Carpentry

I'm working on uploading a ton of photos from the last couple classes but wanted to take a quick moment to tell about how today's carpentry class went.  In a word, it was amazing.

We had spoken to one of the teachers at our school about what kind of project might be beneficial to the class or campus and got a response regarding planter boxes for the multi-age classrooms.  Rick, one of the dads in our group, is a contractor so, along with Mark (a carpenter dad) they came up with a plan, drew up real plans with a cut lists, plan views, etc and then purchased the items needed for the class.  Rick picked up the lumber (redwood) and Mark went a wee bit nuts buying up safety glasses, small tape measures, ear protection, carpenter pencils, etc.  The kids were more than outfitted for the task.

We started off the class talking about safety, then got them onto centers that taught them how to use a saw and miter box, a drill, and a hammer and nails.  They learned about pilot holes and got really good at not smashing their fingers.

Then, lunch.

After lunch we had a design meeting so they could see what elements went into creating a plan and see what we were going to do.  After that, we put them to work.  They created four planter boxes in a little under two hours, working diligently (except when they were not) and doing a brilliant job with the whole thing.  The boys stayed on task far better than the girls, ultimately completing three of the four boxes on their own while the girls did one.  To be fair, the girls had become a wee bit side-tracked by the creation of random block formations, all nailed together with much passion.

Overall, everyone had a great time and we had a finished product that the kids all signed and sanded.  Mark and I (Elaine) will likely apply a coat of something to seal them since they will be used outdoors.  I also drilled holes in the bottoms for drainage.  Photos coming soon, but really, a fantastic day. I couldn't be more proud of the kids!

Photos from the Carpentry Class

There are a ton of photos from this class to view, which you can do so by following this link.  Elaine's favorites are below:


What NOT to do with the hammer


An intent Ani


All the kids were very proud of the holes they drilled


Measuring


A very happy Mark


She looks worried, but she feel asleep moments later


Having a great time


Celebrating the completion of the first box


The finished product: four planter boxes for the school

The tribe speaks... PHOTOS

Here is a link to the photos from yesterday.  I really enjoyed watching all the kids create and explore the outdoors.  Hope you enjoy the photos! Wendy

The tribe speaks...

We came together yesterday as a clan seeking a primitive life. And we found it in the canyon-like park near my house. The kids spent the day doing meaningful work in our new home. Thank you so much to Danny and Wendy for making the day fun and creative for all of us!

Village

We came upon an existing structure made of limps and branches. Together we added to it and enlarged it to fit our whole tribe. The girls enjoyed embellishing the structure by weaving long pieces of straw into beautiful designs. They secured the area from animals by making booby traps, and they even set up an area for making weapons. I was impressed with their ingenuity and ability to make beautiful, functional art. They created a kitchen like space where they were making mud soups. They worked hard to make a real fire by rubbing sticks together. Some kids swore it was really getting hot. They spent a long time at this (with our supervision of course). But, no sparks in the fire sense. The kids were sparked by all that they could do to make our village thrive. In the end, they didn't want to leave, and they even asked if they could stay overnight. 

Hunters

Chief Danny held a competition for the lead hunter. The kids raced each other, jumped over spears and even found and and speared grapes (would-be rabbits) hiding in the grass. The boys really got into this. With sticks as spears, it was time to hunt buffalo. Some kids were hunters, and some buffalo. Both enjoyed the chase, and everyone was respectful of the animals they caught. We talked about how we could use all parts of the animals. With many vegetarians in the tribe, we talked about how to get the resources we would need while staying in line with our convictions. There was lots of exploration to see the lay of the land, and the kids seemed to enjoy their freedom. 

Art

I wanted this day to be free and flexible and to give kids a lot of open-ended time to explore and create. We were successful in this.  We did some artful things such as applying facial markings, making leather cuffs and bands, beading jewelry. Danny brought in some beautiful books of primitive art for the kids to look at. We also had the kids guess the function of some primitive art pieces. The kids had a lot of energy and interest in their work. They had the time to think creatively.They came up with great ideas.

Wendy took a lot of pictures of the day. I can't wait for you all to see.

Take care,

Joan

Co-op Carpentry Class

Mark is in charge of the upcoming class on Carpentry (Thursday, July 22) and below is what he's thinking for the class:

Here's what I'm thinking at this point.  The idea is to build four planter boxes for the school, as requested by our daughter's teacher.

I thought we would start the day with a safety talk / demo:  25mins

• Clothing
• Proper handling of tools for safety of ourselves, each other and the tool
• Safety Gear; eye protection, ear protection, dust masks, gloves.  Why we use them and when to use them.
• Following directions
• What to do if you get hurt.
• Not everything is a sword!

Introduction to tools and how to use them: 45 minutes

Have some scrap stuff around and show the kids how to measure, drill, saw, sand, screw, nail.  (Maybe in four groups at "Centers" like at school)

Lunch: 45 Minutes

Design: 25 Minutes

• Talk about the planter we will build.
• Where is it going to live?
• What will it be used for?
• What should we use to make it?
• Butt joints, miter joints. 

