Last week, the Spanish world celebrated Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead)– and so did eighth grade!  After bringing in fruit, pictures, painting materials and other things commemorating the life of Mexican artist, Frida Kahlo, eighth grade had a typical Dia de los Muertos celebration.  While enjoying home-made Pan de Muertos (bread of the dead — a sweet bread special to the holiday), students became the family and friends of Frida Kahlo, passing the day together and celebrating her life.  Speaking only in Spanish, students discovered how each of their classmates was related to Frida and something they remembered about her.  They discovered she was on a US postage stamp, that one of her paintings was on the 500 peso, and that most of her paintings were self portraits.  By the end of class, students had a new first-hand appreciation for this tradition that celebrated the lives of the deceased and a deeper understanding orenowned artist Frida Kahlo.

Sra. Brenna’s students are taking the lead.  Every day for our daily warm-up activities, volunteer students take turns being the teacher. The “student teacher” is responsible for carrying out familiar questions and answers regarding the calendar, expressions of quantity, phonetic alphabet exercises and their accompanying vocabulary.  Student teachers are quick to realize the patience and clarity needed to obtain the results they want from their classmates.

Unquowa students in the 8th grade prepared a Long Island Sound salt water aquarium recently with the help of Maritime Museum staff member Jim Paul. The students prepared the tank for the correct levels of PH, salinity, nitrates, and calcium so that shrimp, crabs, snails and Mummichogs could survive and thrive in the classroom tank. This marks the first year that the shrimp population has made it to the third week in their new tank environment, hopefully due to our student’s care.  Eighth graders Jonathan and Michael are seen testing salinity and preparing to feed the denizens of the not so deep.

The eighth grade has embarked on a collaborative project with the Fairfield Museum and History Center and New Beginnings Family Academy. The objective of the project is to propose uses for buildings and lots in downtown Bridgeport which will help revitalize Main St. and help meet the goals for the BGreen 2020 initiative which Bridgeport has undertaken.

The project was kicked off with a trip to the Fairfield Museum and History Center where students were introduced to their fifth grade partners from New Beginnings and where they met photographers Jay Mesencik and Geralene Valentine. Mr. Misencik and Ms. Valentine’s current exhibition at the museum, interior pictures of Poli’s Palace and Majestic theaters,  allowed students to visualize the history of these buildings and what they could be restored to. These photographers spoke with students about the restoration of buildings and the idea of preserving our past. They also met with photographer Craig Norton who spoke with students about taking pictures of the architecture of buildings from different perspectives and the qualities of a good photograph.

The project continued a week later with a walking tour of Main St. in Bridgeport. Students were supplied with cameras and each pair, consisting of both Unquowa and New Beginning’s students, focused on an identified building or lot and photographed different aspects of the space. We were joined by historian Charles Brilvitch who spoke with the students about the history of Bridgeport and several buildings on Main St. Students then returned to New Beginnings where they collaborated and came up with proposed uses for their space. The project will continue in a few weeks when New Beginning’s students visit Unquowa and work to put their project together. The final project will be on display at the Fairfield Museum and History Center beginning in January.

As eighth graders think about applying to high schools, they are faced with many decisions. Those applying to independent schools often have a choice of taking the SSAT (Secondary School Admissions Test) or the ISEE (Independent School Entrance Exam). The Unquowa School will be an official testing site for the ISEE exam on December 3. Registration for this site is restricted to Unquowa students.

Which test is the best choice? Do you know whether it is better to guess or not? Are calculators allowed? Are all the questions multiple-choice? Do both tests have the same type of questions? Check out the differences and similarities here.

The 6th, 7th, and 8th graders had their fall social at Nutmeg Bowl!  The night started out with pizza, followed by bowling and dancing which led to plenty of fun for all who attended.  The social is a great opportunity for kids in the various grades to mix and just have some good old fun!  With balls flying down the lane, kids dancing, and good times all around, it was definitely a great time.  A special thanks to the Unquowa Parents’ Association who organize this for our kids!  They certainly had a great time!

Have you ever realized how many famous people are Spanish-speakers? Once you start to think about it, you realize that there are more than you might have initially thought. Each student was charged with selecting a famous person that has either Spanish or Hispanic roots. The student, hiding behind a head shot of their celebrity, introduced him or herself to the class in Spanish stating basic facts (name, age, origin, profession). After listening, class members enjoyed asking questions about the celebrity.

Among the many art forms that Bali is famous for, perhaps one of the most interesting is batik. Batik techniques have been practiced in Indonesia for over a thousand years, and today it is not only a way to decorate fabric for clothing and sarongs, but also a legitimate artistic medium. Originally the only colors used were indigo, brown, and white, which represented the major Hindu deities. The color palette has since expanded to include a vibrant rainbow of hues. Batik artists apply hot melted wax to a cloth to protect the fibers from colored dyes. The artist alternates between wax and dye until he has layered the cloth with all of his colors and patterns. The fabric is then dipped in a chemical and hot water bath to remove all traces of the wax and reveal the design. The eighth graders have been experimenting with batik techniques in class. We looked at many traditional Balinese paintings and fabric patterns for inspiration. The students are concurrently working on an actual batik on fabric and also a pattern study on paper. Images of the finished projects will be posted when they are complete!

We are off to a great start in 8th grade Spanish!  This week we saw our second day of our “Amigotes y Amiguitos” project in which the 8th graders (amigotes - big buddies) and kindergarteners (amiguitos - little buddies) work together.  The 8th graders are mentoring their “amiguitos,” practicing with the letters A and B - how do you say them? what words start with those letters? how do you pronounce them?  Through this partnership, the 8th graders are expanding their vocabulary, putting their Spanish to the test, and perfecting their own pronunciation and foundation of the alphabet.  At the same time, they are developing their leadership and teaching skills while building the Unquowa community.

The eighth grade began the year with a study of the Constitution. Using primary source documents, students have identified the key problems with the Articles of Confederation, analyzed the report generated from the meeting of delegates to discuss uniform trade regulations and created a list of rules that were followed at the Constitutional Convention. In the coming weeks students will analyze the Constitution itself and the unit will culminate with students working together to write their own Constitution, debating the same issues that were debated in Philadelphia in 1787 and following their rules of debate.