IB History of the Americas & project-based learning

This week, students in MPI social studies teacher Raleigh Werberger's IB History of the Americas class presented final projects to their peers as well as teachers and staff.

Click to view a project photo gallery!

The course project was a survey of modern racial and gender inequalities in the US, and the connections to the origins and goals of the Civil Rights Movement of the 50s and 60s, which they studied as they constructed their exhibits.

Spellbound by Taiko Drums

Mid-Pacific's 5th grade and Middle School (grade 6-8) students were treated to a performance by renowned Taiko Master, Kenny Endo and members of his school, Taiko Center of the Pacific. The audience of 500 students and staff were spellbound as Master Endo taught mini lessons on the history of Taiko and demonstrated how different musical sounds and tones are performed on the various instruments they play.

Click here to view a Taiko photo gallery

Two MPI students, 5th grader Kelcie Yamashita and 8th grader Brock Asato are students of Mr. Endo and performed with them. Brock was instrumental in getting Mr. Endo here. Two student volunteers from each of the four grade levels were called on stage and taught a lesson on drumming as a hands on demonstration. One student voiced her appreciation for many when she said, "that was the best assembly ever!"

Empowering our children to take action

As much as we try to protect our children from the ills of the world, it's inevitable that these prevailing conditions seep into the invisible walls that we build to protect our children's innocence. The barrage of media has become part of the environment. You've seen it. The TV monitors in fast-food restaurants tuned to CNN where the good, bad, and ugly of news is reported daily. Listening to a radio station on your commute to and from school, where the news is not reported but editorialized. Even here at MPI, the teachers order a copy of the daily newspaper for their classrooms so that students can understand current events. Some people mistakenly believe that since young children aren't capable of comprehending the complexity of these local and global issues, there's no harm done if children are exposed to a media-infused environment. The point is that children are impressionable and much smarter than we think, and as parents and teachers in their lives, one of our most important responsibilities is to help them make sense of the world in which they live. Allowing children to take action in some way -- by providing aid, raising awareness, or becoming advocates -- helps them experience some control over the conditions that simply are in the world and part of the human condition. An illustration: