Salmonberry Intermediate Newsletter

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Salmonberry Intermediate Newsletter

December 4, 2007

We've started off the new term at a great pace, jumping into a new "Geo-literacy" unit. Geo-literacy, originally created by educators in Arizona to encompass both Geography and language arts, in our classroom is expanded to also include Visual Math activities. Our introduction has been several activities investigating globes and maps, longitude, latitude, and gaining a general sense of the human interaction with our planet. An example of "hands on" activities so far have included "Earth's Little Apple" ñ where we had a startling revelation of just how little of the Earth's surface we are able to use for sustenance, "yarning" about longitude and latitude ñ where we worked in cooperative groups and constructed, from yarn, representations of a global map complete with the equator, prime meridian, cardinal directions, etc. Kinesthetically, we have been practicing our identification the continents, hemispheres and points of longitude and latitude in a variety of ways ñ when you visit the classroom you'll notice our rug sized grid! A treasure map discovery exercise sparked interest in drawing our own, so, we are combining drawing our own "lands" with the writing of a "directional" story. It will be fun try our hands at "finding the treasure" on each other's maps. With the help of Whitney, one of our great new assistants, we will learn orienteering and the use of a compass next week and on Wednesday set off an orienteering "scavenger hunt"Öthat will have us exploring Eastsound village in some exciting new ways. (Thanks! To Paul Kamin, our brave leader of Group 3) In addition to finding their way to various spots and businesses around town through orienteering, student teams will take digital "setting" photos and interview/survey current business owners, compiling information about "present day" Eastsound. We are also working to set up an "interview afternoon" with island elders at the Senior Center to gain perspective about life on the island in the past.

In literary groups we have been exploring Character, Setting and PlotÖ.group 1 is reading Frindle by Andrew Clements and Group 2 students are reading various book excerpts. The class read - aloud, The Waterstone, is proving to be a wealth of examples of all three. Please check out the Venn Diagrams, Character "sketches" and "settings" art next time you visit!

We are doing "visual math" to coincide with geography studies which has included charting, graphing, plotting and reforming geometric shapes. Additionally, math groups are continuing their pursuit of computational mastery in the basics: adding, subtracting, multiplication and division. (I want to reemphasize the need for daily practice at home with flashcards ñ the students are gaining/using a lot of strategies that build on their "number sense", however, a quick grasp of math facts is essential to proceed. This can be as simple as a 10 minute review, on their own, with cards. The repeated visual intake, for example, of 5 + 7 or 6 x 8, then stating and checking their answers, will enable them to "see" the same thing on their mental whiteboards and help their responses to become instantaneous. Driving in the car, while making dinner or doing chores, etc. is also a great time to verbally review math facts!)

Our geo literacy unit will take a break the week right before Christmas break as we explore holiday traditions around the world, but resume when we return from break. Our continuing studies will include landforms, the different regions that comprise our United States, perspective, scale and measurement. Our culminating activity for this term (around the end of January), will be taking our information we've gained and create several examples of our learning ñ such as newspapers, an annotated 3-D map, original stories and more.

November, 2007

Greetings All,

Investigator Classroom was filled with activity during October! Our trips to Camp Orkila gave us some firm grounding in Ponds and Plankton, the Natural History of the San Juan Islands, and some "thrills" with the highropes and the highswing personal challenges. We participated in preparations for the Harvest Festival by making large colorful posters, and baking 10 apple pies! All of the kids were helping out during the day and Brigid wrote our press release for the Sounder. We added a look at The United Nations history and purpose (because the U.N. was founded in October) as we talk about Peace and Caring and an investigation into Bats, through both fiction and non-fiction, as we prepared for Halloween. Our writing workshops have been focusing on sentence and paragraph structure, looking at examples of great writing from both literature and academic content writing to discover and discuss different writing techniques. Several gamesand activities, such as "Hide and Describe Pumpkins", "Homophone Bingo" and "Star Verbs" are helping us in our understanding of Synonmyms, Homophones, Prepositional Phrases and challenging us to expand our writing. We tried our hand at poetic couplet writing - using Halloween spelling words chosen from a list of over 50 that we brainstormed! These have been "coupled" with some artistic creations using reverse stenciling. We also had a fun afternoon inventing our own new candy and presenting our business plan and wrapper/billboard designs to the owners of the Frank N. Stein Candy Company. In Math, we have gone beyond our math program to include activities such as measuring practice with our 3-D art and discovering attributes, graphing and percentages through Halloween Candy counting. Throughout the month we finished our Water Molecule Journey stories and posters and began our indpendent Expert Projects.

As we wrap up our final week, we will turn our attention to "Thankfulness" and "The Golden Rule", continue our Chapter Book - The Waterstone (who is Azabel?) and make our lanterns for Thursday night's lantern walk at the Dudley's. We will be giving our presentations on Wednesday afternoon, at an Expert Project Fair from 2:30-4:00, and we encourage you to attend and invite family, friends and any one you might know who might be interested in Salmonberry.

As far as the Expert projects go...we are devoting time daily for project work, so, if students have their information in class, they should be all set on the writing and drawing part....this weekend, work at home on the demonstration/model part is essential. We have the project board backdrops and will layout our designs in class as well.

Again I want to thank all you parents who have shown such friendship and support to me during this first term. The treats, and flowers, invitations to dinner, feedback, dropping by to help in the classroom, my Salmonberry Sweatshirt..... it's all very much appreciated!

April 2, 2007

Dear Parents, 

Happy April! Thank you all for your attendance at the conferences and the meeting about our upcoming trip to New Mexico! It was wonderful to talk with all of you and feel the excitement about the trip. 

There is a small field trip this Friday, April 6th! Lynn Howe has a friend who has a rather extensive collection of Native American art, and he has offered to let us come to his home to view it. We will be leaving Salmonberry at 10:30-ish to drive up to the Rosario area. After spending some time looking at the artwork, we will have lunch at Cascade Lake, weather permitting. Please pack an easily transportable lunch for your child on Friday! I believe we have enough drivers, but if you'd like to come, you're certainly welcome. 

Many of the children have mentioned that they would like to improve their spelling skills. To that end, we are implementing a spelling program! Each week, the class will receive a list of 10 words- 5 are taken from a list of words that are commonly misspelled by children when writing and 5 will be words that were commonly misspelled by our class when writing. There will be a little quiz on Fridays~ this is not graded or a big deal, I just explained to the children that knowing how to spell these words automatically will help them become better writers. 

I appreciate all your continued support! 

