FRIDAY BLOG

Sea Life & Early Humans

On Tuesday the sixth grade went on a combined science and humanities field experience to the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco.

For science the students explored the aquarium to search for sea life with unique and unusual characteristics. They saw many organisms like the Pacific Lumpsucker fish with a poor swimming ability that has a suction cup bottom to help him in wavy environments and the Flamboyant cuttlefish that walks along the sandy bottom of the pacific and has highly toxic flesh.

As part of their unit on early humans, students explored the Human Odyssey exhibit where they got to see fossil models of early human skulls, read about important evolutionary milestones, and use an interactive map of human migration as part of field research for their unit on early humans.

#SaklanFieldExperience

Fall Festival Fun

The Saklan School’s Parent Association is hosting a Fall Festival on Sunday, October 1st from 11:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m., and all Saklan families are invited!

Join us for face painting, photo booth, fall crafts and tons of fun! There will also be food trucks, lawn games, a whipped cream pie challenge, and a Fall Food Showcase (more on the Food Showcase below).

Love to Cook?

Do your kiddos love to cook and create? If so, we would love for them to participate in the Fall Food Showcase! Bring a fall-inspired homemade treat or snack to the Fall Festival; savory, sweet, and creative dishes are all welcome and will be put out to share. Each participant gets a raffle ticket to a prize!

Please remember No Nuts! Please no temperature controlled dishes, as there will not be electricity at the table.

Please sign up ahead of time using the button below!

Alumni Helpers

We’re looking for a few alumni volunteers to paint faces during the Fall Festival. Face paint, glitter, brushes, stencils, and other supplies are all provided. No experience needed! If you are interested in helping please email the PA at pa@saklan.org.

#SaklanFallFestival #SaklanCommunity

Head’s Corner: Survey Says…

At Saklan, we Maslow in order to Bloom.

Last Spring, we ran two surveys. The first was a Belonging Survey we did with students (grades 2-8), parents, and teachers. The second survey was given to the parent community, asking them to reflect on their family’s overall Saklan experience.

The surveys provided valuable insights into our strengths and areas of potential growth. The findings consistently highlighted that fostering a strong sense of belonging is at the core of our identity and valued by our community. Of everything to digest, though, one of my biggest takeaways was how well we “Maslow in order to Bloom .”

Any first-year education student is familiar with Bloom’s Taxonomy. His hierarchy applies to learning, moving from the most basic recall level and progressing to synthesizing and creating.

While the lower levels of the hierarchy are foundational, it is the upper levels where we want to take students. It is where learning is most exciting and why Saklan focuses on deep and meaningful project work. It also happens much more deeply if students feel they are in a safe place to make mistakes and feel connected to others.

Hence, the importance of Abraham Maslow and his Hierarchy of Needs. In short, Maslow emphasized how vital our basic needs are. Maslow believed that mental well-being starts with ensuring food, shelter, and safety. Once those are secure, feeling love and belonging become the foundation for reaching our full potential.

That foundation of belonging is an accelerant to rich and meaningful learning. In other words, you can’t Bloom until you Maslow. This is the core of who we are at Saklan and why we do what we do.

#HeadsCorner

Welcoming Signs

In the art room, students in grades one, two, three and five, have been using their art skills to help make Saklan more a welcoming, inclusive place.

After reading Alexandra Penfold’s book All are Welcome Here, students reflected on times when they have and haven’t felt welcome at school. They then worked in teams to brainstorm words and phrases that would make everyone at Saklan feel like they belong. Each team collaborated to paint and assemble their positive messages into decorative signs.

Next time you are in the school breezeway or lower school area, keep your eyes open for their brightly colored words of wisdom!

#SaklanCompassionate #SaklanCommunity

Thanks to You

Thanks to the generous gifts made by Saklan families, grandparents, staff and alums to the Annual Giving Fund and Auction, Saklan has been able to make numerous facilities upgrades, expand our curricular offerings, and provide a more collaborative environment for our students. To get a better idea of what the funds from each fundraising campaign support and how you can get involved, please read below.

Annual Giving Fund

Each fall Saklan conducts an Annual Giving Fund (AGF) campaign, which supports all of the things that make Saklan the incredible school that it is, including: personal attention from dedicated teachers; an engaging, hands-on curriculum; arts, music, Spanish, STEM, and physical education at all grade levels.

