Up-and-coming entrepreneurs

Every day I find out a new cool thing going on in one of our Education Department programs. 

Our theme for our After-School Academy (ASA) this summer is Environment. The teachers have done absolutely amazing things with the kids. The last time I walked into the ASA, I wondered aloud why there were a series of about six 8 1/2" x 11" pieces of paper stuck to the low ceiling. I was quickly told that the papers were the kids' effort (guided by Mr. Chris) to Google map Dallas to China so they could begin to understand their ecological footprint.

Another one of our teachers, Ms. Danielle, is working on teaching the kids about nutrition, healthy eating, and gardening. She's done some cooking classes with the kids that are combined with literature, nutrition, and the different academic skills that go along with the cooking. The ASA has also started a walking club that involves families in the program. They are even working with our own Dr. Rhonda (pediatrician) to measure their BMI and such to start seeing improvement as the summer progresses.

So, when the farm stands started this week, it folded in wonderfully with our theme and the teachers' lessons. Danielle Evans (different from Ms. Danielle the teacher) has gotten community members involved to oversee the farm stand every Wednesday from 9:00-3:00. Plans are in the works for our Mid-Teen University boys to begin working with the police department on a service project that would take orders from the seniors in the Roseland Gardens high rise and then deliver their produce on Wednesdays. 

Since we are about education, learning, and knowledge...and since we have a theory that part of the reason people in low-income communities don't eat as many fruits and veggies because of lack of access and/or low-quality and high price in the stores, it was very exciting to me to hear that the kids and teens from our different education programs pulled their quarters together to go buy a bag of 4 apples for $1 so they could have a snack for later in the day. (knowing this is leading us to make plans to have the farm stand later in the day once the school year starts so kids can buy healthier snacks once school lets out).

Finally, it was very exciting to me to walk into the building after lunch on Thursday to see Mr. Chris's class with printouts of fruits and veggies on the tables. I love that Mr. Chris took the idea of the farm stand and created a simulation for the kids to learn how to operate the farm stands (which will lead us to our next project of getting the kids to run their own business and operate the farm stands themselves). You can hear them all discussing how the farm stands work, giving me the pitch to sell their fruit and veggies, and learning ways to make extra money.

Our ASA this summer absolutely amazes me every time I visit. Thanks, crew!

Solar Energy Workshop for the ASA

Today the Green Team had their second environment workshop, Solar Energy. The workshop went off well, although the sunlight was blocked due to cloud coverage. The Green Team worked with what they had and did most of their original activities with a few modifications. I was impressed with the way the Green Team adapted to the sudden change in plans. At no time did they say we CAN’T do something, they just worked with what they had. The workshop concluded with a movie and we finally got a chance to watch Wall-E (YAH!!!!)

Overall I would say this workshop went off better than the last, due in part to the ASA staff. After the first workshop we asked the ASA staff for recommendations. Their help allowed the Green Team to be successful in this workshop.

If you want more information on the workshop check out Ruben’s blog post (below). But until next time remember to tune in to this Bat Channel at this Bat Time!

~Nazim

The Road to Solar Energy

This week has definitely been a productive one for the Green Team and the Roseland Staff.

On Tuesday, the staff got together for a weekly meeting and each learned a little bit more about each other and what's going on in the Roseland Community. Not only did we learn that everyone has their own definition of words like "caring," "field trip," and "discipline," but we learned that this summer is going well.

The Green Team has been working on putting together the 2nd workshop for the ASA Kids next Thursday.

Not only have we come up with what activities will be going on, but we definitely know the kids will enjoy this more than the Weather Workshop we did last Thursday. We have wood art, paper art, a solar oven, and rice krispy "earths" in store for this workshop coming.

Anyone is welcome to come see the kids make crafts and learn about Solar Energy as well.


-Ruben Ramirez

Pinwheels and Wind Turbines

I wanted to make sure the kids understood that the pinwheels they were making today were a part of a bigger lesson on wind energy. I was pleasantly surprised when the tables turned and they began explaining to me how wind turbines work!

Never underestimate the learning abilities of a child.

