Photos and story provided by Janis Renninger
Special Education Teacher
Robinson Barracks Elementary School
Dinosaurs and fossils
Have you ever wanted to experience the thrill of discovery that a paleontologist feels when finding a fossil millions of years old?
The 4th and 5th grade students at Robinson Barracks Elementary School had a chance to do just that. In the local town of Ohmden, the students visited Schieferbruch Kromer. The Ralf Kromer Slate Quarry is a place where anyone can go and try their luck at finding fossils including ammonites, belemnites, and fossilized wood. There is also a chance that visitors could find a fossilized fish or parts of an ichthyosaur.
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Hammers and chisels were available for rent and the students actually got to search for their own fossil to take home. Many students were able to come with many finds of their own and they were able to put all of that they have learned recently about Earth Science and Life Science together into one trip!
Cooking with Mrs. Armstrong
Have you made a three-course lunch for your class? Well, RBES teacher Dorothy Armstrong’s third grade class did. During May, the students used math skills such as equivalent fractions, measurement and much more in a cooking unit.
For preparation, they had to learn many different things. The students had to pick recipes that they all agreed on, learn the areas of the pans so nothing would go wrong in the oven, and know how to double recipes using equivalent fractions. After that, they were ready to start shopping and cooking.
Fortunately, RBES is close to the commissary, so they were able to walk there. At the commissary, students compared how much money each ounce cost and priced out the ingredients. Returning to class, they made a list of things they needed to buy and what their parents needed to bring for the three-course lunch. On another day, the 3rd graders returned to the commissary to buy the ingredients at the commissary. It was then they realized that they’d gone over their estimated budget.
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On cooking day one, they were organized into three groups (main dish, appetizer and dessert) and made portions of their meal. The main course group made a lasagna sauce, the appetizer group made dough for the pigs-in-a-blanket, and the dessert team made batter for a cake. By the end of their time, the cake was finished, the pigs-in-a-blanket were prepped and the lasagna sauce was done.
Next, the cake was baked, the pigs-in-a-blanket were ready to be cooked, the fruit skewers were assembling and the main dish group started the lasagna. The appetizer group put the pigs-in-a-blanket in the oven. Meanwhile, the students put strawberries, blueberries, bananas and kiwi on wooden skewers. Then the main dish started layering the noodles, marinara sauce, and three cheeses. Lastly, the dessert makers sliced the cake, cut it in fourths, put the frosting on the layers and crumbled a layer of cake on its sides.
Now it was time to eat! First, the class set up a large table near the kitchen. Next, the pigs-in-a-blanket and fruit skewers were presented by the appetizers group. After that, the lasagna was served – and it was amazing! Last but not least, the Black Forest cake was served, and it was so yummy they decided to all share the recipes with each other so they can make them at home.
Once upon a time …
Recently, on a bright, sunny Wednesday, all three RBES kindergarten classes visited the magical Fairytale Gardens at Ludwigsburg Palace. The students had been reading the fairy tales in class and were excited to see all of the exhibits that connected back to the classic stories.
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For the kindergartners, there was no better way to make literacy and German cultural connections to experience reading in the real world!