During the past couple of weeks, the children have been working alongside Sam to build skills with the hammer. When making a sign for the woodworking center by hammering nails into letters drawn on wood, deepening relationships were observed with materials and between friends. David: “Look, Oliver, there are two hammers. We both have a hammer.” Oliver:…
West Wing
Lilies at Ocean View Farms
Cynthia, Kris, Amy and FiFi (Nico’s nanny) took the bus with the Lilies to Ocean View Farms on Wednesday where we met Sarah (Sam’s mom) for a tour of our plot.
Pancakes in the rain
Addy: “My mommy’s done this before.” Morgan: “I see bubbles coming from mine! Let’s flip it!” Addy: “Mine is big!” Charlie: “Mine’s big too!” Ophelia: “I need mine cut into pieces.” Sam (teacher): “Use your knife and cut back and forth.” Ophelia: “Look, I did it!”
Fall planting in the Charity Garden
Last February, New School-West built the Charity Garden on the side of the school with help from parents and an organization called Petal Patch Community. The produce we harvest is donated to the the West Side Food Bank in Santa Monica. With the first season ending, we have learned a lot about what grows best in…
A fall walk
After listening to the children’s ideas about Fall, Silvana and Cynthia (along with our SMC intern, Lenin) took a group of East and West Wingers for a walk. They were curious about what the children would notice. The group was composed of four East Wingers and five West Wingers. Sam: “I see a…
“Maybe fall means green turns into red.” -Leo
While doing our calendar in the West Wing morning circle, we noticed that on September 23, the words ‘Fall Begins’ were written. So the question is: What is Fall? Addy: “Fall means that Fall begins and leaves fall off the trees.” Maddox: “It means that Fall changes colors. The leaves change to orange and yellow.” Sergio:…
Sensory Exploration: Smells
As a provocation the teacher set up some herbs and spices for the children to explore. A pestal and mortar where also placed at the table and it invited the children to explore by grinding the herbs and spices. The children where immediately drawn to the cinnamon. Noticing this, the teacher asked: Cynthia: “What do…
Something to think about
Based on a true story, transcript only mildly fictionalized. Lev, blond, three feet tall, just turned three years old arrives at school. Sage, blond, three feet tall, just turned three years old arrives at school. They are classmates, and they are new friends for each other. Sage directs herself meaningfully across the yard to Lev,…
Change to Potluck – for west wing parents only!
Hello West Wing Parents! The West Wing Parent Potluck is coming up! When: Saturday, September 25th, 7:00 pm What: A potluck FOR ADULTS ONLY (leave the kiddies at home) Why: To get to know fellow NSW families More info: With the excitement of the year’s activities building, this is a great time to get to…
The Block Area
To support the development of new relationships, the expertise of children who are familiar with the school areas is considered when assigning appointments. In this experience, Hannah was receptive to Raven’s guidance as their play and building evolved: Hannah: “This bear needs to go here.” Raven: “No more bears, no more big ones. We need…