Briefly In Education

Fridays are Fun Days at Chabad

Chabad Jewish Center is holding Friday Fun Days for all children aged 2 to 8 at 10:30 a.m. at 30804 S. Coast Hwy. Cost is $10 per child.

Today’s class is Artful Expression with teacher Tracey, a creative art class and “Word Tree” project based on the children’s book “The Boy Who Loved Words.”

On July 24, a Shabbat workshop will be led by Perel. Knead and braid Challah bread, enjoy Shabbat arts and crafts, stories, puppets and a guitar singalong.

July 31 is Polynesian Paradise with teacher Tracey. Children can make a lei, whip up a smoothie, enjoy a summer storytime and have fun in paradise.

To attend, call (949) 499-0770 or visit www.chabadoflaguna.com.

MUZEO offers free school group tours

In an era of severe budget cuts for arts programs in public schools, the new MUZEO in Anaheim and its Foundation Board of Directors will offer free exhibition admission through Dec. 31 for school groups and classes throughout Orange County.

“Monsters & Beasts: Hairy, Scary and Fun” will run through Sept. 6, followed by “Treasures of Napoleon,” which will be open Oct. 11 through Jan. 5.

Educators can book their class field trips to the MUZEO and receive free entrance for the entire class. This offer has been made possible by a recent MUZEO fundraiser with no city or government assistance.

Call (714) 956-8936 or visit www.muzeo.org.

Eco-friendly kids plant seeds in class

Students in Cheri David’s first-grade class at El Morro Elementary School created an eco-friendly garden project as part of the school’s efforts to “go green.”

Inspired by an idea in a Scholastic News publication, in which an elementary school class in Tucson, Ariz., recycled old tires from trucks, painted them and made them a part of their school’s playground, David’s students wrote to El Morro Principal Chris Duddy, sharing ideas for a similar project.

“I love it when students get involved in the design of our school and garden,” Duddy said. “This was a win-win project. This community service project helped the earth and our school at the same time.”

David said that thanks to a tractor wheel donated by the Diggins family, room moms Brendy Michael and Christina Schineller and garden volunteer Alex Gerard, the project is well under way.

“My students were excited about the possibilities of this idea from the moment we started brainstorming,” David said. “We looked at this project as an adventure to see what we could do if all things were possible and it all started to happen at once. It is amazing what kids can accomplish given the task.

“We plan to pay it forward and have my next year’s class do the project along with the rest of the first-grade classes that expressed an interest in going green as well. Going Green at El Morro has been an extremely rewarding experience in the power of children and the inclusiveness of our community.”

ACT/SAT practice test offered July 25

An ACT/SAT practice test will be administered from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. July 25 at the Laguna Beach Library.

College-bound teens can use the opportunity to experience each ACT and SAT section, receive a detailed analysis of performance, and improve scores with Kaplan’s strategies.

A follow up parent/student workshop will also be from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. July 29.

To enroll, call (800) KAP-TEST or visit www.kaptest.com.