2/1 |
Shadow Puppet/World Culture Day – Jaci, Lanny, Andy, Dan Students will study creation myths from cultures around the world, choose one, and reimagine the story through shadow puppetry. Groups will learn intricate paper cutting skills, practice storyboarding and group storytelling, and work on their filmmaking skills. |
Forensics Day – Ted, Leah, Sven, Esteban With the help of a criminologist from the Contra Costa Sheriff's Department Crime Lab, students will investigate scientific techniques used to gather evidence in criminal cases. Special attention will be given to DNA evidence. |
Softballs in the Gym – Tina, Todd, Erin, Justin Students will practice the use of metric conversions and factor/label method through group work and scientific write-ups. |
2/8 |
Lunar New Year** – Lanny, Meng, Erika, Nabil **Students will be celebrating the lunar new year by participating in activities to develop a deeper understanding of Asian culture pertaining to their studies in English, Chinese, social studies, and art. |
** Trading Places (Financial Planning) – Matt, Esteban, Dan, Jaci **This is a day of exploration and discovery into the world of personal finance. Through games, activities and challenges the goal is to arm our students with the tools to make informed decisions for earning income, spending, saving, borrowing, investing, and managing money. |
** Mt. Diablo Hike – Charlie, Nabil, Erin, Rachel**Student will be walking from the Athenian Campus to Rock City on Mt. Diablo. |
2/15 |
Dimensions of Culture – Justin, Emily, Jenny, Meng Dimensions of Culture Day is a day of experiential study into the multitude of diversity that comprises our students and faculty here at The Athenian School. Students will hear from a panel of Upper School students from the Black Student Union and Color Collective, participate in a Human Library, and experience four different unique cultural celebrations. |
Monotheism Day – Matt, Sven, Kalyan, Nabil** Field Trip **Students will engage in a variety of activities that investigate the three religions of Abraham: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Students will visit various houses of worship to further their understanding |
** Harlem Renaissance – Lanny, Lauren, Ted, Charlie, Erin**The eighth graders will learn about the history of the Harlem Renaissance and the ideas and cultures that emerged as a result of this moment in time. Students will participate in a variety of fun activities centered around the art, music, and poetry of this time period and, in the process, produce their own works of art. The day will culminate in a sharing and exhibition of the student work with the rest of the school community. |
3/1 |
Map and Compass Day – Rachel, Lori, Matt, Nabil 6th graders will learn to read, design and follow maps. They will use their knowledge of magnetism to become familiar with compass design and use. Personal compasses with be the result of work in science class and time in Carter Innovation Studio. |
Sci Fi Day – Andy, Chris, Justin, Esteban Students will encounter various styles, themes, and archetypes found in Science Fiction literature with an eye towards how stories are structured, as well as reasons for different ways this genre can be useful. After being exposed to various styles of the Sci-Fi genre, our students will then put themselves through the process of planning and constructing a piece of their own based on the way they have seen various other authors construct different stories. |
Law and Order Day – Ted, Sven, Leah, Jenny, Dan Students will engage in a moot court scenario. This day will build on the knowledge of the criminal justice system they have gained through three years at Athenian. |
3/8 |
Sunol Hike – Rachel, Nabil, Esteban, Erin** Field Trip **6th graders will spend the day hiking in our beautiful, local, Sunol Regional Wilderness. The day will incorporate a challenging and fun hike in an ideal setting where we can apply our knowledge of watersheds from Science class. We'll observe the shape of the landscape and investigate how that both determines and is changed by the ecology and water cycle in the area. |
** Tech Museum – Leah, Matt, Tina, Bridget **Field Trip Students will venture to the Tech Museum of Innovation. Special attention will be paid to the exhibit on DNA. |
DC Prep Day – Charlie, Ted, Todd, Erika, Jenny With their trip to the East Coast on the horizon, students will be given a number of lessons to prepare them for the class trip. Special attention will be given to the National Holocaust Museum, as well as the symbolism of numerous monuments. Students will also work on an essay about someone buried at Arlington National Cemetery. |
3/22 |
Fairy Tale Day – Erika, Esteban, Meng, Sophie After weeks of preparation, students will perform short plays in their language of study. |
Medieval Day – Sven, Matt, Jaci, Andy Students will engage in a variety of activities that further develop students' knowledge of Medieval times. Topics will include the feudal system, the Black Plague and pilgrimages. |
WSS – Charlie, Dan, Emily, Todd Students will all participate in a day of music, dance, and recitation, in preparation for our class performance of West Side Story at the end of the year. Any student not present on this day will need to make up the audition individually with Charlie, Meng, and Josh. There is nothing to prepare in advance. Students only need to bring positive attitudes and the desire to do their best. |
4/19 |
Language Day (Spanish)– Esteban, Erika, Nabil, Todd, Erin, Dan****Field TripAll Spanish students (6th,7th and 8th) will go to the Mission district of San Francisco and tour the murals there. They will also enjoy an authentic Salvadoran lunch. |
