by Webmaster | Dec 11, 2014 | Home Page News, Student News & Accolades
The Legend of Chocolate
The third grade class just completed a unit on the Legend of Chocolate in Spanish. Their Spanish teacher, Cynthia, worked with West, their third grade teacher, to create a unit that would complement what the students were learning in their main classroom.
Students studied about how things work – machines, phones, etc. – in their main classroom lessons and in Spanish class, students learned about where chocolate came from.
At the end of the unit, third graders got a chance to see how chocolate is made, and how the machines work to make all that chocolate.
In their Spanish unit, students learned many new vocabulary words such as food (comida), drink (bebida), the Toltecs (los Toltecas), as well as many more vocabulary words.
They learned abut Quetzalcoatl, the god of Light and Tezcatlipoca, the god of darkness. Quetzalcoatl was the god to bring the food of the gods – chocolate – to the people, especially when they were so hungry. He taught them to farm, and how to turn cacao into a chocolate drink fit for the gods!
Third graders at the French Broad Chocolate Tasting Room
From there, they learned the mythical story about where chocolate originated. They learned the story in Spanish and even learned to recite it.
At the end of the unit, they took a field trip to the French Broad Chocolate Factory and had a tour of the Tasting Room. They listened to Evan, a Chocolatier, talk about cacao, where it comes from, how the Chocolatiers turn the cacao beans into chocolate and how they try to be as sustainable as possible in the process.
The crew at the French Broad Chocolate Factory led everyone into their “back rooms” where students could see all the machines at work. From rinsing, to sifting the cacao beans, to grinding them down into chocolate, they were able to see the entire process from start to finish.
Students sampled chocolate – the dark, unsweet kind directly derived from cacao – from different regions and it has a different taste from different regions!
Learning about chocolate and cacao
At the end of the presentation, the third graders performed the skit of the Legend of Chocolate in Spanish for the French Broad Chocolate Lounge Staff.
Did you know that the French Broad Chocolate Factory uses solar power to heat all its water? And that they make every attempt to source all their ingredients locally?
They also deal only with farms that use fair trade in their practices. In fact, the owners and employees make trips to cacao farms in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Peru and help harvest the cacao by hand.
They have developed mutually beneficial relationships with farmers in those countries.
Watching the grinding machine take off the outer shell of cacao.
Rainbow would like to extend a special thank you to the Chocolatiers – especially Evan – for a wonderful lesson on chocolate, sustainability, how things work, and the idea of being as responsible to the planet and to each other as possible!
by Webmaster | Oct 13, 2014 | Home Page News, News
The RCS fourth grade just finished a wonderful unit on all things plants. From photosynthesis to seed growth to planting systems, each student understood a lot about plants by the end of the unit.
Students went to the NC Arboretum at the start of the unit and continued study of plants, processes and systems during the course of their unit.
Student Presentations
Part of the requirements for learning was for 4th graders to present their unit to their parents and families.
On Friday, they had a chance to do just that:
The presentation schedule
Students went out to the community gardens where they showed their parents the different plants that were growing. They also had a greenhouse where they were growing smaller plants:
Other students showed off their planting systems and explained what was going on with their particular system:
The plant package designs were all part of a bigger part of the unit: the engineering design process:
Engineering Design Process
Students explained their thinking, learning and their conclusions to their parents using their folders:
Students also did a blue-dye experiment to see what would happen as plants grew.
Parents helped create a botanical feast for the botany celebration.
Students’ plants were not quite ready from the school community garden to make a meal with them. That will happen later on. In the meantime, students were able to enjoy good food and fellowship with their families.
by Webmaster | Sep 25, 2014 | Home Page News, News
Our Summit is coming up on September 29. We hope that the RCS community really benefits from all the information that we want to share.
As part of that meeting, we are inviting parents to be a part of small focus groups, where parents can provide their own input.
Take a look below. As parents arrive, they will have a chance to choose which group they’d like to be in, though the earlier the better: each group will have up to 10 people and once they’re full, people will need to choose another.
SUMMIT INFORMATION
WHAT
The Summit is a gathering of the Rainbow Community to share our inspiration and ideas for the future of Rainbow. The ideas we generate will be used to shape the direction of Rainbow’s growth and development. Prepare for an energetic, fascinating and inspirational evening!
WHEN & WHERE
Monday September 29, 5:30 – 8:30 PM in the RCS Auditorium.
WHO
At least one parent of each Rainbow family (preschool optional) is requested to attend. This is a delightfully mandatory community meeting replacing the traditional fall mandatory classroom meeting.
