Some of our students came up with the suggestion that we all wear pink today. Why? To teach other students about National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Pink abounded. They are concerned that one in eight women will be diagnosed with breast cancer in her life. These kids display great empathy and respect for women at such a young age. Plus, they look fabulous!
We are drumming! What a great time we had leaning about rhythms and getting to explore making sound with different drums and percussion instruments.
Thanks to professional percussionist, John Hargis for leading this 6 week session. The kids are fired up!
Today students got a chance to visit Urban Grace Church and meet with Pastor Elizabeth Archer-Klein. She talked to them about the history of the church, from its Baptist origins to its current ecumenical congregation. We then toured the building and checked out the cool baptismal font.
Students then participated in a community service project and set up cots to help with Project Homeless Connect.
Seabury teachers were able to advance their training in gifted education at the annual WAETAG (Washington Association for the Education of the Talented and Gifted) this weekend. We spotted some familiar faces selling their wares to raise money for our spring Model UN trip. Also, look who got a chance to pose with Dr. Linda Silverman! Dr. Silverman is leading expert on gifted education, the founder of the Gifted Development Center and author of many books on gifted ed. All of us who work and live with gifted children should be familiar with her work. Read her “100 Words of Wisdom” here: http://www.sengifted.org/archives/articles/100-words-of-wisdom-linda-silverman
Students had a chance to work on engineering and design principals with the folks from Innovate studios. Using just balsa wood and glue they have to build a bridge that can withstand the most weight. Students have to go through following steps in the process: identify the problem, explore ideas, design, create, try it again, and make it better. This cyclical process teaches them creative problem solving, teamwork and how to work through mistakes. Innovate will return once the bridges are completed and test them out.
In our study of world religions, we have been fortunate to visit the Islamic Center of Tacoma and have guest speakers Bilal and Shamaela Khan. Students had the opportunity to learn the basic tenants of the faith, ask questions and watch a Muslim prayer time. Students have been fascinated to learn how much Islam has in common with Judaism and Christianity. Bilal and Shamaela explained the Islamic lunar calendar and answered other questions about Islam. Coincidentally, this fell on a major Muslim holiday, Eid al Adha.
Check out this link: http://english.alarabiya.net/en/special-reports/hajj-2013/2013/10/15/Muslims-around-the-world-celebrate-the-first-day-of-Eid-al-Adha-.html
We’ve had a busy two weeks here at the Middle School! Last week, we visited Temple Beth El, where students go to hold a Torah scroll, learned about Jewish traditions, and saw how Temple Beth El celebrates Sukkot. Yesterday, we took a trip up to the Tacoma Buddhist Temple, where students learned about the basic tenants of the Buddhist faith. We also got a meditation demonstration!
Students have been working on a Science project related to our Ancient Astronomy unit. Students have chosen an ancient Astronomy experiment to research and try out. All the projects involve observing the sky, so we’re crossing all our fingers for some starry nights! We’ll also be continuing our study of religious calendars in Science, since calendars are a nice intersection of ancient Astronomy and religion.
Seabury Middle School 