Martin Luther King, Jr. Oratorical Festival – All Grades

We encourage all students to participate by reciting a poem or speech written by themselves or someone else. Some perform alone, and others in groups. They choose whether or not they would like to be judged. Each year, there is a slightly different theme. Four performers are chosen to represent our school at the OUSD MLK, Jr. Oratorical Festival, held in January or February.

Science Fair – All Grades

Each year all Crocker students are invited to participate in the annual school science fair. Teachers provide packets that give guidance about the requirements and devote class time at the upper grades to helping students to choose measurable inquiry questions or engineering problems to solve. Some students also choose to do research about a scientist and present their learning at the fair. The school provides tri-fold boards for each child. Several students are selected to represent our school at the OUSD Science Fair, which has been held for the past several years at the Chabot Space and Science Center in Oakland.

Living Museum: 2nd – 3rd Grades

The Living Museum is a hands-on, interactive project designed to celebrate the various contributions and achievements of all peoples and cultures.  All 2nd and 3rd graders participate. Each student researches an inspiring person, makes a display board about them, then comes dressed as that individual on the day of the presentations. Students from other classes and parents circulate, asking the famous people to talk about themselves.

Student Council: 2nd –  5th Grades

Two 2nd – 5th grade students from each class become student council representatives through an election. The Student Council meets monthly and is involved in planning school-wide spirit days and fundraising for community projects. They also notify the school community of various projects to help those in need (e.g., food drive, penny drive).

Instrumental Music: 3rd – 5th Grades

All 3rd grade students receive song flutes instruction with an OUSD music teacher once each week. Our fourth  grade students all participate in the instrumental music program, which is also held once a week. Students choose between brass, string, percussion or woodwind instruments. In fifth grade, instrumental music is optional. There is no fee for using OUSD instruments, though a donation is always appreciated to offset the cost. Students are also welcome to purchase or rent their own instrument if they prefer. Students perform twice each year.

4th Grade Overnight Field Trip

All of our 4th grade students go to Coloma each spring, as an extension of their social studies curriculum (California history). They learn about native peoples from the area, as well as the experiences of people who came to the area during the Gold Rush. This is a 3-day trip, and a limited number of parents join the students as chaperones.

5th Grade Overnight Field Trip

Our 5th grade students go to Alliance Redwoods each fall, where they participate in team-building activities and have opportunities to push themselves to overcome challenges. This is a 3-day trip, and a limited number of parents join the students as chaperones.

Safety Patrol – 5th Grade

Volunteer 5th graders help keep the flow of traffic moving during morning drop-off each day. They wear brightly-colored vests, open and close car doors for students, and wish the drivers a good day. The fifth graders do not go into the streets, and the number of shifts they work varies depending on the number of students who choose to participate. Typically it’s one morning per week.

Sports Council – 5th Grade

Representatives from each class talk about how things are going on the playground, suggesting new games and new rules as needed. They meet monthly.