Peace, Jenn

Thank you Parents for your patience with the emerging 'math program'!

Lori and I have a better understanding of students individual interests and needs. I really appreciated the opportunity to share our thoughts with you during the conferences.

Over the next few weeks we will focus on basic skills: times tables, skip counting, etc.

In Spanish we have started conjugating regular verbs. To balance things out we plan to make 'Wee People' families and homes for them to live in as a vocabulary building activity. Please send any small cardboard boxes you can spare (shoe box and smaller) to school.

Knitting needles- straight and circular- are clicking away in the morning. I have a good supply of needles, but am down to pink or purple yarn. Lamb's Pride is a good yarn weight for the beginner knitter. Please check in with your child to see if they are in need of a color other than pink or purple. Poppies has a good selection (last time I checked).

Knitting is taught in all Waldorf schools as it develops the hand co-ordination used in writing as well as balancing the brain hemispheres!

All for now,

Robin

January 30, 2007

Dear Parents,

Our Walk Two Moons book club is drawing to a close.  Our At-Home Assignment #2 is due on Thursday, and we will have one final At-Home Assignment related to the book that will be due on the 8th.

Our Southwest studies art projects are going well so far.  Most of the children have begun their projects and are spending some class time researching topics such as how this style of art was made, by whom, and how it was traditionally used.  I hope to do most of the research component in class so that I can support everyone, and so that they have access to reference books.  (Although I appreciate  Internet research, I'd also like the children to become proficient looking for relevant information independently and using tools such as the table of contents or index in a book.)

A note on homework... my rationale behind the "at-home assignments" is to allow the children to make connections, draw conclusions, and explore the material creatively in a way that we might not have the time or resources to do in class.  I am looking for comprehension, to see how the child followed directions, and hopefully for some thoughtful connections or information.  I believe that children this age are capable of completing assignments outside of school and with minimal parental assistance.  Although I would like to see the child put some intent and effort into a final product, I am much more interested in process.  I believe that the experience of creating a plan and following it through to completion is more important than a technically "perfect" product.  I believe that by allowing the children to take risks, we can encourage them to become independent, self-directed, and self-motivated learners.

Thanks, 

Jen

Dear Parents,

After a FULL week of school (yay!) I am getting a better idea of where student are in their mathematical understanding.  I would like to continue this way with the thought of planning a goal setting conference with each family right after the next break.  

If you have any questions (workbooks, daily practice of facts or suggestions for work over the break - please give me a call.  Before class is not a good time.) 

I have introduced the idea of each student presenting a "Demonstration" in class.  These demonstrations are based on the 4-H format of presenting material.  We will be discussing the format as well as presentation ideas in class.  The demonstrations will have something to do with math (everything does!), they will be short - not in-depth, and include several components.  The goal is for each student to take this project from beginning to end  - on their own - as a means to practice organizing material.

As we gather information we will be looking at the possible development of a hypothesis in order to start working toward the Funhouse Science Fair in April.  One of the students asked, "What does math have to do with science?"  Well, that's what we're hoping to find out.

We're also hoping to find out what math has to do with art.  Barbara H. has offered to introduce perspective drawing.  As part of understanding that all have a "sense of mathematics," art offers so much!

Enjoy the sun!

Robin

January 22, 2007

Parents,

I appreciate all your efforts getting your children to Salmonberry on time.  The first half hour of individual work is an important start to our day.  Throughout the rest of the year, we will be discussing what it means to be a self-directed learner.  I have included a list of behaviors (or skills) we will focus on to get the ball rolling.  

The rhythm of the morning has been quite pleasant.  Thank you Lynne H. for organizing the Singapore math book acquisition!  Everyone seems engaged with their work.

The geometry block is a little different as we are studying the history of geometry.  Each student is expressing what they have learned in a "Main Lesson Book" through writing and art.  Freehand geometry is also experienced in Form Drawing through movement as well as on the page.

And Spanish...  We've had one class so far (preparing Brodie for Costa Rica.)  But the plan is to start learning some verbs -- including conjugations.  

That's all for now,

Robin

Dear Parents,

Our Intermediate Book Club has gotten off to a great start!  The children are making some amazing connections and sharing them through our class discussions and their journal writing.  I've been working with the children individually to focus on specific aspects of their writing such as remembering to use proper capitalization and punctuation.

Our Southwest integrated unit is also going well so far.  The children have each chosen one SW Native American art form to explore, and have drawn a plan showing what they intend their final weaving, sandpainting, or pottery project to look like.  They will begin creating their art on Friday morning with the help of Andria and Ginny (thank you for lending your expertise!)  The final projects, along with a writing component of course, will be turned in before break.  There should be adequate class time to complete the art project by then, as long as there's no more snow!

Our class field trip to Vancouver Museum is next week already!  Please fill out a permission slip, be sure it is signed by both parents, and return it to me by the end of the week.  Also, we will need $8 per participant (including parents) in order to get the school rate at the museum.  Please drop off trip fees in the envelope near the door in the classroom before this Friday.  I'll email more on trip logistics later.  Thank you to all the folks who are helping to organize this trip!

Finally, our first "At-Home Assignment" for Walk Two Moons is due this Thursday.  Please encourage your child to complete the assignment as independently as possible.  This is a completely creative project -- there are no right or wrong answers!

Please feel free to email or call me with questions or concerns.

Jen

October 30, 2006

Bienvenidos!

We've had a lively first week.  I am looking forward to week two!  The intermediate class has been busy with a variety of projects: creating ofrendas for 'El Dia de los muertos,' friendship bracelets, vocabulary books, self-portraits with Barbara (a la Frida Khalo), some Mayan and Aztec history, along with learning new songs, form drawing, and whatever else inspires us along the way.

I started out with a rather ambitious plan and have become more flexible.  Part of that plan included an introduction to Latin and Greek root words, which I have started (and noticed a lot of resistance; it does involve writing.)  The program is geared to start as early as second grade.  It provides a foundation for word understanding in any Romance language, as well as English.  But we have plenty to do without paddling against the current upstream.  This Thursday we celebrate "El Dia...' by baking day of the dead bread (pan de muertos), decorating the classroom with paper flowers, skeletons, papel picados, as well as displaying our ofrendas.  The celebration will take place around 2 pm so that we have time to clean the classroom before ending our day.

Next week we will work on making lanterns and learning a few lantern walk songs along with a continuation of Spanish.  Spanish class will begin at 9:15 (starting this week) with the theme: Quien soy?  Who am I?

Our vocabulary will be theme-based in order to avoid the pitfall of direct word-for-word translation.

