“That was my first opera!” beamed fifth-grader Nessa. She, along with Tilden’s entire student body, was treated to a fully-staged adaptation of Jacques Offenbach’s “The Tales of Hoffman,” presented by Northwest Opera in Schools, Etcetera (NOISE). This professional opera company performs at Tilden each year, exposing our students to a different opera classic with each visit. The singing, acting, costumes, and sets captivate our kids from start to finish, especially as each opera is adapted with kids in mind. The performance is always over too quickly, leaving the Tilden community wanting more, but perhaps that’s the point.
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March 13, 2017: Tilden Learning Celebration
Tilden students-turned-tour-guides hosted their families for an evening to reflect on all they’ve learned thus far this year.
From classroom to library, computer lab to hallway displays, every student shared their language arts work and essays, literacy and literary work, science projects, Spanish studies, history units, math work and math games, computer coding projects, artwork, and other work in cultural studies, environmental studies, and more.
A huge turnout, Tilden families graciously navigated the busy hallways and classrooms, focused on their kids’ accomplishments.
Thank you to our student tour guides, and thank you to all the families in attendance! It is extremely motivating for our young scholars to witness parents’ enthusiasm for learning, and to know they have your support.
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Jacob Lawrence at the Seattle Art Museum–2nd and 3rd grade field trip
Tilden’s second and third grade art history classes recently enjoyed a trip to Seattle Art Museum to see the special exhibit Jacob Lawrence: The Migration Series. This series of 60 paintings was divided in half and sold to two separate museums: The Phillips Collection in Washington DC, and The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. In celebration of the late Jacob Lawrence’s 100th birthday, The Migration Series was reunited for a special showing at SAM. In order to appreciate Lawrence’s masterwork fully, our students learned in class beforehand about the Harlem Renaissance, and the work of Jacob Lawrence and his artist wife Gwendolyn Knight. Our own staff member, Reeta Tollefson, a student of Jacob Lawrence’s at UW, shared her first-hand experience with our classes.
The series of sixty paintings hit a chord with our kids. In their own words:
I think Jacob Lawrence is an amazing artist. I really like how he told a story by his art. It was so amazing to see the real paintings at SAM.”–Maryn, 2nd grade
“My favorite picture that Jacob Lawrence painted is number 38; Pouring fire, in Chicago and other cities, they labored. I like it because I could feel what he was thinking when I saw that picture.”–Lewis, 2nd grade
“I like Jacob Lawrence’s painting because it comes alive.”–Pilar 2nd grade
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February 21-23, 2017: IslandWood
Tilden’s fifth-grade class spent three days and two nights at IslandWood, an environmental sciences school in the woods on Bainbridge Island. The program provides exceptional learning experiences with the goal of inspiring lifelong environmental stewardship. Outdoors each day, the fifth-graders studied ecosystems while living in ways that are more sustainable. Now it’s up to the fifth-grade students to continue living in more sustainable ways, encouraging their families and friends to do the same.
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February 14, 2017: Valentine’s Day
Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
Tilden parents throw the best parties;
Thus, we owe them a huge THANK YOU!
Face painting, mini marshmallow races, balloons, cookie decorating, craft projects, treats, festive decorations, and more—Tilden parents donated their time, effort, creativity, and love to make this year’s Valentine’s parties joyful and memorable. Thanks loads, parents!
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February 6, 2017: A Tilden snow day is a so-much-fun day!
For those students who could safely get to school during Seattle’s recent snow storm, our playground was a winter wonderland filled with friends. Snow forts, snowmen, and snowballs were the main activities that day, with academic pursuits filling the time it took for the kids’ outdoor gear to dry—enough—to romp in the snow again. Such fun!
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November 7, 2016: Bridge Building
Tilden’s fifth-graders have just completed an engineering project by breaking it. The class constructed balsawood bridges over the last few weeks. Each student was given a limited number of 1/8” balsa sticks and glue, with the challenge of building a sturdy, loadbearing structure within the dimensional requirements of the International Balsa Bridge Building Contest rules. Students began their exploration by building different styles of bridges out of K’NEX. The students observed the different forces at work when bridges are under load, and altered their designs to compensate for each new direction of force they encountered. Using what they learned with the K’NEX bridges, they then designed a balsawood bridge. After all the bridges were complete, they set them over a span and added weight until they failed. They worked hard and were excited, if a little sad, to bring home their destroyed masterpieces.
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October 28, 2016: Halloween Carnival
Time Travel was the truly phenomenal theme for this year’s Halloween Carnival! As one would expect, each historical setting offered adventure and fun. Panning for gold, fishing with pirates, and consulting an ancient Greek oracle were just a few of the escapades enjoyed by our students. Parents outdid themselves this year, as evident in their creativity and details. What a remarkable feat, indeed! Parents, we are incredibly grateful for your passion and hard work!
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June 16, 2016: Graduation and Beach Party
Congratulations to Tilden’s graduates of 2016! You represented yourselves, your families, and your school remarkably well during the graduation ceremony, and then you played hard at Alki Beach. Way to go! And now you’re gone. 🙁
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June 8, 2016: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
From introduction to bow, Tilden’s fifth-graders commanded the stage, performing Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream set in 1980s USA. Sporting ’80s fashion (love it or hate it) with a soundtrack of ’80s tunes, they romped, wooed, and worked their magic on the audience, reminding us that Shakespeare’s humor and the play’s themes are every bit as relevant today as they were during the Elizabethan Age. A hilarious rendition, and one to remember, indeed! Bravo!