Primary A:
For the past month and a half, Primary A has been studying Neighborhoods. This study was eventually led to a study of Community Workers. This study included visits from workers, and books about where they worked and why there jobs are important. Each student (working either separately or together) was to create an object or model that represented a Community Worker and/or a place in which Community Worker would go. Models consisted of Firetrucks, Doctor’s offices, Animal crates and shelters and many more.
One girl, decided to devote her time to studying nurses. “I made a sink......Because nurses wash their hands a lot.” Mia stated. She’d been working on her sink in the beginning of March. Humane Society Workers were another focus of children. I, a seventh grader, had not known what a Humane Society Worker until the interview, but I discovered that it’s a worker that is associated with animals. These people would work in Zoos, Shelters, Aquariums and Pet Stores. These students have worked hard on their projects and should be very proud of their work.

Primary B:
In Primary Unit B the first and second graders are learning about neighborhoods and what is in it. They are also doing a project based on neighborhoods. They are learning how to construct their very own and put transportation in it that the kids have seen in the area around the TPS school. In order to create their neighborhood the first and second graders have visited the neighborhood around the school. To make their neighborhoods accurate the kids have walked to Fitler Square to map it. Then, they have put it into their maps. The kids are enjoying their classes and have been very intrigued.

Primary C:
In Primary Unit C the kids have been working more on handwriting and reading skills. They have also been working on writing stories about where they come from and their lives. Also, they have been looking at autobiographies and biographies. The kids have been mostly focusing on themselves and who they are. They are also looking at murals and learning about them.  

Primary D:
This week, Primary D is in full force with its neighborhood project, where they are learning all about how neighborhoods function, and what neighborhoods are in Philadelphia. PR-D made a map of the Fitler Square Neighborhood in center city, and located important points on the map with drawings. Some drawings include The Philadelphia School, students houses, parks, and the correct order of the roads and streets. On another map, students used stickers to show where they lived; there was a wide variety, houses were located all the way across the city, any place the teachers named, a person surely was living there. This project provided a realistic look at the city and its neighborhoods, and I could surely tell that the students were learning a lot.



Preschool:
Preschoolers have been learning about The Wizard of Oz. They showed us the Munchkin Dance (see video), that they made up. They also made a hot air balloon. The preschoolers are also learning about how hearts and brains work. One of the preschoolers said “when you exercise it makes your heart go faster!”

I went to Lisa’s and Marybeth’s preschool class to interview the preschoolers about their coffee shop. I asked them how it got started and they said “One day Marybeth and Lisa told us they had a surprise for us, so all of us decided not to sleep that night so we could find out what the surprise is.” In the Coffee shop they had lots of yummy things like Crossiants, hot chocolate with marshmallows, and coffee of course! I then asked the kids what their favorite thing in the coffee shop was and why. One boy said “I like how that coffee thing over there is very shiny.” Another kid said “Hot chocolate because its very yummy!” So guys the next time you go to preschool make sure you get your coffee!!!!

JU-B Red, with Jane and Diane, is currently working on their persuasive writing. They are writing reviews on their individual blogs about different restaurants they went to. In Spanish, they made dreamhouses (which apprently aren’t very “dreamy”) and they have to label at least fifteen objects. In Language Arts, they are reading biographies of different American leaders like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., Helen Keller, and many others. They made a timeline for various leaders’ birthdays and important dates in American history. In science, they are learning about crayfish - very aggresive, lobster-like fish - and the way they work and behave. One student even got pinched by one! They’re working on multiplication and division in math class.  


JU-B White:
In science, the White Team third graders are studying the water cycle and evaporation. They have been learning many vocabulary words too. Many of the students enjoy LA, when they have reading and writing workshop. They are reading biographies on historic characters right now, and reviewing restaurants, toys, and books that they have been to or tried. They were very excited to show us their Writer's Notebooks and their reviews. They are also working on cursive and touch-typing, which they seem to enjoy very much. 

In theme, they are studying The Declaration of Independence, and they even made their own, called the Declaration of Recess. They want to have more freedom in the park during recess and want their recesses to be longer, so they made their own Declaration, which was really great to see.

 

In art class, the third graders are currently making clay busts of an ancestor of their choice. In class they did a project including these ancestors, and they are now sculpting them. Nina, a current third grader, is making a bust of her great-great-great-great-great-great grandfather, Anthony Dilworth. Sydney, who was making a lovely crocheted heart, had already finished her bust, which was of her great-great-great grandmother, Martha Banister. All of this, the art and the history, learning about your family ancestors, is part of life at TPS.

The Declaration of Recess:
"We declare that recess is not fair. Firstly, the playground. The primary unit gets to use it whenever they want, the older kids (third and fourth grade and middle school) can only have it when the primary unit is not there. The third is only one year older than most of the second graders. 
Secondly, the tennis courts. We want the tennis courts too!  
Lastly, the basketball courts. People want to play on those too. Older kids also play on those, but like the tennis courts we are willing to play with the older kids."


JU-A Red:
In the fourth grade Spanish class they are learning about different verbs such as “Ser” and “Estar.” To make learning these verbs easier, the kids learned a song called “Yo Soy, Tu Eres.” This happened to be one of our interviewee’s favorite things that she learned so far in Spanish class. Another thing that she loved learning was about body parts and animals. The Spanish classes are focusing right now on a book called Pobre Ana. This fourth grader explained that Pobre Ana is about a poor girl who has very rich friends and feels she is all alone. When her school offers a trip to Mexico for three months she excitedly takes up the offer. When she is in Mexico, she realizes she isn’t alone, and everyone can get upset sometimes. This fourth grader seemed to be very excited about her Spanish class and the things she is learning. 