Thank you all for volunteering to assist in the mornings!  So far, what I mostly need are copies made or materials procured.  If parents could check with me ahead of time, my guess is you won't be needed in the classroom.  However, we might need something (this week we need embroidery thread and light hemp string as well as newspapers.)

Muchas gracias!

Senora Robin

October 16, 2006

FRIDAY AT MORAN STATE PARK

One of my greatest joys with the students has been our opportunity to explore the different areas of Moran State Park.  In our last week together I would like to make Friday a day of celebration, for us, at the park.  We will continue with a 9:20 am start and 3:00 pm pick-up at Mountain Lake.  Thank you so much for supporting our adventures in the park.

Maria

October 9, 2006

Shakti Gawain is a pioneer in the field of personal development.  For over twenty-five years, she has been an author and an internationally renowned teacher of consciousness.  Shakti has facilitated thousands of individuals in developing greater awareness, balance and wholeness in their lives.

Shakti Gawain suggests that the best things we can do for our children is to develop and get to know ourselves and our true nature (ego, fear, habits, beliefs, attitudes, etc..)  Be the change you want to see.

Set an example for your kids.  Children learn by example and imitation.

Shakti suggests unresolved issues, vices, fears, etc. get passed on to the next generation -- so deal with as many as you can so your kids can have an easier ride (hopefully!)

She also suggests we should be "Firm but Loving."

Set boundaries.

MORAN STATE PARK:

We had a nice few days at Moran.  We had a fabulously sunny Thursday filled with a wonderful hike up to Sunset Rock.  We spent a large part of our day discussing potential hazards and general outdoor awareness.  Through numerous conversations and opportunities to assess different situations it felt as though the group was well equipped to recognize potential hazards and dangers while outdoors.  The grandeur of such recognition was the ability for the group to watch out for each other and to self monitor safe practices.  This allowed us to do a lot more exploration with a strong undercurrent of safety.  I truly enjoyed watching students take pride in watching out for others and making sure everyone was on the same page.  Friday provided much more challenging weather, more relentless wasps, and one unexpected swimming.  Thank you Mairi for joining us!

Maria

October 2, 2006

Last week we took a close look at the major land forms of the United States.  We have been moving easterly from the California coastal ranges, the Great Basin, the Rocky Mountains, the Great Plains, and the Central Lowlands.  We have been looking a lot at topography through different maps and creating our own versions of the US land forms.  We will continue to color and identify, on our own maps, additional land features such as the Appalachian Mountains and the Eastern Coastal Plains.  In continuing to develop our understand of United States geography we will move towards creating our own topographical wonders utilizing salt dough.

It's been exciting establishing some geographical background knowledge with the students before we settle into studying Pre-Colonial America and then the colonization of our country.  The students seem eager to study US history.

"Ben Franklin Live" presented by Chris Lowell will be here for a visit October 16.  Although it will be a little ahead of our studies, it will be a fantastic opportunity for us to hear the biography and tales of one of the Founding Fathers.  This will truly be an adventure in bringing history to life.

If you have an interest in helping, in any way, with our Colonial studies please let me know.  Some areas to consider include: games, crafts, cooking, music.

MORAN STATE PARK:

I would like to continue down our environmental path and our focus on awareness and stewardship by spending Thursday and Friday at Moran State Park.  Much like last month, we will begin at 9:15 am, to hopefully accomodate busy schedules, but still end at 3:00 pm.  Meet at the South End Campground at the picnic shelter.

THIS WEEK:

This week we will also begin working on a routine of "Morning Skills."  Thus, as the students come to school in the morning, they will find a basic set of skills -- geography, math, writing, etc.-- waiting for them at their desks.  As a class, we will explore what this journey will look like and find our way through the new routine.  However, should you find yourself in the classroom in the morning moments, please feel free to encourage, motivate, and help your child get started.  The idea is to open in their minds and get their thoughts rolling and moving in a calm and centering environment.  Morning Skills will help to reinforce methods and techniques learned but often left behind when an exciting new project presents itself.  These morning activities ought to help keep al the bits and pieces connected.

September 25, 2006

Cooperative Learning activities have been a big part of our everyday.  They have taught everyone a great deal about themselves and about the collective group.  The bits and pieces in this week's newsletter may help put perspective on why this cannot be accomplished during our outside time, why it is not considered PE, and why it has been such a needed adventure before jumping into an academic routine.

Maria

An Overview of Cooperative Learning (Roger T. and David W. Johnson and Collaborative Learning; Originally published in J. Thousand, A. Villa and A. Nevin (Eds), Creativity Rookes Press, Baltimore, 1994):

How students perceive each other and interact with one another is a neglected aspect of instruction.  Much time is devoted to helping teachers arrange appropriate interactions between students and materials (i.e. textbooks, curriculum programs) and some time is spent on how teachers should interact with students, but how students should interact with one another is relatively ignored.  It should not be.  How teachers structure student-student interaction patterns has a lot to say about how well students learn,  how they feel about school and the teacher, how they feel about each other, and how much self-esteem they have.

There are three basic ways students can interact with each other as they learn.  They can compete to see who is "best," they can work individualistically toward a goal without paying attention to other students, or they can work cooperatively with a vested interest in each other's learning as well as their own.  Cooperation among students who celebrate each other's successes, encourage each other to do well, and learn to work together regardless of ethnic backgrounds or whether they are male or female, bright or struggling, disabled or not, is still rare.

Benefits of Cooperative Learning (Dr. Spencer Kagan, Kagan Online Magazine, Winter 1999):

1. Academic Achievement.  Research studies back the conclusion that cooperative learning produces gains across all content areas, all grade levels, and among all types of students including special needs, high achieving, gifted, urban, rural, and all ethnic and racial groups.  In terms of consistency of positive outcomes, cooperative learning remains the strongest researched educational innovation ever with regard to producing achievement gains.
2. Self-Esteem.  Students in cooperative learning teams increase in feelings social and academic esteem.  These increases in self-esteem are realistic as the students in fact do better academically and are accepted more by their peers.
3. Empathy.  Students in cooperative learning teams gain in ability to take the role of the other and to understand and empathize with the point of view and feelings of others.
4. Social Skills.  Cooperative learning increases a long list of social skills, including listening, taking turns, conflict resolution skills, leadership skills, and teamwork skills.  Students coming from cooperative learning classrooms are more polite and considerate of others.
5. Social Relations.  Students in classrooms in which there is cooperative learning feel accepted, liked, and cared for.  Again, these feelings are realistic as in fact cooperative learning results in more mutual acceptance and caring among students.  They have more friends.
6. Higher Level Thinking Skills.  One of the main roads to higher level thinking is interaction with points of view different from one's own.  Each of us carries his or her own set of information and way of interpreting that information.  We tend to persist in our own way of thinking until we are challenged by interacting with someone with different information and/or a different way of interpreting the information.  At that point we are pushed to higher level thinking and higher level synthesis.  Interaction in heterogenous teams, therefore, creates higher level thinking.

