by Admin | Apr 25, 2017 | Blogs
Congratulations to Rainbow students Cady in second grade, and Isabella and Kafira in fifth grade! Earlier this year these young artists submitted poems and paintings to River Link‘s ‘Voices of the River Art and Poetry Contest’. And then just a few days ago, on Saturday morning, they were honored with their awards at RiverLink’s Earth Day Kids Festival! As first place winners, their art stood out to the local artists acting as judges for its design, composition, and originality. This year the PreK through 12th grade students who submitted their art were invited to make art in answer to the question, how are you connected to your watershed? Thank you so much to River Link for your support in connecting our love of the Earth with our passion of the arts.
by Jessy Tickle | May 13, 2016 | Events, Global Citizenship, News
Join Rainbow in a city wide effort to strive not to drive for a solid week from May 15 through May 22nd. Instead of driving to work, school, community meetings, the grocery store or the gym, for example, try taking the bus, walking, carpooling with friends, or biking!
You will be rewarded for your efforts on May 18th from 8am to 9am with coffee and treats right on Haywood Road. Stop by on your way to work! Omega Middle School students will be hosting a commuter station at 574 Haywood Rd to treat people who are walking or commuting via bike, bus, or carpool!
There will be coffee from Firestorm Books & Coffee, snacks from West End Bakery and West Village Market & Deli as well as a bike maintenance station from Asheville Street & Dirt.
Come on over to chat, secure your caffeine for the morning, nourish your body, and build community!
by Webmaster | Sep 11, 2013 | News
Rainbow Community School has won a prestigious award: it has become a Green Ribbon School.
Why is this so important?
From the Green Ribbon Schools website,
The Green Ribbon Schools program is where health, education, STEM skills, technology and being green combine to propel entire schools towards a happier, healthier and smarter future. It is where students get more involved in school activities, not less, and where teachers and students become the true leaders of their schools and communities.
The community here at Rainbow is committed to a happier, healthier and smarter future for our students. We embarked on many projects in the last year to create a school that embraces sustainability. Our students are heavily involved in this process.
Take a look at some of the projects that helped us to gain such special recognition:
Building a New Playground
We built a playground that incorporated recycled materials wherever possible: from “dead” locust logs to urbanite (recycled concrete), the children can play in an area that was designed with nature in mind.
Our “Gnome Village” was built with recycled materials wherever possible.
Creating Gardens
Our fourth graders helped to build raised garden beds to learn about growing vegetables sustainably and organically. They used the scientific method to investigate vegetable growth, nutrition and predicted various results. They also incorporated their math skills by calculating the distance between vegetables and growth patterns. They also experienced the “farm to table” idea by eating the vegetables they grew.
4th graders learn about growing vegetables organically.
Create an Outdoor Classroom
In order to create what is dubbed the “Council Circle,” community members and builders found dead tree stumps and reclaimed them to become the “chairs” for our outdoor classroom.
The Council Circle fosters a community learning environment. Designed in a way that echoes the customs of Native American Indian tribes, this classroom promotes peace and appreciation for nature, as well as helps create an atmosphere of mutual respect and appreciation for not only the outdoors, but for fellow students and teachers. At Rainbow Community School, everyone has an equal voice.
Our outdoor classroom, aka “The Council Circle.”
Investigating Dinosaurs
Our second and third graders from last year did a paleontology dig to investigate dinosaurs. The dinosaur unit centered around investigation, writing, documenting, and seeing the world through a paleontologist’s eyes.
2nd and 3rd graders doing a dinosaur dig.
Build a Terrarium
Our first graders learned how to build terrariums. In the process, they learned about soil composition and how to create habitats for organisms such as ferns and moss. By the end of the unit, our students understood how important it was to balance water, air, and proper soil nutrition to create a suitable environment for plant life.
It’s fun to build a terrarium! First graders learned so much!
