Opportunity for creative expression, self-discovery, community-building, and increased cultural literacy were the primary benefits experienced by seventh and eighth grade students involved in a two-week, immersive unit on J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone at Clairbourn School. The middle school teachers cleverly designed a custom educational adventure to enrich the lives of students who did not sign up for the school’s Australia student-exchange trip, which occurred during the same time period.
Visiting Authors Share their Creative Work and Experience with Clairbourn Students
Clairbourn’s library strongly supports student literacy through an annual Book Fair event on campus which introduces students to the best books in children’s literature and helps them to learn how books come into existence.
Local and nationally-known visiting authors and illustrators are brought on campus each year as part of the Book Fair. These grade-level appropriate presentations often include book readings and can cover writing skills, storyline development, character development, editing, how to get published and promote books, and how to draw and conceptualize book illustrations.
This year, Clairbourn brought two authors on campus. Preschool to Grade 5 students heard from Carter Higgins, a former school librarian who now writes popular children’s books. For the youngest students, she gave two read-aloud sessions of her book Bikes for Sale, where bike-riding characters Maurice and Lotta have a mishap that leads to a friendship and new adventures thanks to some creative problem-solving.
Continue reading “Visiting Authors Share their Creative Work and Experience with Clairbourn Students”City of Hope Scientists and Current Clairbourn Parents Provide STEM Lessons to Third-Graders
Clairbourn’s community is unique among area schools because of our emphasis on parent involvement in the life of the school. Parent engagement can boost student success both academically and behaviorally, and according to the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL), “When schools, families, and community groups work together to support learning, children tend to do better in school, stay in school longer, and like school more.”
Continue reading “City of Hope Scientists and Current Clairbourn Parents Provide STEM Lessons to Third-Graders”