“It flows through old hushed Egypt and its sands like some grave, mighty thought threading a dream…”-Leigh Hunt, describing the Nile River, 1818

A dream. Sometimes that is how I picture the history of ancient times, like a dream or a movie that was created from one’s imagination. It’s difficult to understand just how amazing ancient humans lived in such structured civilizations that were created 3500-1500 B.C.. From the grand size of the Egyptian pyramids to the intricate detail in art, it has caught the attention of our 6th grade students. If you had the opportunity to walk through our 3rd floor this past week, you may have seen the beautiful hieroglyphics of birds, lions, snakes and symbols near the 6th grade classroom that were created by our students. For the past few weeks, Mrs. Coombe’s students have been immersed in learning and experiencing the Ancient Egyptian culture first hand. From writing their own hieroglyphics to re-enacting the mummification process at the Milwaukee County Museum, our students have had the opportunity to not only read from their social studies books about the ancient Egyptians, but they have been able to experience a piece of their ancient culture, religion, and civilization.

One of the things I enjoy most about Westlake is how the teachers can talk about theology and Biblical truth in every subject. Egypt is major setting throughout the Bible. From Genesis and Exodus to Jesus’ childhood, the Egyptian culture is found throughout the pages of the Bible. Understanding the Ancient Egyptian culture, geography, government, and religious beliefs helps us to comprehend the different way of life that we read in the Bible today. It amazes me to hear the students make connections between the social studies lessons they are learning and their increased understanding of the Biblical stories they have been reading and hearing about at church, home, and school. The students’ visit to the museum last week helped to bring these stories alive as they were able to discover and see first-hand the thousands of Egyptian artifacts including mummies, a replica of the Rosetta Stone, tomb artifacts, and much more. Seeing these artifacts in person allowed us to understand Ancient Egypt not as a dream or a movie, but as a way of life thousands of years ago.

 

Chelsea Schopper
Reading Intervention Specialist

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Anyone who has kids, who teaches, or has ever been around kids for any length of time knows that students LOVE learning from other students. A teacher is great, but nothing can compare to a teenage teaching assistant. I’ve been blessed this year to have Scotty Snetsinger in my classroom, and his presence with my students has been a blessing. From the encouraging high fives to the secret handshakes and silly smiles … Scotty has the heart of these kids, and for no reason other than who he is – they respect him.

Using this fortified relationship, I decided to ask my T.A. to do what he does best – COMPUTERS! While my fifth graders are very adept at using technology in the classroom, (creating their own websites, using new presentation applications, finding strong resources) there is something that I have been looking to try for some time, but never learned myself … CODING! I have never had the opportunity to learn how to code, but at the young age of only sixteen, Scotty was able to come in and teach it! Using a kid-friendly program called “programmingbasics.org” students were able to learn step-by-step actions that manipulated a cartoon figure online to do small tasks such as wave, jump, and dance.

Throughout the lesson, the intensity and complication of the tasks increased, and by the end, students were coding small plays (like a theater show) that their cartoons were able to act out. The delight in their faces when they saw what they were able to accomplish in such a short time was priceless, and the pride my teaching assistant felt at being able to help the students succeed with a 21st Century skill was unbeatable!

It is true what John G. Palfrey says, “The most important thing that schools can do is not to use technology in the curriculum more, but to use it more effectively.” Speaking as a fly-on-the-wall in fifth grade, I can say that fostering confidence and intelligence seems to be a great start to a healthy technology/student relationship. It is such a blessing to see growth in every facet of our students’ education.

There is something about strength in numbers … something magical that allows us to suddenly be stronger, braver, and more accountable than we ever could have been alone. Just look at the resilience of soldiers, the deafening cry of voices on a march, or the power of a union. When we are in communion with one another – we are where we are meant to be. It is for this reason, that Westlake celebrates “Pastors’ Chapel” with such delight – because we know and believe that unity is our calling.

Someone once said, “Individually, we are a drop, but together – we are an ocean.” Imagine the capacity we are able to reach when we are banded together, the rag-tag army of God, given brilliant and shining armor by His word, and through the Holy Spirit’s presence. We are no longer marginalized or weak, but rather a force of positivity and truth to be reckoned with. Today, getting to see the gathering of pastors from all denominations, across all parts of the greater Chicago area was truly inspiring. It showed that God’s church has no doors, no titles, no hierarchy, no systems, or formalized strategy. God’s plans are the hands and feet of His people … of His children.

Seeing the pastors light up at the skits, verses, and songs of the children was endearing. But getting to see the children’s reaction to seeing their pastors come to visit their school … that was priceless. Greeted with overzealous waves, cheers, and high-fives, nudging friends to “claim” the pastor that “belonged” to them … well … I can only say that God must have smiled on the beatific smiles of both his children and their spiritual leaders.

