Physical Education: Lower Elementary Gymnastics!

Posted on by Pam Pascarella

The Lower Elementary students participated in a gymnastics unit in which they experienced transfer of body weight through floor skills.  Students experienced the following apparatus: gymnastic mats for an obstacle course, a balance beam, and vaulted springboard.  They also participated in pyramid building and single balances.  A human pyramid is a formation of three or more people in which two or more support a tier of higher people.   For practical reasons, lighter people are often positioned higher while stronger/heavier people are located closer to the base.

Students also practiced jumping off a vaulted springboard.  Vaulting in gymnastics requires coordination combining running, jumping and squatting.  Students practiced jumping and landing with two feet onto the mats.  The jumps practiced were:  straight, straddle, and tuck.  Students learned that strength, flexibility, and balance they gained from gymnastics will transfer easily to every other sport they may want to pursue.  The skills learned will help them achieve success in other areas.

World Language: Mrs. Doyle’s French Class!

Posted on by Francoise Cutrone

In French class our Primary students have worked on learning colors!

This time it was yellow for pears! We also fill our bubble gum machine poster with stickers of the colors as we learn them. Today the students added yellow stickers to the inside of the bubble gum machine. This is done to make sure that every child has a turn at reinforcing the color by sticking bubble gums on the poster.

According to research, we acquire more vocabulary and grammar when we engage in meaningful ways with the language we are trying to learn. Reading is such an important key to unlocking fluency!  The Primary students enjoyed a story about different animals and we learned how to say their names in French. We continue playing our fishing games and singing songs in the target language.

Lots of fun for everyone of these children!

 

Basketball Fun in PE Class and After-School!

Posted on by Pam Pascarella

This month Kindergarten through Middle School students practiced and participated in the team sport of Basketball. At the Kindergarten and Lower Elementary levels, the objectives are designed to develop hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness. We practiced dribbling a ball with either hand while changing pathways, direction, and speed. We worked on passing a ball to a stationary and moving target using both a bounce and chest pass.

In addition, students had to catch a passed ball while they were stationary and in motion. We demonstrated the proper technique of pivoting while holding a ball and identified markings on the court.  Students were also given a choice to use a blue basketball which is lighter and easier to shoot into the net.  A shorter net was also used for those students not able to reach the taller nets.  The goal is to modify each sport to have students be successful.

At the Upper Elementary level, we learned to differentiate roles of offensive and defensive players and understand and use simple basketball rules. Games played are:  Dribble Knockout, Knockout, Spot Takeaway, and Steal the Bacon.  At the Middle School level, the focus is on practicing the fundamentals such as:  foul shooting, passing, lay ups, ball handling, dribbling, rebounding, defense/guarding, and footwork.

Students in grades 4th through 8th grade are encouraged join the FWM basketball team.  Practices for the Upper Elementary level are held on Tuesdays and Thursdays after school until 4:15 PM.  The focus is to practice the fundamentals of basketball and to go over game like situations.  The middle school practices are held during the school day from 1:55 to 2:50 PM on D, E, and F day.  All games are held after school for both groups.  The Upper Elementary has one team and the Middle School has a varsity (7/8) team and junior varsity (6/7) team.  The season for each team consists of four games played against other independent schools.

Peek into 2018 Holiday Celebration

Posted on by Yun-Kyung Kim

 

We are deep into January already, but I would like to invite you to take a look back at our Holiday Celebration. From the earliest preparations to the finishing touches and the final performance, our students worked hard and harmoniously. With love and enthusiasm the children filled the gym and our hearts with song.

6th year French and Spanish Students!

Posted on by Francoise Cutrone
The 6th year Spanish and French students are doing extremely well. Everyone is working so well and is very eager to learn. We have had a wonderful trimester and every day these students spent in my class, they have been learning new vocabulary and grammar. We sometimes combine the 2 groups and work on both languages if there is a similarity in the explanations of grammar or conjugation. On this day, December 6th, was one of those days where we learned about the verbs “ir and aller” (to go). We conjugated these verbs in the Present Tense and also learned that these 2 particular verbs can help us speaking about the near future. You can see the enthusiasm on all these students faces ! Keep up the good work, guys!

A Bit of French with the Kindergarten!

Posted on by Francoise Cutrone

The children in Kindergarten had fun in French Class. We learned a new song about a butterfly (un papillon) and we all tried to make butterflies with our fingers (very challenging for some of them!). Often the purpose of doing many gestures when children are learning another language is to distract them from the new word itself. The student then concentrates more on the gesture and less on the word. The word becomes just part of the instruction and the students accept the new vocabulary as if they already learned it.

We also worked on tiny objects hidden in a small box. We opened to box to discover what was in it, learning the expressions “ouvrir, fermer” (open and shut). We played games using prepositions such as “dans, sur, and sous” (in, on, and under).

Middle School Health: Sugar

Posted on by Pam Pascarella

 

In Health class, the Middle School students read an article from Choice magazine discussing the effects of sugary drinks on the body. We also discussed as a group what their perceptions of healthy and unhealthy drinks were. We discussed which drinks have the most sugar and which have the least. They learned how to calculate the number of teaspoons of sugar you find in a variety of drinks. One teaspoon of sugar equals 4 grams.  For example, a soft drink that has 40 grams of sugar equals 10 teaspoons of sugar.

The students worked together to research beverages that they drink and calculated how many teaspoons of sugar each contained. The beverages that they researched were Root Beer, Sprite, Mountain Dew, Red Bull, Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, and Coca Cola. We then measured out the individual teaspoons of sugar into a plastic cup to gain a better understanding of how much sugar is in each beverage.

Before the end of class, students presented their findings and shared their beverages and the sugar content. Some were surprised by how much sugar their favorite drinks had. We discussed the importance of reading the Nutritional Facts Labels as well as paying attention to the serving size per container. We also discussed how they can make healthier choices; such as drink water, dilute sugary drinks with water, eat fruit rather than drink juice, and keep a bottle of water with them at school. The students enjoyed being involved in this learning experience and gained a greater understanding of healthier beverage choices.

Global Culinary Night is Thursday, November 8th from 6:30-8:00pm.

This is a FWM entire family event.

Grab your “passport” and travel along with us as we visit countries near and far, sampling foods at each stop! This community event is for FWM families to gather together and share a unique dish from their cultural, ethnic, or regional background while also sampling dishes from other FWM families’ cultures.

Art Studio: Middle School Line Drawings In Space

Posted on by Jen Reid

Middle school students have been exploring the element of line in art class. As a group, we discussed how a line can create an identifiable path for the eye to follow by defining the edges of a form (an outline). The technical term for this is called “contour line drawing.” To practice this firsthand, students drew blind contour portraits of themselves and each other. The blind contour method involves carefully observing a subject and slowly recording it’s contours with a continuous line without looking at the paper. This way of drawing helps develop hand-eye communication and spatial relationships. It can be a challenge to draw what you see without looking at the paper, but each student embraced the process and allowed themselves to let go of perfection. The results were beautiful, abstract line portraits with a twist of humor 🙂

We then looked at the wire portraits of American artist Alexander Calder, who developed an innovative method of sculpting, bending, and twisting wire to create three-dimensional “drawings in space.” Each student created their own unique “drawing in space ” by following the lines of their blind contour drawing with wire. To stabilize and display the wire portraits, we attached them to colorfully painted wooden bases using a staple gun. They will be on display for the whole school to see next week!