Each month I change the art posters on display in the Art Room. I usually wait for students to notice the images before I comment on the art depicted. This month I hung a portrait of a young lady. Someone in every class remarked immediately on this portrait. Many students shouted out, “Mona Lisa!” A few Leonardo Da Vinci!” They were quite right in identifying the style of painting - Italian Renaissance. The painter is Raphael, a...
Gillispie students PreK to Grade 6 were treated with visits from Practical Karate owner and Gillispie parent, Frank McCarroll, who engaged students in interactive workshops designed to help children create an environment of kindness at school and cope with confrontational or bullying behaviors from other students or strangers. Using the book Have You Filled a Bucket Today?: A Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids and his own experiences growing up, Frank showed students that making a conscious...
The most engaging, memorable, and successful activities are those which demand that we approach them from many points of view, solving challenges with various parts of our minds and bodies. An example of this at work is the Island Projects the sixth graders have been working on for several weeks. In teams, they dreamt up an island and sketched it, but that was just the beginning. Each team carefully sculpted its island from clay, and the clay islands...
The first meeting of the Design Challenge Club went well! Students started off by going over collaborative communication and cooperation skills and discussing what it means to be a good teammate and a good leader. An exercise was given to the students with a goal of building a bridge that could hold the most weight. Groups were given materials throughout the building process and were taught simple skills like how to tear blue tape or what to do...
One of the fondest memories of childhood for many of us is being read to. Anna's grandmother was a fantastic reader, and when she came to visit, she always read from a thick leather-bound book of the Grimm’s Fairytales. Not only did the stories become familiar to her grandchildren, but so did their unique language. “Storybook language," the language that writers use, differs from the everyday language that we use when we speak with friends, or the...
This year's Grade 5 play was a hit! "Sleeping Trudy" had parents, peers, and teachers laughing out loud as the students delivered a stellar performance. Thank you to Mrs. Chaney for leading another, wonderful theatrical debut! About Gillispie School: Gillispie is an independent toddler through Grade 6 school in La Jolla, CA. We believe that learning is a journey in which children are active participants. Our students partner with teachers to further their academic, creative, and social growth, and...
Last week, Cypress Room held its annual Thanksgiving feast in the gym. Students made hand-printed placemats and table decorations for the event. The meal was potluck style, with each family bringing in a dish specially requested by their child to share. During the event, families wrote down things they are thankful for on cut-out feathers that were attached to a shared turkey display. Everyone had a wonderful time eating together, laughing, sharing stories, and enjoying each other's company...
Throughout the school year, students in Juniper Room have been working in the outdoor mud area, "saving the world from hot lava." Lava has become a large part of the students' daily outdoor classroom experience. Alexander shared with the class that he had made and erupted a volcano at home with his mom and dad, so teachers asked his parents to come in and help the class make their own volcano! Together with Alexander's parents, the class made a huge...
Students recently celebrated El Dia de los Muertos in Spanish class! El Dia de los Muertos is a day when people celebrate those who have parted but continue to be remembered because of the teachings, values, and loving memories they left behind. Grade 6 students made ofrendas for a famous person that they admired, that included a picture of the person, flowers, candles, sugar skulls, their favorite food, fruits, sweet bread, water, and items the person was known to...
Recently, Grade 4 students visited the Feeding San Diego food bank. During their time at the food bank, they worked as volunteers, both sorting and packing kiwi. They also learned more about the organization as well as the people of San Diego Country that it serves. The two classes packed 1,900 pounds of kiwi, which will be distributed to families at three local schools. That is a total of 450 bags! A few remarks from our students regarding their...
