On May 13, under the canopy of a huge handmade tree, the second grade class at Salisbury Academy opened their own restaurant, The Rainforest Cafe´.
Patrons to the cafe´ included parents, grandparents and school administration. The second-graders designed colorful menus and place cards and helped set the tables for their guests.
Guests were escorted to their seats by second grade hosts, and the waiters and waitresses took the guests’ orders
Prior to opening the cafe´, the students researched facts about the rainforest and composed a PowerPoint presentation, which they shared with their guests. In addition, students sang a song, performed a rap and recited facts about the rainforest.
The lessons taught prior to the event by teachers Mary Lou Williams and Margaret Branning integrated writing, reading, art and science. The second-graders also learned about money by adding the cost of the menu items ordered by their guests and counting change from $10 bills.
The Rainforest Cafe was a culmination of three weeks of activities where students researched chosen rainforest animals and wrote reports designed with PowerPoint and complete with graphics.
The class made colorful macaws as an art project, read about Jane Goodall and the chimpanzees, and practiced map skills while learning about the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn. Rainforest collages decorated the room. Students used writing skills as they composed acrostic poems about the jungle areas of the world. Books by Lynn Cherry, an environmentalist, were also shared.