Dirty Dirty Air

Today the 2nd-3rd graders (after an...interesting bout at the healthy eating adventure challenge) continued their studies on pollution, and we made our very own pollution catchers! We painted old food cans then covered them in double-sided tape; we'll check them in about a week or so and find out about the air quality in this area.

Of course, the kids decided they wanted theirs on the roof...and Mr. Chris found out that shimmying up poles is not his forte.

So much fun and Learning

Today we took the kids on a field trip to the Dallas Arboretum. They had so much fun. They learned a lot about the different flowers, animals, and insects. They also caught dragon flies and put them inside this Magnifying Glass and looked close at it and named the type of dragon fly it was. Some children caught two at once they were very excited !!! One student named Joshua caught one and he named it Joshua Jr. (Awww... how cute) He was very sad when he had to let it go.

We also visited the Peter Rabbit Exhibit. It was very cool the kids loved it and we also so this giant rabbit. It was sooooo neat!!!! All in all... I think the kids enjoyed themselves even though they were complaining about the heat.

Water Bottle Super Heroes

We learned today about the life of a water bottle. The second and third grade class read a book that described to them the importance of recycling. The book followed the journey of a water bottle. The bottle started out as crude oil and was manufactured into a water bottle. The bottle ended up in a park where it was later picked up by a young boy. The boy took the bottle home and made into a flower vase for his mom for valentines day. When the family was finished with the water bottle they threw it into a recycle bin where it was recycled and later used to make a sweater.



In the spirit of reusing water bottles our class made water bottle super heroes. Each hero was unique and special. The children each gave their super hero a name and "special power." I was very impressed by our water bottles I think we can all feel safer about the world we live in with these super bottles looking out for us.

Landfills

Today was a very interesting day; we took the kids to vist a landfill. They seemed very interested on where the trash they threw away finally ended up.





After the tour we played some games and won some prizes. It was a chance to see if what we were teaching our students were sticking with them...and it is!

The Daily Planet, vol. 1

Beautiful isn't it?

The Tech Class Newspaper Project

In class today we began creating a newspaper about the environment. We had the kids each look up a specific topic about the environment and then had them write mini articles about them. After a little discusion we decided to name the paper "The Daily Planet." Some of the Superman fans out there probably get the reference. The project should be finished by the end of today, and pictures of the completed newspaper will be uploaded soon.

OUR FABULOUS WATER GAME!!!!!

Today the children all came together and played a game on our theme of the week, which was Water. The game that was played consisted of three stations. In the first station, the children did a relay race with water balloons. They had to get the water balloon out of the bucket and run down to bust the balloon and go and tag there partner, until everyone went. The next station, the children were to write one fact they knew about water. In the last station, they were to put a puzzle together, each puzzle was a different part of the Water Cycle.

I think the children leared alot doing the game and they also had fun while doing it...And who wouldn't want to do that.

Techno' Class Makin' Music

Making music is lot of fun it's even better when is comes from recycled/reused items.
The Technology class, pictured below (from left to right: Randy, Tahjonae, Charleston, and Lewis) reused old bowls to make some really interesting music; Lewis even made a rap to go along with it. It was very funny, but goes to show just because it's old, doesn't mean it's not fun.

"I have a piggy, his name is Wiggy..." Lewis

Waste Water Pictures

Here are just a few pictures that the children took while on the field trip.

Earth Team guys got the facts...

The Waste Water Treatment plant field trip had physical challenges in addition to just “raw” information. Sorry for the pun. Our group walked around the filtering tanks and vats seeing up close how complicated this process is. We even met an employee along the walkway that wanted to know who we were and offered that employment at a waste water treatment plant was really “secure”. He also wanted us to share this information with the kids. He said it was a civil service position and a person would be able to work almost anywhere in the world.

When we sat down for lunch other employees asked about our group and seemed pleased
that our kids were studying in an environmental program this summer.

We were all surprised that the process used so many non-toxic substances.

Here’s how our guys summed it up.
Monteyvion (7 years old)….we learned about clean water and dirty water.
Joshua (8 years old)…they used a machine to help make the dirty water clean again. They also clean it with lime stones with green slime growing on top (algae). Bacteria are used in someway.
Kawame (7 years old)…I like seeing the dirty water turn clean from running it over the rocks.
Niemen (7 years old)…I saw some nasty water turned clean for us to use again. Rock filter tanks are seven ft deep. The rock came from Texas and is limestone.
Kyleon (7 years old)…..Learned that at the waste water plant most of the smelly air is circulated 6 ft underground and up through wood chips vats to remove the odor.

