November is here already

Hello,

I am back from a family trip to Mexico...refreshed and relaxed. Thanks for hanging in there for me.

We have three weeks until Thanksgiving break. Conferences will officially be held that following week when we return to discuss the mid-semester progress report. There are some individual conferences that I will schedule before then to catch some folks up if I see a need with their student that should be addressed with a little more time.

Advising: We are finishing a read-aloud book today and students will begin writing their 3-page analytical essay. This will be due Friday, November 19th.

Math of Travel: Kids are continuing the simulation and should be finished will all work on Oman today, Monday the 1st.

Songwriting: Next performance on Wed. November 10th.

AD&D and RPGs: Kids have finished going through a "mini-adventure" and are set and working on creating their own module and world. This will end up being a minimum of 8 typed pages. Due day forthcoming.

Writing Workshop: Many individual due dates in class. All journals checked this week. Fiction assignments ALL finished by Thursday, November 18th.


IMPORTANT: A quick note about Fridays. We are doing them in a rotation this year that includes (every month) a service day, testing/assessment, K-12 (buddy) experience, advising activity. This week is a testing and assessment day. 7th and 8th graders will test and get practice tests in both reading and math.
6th graders = this day is OPTIONAL and we encourage your family to make other plans for the day. If they do show up, Kurt and I will have a non-academic activity for them. However, they do not need to attend (ONLY 6th graders). Other grade levels will have this same opportunity through the year as testing continues. We are striving to have the least distractions on these days and to have our best scores ever!

Lastly, INTENSIVES...

They are in January this year. We have a week "off" between semesters to have intensives i.e. workshops that run all day and are led by teachers and parents and community members. If you would like to lead a group for this activity or have any questions please let me know. It is also a time when we need drivers for activities too! Lots more on this soon.

Kirk

News Update

Service day last Friday went very well. Our next opportunity will be in November!

Please check with individual class teachers for due dates, assignments and course expectations. Mid-semester will be upon us before we know it.

FYI I will be out and have a substitute this coming Friday and the following Monday and Tuesday. Let me know if you have any questions or concerns.

Trillium has had a partnership with PSU for the last six years. Workshops on social justice and oppression theory have supported high school and middle school curriculum. Soon, we will have small workshops in middle school advising on various topics. This will blend into our Friday rotation schedule (i.e. testing/assessment, service, advising activities, K-12 experiences etc.).

Thanks to everyone who has been involved this year with driving and chaperoning events. We can't do it without you.

Lastly, if you have not paid the activity fee, please see the front desk for details and payment plan. We need you in that way too!

Kirk

Camping, rotations, and more!

Camping was amazing. The weather!

Any gear can be picked up on Tuesday. I will be working in retreat on Monday and not available to sort through left overs from camping. We had a wonderful time and will debrief in advising about how we can work better with each other, make and keep friendships, and use our core values and trust for each other to support our academic choices back at school.

We are in rotations as well in the second half of advising on Monday, Tuesday and Thursday. We are still tinkering with its format. It might be only on Monday and Tuesday this coming week, and that would leave the rest of advising time to work on projects from that "class", PLP choices, read aloud (and essay writing), assessment, and more.

We have another service project planned for the 15th of October. I will keep you posted of where folks are going.

Thanks again to all of the MS families for the campout. I also thank you again for checking with the front desk and turning in activity fees ($150) and all of the paperwork that we have on the website and in hardcopy with Ramona.

More about homework and assignments this week.

Kirk

week 2 homework

Hello. Add/drop period is over. Kids are in their classes now and the work of the semester is truly underway.

Here is what is happening in my classes at the end of week #2:

AD&D/RPGs: Students are to write the back story for the characters we created in class. This is a biographical sketch of their origin, how they gained their skills, beliefs etc. We will review these on TUESDAY, Sept. 28th.

WRITING WORKSHOP: Fiction stories have been started. I will sit with each student one-on-one and discuss the page length, writing goal, editing process, and due date for their final work. Some installment of the story must be presented at this time. DUE Tuesday, Sept. 28th.

ADVISING: We will start a read aloud book in class on Monday. Students will eventually write an analytical essay on the book with guidelines to come. Also, after our trip to Powell's, students will all have their own books to bring to school for SSR as it fits into the week. ROTATIONS begin on Monday.

MATH OF TRAVEL: We move to the next installment of our simulation in class on Monday. Students need to be done with the assignment below. We have worked on it in class all week and it was sent home with folks who were not done.