**Language Day (French) – Sophie, Matt, Tina **Field Trip All the French students will go to the De Young Museum in San Francisco to see the "Monet, the Late Years" exhibition. After studying in class about Monet's art, life and home in Giverny, France, the students will be able to see his most famous Water Lilies paintings. We will then go to a French bakery called La Boulangerie de San Francisco and will grab some delicious French sandwiches and have a French style picnic in the Golden Gate Park. We will then go back to school and try painting just like Monet did, just like Impressionists! |
Language Day (Mandarin) – Meng, Ted****Field TripChinese class students will visit the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco and to learn about the ancient China masterworks. The collections embody a vase, complex, and diverse range of styles, designs, and chairmanship in ritual bronzes, jade carvings, Buddhist sculpture, and decorative ceramics. Students will work in groups to discover their interested pieces and share their findings in the following week's class. After the museum visit, students will enjoy a Chinese lunch nearby. |
4/26 |
Irrational Day – Todd, Tina, Matt, Erin On Irrational Numbers Day, students will be exploring a few well-known irrational numbers in some depth. Specifically, we will take a look at pi, phi, and e. These numbers are important for circles, golden rectangles, and exponential growth. To learn more about these "natural" numbers, students will be taking measurements, doing calculations, and making drawings. |
Spartan Day – Nabil, Lori, Justin, Dan, Jaci Students will build obstacles, create a race map, and run their very own Athenian Obstacle Course Race. The afternoon will consist of two teams racing against each other to conquer 12 obstacles built by Athenian students! ARE YOU READY FOR THE CHALLENEGE? |
Career Day – Tedd, Meng, Erika, Sophie Students will have the opportunity to meet and have conversations with people from a broad range of professions and industries, with the goal of opening their eyes to potential career paths. The day will start with a keynote speaker who aims to inspire students to reach their potential. |
5/3 |
Environmental Detectives – Rachel, Lauren, Esteban, Erin.Environmental Detectives!6th graders will spend the day considering the wide variety of ways that our actions impact the natural world we live in. We'll be immersed in investigations from the Environmental Detectives Unit designed by the Lawrence Hall of Science. We'll be thinking critically about how individuals, factories, farms, recreation, and land management all might have a lasting impact on the health of our environment. By the end of the day, we'll solve the mystery of what is killing the fish in the waterways of the fictional Grey Area! |
Concert Prep/Art – Dan, Jaci, Andy, Charlie A day that celebrates the fine arts. Music students will use some of the time to rehearse for the evening's concert. The remaining time will be given over to work on current visual arts projects. |
Concert Prep/Art – Emily, Lanny, Meng, Erika, Todd A day that celebrates the fine arts. Music students will use some of the time to rehearse for the evening's concert. The remaining time will be given over to work on current visual arts projects. |
5/10 |
Shogun Day – Jaci, Sven, Esteban, Erika Culminating event for the study of Medieval Japan. Students will explore feudal Japanese concepts and practice applying them to group work. |
Borges Ranch Hike – Matt, Nabil, Andy, Charlie Field TripStudents will gain an appreciation of the hillside trails that are so very close to us by hiking through our local open-space, taking in the breath-taking views, and visiting a working ranch station at the base of Mt. Diablo. |
Soda Can Day – Tina, Lori, Todd, Erin, Sophie Students will demonstrate the ability to design a cylinder that will hold 12 fluid ounces to optimize material use and ergonomics. |
5/17 |
Hero's Journey Day – Justin, Jenny, Esteban, Jaci This Focus Day is a collaboration between Art and English. Students will be using their scripts created in English and their shadow puppets created in Art to produce an original Hero's Journey short film. Throughout the day, teams will work together to perform, receive feedback, film, and edit their creations. |
Risky Bizness – Todd, Ted, Meng, Tina In the morning students will assess risk on customers and attempt to run a successful auto insurance company. In the afternoon, students will create businesses and attempt to sell their wares and services to other students. |
Exploratorium – Erin, Sophie, Rachel, Matt, Bridget Students will take BART from Walnut Creek to San Francisco to visit the Exploratorium on the Embarcadero. At the Exploratorium, students will explore and analyze the exhibits related to physics, life science, human behavior and the environment. |
5/24 |
Sumo Bot Day – Andy, Lanny, Meng, Jaci Students will compete in Sumo-style matches using the LEGO Mind storm bots they have been practicing building and coding in Flex all year. Each team will build their bot on the day and use code they wrote earlier in the year to see who the Athenian champion will be! |
Salon Day – Matt, Sven, Dan, Charlie Students will engage in a variety of activities that broaden their knowledge of the "Enlightenment". Students will see how science, reason, religion, and philosophy came together to create the foundation of modern Western values. This day is a culminating event that draws on each student's research of an Enlightenment figure. |
Newtonian Olympics – Erin, Lori, Tina, Todd, Ted Students will demonstrate Newton's laws of motion. They will build a catapult in the maker's studio that launches a jumbo marshmallow. They will build a contraption to protect an egg from a drop from 20 feet and a crash test vehicle to protect two eggs from driving into a brick wall. |
5/31 |
Harry Potter Day – Jenny, Justin, Rachel, Sven Athenian will become Hogwarts for a day as students will participate in a number of activities that celebrate the beloved series of novels. Quidditch anyone? |
Midsummer Night's Dream – Andy, Esteban, Sophie, Chris The 7th grade will celebrate their knowledge of this play by staging a performance here on the Athenian campus. |
WSS – Charlie, Dan, Emily, Meng, Tina Students will put the finishing touches on the class production of West Side Story in order to be ready for our evening performance. It is essential that all students are present for this day in order to effectively participate in our whole-class production. |