September 18, 2006

Well, moving from our outdoor classroom to our indoor class a Salmonberry was much easier than expected.  We continued to work on developing our classroom community and extended our routine to include our Random Acts of Kindness, different daily jobs around school, morning circle to include sharing, nature drawings and quality S.Q.R.T. for this enthusiastic bunch of readers.

On Monday we harvested potatoes from the garden and as the week progressed we decided to celebrate the harvest with a potato extravaganza.  Thank you, Lydia, for coming in, discussing  Hanukkah traditions and for guiding us through the making of potato latkes.  Thank you to Brigid, Taj and your respective families for bringing in potato recipes and all the fixings so we could enjoy scalloped potatoes and roasted potatoes.  A final note of thanks to Kim and Desmond for a family potato salad.  Yum!

Incorporated into the week was the opportunity to explore independent nature drawings.  We touched upon the use of shapes in drawing and then spent some quiet time sketching either Salal or Bracken ferns.  The student's work was fantastic, but more so seemed the time to center and focus on one thing at a time and to dig deep into our beings to find a slow and thoughtful practice.

This week we will move toward creating our shared vision for the school year.

Maria

Other News:

Thank Yous:

Last week was a success because of so many of you.  Thank you for cooking volunteers Lydia and Kim.  Applause to Kim for the rug in the bathroom and Andria for the bathroom supplies.  Mairi, your support and spirit helps to guide our days.  Thank you!

6-Traits Writing:

Last week we also took a brief look at 6-Traits Writing.  The 6-trait writing model is a way to develop and teach writing.  This model focuses on 6 qualities seen in written works.  This week we took a quick glance at Organization with the objective of being able to identify good leads using the books each of us is currently reading.  We will be taking writing in small steps with the hope of passing on a joy for writing.  This six traits include:

IDEAS: The content or main theme.  Can be looked at as the heart of the message.

ORGANIZATION: The internal structure of the writing.

VOICE:  The personal voice of author comes through.  This gives a sense of a real person speaking.

WORD CHOICE: The use of precise, colorful and rich words to communicate.

SENTENCE FLUENCY: The writing flows together often with a rhythm or cadence.

CONVENTIONS: Mechanical correctness, including spelling and grammar.

One of the great beauties of 6-traits writing is that it gives us all a common language to work with in writing, a way for individuals to guide their own writings, and it provides a direction to travel when one is ready.  I will work with the class to facilitate individual growth by helping them recognize writing they enjoy and the writers they might like to become.

September 11, 2006

What a wonderful way to begin the school year.  The weather at Moran was simply beautiful and our group was joyous, energetic, and full of inquisitive minds.  We had a blast!

We took this week's opportunity at Moran to explore sensory awareness and to develop an appreciation for the natural environments that surround us, as well as the peers that contribute to our everyday well being.

Incorporated into our daily outing were occasions to explore, times to be silly, reason to write, challenges and initiatives to help us focus on building a strong and caring community, environmental lessons to generate awareness and connections to outdoors, each other, and ourselves.  Ultimately, I hope and believe that this will carry over into our classroom environment where our good character will spill into all we do both socially and academically.

This week we will continue to focus on building our classroom community and climate.  We will start to develop some of our regular routines and establish the norms and expectations we will hold for each other.  Integrated in these themes, we will continue to work on class building through games and initiatives and we will focus on the great gifts and important passions each of us has to offer.  

I'm looking forward to another great week!

Maria

Other News:

Important dates to remember:

• September 11 - Board Meeting 3:15 pm.
• September 21 & 22 - No school.  Goal setting conferences (more info to follow)
• September 23 - Autumnal Equinox
• September 25 - Parent Meeting 3:20 pm.

Thank yous:

• John Miller for so much time and effort to make our bathroom a reality!
• All the parents for drop-offs and pick-ups at Moran.
• The students for showing great teamwork, support, and caring.

Can you spare a few items or volunteer some time?  The class could use the following items and help:

• a bathroom rug
• a water jug with tap
• lunch/recess duty

Please don't forget:

• a mug
• weather-appropriate clothing
• a spare set of clothing

September 5, 2006

Welcome back to school!  What a wonderful August it has been!  I hope everyone took plenty of time to enjoy the sunshine, to swim in the lake, and to play with family and friends.

This year we welcome the theme of "Connections."  We will spend a great deal of time digging deep to find links inside our classroom, within the school community, our backyards, through novel studies, incorporating our family histories, as well as US history, and an eager enthusiasm for environmental opportunities in Moran State Park and other new locales.  We are fortunate to have the ability and convenience to utilize the riches of our own State Park.

This week we will place special emphasis in sensory awareness and appreciation.  Combined with teambuilding and cooperative learning, we will explore what the woods have to offer us.

I fully understand that some of you have children in the preschool, primary and intermediate classrooms.  Thus, I offer that on our days at Moran we will make use of an accommodating start of 9:20.  Pick-up will remain at 3:00 pm, but I will remain flexible for later pick-ups.  I hope this makes things easier for everyone.

What should I bring?  

• Come dressed for the weather
• Sturdy footwear
• A small backpack
• Extra clothing layers and rain gear just in case!
• Snack and lunch
• Water
• A pleasure reading book
• 2-3 pencils
• Sunscreen
• An excited spirit!!!

Other News:

Items to keep at school: 

1. A mug...we can eliminate a lot of waste by re-using our mugs when we are thirsty
2. Appropriate warm clothing, rain or shine
3. One spare set of clothes...please package them in a shoebox that may be stacked on the shelves.  Our space sure is limited.  Many have grown quite a bit over the summer, so it's a good time to see if the spare clothes still fit.

We would love to showcase plenty of family gift time, thus if you have something you would like to share, a craft, or a skill please let me know!

