, with the forest floor at the bottom. After talking about the different zones, the Owlets looked at books showing pictures of the different animals that live in the various stratas. They learned that some animals travel between different zones in the rainforest, such as a macaw can go from the forest floor to the emergent layer because it has wings, and a snake can slither up from the forest floor all the way to the understory or even the canopy. 

Every Owlet was given the opportunity to choose animals to draw, and once they completed their drawing they read about their chosen animal to learn more about it. The Owlets picked up a very helpful skill: reading books can always teach you more! The class looked at the animals together to guess which strata they thought it lived in; most of the time the Owlets guessed correctly!

The Owlet classroom has slowly been turning into a rainforest. Next time you are on campus, stop by their classroom to see the animals and greenery inhabiting their space!

Saklan’s Online Auction

The Peace, Love, Saklan online auction is open! Along with the items from the greater community that have been opening all week, fun experiences with Saklan teachers are also open for bidding. Some of the experiences are available for a flat fee to a set number of people, so be sure to secure your child’s spot today!

We also have 2 experiences hosted by Saklan families that are sure to delight! Students and adults are invited for a night of Taylor Swift karaoke, while parents can sign up for an exciting night of oil and vinegar tasting!

Our 8th graders have put together some creative and exciting legacy baskets for the community to bid on too! Check out what their offerings below.

All proceeds from the auction support the unique programs offered at Saklan, including: field experiences, guest experts, project based learning, family groups, and professional development opportunities for our amazing teachers. Your support is greatly appreciated!

Bidding in the online auction will continue through Monday, April 29th at 8:30 p.m. As we like to say, bid early and bid often!

Field Experiences That Intentionally Enrich Learning

The 6th grade humanities class recently went to the San Francisco Legion of Honor to explore key ancient Greek artifacts as part of the kick off to their final humanities Project Based Learning unit of the year. 

PBL units traditionally begin with an entry event, the purpose of which is to intentionally ignite student authentic curiosity about the driving question, “How are we still connected to ancient Greek culture, language, and mythology today?” Students explored the Hall of Antiquities searching for 3 key artifacts, a statue of Asklepios, a rare gold wreath, and an amphora of Herakles, before finding other artifacts that were of interest to them and generating need to know questions.

In addition to an engaging entry event, another cornerstone of Project Based Learning is honoring student voice and choice and creating opportunities for sustained, authentic inquiry. As they continue to build knowledge and consider their need to know questions, students will not just cover the standards on ancient Greece but select their own way to answer their driving question and pursue one research area in more depth. Last year students researched a wide variety of connections on themes from education to health care, military power to the role of Olympic athletes, and much more! We can’t wait to see what sparks the interest of students this year!

A fun bonus was seeing the excitement on students’ faces when a few of them were able to locate the mystery artifact they researched in our fall PBL on ancient Egypt! It was a fun challenge to see if they could spot the artifact they spent so much time researching back in October! Many were surprised at either how big or how tiny it looked in person! 

#SaklanPBL