Co-op in Review: May 12, 2016

Our last day of Co-op!  It's been a great year.  We have done so much together and have learned a ton!  This is also a milestone in that Tapestry of the Desert Co-op has been in existence for 8 years and has completed two complete 4-year cycles of Tapestry study.  Wow!  And, the future looks bright--both for our co-op and our students.  This week, our kids learned about the ratification of the Constitution and the presidency of George Washington.  The Rhetoric class did a Constitutional Convention simulation and played some review games.  The Dialectic class completed a news report about specific, assigned convention delegates.  The Upper Grammar class wrote letters to the President of the United States.  The Lower Grammar class wrapped up the year with a bang--making traditional colonial drums.  And, the Five in a Row class read the batty tale, Stellaluna.  They made cute tree and bat crafts.

Have a great summer, Tapestry Families!  See you all in August!

End of Unit/End of Year Celebration

On Tuesday, May 10, our co-op held it's End of Unit 4/End of the Year Celebration at Tumbleweed Park.  First, we enjoyed a Colonial feast together, eating traditional foods of the early Americans.  Afterwards, the kids shared their memory work for the quarter.  Then the kids each took a turn to tell everyone about their favorite craft, activity or thing that they learned about this unit at co-op.  It was a great night of celebrating together!  And, it's been a great year of learning and growing together!

Co-op in Review: April 28, 2016

This week, our younger kids learned about the American pioneer, hunter and woodsman, Daniel Boone.  They learned about his adventures, his settlement in Kentucky and the trail he helped blaze over the Appalachian Mountains, the Wilderness Trail.  The older kids learned about life in America under the Articles of Confederation, they read about George Washington and his life after the Revolution and they studied the events that lead up to the French Revolution.  The Rhetoric class made "aged" copies of the Declaration of Independence, with diluted coffee.  The Dialectic class made telegraph machines.  The Upper Grammar kids made musical instruments including a flute-like wind instrument and bells out of water glasses.  The Lower Grammar kids made coon-skin caps, like those the fur traders who came in contact with Daniel Boone would have worn.  The FIAR class read the book, "Ask Mr. Bear".  In this classic children's book, Danny asks all the animals for ideas for the perfect present for his mother, and finally Mr. Bear tells him that the perfect gift is a bear hug! The kids then made darling sunflower crafts!

Field Trip to Casa Grande Ruins!

We've spent so much time studying Colonial America, but what was going on in Arizona while Europeans were discovering the new world?  A lot!  And, we learned all about it when we visited the Casa Grande Ruins in Coolidge, AZ.  We saw much of an excavated ancient Hohokam settlement, learned about their way of life, farming, trade and how they protected themselves from outsiders and from the elements.  What a great time we had discovering the hidden past of the ancient Sonoran desert dwellers.

Co-op in Review: April 14, 2016

This week, our students learned about the first battles for our country's independence, the important people who were influential in fighting the Revolutionary War and they also learned about one of our country's most important documents, The Declaration of Independence.  The Rhetoric class finished up their wooden Revolutionary War soldiers.  The Dialectic class made colonial dioramas in shoeboxes.  The Upper Grammar kids made rubber band flint guns while the Lower Grammar class made model weather vanes.  The Five in a Row class celebrated the spirit of Revolution by reading the book, "Paul Revere's Ride."  They made lanterns and a colonial flag.