Our schedule may look something like this:

9:00 Arrival

9:10    Circle time (welcome, announcements, sharing)

9:30    Nature drawings / Current events / Naturalist presentations

10:30  Teacher read aloud / snack

10:45  Outside time

11:05  Language arts / social studies / science/ thematic study

12:00  Lunch

12:30  Outside time

1:20   Daily acts of kindness (school-wide jobs throughout the day)

1:30   SQRT (super quiet reading time)

1:45   Math

2:45   Journaling

3:00   Dismissal

* The schedule is a "work in progress" and one we will adapt as our needs see fit.  Spanish, and other specialist possibilities may play a role in its final evolution, but this is the one we will begin with.

Salmonberry Primary Newsletter

January 7 2008,

Iím trying to root out a lot of weeds, and stir up the soil so that seeds of a postmodern education might find some room to grow. The real gardeners, the sowers of seeds, are the dedicated parents and educators who are doing their best, day after day, to nourish our children.

ñRon Miller

Dear Parents,

Happy New Year!

Welcome back to school everyone! I am so excited to get back to it in this new year. Apologies again for the unexpected closures back in í07. Glad thatís behind us! But we do have some unfinished business. This week we will spend some time recalling a bit about our Niger water project. Then next week, weíll have our long awaited culmination events. On Tuesday, January 15 (with rain dates to follow if necessary) we will close the thematic unit with a ìWalk for Water,î a North African potluck feast and a book exchange. The Walk for Water, you may remember, (see previous newsletters) is an effort to raise money through student action and simulation for the Amman Imman project in the Azawak Region of Niger. Students will get pledges from supporters a dollar amount per mile walked (by the whole class). Our goal will be thirty cumulative miles. We will start at school and walk through Eastsound and past a parent-staffed table where students will pick up tokens for each half-mile walked. I will need help with table sitters as well as walking buddies. We will leave school by 12:00 on Tuesday, January 15. All of you are welcome to join us.

When all walkers are back at school, probably around 3PM, we will have our North African potluck. Parents can pick up recipes from me at school any time, or come up with your own offering. You may drop food off at school any time on the day of the walk. I could use one or two helpers who can set things up while I am walking with the kids (maybe 2:00-3:00). After 3PM we will eat together and congratulate ourselves on our accomplishment. We will also do the book exchange that we had meant to do before Christmas. I am still holding a few books for people.

Please talk to me if you have any questions about any of this. We have a bit of time to work out the details.

Also, as we wrap up our study of water, we will simultaneously be launching a new thematic study: our next element: EARTH. This will be a very fun, (and messy) hands on scientific, artistic, and multicultural study of soil, clay, rocks and minerals. We will be using a terrific science kit called ìSoil Science.î We will read stories involving rocks and mud. We will create our own set of paints using local clays as pigments. We will try our hand at some clay and earth building techniques to make some small fairy houses. Weíll start a worm bin and learn about earthworms and decomposition, soil building, and so much more. Becky is on board to help us out with a lot of these explorations ñ this is her passion too!

We will continue this quarter to focus on celebrating literacy. We will continue to work on a range of reading and writing activities every day. Math will continue as we continue with both our thematic studies, which will include a lot of measurement and graphing, as well as skill work including place value and computation. One subtheme which you may like to be aware of is a return to a year-long theme from last year: ìTaking Care.î In these weeks I will be really trying to work with the kids on using care in their daily activities. We will try to clean out cubbies and mailboxes. We will try to become more diligent with our classroom jobs. We will try to finish our schoolwork to completion and develop some guidelines by which we can each evaluate if we have approached our work with care. We will try to maintain our individual work folders and our cumulative portfolios. We will try to take care of the outside toys and clean up after ourselves more thoroughly. This may be an opportunity for you all at home to reinforce some of these principles too. Hopefully this can all be done with pride, joy, fun and a sense of shared ownership and mutuality.

Have a great week!

Paul

December 15, 2007

The most effective (and least destructive) way to help a child succeed ñ whether sheís writing or skiing, playing a trumpet or a computer game ñ is to do everything possible to help her fall in love with what sheís doing, to pay less attention to how successful she was (or is likely to be) and show more interest in the task. Thatís just another way of saying that we need to encourage more, judge less, and love always. ñ Alfie Kohn

Dear Parents,

So the latest rounds of virus, bacteria and winter travel have taken their collective toll on Salmonberry Schoolís Primary Class. I appreciate all of your cautiousness and conscientiousness in making attendance decisions each day. The net result, not surprisingly, has been some low attendance days. We ended the day on Friday with a mere three children left standing! For the coming week Benjamin and Ethan will be traveling with their families. Parents are also rapidly adding their names to the disabled list, and as I look at the weather forecast for the coming week it looks wet and cold. With all these factors impinging, I have decided to postpone our closing of the Niger Unit. We will wait until we return to school in January for both the ìWalk for Waterî event and the North African celebration potluck, which would have taken place this week. Please express gratitude for any sponsors you have found to support your childís fundraising efforts and urge their patience. Weíll try to rekindle the flame of excitement for this project when we return to school in the new year.

This week will still be very full. We will be finishing up our ceramics course with Becky. This week we will make a final project and fire and glaze some earlier work. We will explore some other holiday crafts this week as well. On Thursday we will celebrate the winter solstice by bringing the children of all three classes together for a wreath walk and some songs. We will be making some holiday tamales with Caitlan on Thursday as well. Finally we will continue a Salmonberry winter holiday tradition ñ the book exchange! On Monday, Each child will draw the name of a friend in the class. Please help your child to purchase a new book (not more than $10) for this friend by Thursday. (Apologies for the late notice.) Let me know if this presents a hardship for your family. Salmonberry would be happy to support anyone with resource limitations at this time ñ no questions asked and discretion assured.

Please bring in any coins your family has collected at home for our Water for Niger ìAmman-Immanî project. Weíll be doing some estimating, counting and coin rolling all week.

I hope you all enjoy a wonderful peaceful healthy holiday season. Enjoy these precious moments with your incredible children! Happy Solstice! And Happy Birthday, Eve!

Paul

December 3, 2007

Dear Parents,

Wow, what a great start to the winter quarter we had last week, despite a lot of sniffles and coughs (ëtis the season.) We dove into our studies of Saharan Africa. We have looked at a number of photographs from the Azawak region of Niger, which we use as texts and try to glean as much as we can about these peopleís lives and culture. We have similarly looked at some of the North African artifacts on loan from the Global and Multicultural Resource Center. Please visit the tables against the west wall and have a look for yourself. We have looked at some North African art and designs. We have worked with the map to discover the vast Sahara desert and the ìsahelî region to the south. We cooked a Nigerien snack on Thursday, cous cous ñ a big hit ñ which is a rice-like granule made from semolina wheat (news to me,) and peanuts, actually not a nut at all, but an underground growing legume. We have listened to African music and recreated some simple rhythms. We learned a cooperative group game from Africa, which makes use of rhythm and movement, as well as the two person strategy game of mancala. On Friday we heard and analyzed a folktale from the Twareg people of Niger and Mali. We looked at characters, setting, lesson, and plot and compared this story to Cinderella (which I was surprised many children did not know ñ perhaps more fairy tales later?) We also made some North Africa inspired masks, in which we used art principles of positive and negative space and symmetry. We also discussed use of dance, costume and masks in traditional rituals across cultures. The kids seem extremely engaged, full of questions, excited by the mystery and unfamiliarity this region represents, and extremely and markedly uncritical or judgmental. They are so open and receptive. Itís incredible.

