Cinnabar students go rock hunting

What’s happening in Petaluma schools|

Cinnabar Elementary School students are learning about geology using NGSS standards, according to Superintendent/Principal Sandy Doyle. Adding to the learning experience, students headed out on a field trip for a hands-on investigation of the properties of common rocks and minerals in Helen Putnam Park. The “Rockin’ and Recycling” adventure offered a study of what formed the discovered rocks: igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. Students also learned the importance of recycling products manufactured from minerals and rocks, like glass and aluminum, as a simple way to conserve natural resources. Included in the instructional programs was integrating science with history and art, the students used earth pigments to paint pictures as was once done with early cave paintings. Other news from Cinnabar includes sixth-graders completing their research papers on famous inventors. Doyle explains, “Their job was to dress up, make business cards, and meet other inventors at a ‘Mocktail’ Networking Conference to see if they could sell their invention to other famous inventors.” The conference allowed three minutes to introduce yourself and sell your item before you rotated to meet other famous inventors. The activity was a hit among students and entertaining for the observers.

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At Old Adobe Elementary School, Mrs. Buckley’s fourth/fifth-grade combination class traveled back to the revolution in living history last week. Students embraced the opportunity by dressing in clothing representing the time period. While this was taking place, fifth-graders in Ms. Johnson’s class were celebrating Pi Day on March 14, complete with treats for all to enjoy. Perfectly prepared pie seemed to be the dessert of choice. Not to be out done with all the classroom activities happening on campus, Ms. Brostrom’s fourth-graders reminded us they took to learning about photosynthesis and how humans impact the earth’s atmosphere at Taylor Mountain Sonoma County Park. All this leads us to Ms. Johnson’s fifth-graders, who spent time putting fertilizer spikes by each of the campus fruit trees. The activity was a useful real world math problem lesson as they utilized measurements and other methods to perform calculations to get the set-up just right to support the growth of the trees.

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Laura Bradley, a well-known teacher at Kenilworth Junior High School, shared that last November she presented NaNoWriMo at the NCTE conference in Texas, an event that was reported in this column. The latest news from this opportunity is that Tom Newkirk approached Bradley at the event because he was working on a book about the value of having students write fiction. Bradley notes this is a topic that highlights ways to offer instruction other than focusing mainly on essay writing, which is common in schools. Newkirk asked if KJHS students, along with Bradley, would like to be interviewed for his book. Fast-forward to today, and we are happy to report nine eighth graders from KJHS (and one of Bradley’s former students, now a high school senior) enthusiastically said they’d like to participate. Their parents contacted Mr. Newkirk and the students will be sharing their NaNoWriMo novels with him prior to being interviewed via Zoom, a program similar to Skype. “I’m excited to see them wanting to share their writing experiences, and I look forward to hearing how the interviews go,” says Bradley. Watch for more updates to follow as this collaboration continues.

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On Monday, students from all grades at St. Vincent High School participated in the “Enter to Learn, Leave to Serve” school-wide service day 2019. Living out the school’s mission, students volunteered at several nonprofits and community programs across town. Headed out in teams, student and staff members supported the following organizations through this effort: Alphabet Soup Thrift Store/Petaluma Educational Foundation, BOOST Camp/United Cerebral Palsy of North Bay, Council On Aging/Meals On Wheels, Friends of the Petaluma River, Happy Hearts Preschool, Petaluma Bounty Farm, Petaluma City/Ellis Creek Plant, Petaluma Public Library, Redwood Empire Food Bank, Sacks Thrift Shop/Hospice, St. James Parish, St. Vincent Elementary School, St. Vincent Parish and Sunrise Senior Living. Kudos on a job well done.

(Maureen Highland is a Petaluma mother and executive director for th Petaluma Educational Foundation. She can be reached at schools@arguscourier.com)

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