Preschool and Kindergarten both performed in the morning program.
You can follow along with the lyrics to their songs:
Preschool
“Family of Feelings” by Lucy MacGregor, Preschool Teacher
I feel something inside me. I feel something in there. It tickles my tummy. It tingles my hair. Oh, hello. Oh, I know. Upset or happy, mad, sad or scared, they are all in there. Feelings… family of feelings… I know how to care for you, deep breath.
Kindergarten
“Mariposa Family Song” by Kindergarten students & Sue Ford, Music Teacher CHORUS.
I like to do things with my family, all kinds of things with my family. Snuggling or cuddling with my mama or papa, I feel safe and love in family. I like to go places and have some fun on airplanes or cars, adventure has begun Go see Grandma or friends or travel someplace new with my family where our love is true. CHORUS I love the outdoors when the weather is nice we pack up and go camping or go on hikes We pretend we are animals, wild and free or play with sticks or swim in the sea CHORUS When winter winds blow we have fun in the snow or play games inside or watch movies playing school with my sister, building Lego sets. I love celebrating family.
First Grade
“Mother Earth” by 1st Grade students, Josie Hoban, 1st grade Associate Teacher, & Sue Ford Chorus
We give thanks that the Earth is our Mother. She loves all of us like no other. Every living, breathing being, plants and animals are family. Ooo Mother Earth…. we are your children
Possum babies sleep in Mama’s deep pouch White tailed deer graze, toads hop and crouch Screech owls fly across the sky Wild turkeys with their babies hear the hawk cry
Bears and wolves, snakes slither together Through brackish ferns, moss, rocks and heather Mother rivers flow, flocks of geese in flight Fox vixens love their kits all through the night.
Third Grade
“Cats and Dogs” by 3rd grade students, Sue Ford & Justin Pilla
Filidae, Canidae, Cat and Dog Families. Warm furry mammals with large teeth and claws They have fuzzy ears and fuzzy tails and cute fuzzy paws. Some say that one –is better than the other In our family they are sisters and brothers.
A Pride of lions work together to hunt Snow leopards are rarest and hard to confront Clever coyotes sing with howls and yelps They hunt in packs with each other’s help Lightening quick cheetahs sprint in the Savannah Leaping, long leopards creep in the jungle Frolicking foxes play with friends in the forest. Wondrous wild wolves howl at the moon in chorus Jumping Jaguars like to swim and fish Stealthy Bobcats wait for prey in the bush Joking jackals will have just one partner Like the wolf, they will babysit their kindergartener Digging Dingos in the dirt wild and free, Powerful panthers prowl land to the sea.
Second Grade
“Family Team” Lyrics by 2nd Grade students & Eddy Webb, 2nd Grade Teacher. Carolyn Zeigler, Rainbow Tutor, on flute. Tune based on Donnybrook Fair, an Irish Jig
Wake me up, I make the bed Cat, gerbils, and dog are fed Wash the dishes, do my chores If you ask, I’ll do some more
Clean my room and rub your feet In the yard I rake the leaves. All the things I do for you, It’s so clear, I love you
Family, we are like a team All for one, a family team! You know I always got your back, Count on me, that’s a fact!
Some are big and some are small That’s okay, we love them all Laugh and cry and try together Family love goes on forever!
Care for me, shelter, food Always kind, and never rude Drive to soccer, cheer me on Call me in when dinner’s done
Hand-me-downs or buy me clothes Make me wear a coat—it’s cold! All the things you do for me, It’s so clear, you love me!
Family, we are like a team All for one, a family team! You know I always got your back, Count on me, that’s a fact!
Some are big and some are small That’s okay, we love them all Laugh and cry and try together Family love goes on forever!
Fourth Grade
“Moments With My Family” by 4th Grade students & teachers – Kurt Campbell & Sarah Callahan
CHORUS: Special moments with my family They are part of my history Looking back on my memories In my mind they’re a treasury
Traveling to Scandanavia Staying up til 4am Hanging out with my sisters Laughing about where we’ve been. Spending Christmas in Ohio Hanging out with my cousins. Traveling to England 8 hour plane ride
CHORUS
Going camping with my family The dog ate my marshmallow Hanging out with siblings Laughing and having fun Watching TV with my parents All day long Picking out Midnight in late winter Fluffy baby bunnies everywhere
CHORUS
Going on a boat with mom and dad We saw whales and it started to rain. Traveling on a plane to Norway Flying through the sky Going on a trip to Carowinds Rollercoasters flying through the sky Going on a trip saying are we there yet Not yet! 5 minutes later ask again
CHORUS
Flying to California with my mom and brother Meeting friends and eating Mexican food Watching a movie in a pool While swimming with my dad. Bringing home a new dog I was so happy that I cried Jumping off a rock Landing in the water
CHORUS
Having fun with my dad in Hawaii Snorkeling in the coral reef Picking out our puppy Phoenix A new member of our family. Playing with my dogs Taking them to the lake. Driving from California to Asheville With my mom and 3 cats Flying and driving to Michigan To get my new dog Ray. Going on a cross country road trip Going almost everywhere.
