Cottonwood Creek School Adapts with First Virtual Science Fair
As our society churns through the eleventh month of a global pandemic, a huge burden has been placed upon our schools, staffs, and families. However, most are responding in ways that we would expect – with resilience, creativity, and resourcefulness. One example of this adaptability was recently demonstrated by the Science Fair recently conducted at Cottonwood Creek School. Given the challenges of distance learning and the discouragement of large indoor gatherings, the decision to go virtual was automatic.
However, the standard for decades included a visual display on a 36” x 48” trifold poster board. Experiment rationale, process and conclusions would need to be illustrated on a three- dimensional piece of media. But as we have learned in 2020 and continue to do so now, we reconsider how to accomplish things in new ways. We recently visited with CCS PFC President Eman Tai Ahmad. Our mission was to discuss both the reengineering of the Science Fair and to gain her perspective as an active volunteer leader.
In addition to critical health concerns, the COVID-19 pandemic has wreaked havoc on school communities throughout the country. In Dublin, graduating seniors have lost commencements and those in elementary school are learning virtually without the ability to enjoy recess with their peers. Students at our middle schools have learned to navigate a six-period day without actually walking through the hallways.
Despite so much that has been sacrificed, there have also been many ingenious ways to maintain “normalcy” demonstrated by teachers, staff members and students. One such legacy experience was maintained by 2016 Dublin High School graduate, Davis Zamboanga. Davis performed with the Wells Middle School Roadrunner Marching Band and was a featured member of their Jazz Band. During his tenure, he earned the position of Drum Major and repeated this distinction with the Dublin High School Irish Guard. Upon graduating from DHS, he pursued his passions and matriculated at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (“SLO”) with a B.A. in Music. At SLO, their slogan is “Learn by Doing.”
As 2020 draws to a close, there is really no need to itemize all the significant family, professional and personal events that have we have been forced to surrender due to the global health threat. All that has been taken for granted, such as the “normal” act of students learning in classrooms, will have to be suspended until sometime in 2021. However, the combination of technology and the enduring human spirit has allowed us the ability to maintain some sense of normalcy by maintaining or creating new traditions.
A case in point is the Alameda County Office of Education (ACOE) annual Teacher of the Year Recognition. 12 district-level honorees were selected by the 10 districts that have chosen to participate this year. For the Dublin Unified School District, the honor was bestowed upon Fallon Middle School’s Nicole Meyer. In her ninth year at FMS, Nicole is both an 8th grade English and AVID teacher. The ACOE recognition event is customarily held at Castro Valley High School in late October. Due to social distancing guidelines, the event was streamed live on December 9th. OneDublin.org had the extreme pleasure to have an expansive discussion with Nicole and to gain her perspective on both this honor and delivering a positive learning experience for her students.
Read more…DUBLIN, CA – The year of 2020 will be remembered for many things – unfortunately, many of them range from uncomfortable, to challenging to downright tragic. Our world has been confronted by a global pandemic. The country slid down the path of an economic recession. And our streets from towns both large and small were filled with people outraged over racial inequities and the depravation of human rights. As casualties from COVID-19 continued to pile up through the spring and summer, it was frequently difficult to find positive news. However, far before October, a Dublin High School student was determined to make this a moment of bonding. Her name is Acacia Tripplett and she elected to “be one of the roses that grow in the concrete.”
As a junior and active member of Leadership at DHS, Ms. Tripplett has earned the mantle of Diversity Ambassador. Following the proper protocols, she announced to her peers that she would engineer and execute the Our Dublin Diversity & Unity Shirts Project. In order to fulfill her plan of providing a t-shirt for every student and staff member at both Dublin and Valley High Schools, the task would require obtaining donations. In addition, she needed to identify a shirt vendor and to design a plan for distribution. All of this came to pass as distribution began this week on Wednesday as seniors returned to campus and drove through a car maze to receive their Our Dublin shirt.
Read more…Online 2020 Junior Science Fair Launched for Pandemic Impacted Students
Crash Test World host and former MythBusters star Kari Byron recently announced the launch of the 2020 Junior Science Fair – the world’s largest online science fair for kids. The virtual event, which is accepting submissions through September 30, showcases kids submitting videos of themselves running science experiments at home. The fair is free to enter and open to anyone between the ages of 4 and 12.
Kari Byron will announce the winners in early October and the sponsor of the fair, science education app creator Tappity, is awarding $20,000 in prizes. “I know a lot of families are spending time at home these days but keeping kids curious and learning about the world around them is as important as ever,” says Byron.