Simulation Overview: Week 1

You will be traveling in pairs around the world. In each location there will be problems and obstacles that must be solved and overcome.

• You will have a budget of $10,000 (US) as a team. This money must get you around the world. That means you must make some money along the way (most likely) unless you can somehow stretch it the whole way.

• Because this is a “simulation” it will not necessarily be exactly how travel and commerce works. For example there will be an interest rate and taxes that occur on your budget that is artificial, and this will have to be tracked in a log.

• There will be ONE new location per week to “circumnavigate” the globe and everyone starts in Portland. The first destination is London, England.

This week students must:

Book a flight

Find a hotel for 3 nights

Find prices on 3 meals per/day

Report on England’s chief import and export

What is their deficit and what is their GNP?

Purchase the means to travel to the next destination (TBA)

Hypothetically invest or accrue money while in London (to be discussed)

Balance budget at end of week (including all expenses, exchange rates, interest and investments)

NOTE: When the team finishes these tasks their next destination will be announced. A team cannot move forward until they accomplish these goals (which change in each location, as does what the students can do in each location). As the simulation progresses, more choices can be made in the travel arrangements.

Add/drop, Friday and more...

This week is the last week (by Thursday the 23rd actually) to add or drop a class for your student. I am still making sure that the right math class is in the mix, and that they have writing in there. I will send a new and final schedule to everyone by the end of the week.

This Friday we are going on an excursion to Powell's Books. This is a great trip! Every student can get something (through the activity fee and my classroom budget). This will be a book they can bring to school and eventually use a project book for class (i.e. book report, essay, reflection paper etc.). We also get to practice being in the world as a respectful group and have a day being surrounded by and talking about literature. I will not use the budget to buy snacks or toys at Powell's, but if you would like to send your child with something extra there is a coffee shop on the premises. I am sorry I cannot extend the money past book buying...

School Paperwork: IF you have not turned in the "home visit" paperwork, we need it. This includes the field trip permission form, activity fee payment ($135), free/reduced lunch application (if necessary), and more. If you did not get these in the mail, they are available ONLINE on our website at www.trilliumcharterschool.org under "home visit packet".

P.S. Thanks to everyone who helped out last Friday on our first service trip. It had some kinks, but with your flexibility it went VERY smoothly and was quite rewarding.

Kirk

By the way...

I thought that I would include the Bill of Rights of our school (from the Trillium Constitution available on our website). I talk about this quite a bit and it, along with the core values detailed on the advising syllabus, is the driving force of how we are expected to interact at school.

Article VII. Bill of Rights and Responsibilities

1. All members have the right to pursue their curiosities, interests, and passions with the responsibility to demonstrate what they have learned.
2. All members have the right to learn and teach in a way that works best for them with the responsibility to learn and teach in a way that is safe, non-disruptive and productive.
3. All members have the right to have their body, space, beliefs, property and feelings respected with the responsibility to respect the body, space, beliefs, property and feelings of others.
4. All members have the right to speak freely with the responsibility to speak without harming others.
5. All members have the right to be listened to with the responsibility to listen to others.
6. All members have the right to have a turn with community items with the responsibility to share community items with others.

homework

Please note that this is the add/drop time still. Classes will begin to be working on material and potentially have some take home assignments. Math and foreign language are good things to ask your student about. Here are a few small things to work on for my classes.

Advising: students need to be thinking of what their PLP activities and goals will be in this class (personal learning plan). On Monday they can begin work on what we discuss one-on-one

Writing Workshop: taking notes, please watch approximately 20 commercials on television or via the computer. Write down how each one relates to your 5 senses (taste, touch, smell, sight, hearing). This material will be processed in class on Tuesday.

Math of Travel: Finish the worksheet below (if possible). I know that it might be something that your student has never seen before and we have been and will continue to go over it in class. NOTE: this is not a "math" class but it is important in the simulation we will be doing.


Mental Math in Percent Problems (for Math of Travel)

1. Find mentally. Find first 10% or 1% of the number to help. Subtraction helps too.
2. Round the numbers and estimate the percentages.
4. Use your ability to mentally calculate 10% and 1% of number, and your ability to round numbers,
and solve these percent problems mentally. In each problem, an approximate answer is enough.

a. 10% of 250
30% of 250
b. 1% of 320
7% of 320
c. 10% of $11
60% of $11
d. 1% of $1,500
6% of $1,500
e. 25% of $48
75% of $48
f. 4% of 90
12% of 90
g. 20% of $4.50
80% of $4.50
h. 5% of 62
95% of 62

a. 7 people out of the 99 visitors bought a gift.
→ About ___% of the visitors bought of a gift.
b. 63 out of 241 women preferred store A.
→ About ___% of the women preferred store A.