Fifth Grade
“Rivers and Roads” by the Head and the Heart, words adapted by Emmaly Rogalski, 5th grade teacher, instrumental parts by Sue Ford, Dance choreographed by Julie Chapman, 5th grade parent.
A year from now we’ll all be gone. All our friends will move away. And they’re going to better places. But our friends will be gone away.
Nothing is as it has been as we cross the ocean’s swell And I guess it’s just as well as we cross the ocean’s swell
Been talking ‘bout the way things change. And my family lives in a different state And if you don’t know what to make of this, then we will not relate So if you don’t know what to make of this, then we will not relate
Rivers and roads, Oceans and roads, rivers till I reach you Rivers and roads, Oceans and roads, rivers till I reach you.
Marimba Omega Elective
“New Hope” by Sue Ford & Walt Hampton ”Carol of the Bells” based on a traditional folksong from Ukraine called “Schedryk” “Mojo” by Walt Hampton
Who are we? Where do we come from? Where are we going?
These are the questions humans have been asking themselves for as long as they have dwelt in this world. But how to answer such eternal questions? As we always have… with a story.
This story is set in the pre-human world, and it is told from the point of view of the animals. Several animals discover the “soul seed” of a mysterious creature. They learn it is the soul seed of the “whoman,” and it will be very different type of animal — powerful beyond imagination. Knowing that their world will be forever changed when this “whoman” seed awakens, what should they do with it? Should they protect it…or are they better off without it? Can they love and support this new creature, despite, or because of, its awesome potential?
Heavy questions for a grade school play, but here we are in 2019!
Learning through the arts
As always, this year’s Imagine is an original play, with almost all original music written and composed by teachers and the children. Imagine uses the arts as a medium to explore complex questions and to revel in what creative and vibrant creatures we are. Through the arts, children can learn concepts far beyond their years, and they can express wisdom beyond what any facts could ever convey.
In an age when facts are often labeled as “fake,” the arts speak the Truth. Thank you for supporting the arts at Rainbow, and thank you for providing your child with an education that matters. May you leave Imagine with renewed hope for the world, because that is what your child brings to us every day.
~Renee Owen, Executive Director & Justin Pilla, Rainbow Creative Coordinator
Academic Achievement of Rainbow Learners: Alumni Performance After Rainbow
We wanted to track our alumni performance after Rainbow and share just how well our students perform.
Finding data that accurately reflects how our holistic learners perform academically is complex.
Standardized tests certainly don’t reflect our curriculum or our beliefs about developmentally
appropriate education. Our curriculum emphasizes critical thinking and innovation.
In looking at facts and figures in math, Rainbow students score highest on quantitative reasoning and sometimes lower in rote computation. Language arts and reading scores commonly reflect slightly lower numbers on mechanics (spelling, punctuation, etc.), but high on reasoning, analysis, and organizing ideas.
Our Students Are Prepared to Lead
As we move into the age of artificial intelligence, our graduating students are prepared to be leaders. They know how to truly think, design, plan, and act. For a child who progresses sequentially through the grade levels at Rainbow, the early years allow ample time to explore, think, and learn content – especially science and social studies. Students explore their world, ponder it, organize, and eventually learn how to re-create it, with unique ideas.
In later years, students learn mechanics and perfect their computational skills. This allows them to learn those skills quickly and easily. This frees up time in the younger years so that they have every opportunity to “light up all areas of the brain.” They don’t have to overly drill on these few, narrow skills. By the end of 8th grade, our students are ready for high school and beyond. They often test out of introductory courses into more advanced levels of Math, English language and reading, as well as more advanced world language classes.
How Do Rainbow Graduates Do In High School?
One of the most common questions parents ask during the admissions process is “How well do Rainbow graduates perform in high school?” While the majority of our graduates attend SILSA – an all honors science inquiry-based program at Asheville High – RCS students attend a variety of schools.