Through it all, I found myself increasingly grateful for the opportunity to be a small part of it. As a teacher. As a parent. As a member of a local church. I am blessed to be on the team of God gathered here at Westlake.

Here is a video from today’s chapel:

It feels like only yesterday, that my own daughter was in Mrs. DeReus’ Kindergarten classroom celebrating the 100th day of school. We still remember the joy of that day, (and the hat that went with it)! One of the greatest things you can do as an educator is to lavish your students with activity, curiosity, and creativity. On the 100th Day of School, Mrs. DeReus does all of these with flair!

When I asked what the day entailed, Mrs. DeReus said, “We counted 100 cubes, we counted 100 chocolate kisses, and we made a list of 100 things we were thankful for. Later, we had a visit from “Zero the Hero” who brought us donuts. Finally, we made hats with collections of 100 things on them.” Each of the students were active participants not only in the counting of 100 but the making of it as well. It is so important to allow students to have the ability to be tangible with their learning … here, they literally WORE their math and looked fabulous doing it.

Being Spiritual Emphasis Week, we have been reminded daily what Matthew 7:24 says, “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock.” I think the same aspect that applies to our faith, transcends to our education. We need to build a strong foundation of interest, excitement, and practical application to our lessons. We need to invest in the whole child so that they view learning, not as a skill, but as an extension of their very selves.

Dutch clergyman Henri Nouwen once said, “Each day holds a surprise. But only if we expect it can we see, hear, or feel it when it comes to us. Let’s not be afraid to receive each day’s surprise, whether it comes to us as sorrow or as joy It will open a new place in our hearts, a place where we can welcome new friends and celebrate more fully our shared humanity.” Why not celebrate what we are growing in? Why not experience education and life lessons with open hearts and mind-stretching activities? Why not live like we are five again, experiencing the joy of 100? There is a great deal to be gleaned from the wisdom of Kindergarten after all.

This week in second grade, I think Mrs. Krass must have adopted the motto of Pablo Picasso, who once said, “Others have seen what is and asked why. I have seen what could be and asked why not.” Instead of, “sticking to the book,” she found a way to engage her students’ minds, creativity, and handiwork.

In the subject of Social Studies, second graders were learning the differences between urban, suburban, and rural settings. They read about them, made grandiose lists of what each of the places included, and discussed how and why groups of people thrive there.

Instead of letting the lesson end there, however, Mrs. Krass challenged her students to take this learning to another level. Educational psychology tells us that the more autonomously students can approach their learning, the more effectively imprinted an idea will become. They will have ownership over their understanding, and thus, will be able to make more meaningful connections to the content.

For the past few days, Mrs. Krass gave student groups large pieces of poster-board, an endless supply of construction paper, tape, glue, scissors, and infinite use of their imaginations. She told them that they were to create 3-D constructions of either urban, suburban, or rural settings in a very constructivist approach, (the ability to make sense of an idea through one’s own experience of it) not encumbering them with too many directions. This allowed them the freedom and space to create and intrinsically motivated them to do their best work.

Amazingly, the collaborative creativity was tangible. Walking into the room you’d see pure excitement and joy at the tables.

“Oh, let’s make a boat,” one student said.

“How would we make one?” the other asked.

“Let’s start with folding brown paper up, and tape Lego people in on our blue-paper river.”

“That’ll work!” he excitedly replied.

At another station. I heard engineering and construction conversations abound. The three students’ heads were bent in concentration. “We should make a tunnel,” one boy said.

“Yeah, and we can put cars in it, just like in real life,” his partner agreed.

Still at another table, one where they were building a rural setting, they had the idea to add a windmill. To create it, they rolled a tube of white paper, and taped it to create a base, then the little girl in the group tugged the four-strand bow off of her headband and paper clipped it to the top of the base, creating the most darling, polka-dot fan-blade I’d ever seen.

This “Over-the-River-and-Through-the-Woods” project conquered numerous standards and skills second graders are expected to know. To say it was impressive would be a gross understatement. From 3-D constructions of the Upward Basketball Building, Walmart, Starbucks, and barns, to tunnels, bridges, and bird-nested trees, there were endless elements of proof that these students completely understood their settings, and the differences between them. Ingenuity. Ability. Self-Confidence. Cooperation. Pride. These are the attributes of what a classroom is capable of, when given the space and time to show what they know, and create!

Although I know it is not Christian-like to envy, I do have to admit that I was a bit envious of what our third-grade teacher, Miss Betori decided to do in her classroom! Educational philosophy tells us that to truly educate with integrity, we must first build relationship. Aristotle himself once said that “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” Well, Miss Betori is most definitely educating holistically, as fun and delight were introduced in the form of a cocoa bar!