JU-A Red:

I walked into the classroom and saw the fifth graders or JU-A Red doing math. When I asked one of the students what they were doing in math he said multiplying fractions. In LA they just finished a book about Monkey King, which is about a Monkey who was born and is the leader of the clan, and does a lot of mischievous things. All the students have to do a project on the book. They could either do a play, an essay, a board game or the key moments in the book. In theme they are learning about important landmarks in China, and putting them on their map of China painted on the wall.

When I interviewed another student about specials she said in art they were making tiles.  In music they were learning and singing Chinese operas, and in PE they were learning how to square dance and jump rope. Seems like the fifth grade is have lots of fun!

JU-A White:

When we came to JU-A White, the fifth graders were having math class with Hilary. They tell us that they are working on decimals. Although Hilary is a very good teacher, math is math and it can be hard to draw base ten boxes over and over again. Hilary is a good teacher indeed! Arthur says, “The teacher is very nice, patient, and helpful!” It’s good to know. Their regular math teacher, Jill, is on maternity leave at the moment (congratulations), and Hilary is a long-term substitute.

Our own Sandra Dean String Ensemble played at the National Association of Independence Schools (NAIS) on February 28th! It was very exciting, and many talented students played at this event. Here is a clip of one of the songs, Viva La Vida by Coldplay, that one of the TPS staff shot when they went. There were about three thousand people at the concert, including members from TPS. It was so much fun! 

What mini-course are you in?

1. If you were on a deserted island, what would you bring?
1. a knife
2. a book and/or writing supplies
3. painting supplies
4. your iPod
5. your awesome dance moves
6. a camera
2. What do you do in your free time?
1. go on a hike
2. work on your greek vocabulary
3. glaze your homemade mug
4. write songs and practice music
5. run around
6. go on tumblr
3. What’s your dream job?
1. a survivalist
2. an editor
3. a curator for an art museum
4. a techno music writer
5. a dancer
6. a reporter
4. What’s your favorite t.v. show?
1. LOST
2. Girls
3. Cake Boss
4. Glee
5. Dancing With the Stars
6. CSI Miami
5. What’s your favorite subject in school?
1. Science
2. SSR
3. Art
4. Music
5. PE
6. LA
6. If you were a food, what would you be?
1. a poisonous berry
2. tea and buscuits
3. wedding cake
4. musical mushroom
5. dancing doughnut
6. hot chocolate

Look below to see which mini-course you would be in!


Write in the comments what your dream mini-course is this week. Check the blog every week for a new post about the happenings at TPS!

MOSTLY A's: Firekeepers--Fire and Water

MOSTLY B's: Greek Drama Text to Film OR Fairy Tale Mash-ups

MOSTLY C's: Pottery on the Go

MOSTLY D's: Garageband--Workshop Learn to make Drum Kit Tracks OR Sightsinging Boot Camp

MOSTLY E's: Hip Hop Dance

MOSTLY F's: Life at TPS--A Blog

Pottery Mini-Course

The pottery mini-course is led by Neesa and takes place in the art room. When we visited them, we witnessed a group of middle schoolers working hard on their clay creations. We interviewed a seventh grader, who taught us all about pottery. She told us that a potter’s wheel is much easier to use than your hands and adds more detail to your work. We also interviewed a sixth grader, who was busy molding a pot. She says that you should try pottery! The participants seemed to enjoy getting their hands dirty with clay.

Firekeepers Mini-Course

The Firekeepers mini-course is taught by Wendy and Noelle, and sometimes they go out to the yard for their activities. Half of the group was being assessed on making fire, but they seemed to be having lots of fun while doing it. The assessment was to prove if you were ready for being a couselor at TPS's City Country Camp this summer. For the first three days of this camp, campers learn basic survival skills at the school. For the next two days they get to go camping in the Poconos!

While half of the group was busily making fire, the other half was purifying water. They had filled two bowls with orange contaminated water, and then were using what they had learned to make it drinking fresh. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to see this whole process, but they all seemed to know what they were doing!

Fairy Tale Mash-Ups

In “Fairy Tale Mash-Ups,” a mini-course led by Virginia, the class read two fairy tales, then met in groups to mash them up. The students then sat in a circle, each group sharing their stories, one line at a time while alternating groups to form a mad-lib style fairy tale. Students then had homework to edit the story the class created to make it flow better and personalize it. When finished, the students shared stories and got peer reviews. When asked why she signed up for the course, one student says it was because of her enjoyment of fairy tales and the course’s interesting description.

Greek Drama: Text to Film

In “Greek Drama: Text to Film,” a mini-course led by Emily, students are reading and studying the play “Oedipus Rex” by Sophocles. In this play, a Greek hero named Oedipus kills his father and marries his mother. In addition, students are watching film adaptations of this play. Students also discussed other tragic heroes, one student providing the example of Hercules. When asked why he signed up for the course, the student said that he had learned Greek mythology in the past and was interested in learning more, and also wanted a wide variety of types of courses.

Garage Band Workshop--Learn to Make a Drum Kit

In “ Garage Band,” led by Aaron, the class was making different pitches of Rock Music. The students were smiling and having fun with the different beats. They would be at tables and they would have their own keyboard. I asked a student why he signed up for this mini-course and that person said that they had a lot of fun with Garage Band before and they wanted to know more about it. Also, that person said that the best part is using the keyboard to make the beats. If you like rock music and making modern day beats then next year you can sign up for this fast paced mini-course.

Sight Singing Bootcamp

In “Sight Singing,” led by Shannon, the class has a big paper staff to record their pitches and they use their Music Therory books for practice. One student said that she gets a chance of interacting with other grades such as sixth grade because “you really don’t get a chance to when you're in eighth grade.” The student also said that the most fun is singing Do, Re, Mi, Fa, Sol, and so on. This mini-course is for you if you like to sing and/or want to improve your singing.