I think they got the picture that almost everything can be reused once you clean it up.

Shamaria's Family Meeting

This is Shamaria's mother again. I wanted to give an update. We had our first family meeting about recycling yesterday,and I was Wowed by Shamaria's knowledge of recycling. As parents we are always the ones teaching our children, and not too many times our kids are teaching us . But the tables turned yesterday, because she did all the teaching and I listened. I was so proud of her. When I asked Shamaria how does she feel about recycling she said " It makes me feel happy b/c you can help save the planet. She also said "I feel like recycling today". The meeting was about 25 minutes long. The meeting also included Shamaria's 3 year old sister Mariyah that has her own topic which was plants. Following the meeting we went outside where me and the girls plant 2 different types of flowers from some seeds I purchased a few months ago, we also used some soil that was previously in a pot of flowers that had died, so we were able to reuse the soil we already had., It was fun but extremely hot. Will let you know how that goes : )

Randy's trip to The Waste Water Treatment Plant

today I went to the water plant to learn how water is recycled ~Randy

Lewis's visit to the Waste Water Treatment Plant

The water stinks I'm surprised that our drinking water comes from this same water.
I learned the water goes through many different levels of cleaning before it is clean enough for us to actually drink. (I'm not drinking any anytime soon.) There was a foul smell it burnt my nose but I got over it. In the end I did have some fun learning how our drinking water gets clean. It was fun and I learned alot.

~Lewis

Air pollution

The last two weeks have been wonderful.These kids are really learning and are anxious to learn more. Last week recycling triggered their minds. They wanted to let the whole world know that they recycle and that recycling is something for everyone.

This week is a bit more challenging for we are learning about air. The main focus is air pollution. We are conducting experiments and taking pictures. Kwame...wow! He walked up to an apartment, greeted the people, and asked to take a picture. As we walked away the lady said, "That was cute."

I felt happy that they are not only learning the things we are teaching, but are applying them to daily life. ~Nazareth, 2nd and 3rd grade teacher

Chairs, tables, buildings, cars, airplanes, jets, boats--all these things pollute our air.
Jordan Hart

Last week we learned about recycling. We did a recycle race. You can recycle anywhere you go. Please recycle.
Hayzul Powell

Pollution before and after projects

Today the tech class did some before and after pictures of how the enivonment would look like if people continued to go about polluting the world as they currently do.

In the beginning picture we have clean water, happy people, clear (clean skies), and over all health. But in the after picture we have oil slicks everywhere, dead or dying animals, dirty water, dying plants, and dark some-filled skys that try and block out the sun.

The tech students are very creative and had some really good ideas on how the enivronment should look "before and after." With the help of Charleston Harris (CJ), Randy Chambers, and Tahjonae Williams, the teachers (Ms. Lenice, Ms. Deanna and Mr. Uchenna) have a better understanding of how they think.

The Earth Team and Our "Dust Catchers"

We are winners!

We’ve learned so much about recycling and air pollution. We’ve experimented and tried a lot of different things that have helped us understand both of these new concepts.

"We don’t put paper in the trash because it goes in the recycling bin. I’ve learned about air pollution and what dirty and clean air is." Monteyvion

"We pollute our air when we let smoke come out of our engines for a long period of time." Niemen

"Acid rain that comes from volcanoes pollute our air." Kyleon

"If a place is dirty the air can get dirty and if the whole air is dirty you could get sick and possibly die." Joshua

"I can see our recreation center from my house." Kyleon.

"We eat lunch there and its also where we play and we also hung our 'dust catchers'.”
Monteyvion, Josh, Kyleon, and Niemen

"The dust catchers catch dust and the things that pollute our air." Kyleon and Josh

"Its also used to see if our air is clean or dirty." Monteyvion

Niemen took the awesome picture of Mr. Cliff helping us hang up our dust catchers on the recreation building and Ms. Brandie took the picture of the Earth Team as we stood under our dust catcher.