When you walk into the third-grade room, there is now a bright aqua Keurig, with a darling display of personalized cups the students were able to design themselves. According to Miss Betori, they’re calling it, “Coffee Shop Time,” where we will gather together to hear information or presentations.” Later, she told us that on the first day, “We gathered together as I told them about an upcoming book of poems they will be writing and publishing!” Miss Betori plans to use the Cocoa Corner as an incentive for individual or group use as well.

P.J. Caposey from “Education Week Teacher,” once said, “Great teachers focus not on compliance, but on connections and relationships.” It is evident that Miss Betori and her amazing blend of creativity and connectivity will give the third-grade class something to warm their hearts and memories for many years to come.

The longer I spend time at Westlake, the more I find myself delighted by the fabric of the culture here. I once heard someone describe communion not only as the sacramental offering we take at church, but as the living, breathing moments that we take on the persona of Christ, and join one another in community. I remember thinking how beautiful it is when we see this happen, and as a teacher at Westlake … I have the privilege of seeing “communion” quite often.

When students share in comforting one another during a hard time, there is communion. When kids stop and pray with one another, there is communion. Where you see someone stand up and hold a friend accountable, there is communion. I would argue that there are more situational instances of authentic communion here that happen on a daily basis, than even many surrounding churches can boast. What a blessing to know that our children are exposed to this constant form of fellowship, connection, and empathy.

While I wish I could personally deliver the dozens of stories I’ve witnessed already this year, time and space just won’t allow for that. However, one of my favorite examples of communion happened last week … in the setting of indoor recess. It wasn’t my week to have recess duty, but I was passing by, and thought I’d take a moment to see the kids in their “natural element” – play! Instead of seeing the normal chaos of balls bouncing and feet pounding a running rhythm into the floorboards, I saw a HUGE group of multiage kids sitting on the stage in rapt contemplation of the project before them.

Our sixth-grade teacher, Mrs. Coombe, had decided to pass on the life-skill of patience, creativity, and perseverance discovered in the form of CROCHET! There were fourth, fifth, and sixth graders “strung” about her, leaning in with intense admiration and focus on the steps she was teaching. Having given each of them a crochet hook and ball of yarn to work with, the students yearned for indoor recess just to continue practicing their craft. Blending steps and stitches, Mrs. Coombe had each child working independently on their own piece within two days time.

Mitch Albom once said, “Devote yourself to your community around you. Devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.” Mrs. Coombe did that. She literally threaded communion among these children and gave them a common experience to learn, to enjoy, and to share. What a true and perfect gift … to teach, to love, to grow in community.

This week, we had something magnificent happen in our classroom, and as author Natalie Babbit once said, “Like all magnificent things, it is very simple.” Before I get to this however, I’ll tell you our backstory. In the fall, my fifth graders worked through the transformative novel, Tuck Everlasting. If you’ve not had the pleasure to read it, I suggest you do, as it is one of “those” books, those that have the power to change you for having read them.My students felt the power of this story, as it begs the reader to grapple with the debate of whether living forever would be a blessing or a curse. Through her wisdom-infused pen, Natalie Babbit singlehandedly eased the troubled connotations associated with death, by helping young readers to understand that, “Life has got to be lived, no matter how long or short. You’ve got to take what comes,” and furthermore, “You can’t have living without dying.”

So after having wonderful discussions, and grand conversations in the form of a Socratic Seminar, our unit was coming to a close. We had already found and studied the great ways that Tuck Everlasting had expanded beyond the book into the global community, being made into a movie twice and appearing on Broadway for the first time ever this past season. I thought we would end with a grand finale, which would be a great real-life extension to write to the author and tell her all the ways her words affected our thinking.

Ironically, after our letters were written, we discovered that Natalie Babbit had died only the week before. Here it was, that this woman whose words helped the students understand death, had passed into eternity just days before we contacted her. Heartbroken, the students and I mourned the loss of such an influential writer, but then decided that we would try to send our letters anyway, to her husband. After some searching, I located the Harvard graduate, author and professor, Samuel Babbit, and got his address. The students made bereavement cards for him and we sent both our letters and the cards to his home address.

Imagine our delight when Tuesday, after returning from break, there was a letter in our mailbox from Mr. Samuel Babbit himself! He addressed the letters, talked about how his wife’s words would live on and inspire though she was gone herself, and thanked us for the kind words and appreciative condolences. The kids were thrilled that he took the time to write, and I guarantee that this tiny, magnificent thing, will tie literature to their hearts for many years to come. Mr. Babbit’s letter brought our wheel of learning full circle, and again, Natalie’s words reminded us why, “Everything’s a wheel, turning and turning, never stopping … Always coming in new, always growing and changing, and always moving on. That’s the way it’s supposed to be. That’s the way it is.”

