Learning Together San Diego

For most of the year, kids have been largely tucked away at home, behind their computer screens and in virtual boxes on Zoom. But even during this difficult time, San Diego students have continued creating. They've been making art and writing scripts; they've been practicing scales and making plays. In this episode, we speak with four impressive student artists in our district and their theatre teacher about the unique, albeit unexpected, ways we are growing during this time - not just as artists, but as people.

Patrick Henry High School Principal Listy Gillingham is retiring after 38 years of dedicated service as a teacher and principal, and she sat down with us to discuss the lessons she picked up along the way.

Join us as we discuss building a school culture that centers student voice, and what principals can do to create strong communities for their students and teachers.

Since the genesis of the Learning Together podcast, we've featured original music and performances from our students and staff at the School of Creative and Performing Arts as our soundtrack on several occasions. As this school year draws to a close, we take a look at the role of music and arts education during tumultuous times.

How does an education steeped in the arts continue to thrive, even while learning from home? How are students helping to lead the profound change we need to repair our country and our world? Take a listen as we discuss with principal Timothy Farson and SCPA students in this can't-miss episode of Learning Together.

Over the past several weeks, all of us have had to make huge shifts in the ways we learn, teach, and work from home. For those with a passion for music, this is especially true. Hear how our students have kept that passion alive in these strange times, from the perspective of these seniors from Mira Mesa High School.

Join Rebecca Bellingham as she interviews the cast of Fiddler on the Roof at Patrick Henry High School only weeks before schools shut down around the country.  Listen to their stories of putting on one of the most iconic musicals of all time and hear them sing a few numbers from the show. The students' stories of connection and transformation will move you and remind you why the arts matter, why theater matters, and why building artistic communities with kids sustains and empowers them, especially in difficult times like today.

How do we build cultures of readers in our classrooms? How can we make books as compelling as digital screens? These are the questions explored as we dive into literacy with the English instructors and students at Marshall Middle School, along with district resource teacher Dr. Haydee Zavala.

In this episode we listen with students who were invited to crowdsource poetry, and also talk with students, teachers, and administrators right before Valentine's Day to explore the idea of love. What do teachers love about their work? What does the idea of love mean to students? 

This episode of Learning Together will inspire all of us to take small actions to make positive changes in our communities, and give us hope for the new decade. Sit down with students from Hoover High School as they recall their highlights from 2019 and the dreams they hold for 2020. "These kids are passionate and driven, supportive of one another, and eager to make the world a more compassionate, equitable place," our host tells us.

Tis the season for singing! In this episode, you'll hear the voices of the San Diego High School Chamber Choir and learn more about the power of singing from Russ Sperling Director of VAPA, Laura Williams, Chorus and General Music Resource Teacher, and Kayla Rodgers, director of band and choir at San Diego High School.

In the days leading up to Thanksgiving, take a pause to think about what it means to truly express gratitude. In this episode, San Diego Unified Superintendent Cindy Marten shares the personal experiences that shaped her view of gratitude, and her daily ritual for finding beauty in the things around us. Then, listen on for the sounds of poetry and music performed by students from Grant K-8 and Marshall Middle School.

This episode visits Mira Mesa High School and takes a look at the football team- the coach and lead player but also one courageous girl who is the only female member of team-- and the band. Listen to the interview with head band director Jeanne Christenson and 3 clarinet players from the band. It starts at the homecoming football game in October and there is music throughout.

What does it mean to be curious? As educators and parents, how do we foster creative thought while balancing the necessities of formal learning? Listen in as Rebecca explores these topics with 3rd and 5th grade students from Adams Elementary, high school jazz musicians from the School of Creative and Performing Arts, and staff from De Portola MIddle, a California Distinguished School.

As September comes to an end, I hope all of you will take a moment to reflect upon a few things, maybe even 15 things (!), that you are proud of so far.  How have you nourished the beginning of your school year? How have you set your students and yourself up for a year of rigor and connection, creativity and risk taking, meaningful learning and joy? What moments are you the most proud about?  How will you continue to nourish your learning and your students’ learning throughout the year?

Today you’ll hear from principals and teachers in elementary, middle, and high schools across our district.  Most importantly, you’ll hear from the students themselves-- their words, their poems, and their music. In fact, all the music that you’ll hear on this podcast is and always will be performed by San Diego Unified students.

We'll take you to Sunset View Elementary, Adams Elementary, Wilson MIddle School, Grant K-8 and Patrick Henry High School. And, you'll hear the sounds of the orchestra from the School of Creative and Performing Arts.