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Erie Canal

From mid-April to the beginning of May, the K-3 students embarked on a journey to learn about the Erie Canal. The unit began with discussions about the ways in which people and goods move from place to place today. After creating a list of how we move from place to place in 2021. We then Read More >>

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Crow Drawings

After reading She’s Wearing a Bird on her Head we learned about the remarkable efforts of Minna Hall and Harriet Hemenway, two determined women activists who founded the Audubon Society to protect birds. Then we admired the extraordinary paintings by James Audubon. Now it was our turn. We examined a crow that has been perched Read More >>

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Life

by Paul OttesonSecond semester science teacher for 7th and 8th grades  Biology has been this year’s science focus for the older students, using the curriculum suggested by the Science Education for Public Understanding Program (SEPUP). It was my pleasure to join the teaching team for the second part of the year to take on Genetics, Read More >>

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Poetry: Powerful Thoughts in Tiny Packages

Lucy Calkins inspired a poetry unit for our students in grades K-3. Starting in May, each week of this unit inspires children to consider a new “ingredient” or strategy. The unit began with experimenting with looking at ordinary things in a new way. Subsequent classes will explore looking at patterns in poetry, music, line breaks Read More >>

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Local History

Each child at The New School was given a replica of an old postcard of a Syracuse scene. Postcards showed parks, downtown scenes, and places of interest such as Oakwood Cemetery. Using VTS (Visual Thinking Strategies) children were asked to look at the picture and describe what was happening, and what made them say that? Read More >>

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Properties of Light

Students in 7th and 8th grade participated in a light class this fall that explored the topics of reflection, refraction, absorption and color. To start this unit, students were asked to build a “chamber” out of paper where they had to reflect the light into the pyramid.  This simulation was to show how Ancient Egyptians Read More >>

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All American Boys Book Club

During the fall semester, our student teacher, Julie, hosted a book club with the 8th grade students. The book she chose was “All American Boys” by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely. She chose this book as an extension of the student’s learning about systemic racism. “All American Boys” allowed us to look at some of Read More >>

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Rocks and Minerals 

In the fall, 2020, the 4-6 graders got to learn about rocks and minerals. To start our rocks and minerals class, we learned about the three rock types (Sedimentary, Metamorphic, and Igneous) and some characteristics of each type of rock, including how each type is formed. Then, we moved into how rocks are ever-changing and Read More >>

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Four Voices

A group of older students studied speech writing in a 5-session, online class. We listened to speeches written by Abraham Lincoln, Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass, and watched Martin Luther King deliver his “I have a dream” speech. We also discussed techniques for making writing for spoken voice more effective, and analyzed three videos delivered Read More >>

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Four Voices

A group of older students studied speech writing in a 5-session, online class. We listened to speeches written by Abraham Lincoln, Sojourner Truth and Frederick Douglass, and watched Martin Luther King deliver his “I have a dream” speech. We also discussed techniques for making writing for spoken voice more effective, and analyzed three videos delivered Read More >>