The Suns are Back

Saklan hadn’t played basketball games against another school since before the pandemic, but this month the Suns returned to the court! Recently a team of Saklan 4th – 8th graders played two games against the Contra Costa Jewish Day School Grizzlies. Both games were close and well played. Saklan had a big turn out of courageous students willing to put on jerseys. A big thank you to: Aliya 6th, Braden 7th, Cameron 4th, Hailey 6th, Jameson 8th, Jack 7th, Kiran 8th, Lucien 6th, Mori 8th, Oliver 8th, Riley 5th, Sam 8th, Sean 5th, Sebastien 4th,  and Yiannis 8th.  These students, without any formal practice, took on a middle-school aged varsity level basketball team and won one home game and lost a close away game. Way to go Saklan!

Basketball Club continues on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays at 3:00 p.m. All 4th – 8th graders are invited to join in the fun out on the Sports Court. As we move towards March, Volleyball Club will start alongside Basketball Class on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays. Stay tuned for more info about volleyball games planned for April and May. Go Suns!

#SaklanCourageous #SaklanSports

Saklan’s Snack Shack

Every Saklan student knows how rewarding a snack can be at the end of a busy day of learning and having fun with one another here at school. Our dedicated and resourceful Student Council heeded the requests from the entire student body–and Snack Shack is back!

Student Council officers and representatives in grades 1 through 8 decided on the final items for sale based on desirability, minimizing waste, and being able to set reasonable prices ranging from 50 cents to $2.00 per item. Yummy snacks for sale include: gummies, chips, Hello Panda, La Croix bubble water, and Martinelli’s apple drink. The money earned from the Snack Shack will be donated to a charity chosen by Student Council (stay tuned for an update on the chosen charity in March).

Snack Shack is open outside David’s office from 3:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. every Thursday.  Students in grades 1 through 8 are invited to come by and purchase a snack from our hardworking Student Council members. Cash only, please. 

Thank you, students and parents, for supporting our Student Council.

Snack on!

#StudentLeadership #StudentCouncil

Looking for Wine Donations

Love wine? We are excitedly preparing a Wine Raffle for this year’s Peace, Love, Saklan auction, and we would love your help! Please consider donating a favorite bottle or two (rated 90 points or higher by Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate or Wine Enthusiast or valued at $30 or more) to this year’s collection.

Please bring your wine donations to the Saklan Office. Thank you for your support!

#PeaceLoveSaklan

Parent-Teacher Conferences

Why the student should be an integral part of “parent-teacher” conferences.

As a 3rd grader at Bulman Elementary School, I vividly recall waiting for my parents to return home from parent-teacher conferences. I was anxious about what my parents and Ms. Whickersham were going to talk about.  I adored my teacher and knew she loved me, but I was far from a perfect student.  

Sitting at home, I felt a sense of powerlessness, worrying about the discussions happening about my education without me. When my parents finally returned, they would share the teacher’s observations, and I would hastily add my own thoughts, eager to fill in what I believed were overlooked details. This often led to a sense of disconnection among my teacher, my parents, and myself, as if we were not fully understanding each other.

There were three important constituencies in this conversation, but one (me) was never represented except as a sidebar to the conversation. I missed a critical chance to talk about what was going well for me, what I was struggling with, or understand their perception of what they saw at home or school. Most importantly, I was not given the opportunity to take ownership of my learning.

At Saklan, when we invite students (K-8) to be involved in conferences, we send the message that we are in this together to celebrate their successes and support their challenges. As importantly, we are preparing them for life, teaching them the power of reflection and self-advocacy. 

Involving students in these conversations will empower them to take charge of their own learning journey and strengthen the partnership between teachers, parents, and students.

Warm regards,

David

100 Days of Learning

Did you know that on Thursday, February 8th, Saklan students celebrated the 100th day of the school?  

The Hoot Owls celebrated by making 100 hand prints, 100-day crowns, and counting to 100.

Kindergarteners made a special snack of 100 things, did 100 different exercises, counted to 100 in many different ways, made cheerio necklaces with 100 cheerios, wrote numbers to 100 and built different structures with 100 cups!

One of the highlights of the 100th day of school for the Hoot Owls, Kindergartners and 1st graders was the opportunity to gather in the Pre-K room and watch a video of Joanna’s 100 year old grandmother, who answered questions the students had about being 100. Witnessing a healthy centenarian left the students in awe and provided them with a unique perspective on the passage of time. Check out the video here!

