THE DEANS' DEN

Band 1 (K - 2nd Grade)

The Kindergarten students had so much fun going on their first field trip to the Burbank Public Library! They had a tour, checked out books, and had lunch at the park next door As one of our kiddos said, “this was the best day ever!” In Social Justice, the students became advocacy warriors and allies They had a blast filming our How To Be An Ally commercial where they gave the Wesley community tips for being a good ally. Our youngest stars are so ready to rise up to 1st grade!

2-4-6-8 Spring in 1st grade is really great! In 1st grade, the students worked very hard to put the finishing touches on their MARPs (My Animal Research Projects) that have spanned the last few months of the school year, culminating in live presentations to family members in the classrooms and sharing poetry and song from the stage in the Social Hall This cross-curricular project ties together everything that 1st grade learns academically and socially They spend time learning about their animal’s habitat, diet, location in the world and many fun facts A very exciting research component of the project was taking their first field trip! Our 1st grade Wesley Lions went to Moorpark College’s Teaching Zoo. They had an amazing day learning about rescued, exotic animals, including Ira, the zoo’s lion! 1st grade is wild about animals and inspires others to become more aware and show they care

Did you know that gummy bears were invented in Germany?

The 2nd grade students have been learning about countries of their choice They have been working hard researching fun facts about each place such as entertainment, holidays, food, clothing, language and more The students were very proud of all of their hard work, and were excited to present their final projects to their grownups during the Spring Showcase. In math, the second grade students created blueprints of a room they’d love to have with three dimensional shapes. They then used the laptops to create a digital version on the computer Finally, the students went to the LA River with their 6th grade buddies on their first field trip They spent the day investigating the quality of the water using samples that they gathered, they learned how to filter water, used microscopes to study the water and enjoyed lunch at the river.

Band 2 (3rd & 4th Grades)

The 3rd graders have been busy wrapping up another amazing school year! In reading and writing, students explored and wrote different types of poetry using figurative language such as similes, metaphors, personification, hyperbole, idioms, etc. In addition, third grade students read different fairy tales and wrote their own fractured tales. In math, students learned the order of operations and stretched their thinking to multiply and divide larger numbers in word problems. In social studies, students made baskets, sang Chumash songs, learned about the tomol (a Chumash canoe), made a hand-eye coordination game with a ring, stick, and string, and made beaded bracelets. In creating these materials, 3rd graders learned the importance of how the Chumash used their environment to help them in their daily lives as well as what life is like for them today. The 3rd graders should be so proud of all the hard work they have done this year!

4th grade did a deep dive into the real world application of fractions through our Cooking with Fractions Project. Each student chose a recipe, sweet or savory, with at least three measurements written in fraction form. The students then had various tasks to complete using this recipe including doubling, tripling and even cutting the measurements in half. These tasks allowed students to practice adding, subtracting, multiplying and dividing using fractions.

In reading, 4th graders read the final class novel, Esperanza Rising by Pam Ryan. The exciting and suspenseful novel was read as a class with group discussions. Students practiced making predictions, discussed character internal and external traits, and plot structure through the lens of this text. The classes were thrilled to read this story and even had a hard time putting it down!

In the final unit of California History, 4th graders learned about the Gold Rush and its impact on California. They had the opportunity to go on a field trip to a reenactment town to live through the Gold Rush experience. Students mined for gold, made candles, and even tried some foods that were common during that time period.