Community Identity, Halloween and Environmental Stewardship
/This week the Sea Lions continued building Blue River City. We considered what makes a city a good place to live, and how our governmental leaders (and citizens) are responsible for creating a place which makes everyone feel welcome. To inspire thought about how our city could communicate ideas and inspire citizens, we did a walking tour of Forest Grove, looking at the community art - just blocks from the ELC. As we viewed each community art piece, the Sea Lions talked about the details they saw, the messages they believed the art was trying to convey, and if the art piece inspired them to action. Then we came back into the classroom and got to work on our own community identity projects. Working in small groups we discussed creation of a historical timeline for Blue River City, two community art pieces, an official seal for Blue River City and banners advertising two community events. The Sea Lions are creating a city full of love and compassion for its citizens and the natural world!
On Halloween, the Sea Lion’s classroom became a spooky witch’s house. Students had to work together to solve puzzles and escape Witch Ellie and Witch Julie’s evil grasp. It was challenging, and great fun! We ended the day with the ELC’s traditional costume parade around the perimeter of Berglund Hall.
We started Literacy Circles this week, and Sea Lions are excited about reading their new novels! Students will read each day and, as they read, they will practice a specific comprehension strategy. Students will share ideas with their Literacy Circle group during weekly book discussions. In addition to our novels, we are also reading non-fiction text that relates to our current unit of study. This week, the Sea Lions pulled out the main idea and key details of two different non-fiction articles about how local government works and the three branches of government found in our democracy. The Sea Lions are taking all of that knowledge and making it real as they continue to build their own city in the classroom.
On Friday, we braved the wet and cold and completed another environmental stewardship field trip to Chehalem Ridge Nature Park. We worked with our Metro guides and planted well over 100 native species along the trails at the park. The Sea Lions are practicing what it feels like to be involved and productive members of a community!
