Fourth & Fifth Grade: February 2 - 6, 2026

Feb 10

Dear Fourth and Fifth Grade Families,

Thank you for taking the time out of your Saturday to come to the Curriculum and All School Meetings! We truly appreciate your support and dedication to The Garden School community.

This week, the class began their seventh Main Lesson block: West African Mythology. First, we began with a generic overview of the West African region, highlighting the modern-day nations as well as the major tribes and ancient civilizations where all of the mythology stories they will learn about were born. On the following day, we talked about our first region: The Ashanti kingdom of the Akan region (modern-day Ghana and Ivory Coast). We primarily focused on the stories of the sky god Nyame, and the infamous trickster spider Anansi, the one who managed to even outsmart the supreme being. The class started their class reader, Tristan Strong Punches A Hole In The Sky by Kwame Mbali. This book is based on Ashanti mythology as well as African diasporic folk characters such as Brer Rabbit, Brer Fox, Gum Baby, and John Henry, many of whom were inspired by Ashanti mythology. In this fictional series, the reader goes on an adventure with Tristan after he accidentally opens a portal to the world where all the folktales he heard as a young child come to life.

In the theme of West African mythology and cultural traditions, the class learned about various rhythmic movement skills. Outside of spirituality, drumming and rhythmic music were often used as symbols of expressions, communication, social cohesion, and for special celebrations. This week, the class had exposure to creating rhythmic patterns with the body and makeshift percussion. Throughout this block, the students will explore many other West African-influenced rhythmic patterns.

Outside of the classroom, the Fourth and Fifth Grade and the Middle School class spent the day in the city to see the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra! The presentation featured musical interpretations of the landscapes of the Southeastern United States. Last semester, our class studied North American Geography, so it was a wonderful opportunity for them to experience a music-focused performance about some of the same geographical landscapes that they learned in class!

Announcements & Reminders:

Teacher-Parent Conferences are coming up next month (March 12 and 13). Please be sure to sign up here!