Build: 120 minutes-ish 

(in groups again)

• Measuring and marking
• Cutting (Miter box, or power miter saw?
• Pilot drilling (I have small old hand drills)
• Nailing (I have two 16 oz. hammers)
• Screwing
• Sanding

That should do it!

So, who's coming?

More photos from Asian Cooking and Culture class

Thanks to Karen for the additional snaps!

Shall we go on?

The question has been posed: shall we continue with this program through August? 

If so, what more would we like to explore?

Let's talk about it in the comments below.


Just FYI: comments are on moderation.  Your comment may not show up right away, but I promise I'll post it as soon as I can!

 

Primitive Art Class

Tuesday, July 20

10:00-3:00

Hosted by Joan, assisted by Danny & Wendy

Bring your own lunch/snacks

We'll introduce the students to early, primitive art with a focus on the idea that art can serve a function while also having aesthetic beauty. After dressing in tribal gear made by the children, we'll trek down to a canyon-like park near Joan's house. There, the students will use natural resources to make a shelter and other useful pieces of art. Before leaving the park, the students will collect natural elements to decorate a personal art piece to take home. 

Please dress your child in clothes for exploring and getting messy. Closed toe shoes such as tennis shoes or hiking boots are ideal. If you have one, your child can bring a functional, primitive art piece to share (such as an instrument, bowl, etc.) 

Class Schedule

10:00 – 10:30AM Drop off/Free play

10:30AM – 11:30AM Class in session

• Discussion of primitive art, functional art, tribal art
• Tribal gear stations - facial markings, walking sticks, head-dresses 

11:30AM Lunch

12:00 Noon-2:30PM Trek to park

• Make shelter, and supporting functional art pieces
• Collect natural elements and make personal art pieces
• Play

2:30PM - Walk back to Joan's and prepare for pick-up 

Follow up & Photos from the Yoga/Anatomy Class

Our yoga day yesterday went great from my perspective! I hope the kids enjoyed it just as much as I did.
 

They seemed interested through the short Anatomy lesson and had a kick out of working with the marshmallows to build a little model of the human spine. Elaine stayed for the beginning of our day and helped with prepping for the activities and bringing out snacks (thanks, Elaine!), while Karen stayed for the whole day AND helped me with the planning of the schedule and activities. Thank you, Karen it was great having your feedback and help!

In the afternoon, after lunch, they did great following instructions during the Om chanting session. They got loud and wild AND were perfectly able to tone it down to a quiet humming at the end. Fun! After that, it was great that they had the choice of staying inside for relaxation or go outdoors to play a yoga game. As a result of being able to choose, the ones who stayed inside w/ me were really willing to focus and be still while the ones who wanted a bit more movement could have it their way as well.

Free play time was, as always, a hit. Lots of exploration took place then and we can really see how much this group enjoy just being in each other's company!

Soraya

Here are a few pics from todays yoga class, courtesy of teacher Karen & Soraya.

Anya in the tree swing

Yoga time in Soraya's living room

Lining them up like little ducks

Assisting is sometimes helpful

Some of our strong girls...

and our peaceful boys

A very zen Alicia

Elaine's favorite (it so captures the personalities of these girls!)

Sweet Kayla

Anatomy coloring

Making natural art

Flowery girls

End of the day snacks

A few more photos from Yoga & Anatomy

The whole set can be viewed by following this link.  A couple of Elaine's favorites are below:


Kayla


Anya


And of course, Tulasi!


Beautiful Joan and Torrey


Playing Red Light/Green Light, Yoga style


Anatomy lesson

Beach Day!

Thursday (7/15) will be a beach day.  This will be a parent/child event, so please come to enjoy the day together. Bring your regular beach items and pack lunch and snacks for your family.

Does anyone have a volleyball net we could set up? If you have any other ideas for this beach day, just let me know. Otherwise, good friends at the shores is all we need for a great day.

Email Joan for the specific location & to RSVP.

Yoga & Anatomy

Hosted by Soraya, assisted by Karen and Christine

COMING UP ON JULY 13

Lesson Plan:

- 10:00 ~ 10:30 am - ARRIVAL/SNACKS (fruits, crackers, juice)

- 10:30 ~ 10:40 am - YOGA GAME

- 10:40 ~ 11:00 am - ANATOMY LESSON (basic knowledge of different sections of the vertebral column: cervical, thoracic, lumbar, sacrum, and tailbone) w/ demonstration of spinal alignment through building a tower of blocks; coloring page)

- 11:00 ~ 12:00 pm - YOGA CLASS (warm ups, then practice of Inversions as a way to feel/identify the different sections of the spine coming up from the floor)

- 12:00 ~ 1:00 pm - LUNCH (bring your own)/PLAY

- 1:00 ~ 2:15 pm -  VARIOUS: (a-OM Orchestra (20 min.), b-Guided Relaxation* (10 min.), c-Meditation* (3 min.), d-Drawing Time (15 min.), e-Sharing own drawing/best of the day(15 min.))