Read more…Tappity founder Chadwick Swenson: “I created the Junior Science Fair so that kids around the world who are missing out on important school activities during COVID still have a chance to participate in something fun and educational. And because the science fair was my absolute favorite part of elementary school.
DUBLIN, CA–“I can’t breathe.” These were among the last words uttered by George Floyd as he lay handcuffed and prone at the intersection of 38th and Chicago in south Minneapolis. On Monday, some 2,045 miles to the west, the same words were chanted in the streets of Dublin, CA. The event was the peaceful march dubbed “TriValley #showup”. Student-led community organizers wanted to create a safe, yet impactful forum to express their desire for societal and institutional change.
The event started at 2PM Monday afternoon at Emerald Glen Park in the southwestern portion of picnic area. The speakers stood atop a mound at the park and were all visible to the growing crowd. There were both prepared statements and spontaneous comments that all encouraged the need for greater understanding and a call for reform.
DUBLIN, CA–Beginning in 2010, OneDublin.org offered a glimpse into the future plans of graduating seniors as a preface to the Senior Awards event. The “I am Dublin High” format was a short form video that asked the graduating seniors to identify their next academic destination. As we curtained the website in 2019, this profile ceased. It gives us great pleasure to share an effort that was undertaken by a graduating senior of the Dublin High School Class of 2020.
DUBLIN, CA–The momentous date was May 27, 2015. In perhaps, a simpler time, the event was the inaugural Dublin High School Film Festival. It was driven by Video Production Instructor, Michael D’Ambrosio and his first year students populating the newly hatched program. The demand from the class was to deliver 15 video pieces from his 40 students. The final works were to be completed, peer-reviewed and then for some – rewarded with a screening at the Center for Performing Arts on a Wednesday night. Last year, online tickets to attend the 500-seat theater sold out in one minute and 28 seconds. The concept evolved into a phenomenon that has become part of the landscape at Dublin High for the past five years.
With the commencement of a new academic calendar in 2019, Mr. D’Ambrosio spoke openly to his students and colleagues that perhaps the festival concept had run its course. In essence, lacking any new innovation, what would the event serve – other than a simple continuation? As we have all experienced, the COVID-19 outbreak has touched each and every corner of our local and global lives. From a narrow, but important focus, the daily functioning of K-12 student’s lives has been literally turned upside down.
With the Shelter in Place order for Alameda County, leadership at the Dublin Unified School District has worked with the Dublin Teachers Association to formulate and to negotiate a system to maintain the learning continuum for over 13,000 students – doing so while not knowing with complete certainty when the order might be lifted. This unprecedented circumstance even raised the concept of whether to issue letter grades or a credit/no-credit system for final recognition that was eventually resolved by the School Board.
DUBLIN, CA–While the globe continues to wrestle with the COVID-19 Pandemic, elements of daily life are being examined, debated and in some cases re-engineered. The otherwise pedestrian act of receiving a haircut or dining in a restaurant is being scrutinized by both science and societal norms. One of the greatest issues before us is how to execute and deliver education in a manner that remains effective and continues to provide safety. Dublin Unified School District Board of Trustees Student Representative Tinni Mukherjee recently played a key role in shaping the rest of this extraordinary school year for Dublin students, more on that shortly.
Dublin School Board Student Rep Tinni Mukherjee
The spike of positive coronavirus cases in Northern California triggered six Bay Area counties to issue a Shelter in Place order back on March 16, 2020. The order directed the public to stay at home as much as possible, with the exception of purchasing gas, groceries, going to the bank and retrieving prescriptions. It was a swift action and one that potentially has saved many lives. For families with school-aged children daily life has been turned upside down.
In conjunction with the Shelter in Place order State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tony Thurmond announced new guidelines. At its heart, the statement was to address the safety of all students and staff. Further, the guidance was issued to illustrate “how students can and should be held harmless in grading, and how their work can be acknowledged.” In other words, the ability of a student not to receiving learning in a school setting should not be in jeopardy of receiving a reduced grade due to the lack of their presence. While logical, the declaration was broad and the responsibility to enact a grading policy for the second semester would fall to each school districts. Read more…
To help parents keep their children engaged beyond hours playing Minecraft and Animal Crossing here is our best of list of #homeschooling resources.
ProjectExplorer: Hours of Educational Video Content for Grades 3-12
ProjectExplorer’s mission “is to bring the world into classrooms and living rooms with free video content and curriculum that fosters global awareness and cross-cultural understanding.” For parents looking to enrich their students ProjectExplorer is an incredible free resource that combines educational videos with curriculum and virtual classroom resources. Students home / Teachers & parents home.
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