This morning, the elementary school was blessed to witness the Lord’s coming through an adaptation play performed by the darling Kindergarten students. As they read their lines, floated around the stage like angels, and bent their little sheep-adorned heads, I couldn’t help but think of all the times this story … this precious story has been shared.

This Christmas, I hope that you are blessed with family, friends, fun, and an abundance of love. May this poem remind you to slow down and appreciate the truest meaning of Christ coming.
All our love,
Mrs. Raquel Harris
5th Grade Teacher
Westlake Elementary

More than Silence

the weighted world is weary with the load of its own strife
where the cost to keep up living, is the debt of your whole life
and your fractured time is broken into moments that are years
where completing lists and schedules have become your greatest fears
what should be a gracious silence, quiet peace throughout the night
is instead a constant drumming; buzzing noise becomes the white
in a time, a place, a life where things have never been less still
we seek and search and wish for strength to go against our will
as we yearn for something greater, for divinity to stand
we are ever disappointed by the work of our own hand
though we crave a touch of heaven to erase the shadowed world
we have given up on hoping for the master plan unfurled
and our eyes that tire burn for some perspective clear to see
yet we pass the chance to gaze beyond a ribbon, wreath, or tree
so this Christmas doesn’t seem at all like what we should expect
heavy hearts are cracked and bleeding from the things we must correct
then why should He, the Holy Ghost of ancient nights be heard,
when for what seems two-thousand years he uttered not a word
before casting off all hope that things will always be the same
first remember who was sent this night, a God born into shame
if you recall the very paradox, the Lord of all allowed
to his precious, blameless, only Son, the life he was endowed…
a sweet child, born into a time much darker than our own
where the greed and lust for blood and power reigned upon the throne
where the baby’s breath of heaven, still so shallow, soft, and pure
had a destiny of labor, pain, and penance to endure
there was not a chance in all the world that any man might save
so the God of all became a man, a sacrifice, a slave
from one moment’s peace beneath a star, where lamb and cattle stayed
to a banquet that would be his last, with kiss his life betrayed
we determine with our struggles that this cannot be the plan,
when a sinless God eternal came to die for sinful man
Holy Child, Star of Angels, Prince of everything that be
cast and broken, torn and hated - sacrificed for such as we
oh how quickly we remember all the troubles of our days
yet forget so swift and fleeting, gifts eternal in His ways
whether this year we acknowledge God and all that he has given
or remain again, self-focused, of-the-world and money driven
deep beyond the shattered surface of the people that we are
there remains a holy purpose, and His presence isn’t far
so believe that life is more that what we fail to do or see
and remember that your fate is woven in eternity

This past week, my great uncle passed away. More like a grandfather to me, it was a difficult loss … one that you feel longer than just the allotted time of visitation, services, and burial. Needless to say, I was absent for the funeral yesterday, and before I left on Wednesday, my students had one question, “Will you still come to our Christmas Band Concert?” I told them I wasn’t sure, but that I would certainly try.

Starting my trek at seven o’clock in the morning, I realized that it was twelve hours later that I pulled into the Westlake parking lot for the concert. It was an emotionally charged day with loss and remembrance playing tug-of-war with my heart. Part of me wanted to just excuse myself; I hadn’t gone home, but something stronger was prompting me to show up, regardless of my exhaustion. Entering with nine minutes to spare, I saw the bright faces of my students beaming at me when I stepped quietly into the room.

The next hour was an amazing crescendo of movement and sound. From the gentlest of melodies to the power behind a bass drum, the music was tangible in the air, as were the feelings of joy, comfort, and inspiration. The Spirit moved over everyone, and suddenly, it felt like no matter what kind of day anyone had, we were one in that moment … in that celebration of Christ’s coming. Grammy-winning singer/songwriter Ani DiFranco once said about community, “I know there is strength in the differences between us. I know there is comfort, where we overlap.” Last night, teachers and students, parents and friends did just that. We overlapped. Our lives came together for one purpose, in one place … and it was beautiful.

After the performance, I had a myriad of conversations with parents, students, and peers. Their jovial smiles and kind words balmed over the scars of my day, and there was healing. Though my career as an educator is relatively young (10 years) I have worked in, with, or around about a dozen different places. And nowhere have I ever felt the unrestrained care and compassion as I have here at Westlake. This is not just a school, it is a family. It is a place to be brought up in communion with fellow Christians who not only “have your back,” but your heart and your mind as well.

I thank God that he gave me the nudge to push on … to make my twelve hour day a fourteen hour one, just for the sake of love. Just for the sake of Westlake.

-Raquel Harris
5th grade teacher