- 2:15 pm ~ 3:00 pm - SNACK (fruits, crackers, juice, Indian snack)/PLAY

* During Guided Relaxation and Meditation, kids will have the option of either staying in and doing those two activities w/ Soraya or going outside and playing Yoga Garden with Karen.

Parents: we will have snacks, fruits, crackers, juice (morning and afternoon) and an Indian snack (end of the day) but please do send  lunch w/ your child. Also, dress them in loose and comfortable clothes (no jeans, please ;)).

Follow up to Asian Cooking and Culture

Dear all,

We had a very productive day yesterday and I think the kids had a good time too.  We had a total of 14 kids yesterday.  Thank you again to Elien, Elaine’s mom Janis, and my friend Karen K. for their wonderful support.  Elaine’s mom was able to stay until after lunch and it was very nice to have four adults for the first three hours or so.  It was especially helpful to have two adults for each group when we split them up in two groups for the cooking.  Janis and I did the rolling of CA and Spring rolls with seven kids.  Elien and Karen did origami with the other group of seven kids.  The fashion show was a hit.  I will send out the pictures when I have it ready.  All the kids were lovely.  

Yen

Photos from Asian Cooking & Culture

Photos courtesy of Yen's friend Karen, who was so kind to come and help with the class.


Lily & Marilee play with their origami 


Traditional Dance from the Philippines


Traditional Dance from the Philippines



Getting ready for the fashion show


Fashion show kids

Asian Cooking and Culture

Hosted by Yen, assisted by Elien, Karen and Janis

Lesson Plan:
Students will be taught how to make Vietnamese Spring Rolls and CA Rolls for the Asian cooking. In this class, students will also learn about the geography of Asia, origami paper folding from Japan, a dance from Philippines, and will perform in a fashion show featuring the native dress from various countries of Asia. Parents are invited to come 15 minutes before end of class to see the fashion show.

Class Schedule
10:00 – 10:30AM Drop off/Free play/Snack time
10:30AM – 10:45AM Class in session

• Class introductions and sharing
• Go over class schedule and rules of the class

10:45AM – 11:30AM Class instruction on geography and origami
11:30AM to 1PM  Asian cooking and Lunch
1:00PM – 1:45PM Instruction on Tinikling, a dance from Philippines
1:45PM – 2:00PM Snack time/free play
2:00PM – 2:45PM Preparation for fashion show
2:45PM to 3PM Fashion show

Follow up Photos from Self-expression/storytelling

Hi everyone,

Here are a few pics from the Self Expression class, I have a movie of the performance as well.  I will try to get that out to everyone soon.

-aletia

Self-expression/storytelling

Hosted by Elien, assisted by Aletia

Lesson Plan:

What to Bring: Have your child bring a favorite book, a story (existing or original) or song that they would like to act out and perform by themselves or with others. Empathy and how we relate ourselves with others is an integral part in our kids’ social dynamics. It may be innate and so natural for some kids, and for others; it’s a skill that Students will be taught how to express their thoughts, feelings and emotions using non-verbal communication. This class will equally focus on how to read and interpret facial expression, gestures and how to read body language.

Emphasize will be on the uniqueness of each child and their individual way they express and relate to others. They will learn basic skills in performing such as improvisation, stage presence, upstaging, as well as respecting fellow actors and what to do if you make a mistake (“Just keep swimming, just keep swimming…”).

This class is creative and loads of fun. Students, prepare to open your hearts, your mind and become anything!

9:45AM-10:15AM Drop off/Free play/Snack time
10:15AM – Class in session

• Class introductions and sharing
• Go over class schedule and rules of the class
• Respecting fellow actors

10:30AM – 12noon Class instructions/exercises

• “Follow Me,” exercise w/partner
• “Facial Expressions,” students will express a thought, emotion or feeling to the class using only facial expressions. Class will interpret performance.
• “Talk to the hand cause the face ain’t listening” performing non verbal body language and reading body language and gestures

12 Noon to 1PM – Lunch and Free play
1PM – 2:45PM Story telling with books, scripts, songs and improvisations. (This part of the class is a continuum for the last class of the summer where the student will perform in small groups or individually, their chose.)
2:45PM to 3PM Closing meeting

Pottery Class

While this class wasn't technically part of the cooperative summer school line-up, a few of us were able to get together at another school-parents pottery studio to learn about clay.  It was an amazing experience with the kids creating their own mini-city and getting a chance to use the potting wheel to throw their own pots.  Made me want to demand that Mark make me a pottery wheel.  Immediately.  SUCH a good time.  You can see the whole set of photos by following this link, but my favorites from the day are below.