Parents and Students Gave Food Some Thought at Temple Beth Sholom Schools' Family Math Night

Over 75 staff, students and their families recently attended an entertaining, interactive event illustrating the authentic application of mathematics in project-based learning at Temple Beth Sholom Schools (www.tbsschools.org), a Sarasota preschool to eighth grade private school.

On Thursday, Jan. 29, Temple Beth Sholom Schools’ (TBSS) fifth graders made Plumpy’Nut, a peanut-based paste to treat acute malnutrition, prior to the event, allowing attendees to taste a sample.

The night’s activities were tied to units of study from preschool through eighth grade. Alexus Livesey, a fourth grader at TBSS, juiced a tangerine to find out how many fluid ounces it contained while seventh graders Jenny Marcus and Rebecca Kleinberg examined nutrition and production statistics, such as how much land is dedicated for beef, dairy and poultry. Preschool student activities varied from measuring their height to promoting a balanced diet by selecting food items for their plate from the basic food groups.

“This event was a wonderful way to show our students how math relates to their everyday lives,” said Wendy Katz, interim director of Temple Beth Sholom Schools. “We are very committed to project-based learning and emphasize hands-on learning that allows the children to use all their senses and languages to learn.”

Attendees were also encouraged to bring canned goods to benefit All Faiths Food Bank. In addition to the contributions brought in by parents and students, Whole Foods Market donated 100 cans and the Lakewood Ranch Publix provided $100 worth of canned soup.

All topics covered during the evening event included:

· Mastering the Art of Measuring – The Transitional students (15 months - 2 years) will work with a tactile table with a variety of measuring utensils.

· Counting and Sorting Sweets – The Junior students (2 – 3 years) will practice one-to-one matching, counting and number recognition.

· Fractions Through Pizza – The Tweens (3 – 4 years) will focus on how to share a pizza.

· What’s on Your Plate? The Seniors (4 – 5 years) will demonstrate the proper portions of the basic food groups that make up a nutritious, balanced diet.

· S.T.E.A.M. Out Hunger – The kindergarteners will measure and build with cans of food.

· The “All American” Burger – The first and second graders will find out where did the burger originate? Is it “all American”? They will chart and graph the attendees’ favorite toppings.

· America’s Citrus Industry - Continuing their Florida studies, the third and fourth graders will measure the juice content of citrus fruit and calculate the amount needed for various containers.

· What’s Plumpy’Nut? The fifth graders will examine the ingredients of Plumpy’Nut.

· Pizza-Nomics – The sixth graders will calculate the cost of producing a pizza.

· How Does Our Garden Grow? The seventh graders will examine nutrition and production statistics from the schools’ 20-bed garden.

· 5 Steps to Feed the World: The eighth graders will demonstrate the five steps to ending world hunger, including freezing the agricultural footprint, growing more on existing farms, using resources more efficiently, shifting diets and reducing waste.

About Temple Beth Sholom Schools

Temple Beth Sholom (TBS), a Sarasota preschool to eighth grade private school, is open to all faiths and established its preschool program in 1974. TBS Schools has been in its current building located at 1050 S. Tuttle Avenue, Sarasota, Fla. since January 1988. The Justin Lee Wiesner preschool program consists of classes for baby play and children up to 4 years of age. The Goldie Feldman Academy (GFA) was founded in 1992 as an expansion of the Justin Lee Wiesner Preschool. It has continued to grow and flourish under the careful guidance of the administration, dedicated teachers, volunteer leadership, staff and the demand for excellence from its parents. At GFA, TBS Schools nurtures the whole child as one who is capable of an infinite amount of possibilities. The caring and qualified staff is committed to helping each student reach his/her full potential. The Goldie Feldman Academy at Temple Beth Sholom is the only private Jewish school in Sarasota and Manatee Counties. Justin Lee Wiesner Preschool is accredited by Florida Kindergarten Council. Goldie Feldman Academy is accredited by the Florida Kindergarten Council and the Florida Council of Independent Schools. For more information, visit www.tbsschools.org.