In our fifth grade Spanish class, students explored the origin of chocolate in Aztec culture, with Mexico as our featured country. The core vocabulary, including "Es (is), le gusta (likes), prefiere (prefers), and dice (says)," provided the foundation for our learning journey.
By: Lianna Kali, Director of Instructional Innovation
The ChangeMaker Lab is a space that responds to our curriculum and student learning needs, which means the projects can vary wildly day to day. We might go from bookbinding in the morning to making self-watering planters in the afternoon. But sometimes a connecting theme will organically pop up between grades, which happened recently around how we can use the ChangeMaker Lab to explore the topic of cities.
Live Oak’s annual Gratitude Graffiti Project invites all members of our school community to reflect and share their appreciations, their feelings, their hopes, and their wishes. It instills a spirit of mindfulness, connection, and care in our community that extends beyond the project’s timeline to infuse these values in our school all year long.
Start your holiday shopping early and get your loved ones new Live Oak Lightning merch! Don't forget to get something for yourself too :) Pre-orders will be available for pickup when you stop by the Book Fest.
This Fall Live Oak is again featuring a series of Community Assemblies that give voice to our students' and staff's traditions and celebrations around their cultural holidays.
The Fall sports season has come to a very successful close and we want to congratulate all our middle school student-athletes and coaches who gave it their all this season. Read about the final results from the volleyball and cross country teams.
Johnny and the Book Fest Gnomes have been working tirelessly to plan a fun and exciting event. Details about author visits and pre-orders will be coming soon, but we wanted to share a few exciting new happenings for this year.
Bringing the Past and Future Together in a Journey of Memories and Goals
Edward Lee, Sixth Grade Math Teacher
Sixth grade students recently wrapped up their Timeline Math project, designed to strengthen their math skills, encourage reflection on their past experiences, and inspire goal-setting for the future.
Want to get rid of out-grown sports clothing/gear and Live Oak branded fits? Want to pick up some "new" sports clothing/gear and Live Oak branded fits? You're in luck; the Live Oak Gear Swap is back!
How Our World Has Changed: Putting the Clues Together
Rebecca Mallabone and Lesley Miyagawa, Third Grade East Teachers
How do scientists know so much? Why do scientists keep notebooks? How can I learn more about what the world was like thousands of years ago? These are all questions third graders get to explore by sketching observations, imagining experiments, recording data and writing down their thoughts in their science notebooks.
Contact Information for Grandparents and Special Friends
At Live Oak School, the grandparents and special friends of our students are warmly welcomed and appreciated in our school community. We want to be sure invitations to special assemblies, Grandparents and Special Friends events, and other important notifications are sent to the correct address. Please submit updated contact information for grandparents and special friends. If your grandparents' and special friends' information has changed, please resubmit this form. Reach out to the Advancement Office with any questions, advancement@liveoaksf.org.
The Live cross country team participated in their third race of the season this past Monday at the Polo Field and Hellman Hollow in Golden Gate Park. After a couple more weeks of training, the Live Oak runners impressed by placing first in the team standings in both the 5th/6th and 7th/8th boys and girls divisions for the first time in school history.
The Live Oak Math Department has put together another great series of math enrichment opportunities. Math enrichment ranges from challenging, competitive programs to more review-based skill development. Whatever your student's skills or interest level, there are ways to continue enhancing their love for math.
Join the Friends of Jackson Park, Fletcher Studio landscape architects, neighbors and community friends to help design the future playspaces of Jackson Park! Want a curvy slide? What would the ‘longest monkey bar run on the planet’ look like? Stop by and work with them on Saturday, November 11 from 10am to 12pm at the Jackson Park Clubhouse on the corner of Mariposa and Arkansas.
Live Oak recently honored two Student-Athletes of the Month to recognize their hard work and leadership skills in the classroom and in athletics. Seventh grader Coleman P. and eighth grader Kyelle G. were recognized this Fall.
Looking at Ourselves, Establishing Community, and Creating Connections
Sharyne Beza and Mallory Faldt, First Grade East Teachers
The beginning of the school year brings about so much excitement for first graders. They find their classrooms, meet their teachers, and connect with friends, new and old. The start of the school year also ushered in the first unit of study for 1 East: Friendship and Communities. This unit of study guides students to learn about the circles of community around them.
