6th grade science classes just came up to CLIC to do science modelling of atoms.  Each student was assigned an element from the periodic table.  Each person had to know how the nucleus was composed of neutrons and protons as well as the electron shells.  It is one thing to read about the elements, but it is another to visualize and model them in a 3-dimensional form. Students could be creative with the materials but the models had to be scientifically correct. Much time was spent counting out and wiring up their elements.  The results are stunning in Ms. Strobl's room with the entire 6th grade's models hanging and spinning from the ceiling.  

As one parent put it, "There are a ton of productions this year!"  That is an understatement!  Between Steward and Proctor School, we have 10 productions planned for this year.  The CLIC stage crew at Proctor gets one production list done and then we are on to the next.  This year is a reflection of the hard work of the teachers and the children on and behind stage.  It is challenging to get everything ready, but it is worth it to see it all come together on performance day. It is exhilarating for the children to pull off the shows.  The kids know they authentically created everything, memorized their lines, and creatively pulled it all together.  It is a ton of pressure, but the pay off is huge.

Why do we want theater, musicals, music class productions?  Performing brings out healthy risk taking to get up stage, commitment to learn parts and sequencing, and team work.   For those doing stage crew, kids work together to visualize and create on large scale all of the details necessary to tell the story.  Every layer of the stage is considered.  Every costume has to be visualized. They must also work with the actors on stage.  It is demanding!

Theater also engages children in learning.  To have students transform historical literature like Greek Myths and Folktales into narrative plays takes many hours of writing and rewriting.  The children not only wrote the plays but added humor and drama so beautifully.  I bet most people did not know that the children wrote the plays themselves!  

Above all, theater adds community to a school.  There is so much excitement in the school on performance day. The kids love to come together and watch each other on stage along with the families.  We are officially a theater school district!

This month, STEAM Club will be tackling issues that will be focusing on creating products that are Earth friendly.  We will be exhibiting our projects at the upcoming Earth Day Fair at Proctor School on Friday, April 29, 4:00-6:00 PM.

Our first project is to redesign 6 pack can holders.  We are first learning about the hazards of having plastics in our oceans and rivers.  Scientists are finding plastic in almost every animal so it is a huge concern to reduce and rethink how we package products.  The plastic ring holders that hold 6 pack cans is especially bad since animals eat them or get entangled in them.

STEAM Club is working with recycled materials to come up with innovative packaging solutions.  They must create a holder that consumers can pick up and carry, easily remove cans from, and it must fit on store's shelves.  The weight of the cans creates a lot of force that changes when they are lifted and carried so it is a true challenge!  What we are doing is not much different than what packaging designers do in real life designing a packaging solutions for a product.  I love that the children feel empowered to create true change!