Palapa Society, Todos Santos

the palapa school

Student Blog: Reunion at The Beach

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Student Blog by Arias S

As students and teachers prepared to leave for Spring break, there was a general feeling of wanting to end with a big bang. So, the school threw a Beach Day including our families, not in separate groups, but in one big reunion as a school.

Ms. Olivia Grijalva, a teacher at our school said, “This was a great experience among students, teachers, and parents.” Teachers planned events and games. Students and their parents were invited to participate. All events were planned so everyone was capable of doing them.

This was both a bonding experience for everyone, as well as something The Palapa Society provided to make us, the students, feel more comfortable with our surroundings and teachers. I believe they did a great job mixing a beach day with physical activity making the day before a break memorable.

Thank you, and we hope this will continue in future years.

The Palapa School: Rotary Helps Students Win Robotics Competition

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By Ardice Farrow
 
The Palapa School Robotics Club won BEST in Innovation at the recent Regional First LEGO League Robotics Competition and was selected to participate in the National Competition on March 11 & 12 in Mexico City.
 
This is the first time club members have participated in a competition, and we are all thrilled with their creativity, hard work, and success.
To prepare for the regional LEGO competition, students were required to build and code several different robots to compete in multiple challenges. The second requirement of the competition was to “reimagine a better energy future,” identify a local energy and environmental problem, and propose an innovative solution.
 
As electricity in Baja California Sur, Mexico, is costly and production contributes to CO2 emissions, the students proposed an electrolysis plant to produce hydrogen and use it for the thermoelectric plant in La Paz, the capital city of Baja Sur. This solution would decrease CO2 emissions, reduce production costs, and make electricity cleaner and more affordable to Baja Sur.
 
The Palapa Robotics Club was made possible because of generous donations from local Todos Santos supporters, a District Grant from the Pilot Knob Rotary Club, and Texas Rotary District 5790, and support from The Denton Texas Rotary Club.
 
https://www.firstlegoleague.org/
 
As a result of pre COVID contributions from Palapa supporters, a Rotary District Grant from The Pilot Knob Rotary Group, District 5790 and the added support of members of the Denton Noon Rotary Club The Palapa School was able to launch its first Robotics Club with eight students in late 2022.

Student Projects: TV Projects

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Teacher Citlali created a fun an innovative project for the 9th grade History class. Students created cardboard television displays to illustrate the Mexican Independence of 1810.
“On September 16, 1810, Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest, launched the Mexican War of Independence with the issuing of his Grito de Dolores, or “Cry of Dolores” (Dolores referring to the town of Dolores, Mexico). The revolutionary tract called for the end of Spanish rule in Mexico, redistribution of land, and racial equality.”

Student Projects: Computer Science Projects

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The project first investigated the major components of a computer:
Processor (CPU)
Monitor
RAM
Power Source (PSU)
Hard Drive / Storage
Inputs and Outputs: Mouse, Keyboard, Camera etc.
Motherboard
Afterwards, they made a mockup of a Desktop-style computer and recorded a video explaining the process of making it or explaining some of the components.

Student Projects: Basics of Náhuatl By Perla C.M.

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During the week of January 25 – 29, 2021 our seventh grade students prepared presentations to share with their fellow classmates and present during classes.
Perla and her classmates prepared a presentation about the basics of the indigenous language of Náhuatl. It’s so amazing to share such creative and talented work by our students with you.
Nahuatl Básico

Student Projects: Drawing Dreams

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The students from the eighth grade, as a part of their Spanish class, attended a workshop called “Literary Cafe” in which they explored and developed reading and deep reflection skills. In this part of the course they read “The Old Man and the Sea” by E. Hemingway.
The activity was to focus on a scene in which the character expressed his dream while observing life in the sea. The student had to express in a drawing their own dreams to achieve, taking the example of reading and making a brief explanation of the drawing.
Drawing Dreams

SAHM and Learning About Emotions Through Art

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Throughout the Student Support Program, some activities have been carried out with the support of the SAHM Foundation Family. The previous school year has been a great challenge for the students of the The Palapa School, as well as for their families, for which social-emotional support has been provided through art-therapeutic tools in workshops that include the plastic arts and mindfulness from corporeality.

One of these workshops, facilitated by Mónica Rodríguez Cortés, aimed to provide tools for stress management in students, starting with a series of breathing and mindfulness exercises, where they identified the way in which stress and anxiety inhabit the body and the drawing was used as a tool to visualize these areas where there are body blockages. At the end, an exercise was done to mobilize that area of ​​the body and improve mood.

This workshop was aimed at both educational levels, both secondary and high school.