This week we will continue with even deeper explorations into Nigerien cultures, more photos, more geography, more art and more cooking. This week we will also add some drama as we act out one or more of the folk tales we hear. We will also look at math from a North African perspective, both through number systems and geometry.

Both Caitlan and Whitney were wonderful additions last week. Caitlan introduced shapes and colors to our Spanish vocabulary, with which we played several games and did some coloring activities. Whitney led us in a wonderful mixture of trust building and problem solving cooperative games, both active and thoughtful.

I would like to have a primary class Parent Meeting this week on Thursday at 3:10 (sorry for the short notice) to go over some of our in-class work, Iíll give a few reminders of ways in which you might support your childís learning at home and discuss with you plans for an additional service learning project, our winter solstice event, and possible holiday gathering. Most importantly we can just check in as a group, share questions, hopes, insights. Iíd love to hear any feedback you may have to offer.

Have a great week!

Paul

November 26, 2007

Dear Parents,

Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope you all had a restful and renewing vacation.

This second quarter, as you know will be divided by the two-week Christmas/New Years holiday. And, likewise our thematic studies will follow this rhythm. This first month, looks to be extremely full! We will apply our appreciation and understanding of water to a specific region where water is a truly precious resource. We will look at Saharan Africa and specifically the country of Niger. There is a region within northeast Niger that suffers from extreme drought called The Azawak. This is an area roughly the size of Florida where approximately 500,000 people make do with virtually no rainfall and extremely little ground water. This is the poorest region in the poorest nation on Earth. A movement of support and relief has been initiated by a single courageous woman, Ariane Kirtly and a growing network of educators and children. This project is called ìAmman-Immanî or ìWater is Life.î Partly through affiliation with this network of educators we will participate in service learning activities to help raise awareness and maybe some money for this region. The moneys go towards the drilling of deep water wells to provide year-round water for people and livestock in this region.

In addition, we will take advantage of this opportunity to learn a good deal about African geography, and Saharan cultures, including food, dress, homes, life style, art, music and mythologies. We will focus attention on the key concept that geography directly and dramatically affects culture and on the appreciation for diverse human cultures through recognition of both amazing difference between peoples and similarity and unity among all human cultures. We are borrowing some wonderful materials, artifacts, and curriculum from Portlandís World Affairs Council and Multicultural Resource Center, at PSU to support our studies. We will be cooking North African food, creating some versions of traditional art forms, making some masks and much more.

This quarter will also mark the beginning of two new specialists for the elementary school. Caitlan Greene will be teaching Spanish language lessons two times/wk on Tuesdays and Thursdays. These will include movement, art, songs, and mostly Spanish conversation. Mondays and Wednesdays we will be joined by Whitney Hartzell, who will lead the class in cooperative games and gross motor activities outside. Both teachers are very excited to get started and I am thrilled by their energy, their warmth, and the ability to engage the kids which they each showed during some practice sessions a couple of weeks back.

Finally this quarter we will be doing a lot of crafts and art projects, a sort of Santaís workshop will emerge as we approach the winter holidays. Helping out with a series of ceramics lessons is ceramicist and educator, Becky Siegwart. We met Becky at Camp Orkila where she was one of our terrific instructors in early November.

Of course we will spend some time celebrating the different winter holiday traditions around the world, and weíll notice the approaching winter solstice. Weíll read many stories, sing songs and attune ourselves to this very special season.

We will continue with all core elements of the academic curriculum as well. Although reading, writing and math may tend to be a little more embedded and integrated into our thematic studies for this month.

Okay, to kick off our service learning project you might want to familiarize yourself a bit with Water for Niger and Amman-Imman. Here are two websites to visit, and a couple of short videos: (check out the link to Salmonberry School on the list of participating schools ìHeroes of Compassionî). There is a lot of information there so explore and enjoy.

b http://www.waterforniger.org

c http://montessori-amman-imman-project.blogspot.com/

* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqW4Z2C3I24

* http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWFxTbsmxeI&feature=related

For those who watch the occasional DVD, you might want to see if you can get your hands on Michael Palin: Sahara. This is a pretty engaging glimpse into some of the amazingly colorful characters and cultures of this desert region. Itís pretty funny too. (As always with videos, Iíd suggest you preview it first and then share all or part of it with your children as you see fit.)

The first awareness-raising part of our work will be to realize the extent of our piped water usage and develop some appreciation for this amazing convenience we so often take for granted. We will start by placing water bottles at each faucet at school. We will also be encouraging families to do the same at home. The idea will be that every time we go to use water, for any purpose, we drop a coin into the jar. The collected moneys will be sent to the Amman Imman Project to help with well construction. The point is not necessarily to raise a ton of money, but mostly to raise awareness that water comes at a cost, and that not all people have the resources to make water flow. We will be using a collection of pennies which have been previously donated to Salmonberry to support our multicultural education. Feel free to ask and I would be happy to provide you with a few rolls for home use as well. If you would prefer to donate your own coins, thatíd be great. You can begin collections at home. You can also send in some coins for us to use at school. You are free to use any coins youíd like from pennies to dollars. Absolutely no pressure, just whatever feels right to you.

Have a great week!

Paul

March 19, 2007

"One might be very adept in one's studies, and in one's work, capable of arguing with much aptitude and rationality, but that is not intelligence.  Intelligence goes hand in hand with love and compassion."

Jiddu Krishnamurti-

Dear Parents,

Happy Equinox!  Spring is here.  We'll be celebrating its arrival at school this week by breaking ground in the school garden.  We'll begin pulling back some mulch and adding some of our rich compost.  This week we will hopefully also plant potatoes and sweet peas if the soil isn't too wet for digging.  This is such a hopeful time at school as we begin to again notice and nurture new life.