FOOD
Light snacks will be provided. Bring your water bottle and any desired personal snacks.
CHILDCARE
Childcare will provided on the RCS campus. $15 per child. Bring a snack and water. You must RSVP by Wednesday 9/24 at the RCS office or via email with Kate in the office at info@rainbowlearning.org.
VOLUNTEERS
You will receive information via email and SignUpGenius about several volunteer opportunities in support of the Summit. This is a good way to contribute to the success of the Summit and earn some hours.
SCHEDULE
Sign up for each group will be on a first-come-first-served basis in the auditorium: be early to assure your group choice!
After an introductory program in the auditorium, we will divide into focus groups around the facility for brainstorming and sharing our inspiration.
Each facilitated group will be limited to ten participants. To cap off the evening each group will share their key ideas with the entire community in the auditorium.
YOUR PREPARATION
Come with your imagination hat on!
Be prepared to have some fun sharing your ideas for Rainbow’s future and to be inspired by those of others.
You will join one of the focus groups below for the brainstorming section of the Summit.
Each group will be asked to address several key questions per topic. Detailed information about each group is on the RCS website and will be posted around campus.
FOCUS GROUPS
CHANGEMAKERS
SERVICE LEARNING
ALUMNI
GLOBAL & IINTERNATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS
MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONS
DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
SPIRIT & CONSCIOUSNESS
ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP
ARTS AT RCS
TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING
SHARING THE RAINBOW MODEL
GROUNDS
BUILDINGS
COMMUNITY CENTER & SERVICES
COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
FUNDRAISING & FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP
FAMILY & PARENT SUPPORT
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
Focus Group Information
by Renee Owen | Sep 12, 2014 | Director's Blog
How Can a School Promote a Culture of Innovation?
As I enter the “Omega” (7th and 8th grade) classroom at Rainbow Community School, a large Buckminster Fuller-designed dymaxion world map is on the floor, the basis for a game where students are moving around chips that represent various world resources.
Incorporating Systems Thinking
Two students with laptops are meeting with Jason Cannoncro, one of the lead teachers, about a grant proposal they are writing to create a local non-profit organization that will give homeless people work on the many organic farms in Asheville. Several students are puzzling over models they are creating of sustainable energy systems. One girl is playing a radio powered by a tiny solar panel system she designed herself.
How Can We Design Systems to Ensure All Humans Have Their Needs Met?
The curriculum at Rainbow Community School has been carefully designed and refined to prepare students for the culminating middle school unit described above.The essential problem that students ask and begin to solve in that unit is,
“How can we design our systems and our culture to ensure that all humans on Earth have their needs met, without depleting planetary resources?”
The Native Americans thought of sustainability in terms of seven generations. They might have asked the essential question for the unit in this format: “How can we provide dignity for each human and all living beings for the next seven generations?”In this unit students are asked to think about human equity and fulfillment, and how to get there. They are required to develop designs and prototypes for inventions that help sustain the natural world, while providing for a high quality of living. Students who are successful within this multi-faceted, complex unit are the next generation of innovators. How does Rainbow Community School prepare its students for this culminating unit?
You can find out how RCS prepares its students and more on part IV here.
RCS Director, Renee Owen has a series of Educating the Innovation Generation articles.
Click below to see the other parts:
Educating the Innovation Generation – Part I
Educating the Innovation Generation – Part II
Educating the Innovation Generation – Part III
by Webmaster | Aug 22, 2014 | Global Citizenship, Home Page News
Hanf’s game with a photo of some Omega students trying out the game
Mark Hanf Featured in Asheville’s Newspaper
Mark Hanf, one of our new Omega teachers, has been featured in the “Living Section” of the Asheville Citizen Times.
He has spent time hiking the Appalachian Trail.
It’s impacted his life so much that now he wants to hike the entire length of it some day with his daughter.
In the meantime, they both can “prep” for the hike because she’s only five. The best way to do that? With a board game!
Mark Hanf Creates AT Board Game
Mark and a team of developers worked to create a game that would help people learn best practices and skills in preparation for hiking the Appalachian Trail.
The idea came to him after stopping at a shelter along the trail that had been left littered and otherwise pretty trashed. His first reaction was anger. But then he thought that perhaps others just haven’t had the training he’s had to know trail and hiking etiquette. He had been a Boy Scout.
He cleaned up the shelter and took his idea to create a board game to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy where he received a small grant. From there, the game was born.
He’s also started a Kickstarter Campaign to expand and spread awareness about the game. Fundraising for the cause exceeded the goal, totaling 1,093 backers and $57,361 raised. Success!
Read More of Mark’s Article Here
