Dear Fourth and Fifth Grade Families,
Thank you for attending the All School Meeting on Saturday. We appreciate your support of our school and community.
Last week, the students began their study of Ancient India with the story of Ganesha, the elephant-headed Hindu god. Ganesha is the son of the deities Shiva and Parvati and one of the most revered deities in Hinduism. He is worshiped as the god of prosperity and wisdom. As we explore ancient Indian culture and geography this week, the students will continue to hear more stories from the Hindu gods.
At the same time, the class began with practicing freehand geometry. The circle is the first geometric shape the students explored. First, they walked a circle to experience the constant change of direction while the distance to the circle's center remained the same. They also found that, although walking forward, they would turn around their axis precisely once when walking a full circle. Then, the students enjoyed drawing different types of circles into their freehand geometry books. They also learned the mathematical terms of circles, such as radius, diameter, and circumference. After cooking concentric circles (a.k.a. different-sized oatmeal pancakes stacked on top of each other) for lunch and a hands-on activity about estimating the relationship between the radius and the circumference of a circle, the class will now move to the ellipse and other geometric shapes.
The class is looking forward to their performance of the Chinese New Year puppet play on Thursday. Second through Sixth Grade students will present different performances and you are invited to join us in the sanctuary with your families. We hope to see you all there.
Announcements and Reminders:
Teacher Conferences are just around the corner! This Spring semester, they will be held February 8th and 9th. Please sign up for your child’s conference here.
As has been our tradition at The Garden School, instead of sending cards from home on Valentine's Day, please save all card and gift exchanges for off-campus playdates.
Upcoming Events:
2/8 Half Day - Parent Conferences
2/8 11:00 a.m - Chinese New Year Celebration with puppet show in the sanctuary
2/9 No School - Parent Conferences
2/19-2/23- Mid-Winter Break (No School)
2/26- Teacher Inservice (No School)
Warm regards,
Gaby Farrokhi