The Data
Recently we asked SILSA and Asheville High to disaggregate the GPA data of Rainbow students attending high school there. They analyzed all 29 RCS graduates, from freshmen to seniors, and compared their GPA averages with the rest of the SILSA student population overall:
We’re grateful to SILSA for compiling this data for us! SILSA often compliments us on our Rainbow graduates. We get news of the many awards they win, and this numerical GPA data is very helpful in helping us track how well our students are doing.
The second most common school our graduates attend is Carolina Day School. We will be sure to collect a list of the many awards they will be garnering at the end of this year. Last year, a Rainbow graduate won the Faculty Prize at the Carolina Day graduation. This is a terrific honor. This prize is prestigious: all the faculty vote for a student based on character, academics, and service.
We are so very proud to send Rainbow students into the world who are accomplished, confident, and creative learners. They are prepared to be compassionate leaders in a changing world. They think out of the box and are poised to innovate.
In fact, our current 4th grade teacher, Susie, shared a funny story recently. In her first year at Rainbow, she was administering a standardized test to her students. She knew she was at a different kind of school when her students started coming up to her saying, “We don’t like any of these answers. Can we just write them in?” This is not unusual for an RCS student, and it’s what sets Rainbow Community School apart.
Centering practices aim to strengthen our learning community by inviting spirit and sacredness into each space and each day. At RCS, we see this daily practice as a meaningful ritual that is integral to a child’s healthy spiritual development.
We also host school-wide, annual celebrations and ceremonies that are also rooted in the sacred and serve to deepen the connections we have to ourselves, our community and a higher power. These shared celebrations, ceremonies and rites of passage empower all involved to turn both inward and outward so as to realize their part in an integral community and their connection to something greater than themselves.
The annual winter program is one of those sacred ceremonies. During this time, the staff and students celebrate the true meaning of the holidays by sharing original songs that embrace the human values that unite us. Each year the theme of the program is inspired by one of the universally held virtues and serves as a guide for the students as they collaborate with Sue Ford, our music director, to draft lyrics for each performance.
For example, a few years ago the theme was LOVE. The students were asked to ponder the power of love and the many ways to give and receive love. This reflection yielded various interpretations and heart-felt lyrics rooted in “Love.” Follow the link below to hear one of the many songs from the love feast.
The following year, the theme “Unity through Music” invited the students to create songs in cultural styles from around the world as a way of honoring our connection to local and global communities. Follow the link below to experience the 2nd grade song, “One Human Family.”
This year, Sue Ford has invited students on a sacred circle journey. The circle is a symbol of wholeness. Sacred Circles, Medicine Wheels, Mandalas, Hoops and Rings are found all over the world in history, art, architecture and ceremony. Carl Jung says, “I saw that everything, all paths I had been following, all steps I had taken, were leading back to a single point — namely, to the mid-point. It became increasingly plain to me that the mandala is the center. It is the exponent of all paths. … I knew that in finding the mandala as an expression of the self I had attained what was for me the ultimate.”
This year the theme “Journey Through the Sacred Circle” is an exploration of how we as individuals and as communities relate to the seven directions and elements within the circle. We begin with our Roots (Below), ascending into Fire and Air, grounding with the Earth, flowing with the Water, floating into the infinity of Space (Above) and finally back home in the center, Spirit. The songs in this journey are original collaborations between students, Sue Ford our music teacher and many of the RCS teachers.
I am sure many of you have experienced the joy and celebration that comes with holiday programs. At each RCS winter program, these feelings are echoed and then bolstered by the invitation of spirit, the emphasis on the sacred and the purposeful connection present at these programs.
As you enter into each holiday season and embark on learning adventures with your students, memory making with your family, and connections with your friends and acquaintances… I ask you to consider the ways that you can invite the true spirit of the holidays along on your journey?
We invite all of our Rainbow grandparents and special elders to a welcoming celebration and performance in the auditorium at 10:30am on Monday, April 24th.
We are so excited to welcome our grandparents and elders onto campus for this special day. During the school year we foster multi-age connections through all-school ceremonies and classroom-partnership projects. It is a special honor, however, to welcome into our world of children the elders who helped create them. RSVP by emailing Kate, our Office Manager, at info@rainbowlearning.org.
Thank you in advance for your time, visit, and generous presence. Your grandchildren have been preparing for your arrival all week and can’t wait to share the wonder of their learning with you.