3. Estimate the success percents by rounding some of the
numbers.
Name Tries Baskets Success percent
Jack 26 12
Dick 31 20
Dave 19 14
Matt 49 35

a. In group 1, 19 out of 120 mice got the disease, and in group 2, 22 out of 106 mice got the
disease. About how many percent of mice got the disease in each group?
b. A $37.90 jacket is on 20% discount. About how much is the discounted price?
c. Jack pays 21.5% of his $1,850 salary as taxes. About how much is left for him?
d. The now $157 house rent will increase by 7%. About how much is the new rent?
e. A $497 laptop is on 15% discount, and a $455 laptop is on 10% discount. Which is cheaper?
f. If you give $4 off of a $13 item, and $7 off of a $20 item, about how much are the discount
percents?

Some Syllabi

Here are the syllabi for my classes. Due dates and more specific assignment details will be added as they are necessary, but the "basics" are here. Thanks.

AD&D and RPGs

Syllabus Fall 2010

TCS - Kirk Ellis

kirk@trilliumcharterschool.org

Overview:

This class is designed for very motivated middle school students who can work independently and well with peers, and for high school students looking for language arts and elective credit. MUST BE ABLE TO WORK COOPERATIVELY IN GROUPS. Using various role-playing systems, particularly the Advanced Dungeons and Dragons fantasy RPG, students will create and participate in games. While the instructor will utilize and teach through the 1^st edition rulebooks and discuss the history of this style of game, other versions may be used and other RPGs introduced.

Small workshops on game design and world creation will be provided. Materials for the process will be partially provided, but students will have to seek out the necessary materials for making campaigns, modules, worlds, characters, biographies, monsters, NPCs, etc.

There will be lectures, guest speakers, alumni participation, some field trips, character generation and play, and final presentation of work to small groups. Because the class will most likely be full, sharing of space and materials will be essential.

Grading:

Everyone plays. Everyone creates a character. Everyone learns the rules and how to create and “run” (or Dungeon Master) a game.

This can be VERY complex and takes years, not weeks, to do well. Participation and respectful effort according to the Constitution and core values of the program are a large part of the grade (30%). This includes attendance.

A module (prescribed adventure) for a campaign must be created. The format and examples will be discussed separately with an accompanying due date, but it will be 40% of the grade. It will be original, written through multiple drafts and typed. Look for this to be a minimum of 8 pages.

NOTE:

Supplies like dice, figurines, rulebooks, graph paper, paint and brushes, modules and more can be expensive. Please be careful when and if you borrow materials. There was a $15 fee in the catalog for this class. A trip to Guardian Games and/or Powell’s books can be arranged to get what you need to game or create. Some of this is provided and a “shopping list” can also be generated for the class. Regardless, respect for the game is essential.

Math of Travel

Syllabus Fall 2010-2011

TCS – Kirk Ellis

kirk@trilliumcharterschool.org

Overview:

This class is designed for the students to understand the significance and challenges, the complexities and rewards, and the skills and knowledge that are all involved in world travel. The “travel” in this class is virtual and simulated. Students work in small groups in a Storyline-type format to move from place to place in the world, studying the commerce and trade, the economics, and the customs/traditions and history of each area.

There is one essential skill that is focused upon; the daily use of mathematics in our lives.

Through a teacher-designed model called “theory of knowledge” (see separate handout), we will come to know each part of the globe (in terms of the simulation) and the math that happens around getting there and its livelihood. It is an adventure of discovery and applied skills, integrating the academic work of school into what will come next in the “real world”. Essential questions in the class are:

• How to we know and form knowledge around places and people?
• How is mental and practical math used outside of the classroom?
• Who (or what) travels? How? Why?
• What do we do with the skills we possess?

Grading:

40% - There will be daily mini-lessons/lectures by the instructor to open each class. This will help create the assignments for the week and focus the simulation. PARTICIPATION is essential as the class is mainly group work, so your grade is partially based on being involved in the activities. NOTE: This participation grade is bound too in the language of the middle school core values (see separate handout) and will be part of the assessment for the class.

40% - Problem-solving activities happen each day. Students’ progress and “move” around the world only when each set of questions and challenges are finished. Worksheets and inquiries are presented to individuals in some cases and to the whole group or team in other cases. Completing these activities and working in collaboration is also part of the grade.

20% - There will be exams. These will focus on the information that the teacher presents and will have a study guide for the material provided ahead of time.

DUE DATES: These are flexible and organically generated in class. They will be announced ahead of time, posted on my blog, and handed out to the students.

Songwriting

Syllabus Fall 2010 – 2011

TCS – Kirk Ellis

kirk@trilliumcharterschool.org

Overview:

Students study music in this class. Instruction is provided in guitar and voice, however self-led learning is the key to success. Students are expected to pursue an instrument of choice (not only guitar), study and rehearse, and ultimately perform live.

Cover songs and original music are both encouraged and required; that is out of the four performances in the term one at least has to be an original song. Students may work individually or in groups (group work being far more difficult and unpredictable). Due dates are known ahead of time and everyone is expected to perform for each round of due dates.

In addition to rehearsal and performance there will be some mini-lessons on the process of songwriting and some instructor-led activities that all students are expected to participate in (and is part of the participation grade). This will also include maintenance of the Hut and classroom and caretaking of the musical instruments (whether “you used them or not”).

Grading:

Participation is essential. While it is officially 40% of the grade, it is infused into the whole structure of the class. There should be no “down time” in this class and students can and need to be immersed in their music for each class. The core values of both the middle and high school programs will apply to your grade.

Being a respectful audience is expected. It is difficult to perform for peers. No unkindness or perceived unkindness will be tolerated and such behaviors can effect your grade. This is a supportive, “laboratory” experience and trust is required.

Each performance is worth 15% of your grade (X 4 = 60%). Feedback about how each exhibition went will be provided one-on-one.

Performance Dates (subject to change):

Wednesday, October 13^th

Wednesday, November 3^rd

Wednesday, December 8^th

Wednesday, January 26^th

Writing Workshop

Syllabus Fall 2010-2011

TCS – Kirk Ellis

kirk@trilliumcharterschool.org

Overview:

This class is designed to provide a workspace for students to practice all styles and genres of writing. We will share our work and progress individually. The students have a teacher-provided menu of choices to guide them and due dates are determined both through one-on-one conferences and as the whole class finishes a prompt or group assignment.

A writing journal is essential. Students free write every day when they walk in the door. Often a mini-lesson will follow, examples of professional work will be provided, and then the class can work on their own projects.

Fiction, poetry, memoir, expository writing and more will be expected and encouraged. Again the goal of the class is for co-created curriculum to have space and time to grow.

Participation is required and is a significant portion of the grade. On-task and respectful behavior according to the constitution and core values is expected, especially when work is shared.

Also, this class provides an opportunity for work samples to be collected and for students to practice the type of writing they will see on state tests and college applications.

Grading:

Students will be graded on the following categories:

Participation = 20 points

Writing journal = 15 points

Prompts and in-class assignments = 20 points

Final projects = (3 @ 15 points each)

TOTAL: 100 points

The final projects are polished writing pieces of various lengths and genres that the student arranges with the instructor. They must be turned in TYPED AND EDITED, and on the agreed upon due date without extensions.

Advising Syllabus

Middle-School Program

Fall 2010-2011

Advising is a block class that has distinct sections. It meets Monday through Thursday from 8:30 to 10:30 and Friday from 8:30 – 12:00. This syllabus provides a description of our assessment goals and philosophy so that students and their families can see that time must be spent with thoughtfulness and respectful engagement.

There is rarely, if ever, a time when a student has nothing to do. All of the below listed items are happening each week.

• On-time to class/announcements/Morning Gathering
• Independent Projects
• Exploring Interests
• Current events/ class discussions
• Buddies and/or K-12 experiences
• MS meeting (Wednesday mornings)
• Class meeting/duties/All-School Meeting
• Rotations and workshops with other advisors

• Fairs and exhibitions
• Choices and curriculum designed by students (PLP)
• Projects worked on in-class
• Study Hall

• Service
• Lit. Circle
• Read Aloud
• Literacy

NOTE: Advising is a community class that centers on the Trillium Constitution. The Rights and Responsibility section is of vital importance for the students and their families to understand.

Fridays carry with them a separate curriculum that includes some of the elements listed above: testing/assessment (including work samples), service, K-12 experiences, advising-centered activities and more.

Mid-semester and end-of-semester grading reports are generated. Parent conferences are scheduled in the fall. Grading is based on the following:

CORE VALUES

This year students will be assessed with the rubric below and in the following categories. There will be a narrative attached to their grade that explains why they received the assessment.