Funds raised from last year’s AGF campaign were also used to purchase a new Saklan Van, allowing for a greater number of field experiences throughout the year. Additionally, AGF funds helped fund some of the campus upgrades over the summer, including the new turf by the main entrance. Thank you to all our donors for making these items possible!

Saklan will kick-off the 23-24 AGF on Tuesday, October 24th with Orange Envelope Day. Stay tuned for more info!

Saklan’s Auction

Saklan’s auction is an adults-only, community building event that features a silent auction, games, food, drinks, a live auction, and tons of fun! Proceeds from the event are invested directly into your children’s educational experiences. Saklan parents, alumni, friends, faculty and staff are invited to come together in celebration of our wonderful school community on April 26, 2024.

Funds raised during last year’s auction provided for:

New collaborative furniture in the 5th grade classroom and in the outdoor learning space behind the 1st – 4th grade classrooms
An all-weather library book return station
An indoor vertical garden in the science lab
Media arts literacy equipment and programming
A water refill station on the PS – K play yard
3 Saklan teachers to attend the Broadway Teachers Workshop

Thank you to our generous donors for helping us transform our campus and provide greater opportunities for our students.

Auction Meeting

The first Auction Meeting of the year is next Friday, September 15th following CLAS. Meet us in the Pavilion to help plan this year’s event.

Want to help with the event but can’t make the meeting? Email Emily at ewilliamson@saklan.org and let her know.

Thank you for your support of The Saklan School.

Lunch & Life Lessons

Every fourth Thursday, the middle school students and teachers participate in a much-beloved tradition here at Saklan when they venture off campus and enjoy lunch from one of the local Moraga restaurants or stores. The students love the opportunity to pick their lunch for day, parents love not having to pack a lunch, and the teachers enjoy the many social and emotional perks that the trips offer to the middle schoolers. These lunches allow students to bond with peers and teachers in ways often not seen on campus, allow them to showcase their decision making and negotiation abilities when they decide with their buddy which establishment to get food from, and give them practice in budgeting as they determine which items to purchase with the money they have.

While Off-campus Lunch is a great perk for students it also holds many life lessons. For this reason, students and teachers alike look forward to Off-campus Lunch days!

#SaklanCommunity

The Well-Balanced Student

In a high-stakes, high-pressure culture, parent and school expectations may have unintentional negative effects on students. Join us for our first parent education event of the year on Thursday, September 28th, to learn how to prioritize our kids’ well-being so that they thrive in school and beyond. In this workshop, Challenge Success will share practical strategies for families who want to raise well-balanced kids.

RSVP today to receive the Zoom link!

This event is open to all Saklan families and the greater Bay Area community. Feel free to share the event info with your friends and family!

Pollinators & Habitats

On Monday, the second grade class went on their first field experience of the year to the Moraga Gardens Farm! Guided by farm expert and Saklan Library Coordinator Meredith, the class learned about the value of bees and how they help with the pollination process, enabling food to grow. Additionally, they looked at the habitats of the animals they found in the garden.

The students really enjoyed sampling some of the yummy products from the farm including mint, blackberries and grapes!

#SaklanFieldExperience

Inclusive SEL Focus

Each month Saklan focuses on a different Social Emotional Learning (SEL) topic, incorporating it into lessons and discussions from Preschool through eighth grade.

Saklan’s social-emotional learning emphasis for August and September is to be inclusive. During these two months, all Saklan students are discussing what it means to be inclusive and looking for ways to include others, such as by using kind words and sharing.

On Tuesday, September 26th, the first – eighth graders will meet with their family groups and take part in cross-grade level discussions and activities to gain an even greater understanding of being inclusive.

#SaklanSEL

The Biggest Bubble

In preparation for a full year of fun and exciting science, middle school students have been reviewing and practicing the scientific method. The sixth grade students were given the question: “Which bubble gum creates the biggest bubbles: Double Bubble or Hubba Bubba?”

Students created their hypothesis, were given the same amount of each gum for consistency, and decided on a bubble gum blower for the experiment to keep the ability consistent. After measuring 5 bubbles and averaging their findings, most groups found Hubba Bubba to be better at consistently blowing large bubbles. Students noted that Hubba Bubba was the softer of the two gums. This and other flavor preferences played into their guess as to why Hubba Bubba was better. From this fun experiment, the scientific questions and hypotheses started flowing!