A Message from the Principal

Dear Parents, Guardians and Care Givers,

Our school will be hosting its Twelfth Annual Constructivism in Action Institute this Thursday and Friday, March 5th and 6th. The teachers have planned what promises to be a very dynamic and meaningful two-day experience for other educators. The institute features focused classroom observations, discussions on curriculum and school organization, and teacher-led workshops on various topics, such as, thematic teaching, the integrated curriculum and the use of technology. We have 100 educators from all over Los Angeles registered for this event! The Institute is a two-day learning experience for educators that takes place during the regular school day, while Open School teachers, children parents and staff are engaged in the usual teaching-learning process.

The Institute is designed for participants to learn more about Constructivism and about the many components that make a school successful, such as, the integration of technology with the curriculum, thematic teaching, open-structured and child-centered education, team teaching, multi-age groupings and collaborative governance. This is our way to share with others what we do as a Charter school. It is also a hands-on way for participants to engage in a dialogue with colleagues about best practices in education.

Sincerely, Robert

Open Charter Students show "Character Counts"

Four Open Charter students were awarded with the AYSO's Region 7 "Character Counts All-Star" award in a November 2008 ceremony.

These students were selected based upon six principals, which include trustworthiness, responsibility, respect, fairness, caring and citizenship in addition to their strong commitment to their team. The coaches of each team nominate two players to receive this honor. Many proud parents, siblings and fellow players gathered at the Playa Vista venue to support their young athletes.

A Note to Parents

In March 2009, specially trained personnel will return to our school to check on the condition of any asbestos containing building material.  A copy of the inspector’s written report will be included in our asbestos management plan, which is available in the main office.

Albertsons Preferred Savings card Members

As you know we have been earning "Easy Free Money" for our school through the Albertsons Community Partners Program. We NEED your help to continue earning funds. As of Feb 28, 2009 even if you have linked your Preferred Savings Card to our organization in the past, you MUST re-link your card number in order for us to continue to earn funds from Albertsons. The process only takes three simple steps.

A whale of a Tale

by Brian Koester

Since Silver Cluster is taking a close look at migrating animals this year, the teachers were very excited to learn that the beloved Cabrillo Marine Museum (an Open School destination for over 20 years) was offering affordable whale watching trips, complete with a docent who visited our classroom and taught us all about the Pacific grey whale.

Two boys ready to set sail with binoculars at the ready

On January 28th the students, teachers, and many parents embarked on a 3-hour cruise aboard the Voyager in search of the largest mammal found in Southern California—Pacific grey whales. Thankfully, unlike the Minnow ( a boat from a show called Gilligan’s Island that some adults watched back in the old days when phones had cords), we didn’t end up wrecked on a deserted, desert isle. What we did do was take a tour of the California coast on what turned out to be a beautiful day with extraordinarily calm seas.

Some dolphins entertained the kids with aerobatics

Once we arrived down at King Harbor in Redondo Beach we had to search around to find a spot to park the big bus. So we drove around for a little bit until the driver used all of his Class B driving skills to squeeze our bus into a parking lot not really designed for vehicles that big.

The Cabrillo docent talks to everyone about whale behavior using a plastic grey whale.

Once we got everyone off the bus, we posed for a picture and then walked over to the boat, boarded it, and off we went. Right out of the harbor is a large buoy that attracts sea lions. So the boat slowed down and the captain gave us a quick primer on them. One of the interesting facts about them is they like to lie in the water and raise their flippers high in the air. The captain said they weren’t waving at us but rather they regulate their body temperature that way using the sun to warm their flippers. Right after we left them, we ran into a pod of dolphins. The captain circled them while we learned about some of their behaviors.

Some of the locals catching some rays

Once the dolphins were done hanging around the boat we headed south out to the coast along the Palos Verdes peninsula in search of whales. We never saw any whales but we did see some more sea lions, pelicans, sea gulls, a lighthouse and a great view of Catalina. On the way back we learned about a shipwreck right off shore along the cliffs of Palos Verdes that sank with a boat full of grain in the 1960’s. The damage wasn’t that bad, but because the grain came into contact with the water, it expanded and ripped the boat’s hull apart. Now it’s a famous wreck for scuba divers to explore.

Recreating the scene from “Titanic”

Everybody had a great time (even though we didn’t find any Pacific grey whales) but most importantly, nobody got sick, which when you have a whole class of 1st and 2nd graders on a boat for 3 hours is a big accomplishment.