Yesterday Orange County kicked off the latest Writing to Share!

Because of the wind, it was held inside... but being confined to a smaller space really brought out how far the program has come.

What I saw: French and English teachers working collaboratively in their classrooms, moms and dad's engaging in the event, and kids being strategic about their pieces - reflecting on aesthetics and engaging their audiences.

Our community is embracing this program that we started only a year and a half ago, and our kids are excelling ... as usual.

Go us!

Writing to share is on the Los Feliz campus today and in West Valley on Thursday - do not miss it if you can help it!

Have you ever noticed a typo in a book? A menu? A Brochure? If you’ve ever picked up the info (in French) at the ranger station in The Valley of Fire National park, you may have noticed more than one or two… 

In an effort to lend a hand, one of our fourth grade classes took the time to learn a little bit about the park’s services, history, ecology and …  marketing!

With a wealth of information and a little bit of formatting our kids helped the rangers correct and improve their French brochures, and the park staff liked them so much, they’ve put the brochures to use!

Great job kids!

(West Valley) 

At this point, you know of the ways in which LILA is extending our students’ reach of understanding past the classrooms and into the realm of conscious, sustainable living, environmental appreciation and preservation, and community cooperation.

During our Semaine Sans Papier (week without paper), teachers, students, and parents were asked to be more aware of the resources our school and our lives require. Teachers were compelled to get their creative juices flowing; classroom activities utilized materials such as clay, wire and paint in lieu of the usual homework handouts and photocopies. Students left school and while visions of sustainability danced through their heads (hopefully) parents found they had a lot to talk about in regards to the resources used at home as well.

To round out the week, each class was given time to experience a little of what it takes to make one of our resources most taken for granted. With help from David and their teachers, the kids made their own paper.

By ripping up used paper into small pieces, sorting them by ‘mostly colored’ or ‘mostly white’ and then blending the pieces with water to make a paste, each class learned a simple yet invaluable process. The paste was then spread onto handmade screens to dry; a couple trips to Home Depot and a few messy kids later, teachers and students had homemade recycled paper to explore with, and they had a lot of fun making it!

The week without paper has come and gone, but it is far from forgotten. I talked to a couple of the teachers and they’ve noticed that students are still making an effort to recycle, reduce and reuse. Jose Garcia (teacher of Kindergarten) noticed that his students are remembering more and more to always use both sides of a piece of paper – one small step…

As for the recycled paper the kids made, it’s a big hit and there’s a possibility it will be making an appearance in both our upcoming writing to share and art projects to come, keep an eye out!