This week we will also be celebrating the success and conclusion of our salmon project.  On Wednesday we will take a return field trip to the Glenwood Springs Salmon Hatchery.  This time we will be bringing with us about 95 small friends.  We will release the fry into one of the hatchery's lakes where they will continue to grow and eventually be released into the sea.  Of course we will plan for a small ceremony or ritual to mark this transition.  What an amazing project this has been.  If anyone would be willing to help out, we'll need a few drivers/ chaperones.  We will be back at school by 12:00.

Last week at school Jenn was needed full time in the intermediate grades class.  As a result we made a few modifications to our program all of which went very well.  We lengthened our morning circle time which allowed me to share some more involved Northwest Native American stories as well as some non-fiction texts.  The kids also spent a bit more time in self-directed learning activities which they navigated very well.  Please see the photo and narrative display created by our first and second graders explaining this new element we are calling PDR (Plan-Do-Review).  Many thanks too to Fred for helping out in the classroom and allowing me a little breather from time to time.

This week with Jenn back with us we will create more Native American inspired artwork.  We will also get back to some small group work.  We'll be trying out some different grouping arrangements this week as we attempt to work with everyone's changing needs and learning styles.

Thursday and Friday this week there is no school, as we create space to plan and reflect together for Parent/Teacher Conferences.  Please make sure you sign up for a convenient time.  These conferences are intended as adult-only conferences for the primary class.  Please let me know if you'd prefer to include your child.  The conferences are meant to provide a chance for us to articulate some goals or wishes for your child for this spring semester.  It is also an opportunity for all of us to ask questions or reflect on last semester's progress.  The purpose is not for me to provide evaluation or assessment data, but rather to listen deeply to you and engage in some collaborative planning.  I have set conference times in 45 minute increments, though the conferences themselves should take only 30 minutes or so.  The extra time is built in to allow for overruns and to give teachers a little break so we can stay focused and present.  Before the conference, if you'd like, take some time to reflect on your hopes or concerns regarding your child's continuing progress.  Remember to think about social, emotional, behavioral and academic areas, and to reflect on your child's unique gifts, learning style, and intelligences.  I sincerely look forward to sharing reflections and annecdotes and planning together.

Have a great week!                    

Paul

March 5, 2007

"Fundamental are your child's feelings about learning -- feelings such as curiosity, enthusiasm, concentration, independence, and overall peacefulness.  These emotions are important in their own right, and they also indicate that the child is actualizing his or her naturally emerging powers."  -- William Crain

Dear Parents,

I am so excited to be coming back for this third quarter.  I have been immersed in planning, gathering resources, reflecting on the last quarter, and designing new learning activities and structures which I hope will maximize our shared experience in the classroom.

This quarter our thematic focus will be Northwest Coastal Native American culture.  This study will build directly on the first two quarters' work: "special place," in which we explored a sense of connection to place, and "salmon" in which we learned about and lived with these amazing creatures.  In this study we will learn the meaning of the word "culture."  We will explore the concept that, in my opinion, is the core to the elementary social studies curriculum, the connection between place, or geography, and culture; "where you live affects how you live."  This particular cultural study will focus on a people who have lived with a very intimate relation to their particular environment, including a cyclical interdependence with the migrating salmon.

We will begin exploring these concepts this week by reading Weslandia by Sid Fleishman, in which a boy creates his own indigenous culture based on a single unusual plant species.  Then students will participate in a cooperative geography/survival project in which they will have to use available resources in a particular bio region to creatively meet their basic survival needs.

As we continue in the weeks to come we will closely examine a wonderful collection of artifacts on loan from the Orcas Historical Museum and the Burke Museum in Seattle.  We will read many Northwest Native folk tales and legends.  We will listen to traditional music.  Study many forms of art.  Create original artwork using traditional Northwest Native motifs.  We will learn more about our local environment.  Do some cooking, try some traditional crafts, and much much more.

In addition to our thematic studies, we will return to our small group work time model.  I will work with a small group on Math skills and concepts, Jenn will take over the Language Arts group, and there will be an independent art or craft group each day, too.  This quarter we will also revive our sleeping garden and do some digging, soil preparation and planting.  We will release our fry in a few weeks, and celebrate their transition to a new stage of life.

This quarter, Jenn and I will be making a conscious effort to increase our use of portfolios as a way to more systematically notice and document students' growth and development.  We will be creating a weekly display of photographs, work samples and narratives which should give you a better idea of what we're doing at school each day.

Parent Conferences are coming up in a couple of weeks (March 22 and 23rd.)  I'll have a sign-up sheet at school by next week.

There is a Board Retreat this weekend (this is a euphemism for a very very long meeting.)  This one is a closed session for Board members and staff only.  We'll be taking a step back and working with a facilitator to assess where we are, where we'd like to go, and how to get there.

Much more news to follow.  I so look forward to seeing you all again and getting back with the kids!

Have a great week!

Paul

February 5, 2007

"When you teach someone something, you've robbed the person of the experience of learning it.  You need to be cautious before you take that experience away from someone else."        -- Malcom Margolin (in Ecological Literacy by Michael Stone and Zenobia Barlow)

Dear Parents,

Amazingly, we are approaching the end of the first semester.  With the year half over, I will be taking time over our February break to reflect deeply on our progress both as individual learners and as a learning community.  As part of this process of reflection I will write narrative Progress Summaries for each child, which I will mail out over break.  We will take some time this week in school to do some self-evaluation activities as well.  The gradual developing of each student's capacity to recognize his/her own strengths and challenges, learning styles and role within the community is an important aspect of the Salmonberry elementary education.  Even kindergarteners are encouraged to reflect deeply on their learning.

We are looking forward to a couple of special events this week.  On Wednesday morning, we will travel to the Glenwood Springs Salmon Hatchery.  Here, hatchery manager Mike O'Connell will give us a guided tour of this incredible facility.  We'll get to see several species of salmon at various stages of their life cycle.  The hatchery raises and releases over half a million fish each year.  Please let me know if  you are interested in driving and helping to chaperone our group.

On Thursday we will celebrate "Fry Day."  The classroom salmon have fully absorbed their yolk sacs and are now transitioning from "alevin" to "fry."  Students are encouraged to wear striped clothing, as the parr stripes are an important indicator of salmon entering the fry stage.  We'll spend a good deal of the day carefully walking backwards to simulate the salmon fry's nose-upstream journey to the estuary.  We'll eat fries for snack, and there will be a few other surprises too.  We will also celebrate Valentine's Day in a school-wide gathering on Thursday.  We will exchange Valentines and share a few songs.