The 4th graders celebrated during their Ohana Circle Time by estimating 100 in various ways, writing their names in cursive 100 times, and tackling an Order of Operations challenge to create equations of 100. 

The students had a wonderful day celebrating 100 days of learning!

Learning in the Field: Hawaii Edition

Last week the 7th graders went to Oahu, Hawaii to spend the week learning about evolution: the evolution of species and the evolution of culture on the Hawaiian islands.

Students spent part of the week learning about different native animals and specific adaptations they have for their survival there on the island and with the impact of human actions, such as invasive species, farming, war and now plastic trash. To do this, they walked through the tropical forest of Waimea Falls, learned about the Dole Plantation and the pressure of having a reliable brand, snorkeled in Hanauma Bay to observe fish adaptations, and cleaned up a beach with Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii.

The second part of the week was spent looking at the impact of westerners on the island and on the Polynesian culture. Students discovered art, daily life and music of different Polynesian islands at the Polynesian Cultural Center. Then they learned about the monarchy of the Hawaiian people and the overthrow of their government while visiting the Iolani Palace. Lastly, they saw the effect of war, as they visited the resting place of the USS Arizona.

And while so much learning was going on, there was also tons of fun! From beach walks and swims to snow cones and shopping, the 7th graders were all smiles!

#SaklanFieldExperience

The Depths of the Ocean

The Hoot Owls have continued to explore the depths of the ocean in recent weeks. They learned about coral reefs and read the book “The Brilliant Deep: Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs” by Kate Messner. It shared the story of Ken Nedimyer, the creator of the Coral Restoration Foundation. They also watched a video of a scientist exploring the coral reefs and explaining how coral reefs grow. As a class, the Hoot Owls talked about ways they can help keep the coral reefs safe. They talked about making sure trash goes into the right bins so it won’t go into the ocean, about not wasting water, and about being gentle with animals in the water. The students also created their own coral in class, which they drew with oil pastels and then used water color to create the ocean around them.

The class continued learning about more sea animals that they are interested in. Whale sharks, hammerhead sharks, great white sharks and more were on the list! The owls painted these animals, and currently have them swimming in their classroom. Stop by and take a look at their under sea classroom!

#SaklanHandsOnLearning

Internet Safety for Kids

Save the date for the next PA Parent Coffee event on Friday, March 22nd. All Saklan parents are invited to join us in the Pavilion after CLAS to hear from Darryl Holcombe, one of the region’s expert law enforcement officers working to keep kids safe online. He has tips on parent control apps, ideas and strategies to consider, and insights into the bigger picture of kids and social media. Come ready with your questions and enjoy some coffee and snacks during the talk.

#SaklanParentEd

Fascinating World of Transportation

The Owlets have been busy learning about the fascinating world of transportation! They have been working on their fine motor skills while putting together airplane puzzles, cutting and gluing paper to make roads and train tracks to go around their classroom, and using crayons to draw different forms of transportation. They have been working on their literacy skills by reading books about cars, trucks, trains and airplanes. They have been sharing their knowledge of different modes of transportation with each other, and have been very excited to welcome many guest experts to their class!

While studying the letter M, the Owlets were excited to welcome a familiar guest expert to share a motorcycle with them – David! David showed the preschoolers his motorcycle, pointing out the wheels, lights, gas tank and exhaust pipe, but the Owlets were most excited about the horn! After showing the students the safety gear needed to ride a motorcycle, David taught the Owlets how one drives a motorcycle, using your right hand like the gas pedal or the throttle, and the left to brake.

Next, Mr. John visited the Owlets to share about his experience of riding a bike to work. The Owlets noted some similarities between motorcycles and bicycles, including that both have two wheels, handlebars, and can have a horn. They also shared that motorcycles use gas, while bikes don’t, and that a motorcycle can go a lot faster.

The Owlets were excited to see two different golf carts and to learn about the batteries that operate them. They noted that golf carts also have wheels, and are similar to cars but without doors.

Stay tuned to learn more about other guest experts that have visited the Owlets and see where their transportation unit takes them!

Snowmen at Night

Third graders used the book Snowmen at Night as inspiration to create drawings of snowpeople from a worm’s eye view. After drafting sketches of their snowpeople, students created final versions on watercolor paper, using shading techniques to provide dimension to their snowpeople. Students used a variety of mediums to complete their drawings, including chalk pastels to create shadows, sharpies to outline their designs, and crayons and watercolors to create colorful backgrounds. Many students added their own creative details, making each snowperson unique!

#SaklanCreative