Kindergarten Students Learn about Community Helpers

BCS kindergarten students recently learned about community helpers as part of their social studies curriculum.

Kinder classes learned how police officers keep citizens safe by making sure everyone follows the law. The students explored the different tools police officers use in their work, drew pictures of the officers with these special tools, and wrote short pieces about police work.  In addition, students became familiar with important signs such as: “BIKE XING” and “POISON”.

The students were most excited to make police badges and hats and to attend “Kindergarten Police Academy,” where they had special police work to do - fingerprinting! As they took their own fingerprints, they practiced the names of each finger and learned that each fingerprint is unique. They also learned a fun trick to help them
remember which hand is their left and which is their right.


On a field trip to the Los Altos Fire Station, students met local firefighters, learned how they help the community, toured their living quarters, and, best of all, sat in a fire truck!  The kindergartners loved watching their teacher, Ms. Lunsford, try on 90 lbs. of firefighter gear and try to swing an ax while wearing this heavy uniform. Upon returning from the trip the students wrote letters to the firefighters, sharing their favorite part of the visit and thanking them for allowing the class to visit.


Dr. Manche, ophthalmologist and kinder dad, came to class to talk to the students about being a doctor. Dr. Manche shared a model of an eye and let students try on special 3-D glasses and look at pictures. He talked about why he wears special gear to perform surgery, and provided hair nets, masks, and goggles for the entire class.  Much to their delight, Dr. Manche also presented every student with a bouncy eyeball! The students loved having Dr. Manche as a special visitor.

Kindergarten Design Thinking Challenge: Help the Gingerbread Man Cross the River

In order to prepare BCS students for the 21st  century, Design Thinking is integrated into the core curriculum at every grade level. The Design Thinking process begins in kindergarten and even students at this young age are challenged to create solutions to real-world problems.

In December, kindergarten students were tasked with a fun holiday-themed Design Thinking challenge: Help the Gingerbread Man Cross the River.

Teachers provided students with supplies that included tinfoil, mini marshmallows, and toothpicks. Students were free to choose to work alone, with a partner, or in a group.

Most students first attempted to build a boat out of tin foil. When testing out their boats they observed whether or not the boat floated, and if the gingerbread man stayed dry. If the boat took on water the students had to decide whether to start over with a new design, or to fix the design they had already created. Some students added marshmallow floaters to their boats. They soon discovered that marshmallows, like the gingerbread man, melt in water. One innovative student suggested, “Maybe the foil can help to cover the marshmallow!”

Although in many cases the gingerbread man made it safely to the other side of the river, quite a few ended up crumbled into a wet, soggy mess. Sarah Flynn, a kindergarten teacher, said that both success and failure are important components of this lesson.

“Kindergarten students don't know how to fail,” she said. “They try an idea and if it works, great!  If not, they try another idea and they keep working at it until they finally achieve their goal. I love doing activities like this in kindergarten because the students begin to understand that making mistakes and getting the answer wrong is a part of learning.  As they continue through BCS and beyond, I want them to feel confident enough to take risks, to acknowledge failure, and to try again.”

In all, the challenge was a success and the students had a fantastic time designing, building, observing, and learning to accept both success and failure.