Better out than in

They’re at it again and I couldn’t be more proud. Using my example of a week of outdoor artwork in New York, the students of Creekside High School present “Better Out Than In 2015. Bigger, bolder and usually with permission.” It is a week of public art, a new installation each day from May 26 through June 1.

 Each day a new project will appear in the community along with an explanation on the CHS website.: creeksidehs.org Participating venues include Sonoma Valley High School, Sonoma Valley Museum of Art, Sonoma Community Center, Community Café, and the Sebastiani Theatre. The town is the canvas, the brush is student creativity. 

Their goal is to make you think, which you don’t do enough of by the way. About students, about art, about issues and about yourself and how you fit into this big town and small world.

 This year’s final project is a free community movie at the Sebastiani Theatre at 7pm on June 1. Sheeehs, a free movie, how’d they pull that one off? Shouldn’t art cost something? Who do these these kids think they are? 

-Banksy

 http://www.pressdemocrat.com/news/2953927-181/activism-academics-meld-at-creekside

 

 

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Small world, big town. 

Bill Hammet, Diana and Roger Rhoten, Robin from DAAC, Gustavo from CYO, The Republic of Thrift, Soroptomists, Plein Air, Susan Herrigon-Pieper, Jamie and Rick Love, Pam Singer, Kevin McNeely, John McReynolds, Rachel Hundley, Tom Rouse, Cristin Felso, SVTS, Kathleen Hill, MC Cultiffe, Lindsey Stone, Joanne Nagel, SAY, Margie Maynard, Robert Wilson, and all the other organizations and individuals in the village who helped and supported our little school this year. Thank you. 

Because if we don’t have Bill’s van for field-trips or days at the ropes course or money to pay for GED tests, or tickets to the film festival or a chef to come and prepare artichoke pasta and kale salad in our garden, then we cannot develop, inspire and teach our students. 

“Far From Home” is a documentary about community. It is about how to support a person who is driven but needs connection. It is about overcoming obstacles and connecting to mentors who help you choose the right path. Brolin’s story is our story. 

Come see it for free at the Sebastiani Theatre Monday night at 7pm. 

 

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More Than One Way To Learn 

“The perfect school for me would be like a college campus. All the people working there would want to be there and there would be a bigger emphasis on extracurricular activities.” Gustavo

“School would be hands on, that’s how I learn best.” Austin 

“Volleyball, soccer, piano, friends, that’s what’s important to me.” Jennifer 

Zach created the best flying car in all my math classes. He based it on the Flyboard, a water propulsion system that straps to your feet and makes you fly around like Ironman.  We learn regular math stuff too but designing flying cars gets the students thinking about real life problems. Zach told me when he came to our school that his academic goal was to turn 18 and drop out. He sat in the back of classes doing little until he felt comfortable, a little more each day, working in inches, now he’s designing flying cars. 

The brain is like a big muscle. Nourish it, exercise it, keep it happy and healthy and it will grow. Every brain is different, collecting experiences, developing neurological pathways, growing, changing, and filtering. 

You should learn about your brain, start with cacareerzone.com and complete the interest profiler. Discover how you learn best, what your interests are then make a plan and go.

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SOMETIMES LESS IS MORE

For our contribution to Better Out Than In Ms. Green’s Period Six English class covered a unit on Mood and Pattern in poetry. Thursday May 28 a collection of poems expressing mood, pattern, emotion, and diversity will be displayed

at Creekside High School. A school wide POETRY SLAM gathering at the display will invite any and all to read a poem.

 

 

 

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5/2715

Why do we Memorialize?
Creekside High School students have studied many events in history, including war,
inhumanity and suffering. We looked at how and why we need to remember events in history:
we memorialize times and places and events to ensure that all humanity will remember, never
forget, and refuse to allow others to repeat such acts. As one student, Austin Schudy, stated,
“If we don’t try to remember, we will decelerate as a species, morally.”
Creekside students were asked to create a memorial to honor the memory of some specific
event, battle, person(s) or issue. They used Google Maps to place, exactly, where they
wanted their memorial to be erected. Next, they wrote a letter to the governing agency for the
intended location and asked permission to install their memorial, and why it was important to
remember their particular event, person, inhumanity or injustice. Finally, students created
some representation of a memorial they wish to install...anywhere in the world!
The following is a list of their memorials:
A wishing well for Oskar Schindler in Jerusalem Jocelyn Tinoco
A sculpture and reflecting bench for our Prisoners of War Jayro Romo
A memorial bench honoring the Medal of Honor recipients in the Bay Area Gustavo DeHaro
A wall and mural honoring Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice in Chains Cyrus Ramseyer
A memorial for “The Forgotten War,” or the Korean War Kelly Hall
A 9/11 tribute to the fallen firemen in New York City Dante Bragg
A 9/11 tribute at the Pentagon Austin Schudy
A tribute to the Soviet Army for liberating Berlin from the Nazis Raul Tapia
A tribute to those who lost their lives in Russia during Bloody Sunday in 1905 Zach Jones
A memorial for those who died in Auschwitz and Birkenau Rosa Robledo & Javier Salas
A tribute to the Chinese workers who built much of the US railroads Cassandra Chastain
A memorial to the sailors who lost their lives at Pearl Harbor Ulisses Rodriguez
A memorial in honor of young girls and boys sold into the sex trade Pedro Garcia
A tribute to lives lost in custody and a suggestion for how to move forward Jennifer Lopez
A tribute to the near extinct white rhinos Joey Forney
A special thank you to the Sonoma Community Center for allowing us to share our memorials
with the Sonoma public!
Thank you for your support,

Creekside High School Students and Staff
Shireen Ellis, History Teacher

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5/26/15

EMPATHY and HOPE

“Anger knocked on the door, Empathy answered and no one was there.”

During a four-week unit titled, “War and Conflict, why we fight.” A single word kept appearing. Whether it pertains to sociopathic behavior or the behavior of nations,  understanding  another person’s beliefs/religion/ideology makes you not want to kill them.

More Empathy=more understanding=more acceptance=less violence.

HOPE is just a reminder that each day is the first day of the rest of your life. We were going to spell POOP but HOPE seemed more inspirational.

-Banksy

 

   

Field Trip to SRJC Shone Farm and Viticulture Department 9/19/2014