Inferences, Hypotheses, and Guesses About the Eclipse
Londynn Young and Lisa Duque, Fifth Grade East Teachers
Fifth graders have been learning some foundational scientific skills while using the upcoming solar spectacle to learn a bit about eclipses. That’s because there are TWO eclipses happening this school year, and we want to be ready to observe and understand them.
With the new year underway, we are eager to continue building our Family Affinity Networks with more opportunities to gather, connect, and celebrate shared culture. The school supports Family Affinity Networks in an effort to help all Live Oak families feel represented and celebrated in the life of the school. These networks help to deepen belonging by giving groups who have not historically been served by independent schools time to connect over their common experiences at Live Oak and in the world at large.
Sixth and seventh graders recently spent a few days in Pinnacles National Park and Yosemite National Park, respectively. Their outdoor education experience helped give them make first-hand connections with the natural world, while also building important social relationships with their teachers and peers.
Bitter: How is Change Navigated and Shaped Toward Justice?
Renata Martin & Rob Wasielewski, Eighth Grade Humanities Teachers
Eighth grade humanities students just finished their first unit in which we set out to answer our primary year-long throughline: How is change navigated and shaped toward justice? Akwaeke Emezi’s Bitter “explores both the importance and cost of social revolution–and how youth lead the way.”
Lightning Volleyball and Cross Country Starting Strong
Three of the four Live Oak middle school volleyball teams have officially started their seasons, while the cross country squad raced in its second competition of the year at McLaren Park this past week.
SPEAK Event: Rupture & Repair: How to Reconnect After Conflict
Throughout the year, Live Oak partners with other independent schools and organizations to offer valuable parent enrichment opportunities that are open to the public. Coming up November 1, SPEAK is putting on an event titled, "Rupture & Repair: How to Reconnect After Conflict" featuring Dr. Jean Clinton and Lisa Rothman.
This year's middle school fall play, Fairytale Sketchfest, will run on October 27 and 29. Performances are open to the public and are a great way to see the creativity and hard work of Live Oak's middle school actors and stage crew come together.
Culture, Food, Music, and More at Around the Live Oak World
The Live Oak community enjoyed a beautiful afternoon on the rooftop this past Sunday, celebrating one another’s cultures through food, music, dancing, art, and more. We saw a wonderful turnout and felt the collective joy throughout the afternoon. Thank you to all the families who attended and contributed food and activities to make it another great Around the Live Oak World event!
Live Oak's Groves met for the first time this past week, giving returning Grove members a chance to reconnect with friends across grade levels, while welcoming in new members of the Live Oak community.
Kendall Jones and Audrey Soriano, Kindergarten South
“Play is work!” is an important mantra in kindergarten at Live Oak. Our youngest students dive into meaningful constructivist play from their very first day of school. Through meaningful and structured play experiences, kids are learning and acquiring foundational skills needed to prepare them for more challenging academic work, school activities, and life experiences.
We are seeking nominations for the annual Changemaker Awards, honoring Live Oak graduates who model empathy and responsibility, demonstrate the capacity to create change in the community, and inspire action in others. The Alumni Changemaker Award recognizes alums who are at least 25 years old, while the Young Alumni Changemaker Award is open to junior and senior high school students. Self-nominations are accepted. All nominations are due Tuesday, October 31, 2023.
October Holiday Care will be offered on October 9, 12, and 13. If you are interested in Holiday Care services, you must register online via the Extended Care resource tile in the Portal. The cost is $100 a day; please note that charges are adjusted for those participating in the Adjusted Tuition Program.
The fall sports season has officially begun and the Live Oak Lightning middle school cross country runners and volleyball players enjoyed a successful opening to the 2023 campaign. Read more about each team's first competitions and stay tuned for more sports updates throughout the season.
During our first writing workshop of second grade, we asked the question, “Why do writers write?” To begin this activity, we introduced the thinking routine, See, Think, Wonder. Thinking routines were developed out of Harvard’s Project Zero, where Jen went for professional development this summer.
Each year, Live Oak administrators and resource specialists host Roundtable conversations at the school. Parents/guardians and Live Oak staff discuss the developmental characteristics of children at a particular age and stage as they relate to the Live Oak academic program.
One of the core values at Live Oak is knowing students well; that means everyone is able to bring all of themselves, their history, and their identity into our community. In honor of this value, the Parent & Guardian Association and the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee invite you to our third annual Around the Live Oak World, an all-school event in appreciation of the rich cultures and family traditions at our school.
With the new school year underway, Affinity Groves will begin meeting, offering inclusive spaces for students to find community, learn about themselves and others, and engage in meaningful conversations and activities around identity.