Scale:

Not Applicable (i.e. not enough information to form an assessment)

Always

Often

Sometimes

Rarely

Independent Learning: Pursuing interests and passions through realizing the intrinsic and extrinsic rewards of putting forth effort to achieve personal goals and to develop and demonstrate expertise.

Individual Responsibility: Using good judgment and being accountable for your actions towards yourself, others and the community.

Self Discovery: Exploring and building on one's personal strengths and being willing to take positive risks to that end.

Togetherness: Celebrating diversity and understanding that we when support each other we are most successful.

Active Participation: Having the opportunity, motivation, knowledge and ability to actively participate and contribute to the community.

Play: Appreciating and be able to interact and learn through empathetic play and fun.

Contact Us

nina@trilliumcharterschool.org

amy@trilliumcharterschool.org

kurt@trilliumcharterschool.org

kirk@trilliumcharterschool.org

You can also find our blogs and wiki page through the school website: www.trilliumcharterschool.org

Wish List

As we are not the most "flush" school in the cash and resource department, I thought that I would put together a list of commonly used items (and some things that we would all like to have around):

lots of pencils (Dixon Ticonderoga #2 are best)
$$ for book sets or trip to book store
lined paper (college ruled)
blank white computer paper
crayola markers
Sharpies (assorted colors)
glue sticks
scissors
spiral notebooks
pocket folders
composition books
pens (black)
Expo dry erase markers
Acoustic and electric guitar strings
drum sticks
picks
guitar cables
bass strings
$$ for drum heads

Thanks! I am trying to raise funds this year as well for a small PA that can live in the Hut...

More by the end of the week.

Kirk

Monday is almost here!

Please look to this site for class syllabi and advising announcements. There will also be due dates and important calendar updates. I will do my best to post weekly. If you have any questions feel free to email me.

Get plenty of rest...

loft...

Almost done!

Today I hope to finish a large and lovely loft in my classroom. I have had the amazing help of Alfred Marquez (Andrea's dad).

It will give a new space in the room for art, research, reading, and quiet contemplation. Thanks Alfred (and Mitchell Fischer too for helping out).

Home visits will be early in September, but if you are a returning student you will be invited to the school to meet. We can see the changes in the class and talk about the amazing new year.

More soon...

summer and change

Hello.

Summer is a great time (for those of us on a school schedule) to re-evaluate and look inward instead of outward. It is a time of revision and growth. The fall at Trillium will see many changes and many wonderful new classes and teachers.

To prepare I have been immersing myself in a physical practice of yoga again. I used to teach hatha yoga and then let it slip away in favor, I suppose, of a richer inner contemplative practice of Surat Shabda Yoga - a bhakti path. However, now I see that there is a balance to be struck between the two, and this will certainly inform my teaching; classes like AD&D/RPGs, Don Quixote, Graphic Novels & Pulp, Writing Workshop, The Math of Travel, Sound & Music, and more...

Please refer to this blog for updated class info, syllabi and announcements.

I am also hoping to complete the construction of a library loft in my classroom this July!

More soon,
Kirk

The New Year and Some Upcoming Assignments

Happy New Year!

And a new decade...with my best wishes to all families and the community of Trillium. I hope that we can greet these times, this now, and this year with patience, love, kindness, and listening.

Having said that, we are also deep in the work of the first semester and on home stretch for the term. The last day of the semester is Friday, January 29th. We will have a four-day weekend after that for professional in-service to finish grading and the new class rosters for second term. That is, students will have all new classes and their final report card will be issued shortly thereafter.

Here are some significant dates and information for the end of first semester:

Tolkien Class:
3 more Monday quizzes
5-page final essay due on Thursday, January 21st
writing journal/log due Wednesday, January 20th

Advising:
3-page analytical essay on literature (book choice) due Thursday, January 7th
Debate Rotation final work due and debates begin on Thursday, January 14th
Final Project Work(s) and PLP material due throughout January (TBA) and exhibition on January 29th

Making Meaning:
Two more guest speakers (Thursdays)
Final Work and personal practice reflections due Thursday, January 21st

Drama:
All original scenes begin performances on Wednesday, January 20th

Musicianship:
Final performances on Thursday, January 21st
Group Jam session Tuesday, January 27th
CD booklet & "liner notes" (TBA) due on Thursday, January 29th

MS Writing Workshop:
All MENU items due Wednesday, January 20th
Writing Journal (with daily prompts and free writes) due Monday, January 25th
"Publishing Piece" selected and finalized by Wednesday, January 27th