The whole school gathered on the court at Jackson Park this past Friday to formally welcome the newest kindergarten members of our community in the Sunflower Assembly!
Our Extended Care staff play an important role in engaging our students in a full day of work, play, and creativity. Even though you may not always see these dedicated educators before or after school, we want to introduce the Extended Care team, including three new members to the team this fall. Read more about them below and say hi to them if you see them around campus before or after school!
This fall we welcome a group of new faculty and staff members to the Live Oak community. We are excited to have this group of talented, passionate, and committed educators join our staff!
When children enter the Extended Care afterschool program, a whole other world of imagination and growth opens up to them. Through experiential learning opportunities and consistent care, students explore and thrive in a supportive and fun setting.
Welcome to a new school year at Live Oak! We hope you are as excited to start the year as we are to have you joining our community this fall. The information found on this page is intended to reinforce and supplement that which you received via email over the last few months.
Live Oak School is pleased to welcome Maurice “Mo” Hill, Jr. as the Director of Enrollment Management and Admissions. Maurice brings over a decade of innovative independent school and higher education admissions experience with a demonstrated commitment to expanding equity in the admissions process and leveraging community partnerships to increase access for all students.
Students, families, and staff packed their sleeping bags, loaded up their gear, and set out for YMCA Camp Jones Gulch to enjoy three days of outdoors, new activities, and community time.
Audrey Soriano and Kendall Jones, Kindergarten South Teachers
The Gold Rush Unit is the final curricular theme each year in kindergarten, marking the end of an exciting year of learning and growth for Live Oak’s youngest students. This unit of study allows kindergartners to practice and refine many skills from the school year including reading, writing, drawing, and asking big questions as they learn why people came from all over the world to California in the 1800s.
The Live Oak athletics season came to a close this spring with a lot to be proud of. Highlighting the accomplishments was the seventh grade boys JV futsal team, which won the championship with a 3-1 victory over CAIS. The team title capped a perfect season for the JV boys as they finished 8-0 for the year.
A Warm Live Oak Welcome to Grandparents & Special Friends
The hallways and classrooms were filled with new guests and our students were filled with joy as they got to share their school with the most important people in their lives on Grandparents & Special Friends Day.
In the ChangeMaker Lab we believe in using real tools for problem solving and building. From the earliest visits in kindergarten, students have the opportunity to practice their skills as designers, then use tools to make those ideas into a reality.
By: Renata Martin and Neil Cashman, Middle School Science Teachers
Sixth grade science students just wrapped up their study of interdependence through the lenses of population ecology, community ecology, and ecosystem dynamics.
By: Rob Wasielewski, Eighth Grade Humanities Teacher
Eighth grade humanities students recently started their study of Reconstruction, the twelve year period following the end of the American Civil War. This is a critically important—and often overlooked—period of American history, in which, according to Adam Sanchez in his When Black Lives Mattered essay, “the impossible suddenly became possible.”
Family Service Night brought Live Oak’s families together to serve as a community. The evening proved to be a resounding success, helping to support Live Oak’s community partners in numerous ways.
By: Sydney McGhie and Kelley Plasterer, Fourth Grade East Teachers
Fourth grade scientists study the cyclical nature of our natural world. Our big question of the year for science is: How can we make sense of problems in order to design multiple solutions? During our life cycles unit, students build ecosystem models and study how energy makes it from the sun, to our food, to us, and then back into the soil to start life over again.
Live Oak Basketball Teams Leave it All on the Court
The JV girls basketball team won the league championship, while all Live Oak's basketball student-athletes competed and showed their determination throughout the season.
Perspective Through a New Lens: Fifth Graders Dissect Cow Eyes
Savannah Hair and Lisa Duque, Fifth Grade East Teachers
Fifth graders visited the Exploratorium to dissect cow eyes, learning about the anatomy and mechanics that enable vision, while exploring their broader throughline: How does exploring multiple perspectives help me understand and shape my world?
Live Oak students, families, and staff got cozy with a good book and their comfy clothes during our 20th Drop Everything And Read Day as part of our week-long literary celebration, Book Fest.
Live Oak School welcomes and admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin, citizenship status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and faith to all the rights, privileges, programs and activities of Live Oak School. Live Oak School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin, citizenship status, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, and faith in administration of its educational policies and programs, admissions policies, Adjusted Tuition program, and athletic and other school-administered programs.