This week we will also finish sewing our beautiful felt banner comemmorating our learning this quarter.  Be sure to see it, almost entirely designed and executed by the students, it depicts the salmon's habitat and life cycle.

I am looking for volunteers who can be part of a team that will feed the classroom fry during the break.  Please let me know if you can commit to be part of the team.

Eamon Morris returned to school last week after some time traveling with his family.  Unfortunately, he will now be withdrawing from Salmonberry to pursue a home-school program that will allow his family to travel together.  We will all miss him very much.

Many thanks to all of you for your continued enthusiastic support for the program.  I am truly humbled to be entrusted with the education of your children.  It is a responsibility which I accept with reverence and sincere appreciation.

There is a Board Meeting today, Monday, February 5 at 3:15.  All are welcome.

On Thursday afternoon, we will have the final meeting of our book club/discussion group focusing on Alfie Kohn's Unconditional Parenting.  We will likely choose a new text on which to focus, and begin meeting again in March.  Please let me know if you have a particular book on topic in mind that we could use as a discussion focus.

Have a great week and a terrific February break.  See you all on Monday, March 5!

Paul

January 22, 2007

Many many teachers are trying to figure out how to educate a new generation to the world they are going to inherit, and how to do it in more useful and imaginitive ways than most of us experienced.   -- Robert Haas (in Ecological Literacy by Michael Stone & Zenobia Barlow)

Dear Parents,

Was that sun I saw this weekend?  The fruit trees are budding; the bulbs are up, and the soggy soil is drying out a bit.  I know, "the Farmer's Almanac says..."  At school we are saying spring is around the corner and we simply will not hear otherwise.

We have been settling into a wonderful rhythm at school lately.  The kids have been making some imaginative choices as they settle in upon arrival in the morning.  Stacy and Cierra lent us a sweet cooperative board game last week called "Wildcrafting." What a fun exploration that provided!  Circle time has been a bit shorter and very nice.  We have been reading a lot of predictable patterned texts to build a collection of books that everyone can read and to give us a springboard for some original creative writing, too.  Jenn has also shared a couple of Beatrix Potter tales which have set a lovely tone as well.

Group time has included Jenn leading a math group which just finished up working with patterns.  They are now pursuing a short unit on Sorting and Classifying.  My group has been writing a lot of cooperative books, with each child writing and illustrating a page.  This is becoming a great collection and the kids are proud to share their writing with each other each day.  We also have been beginning to work with some phonics exercises and building kids' phonemic awareness.

Between 11:00 and noon, we have mostly focused on our salmon studies.  Last week we did two particularly cool activities.  First, after discussing food chains and food webs, we made a physical model of the food web.  Each child was an animal of their choice within a salmon ecosystem.  We connected with string both to the animals we consumed and which consumed us.  Then by gently pulling the string in turn, we could literally feel the ways in which all living things are interconnected and interdependent within an ecosystem.  A lot of little light bulbs went on, and we had a great time hamming it up.  The second activity was to reinforce the concepts of ecosystem and watershed.  We each made crumpled paper models of an ecosystem; we painted the ridge lines with watercolors, added a few black smudges to represent places typically experiencing pollution and then with a misting spray bottle we rained all over our ecosystems.  Again, a lot of light bulbs went on as the paint bled down forming rivers and lakes.  Watersheds became obvious and pollution all ended up in the rivers.  The week before last, we had a visit from Jenn's "significant other" and local chef, Chris.  Chris helped us prepare a whole salmon, which allowed us to get up close and personal with a lot of anatomy.  Then, building from a topic we read about in a book, we cooked the salmon over a two-day period, first by salting or "brining" it, then by smoking it.  It proved to be another memorable experience.

The salmon themselves are all doing very well.  It looks like about a week and a half until they are officially "fry" or "parr" and we can begin feeding them.  Every day we visit the tank individually or in small groups and notice the amazing changes in their physical and behavioral development. 

Head's up: We will be taking a field trip to the Glenwood Springs Salmon Hatchery here on Orcas on Wednesday, February 7.  On February 8, we will culminate our salmon studies by celebrating "fry-day on Thursday."  More details next week!

Have a great week!

Paul

January 8, 2007

The way kids learn to make good decisions is by making decisions, not by following directions.          - Alfie Kohn

Welcome back everyone and Happy New Year!  We had a terrific short week last week.  It took no time at all to get back into our rhythm and engage fully in our work.  Everyone seems to be growing like crazy in every way.

Last week students worked in small math group in which we began a unit on patterns and patterning.  We started with clapping patterns, moved into blocks, movement, and color patterns.  Primary grades classrooms tend to spend a lot of time on pattern work these days as it provides the foundation to a mathematical understanding of many math strands to come.  A small Language Arts group worked on writing some original innovations building on some predictable  patterned texts.  This was very fun.  We wrote text together and then each student chose a page and created the illustration and recopied the text.  We ended up with some very sweet original books.

The salmon of course continue to provide the focal point of the curriculum.  The alevin are doing great and are also growing a lot.  We learned more about salmon anatomy last week.  We played a game of "Salmon Says" with "Al the Alevin."  The kids made some realistic, and some very unrealistic, stuffed paper salmon.  There was plenty of room for creativity and giggling while we simultaneously learned a lot of content.

This week we will continue working on all these program elements.  We'll build our pattern knowledge with ever increasingly complex patterns and more and more different media.  We'll continue reading predictable texts and creating our own innovations.  We'll learn more about salmon anatomy and life cycle.  We'll also this week, begin to talk about watersheds and look at salmon habitat needs.

At this point we are looking for some donations to help repair the sandbox roof.  We need:

• 6 sheets of 1/2" CDX or plywood
• 2 1/3 squares of asphalt shingles, or 200 sf of other roofing materials
• 1/2 role of roofing felt or similar
• a few hundred 1" roofing nails

If you have any of these items and are willing to contribute, please contact Paul Kamin, Peter's dad, who is coordinating this project (x2363.)

I also want to invite you all again to join us for a parent discussion group focused on the text Unconditional Parenting by Alfie Kohn.  Books are available at Darvill's.  If possible, read through chapter 2 in advance of our first meeting.  We will meet this Thursday, January 11 at 3:15 at school.  I'd love for you all to join us.

There is a Board meeting today, Monday, January 8 at 3:15 in the primary classroom.  All are welcome.

Have a great week!

Paul

December 4, 2006

If we regard truth as something handed down from authorities on high, the classroom will look like a dictatorship.  If we regard truth as a fiction determined by a person of whim, the classroom will look like a monarchy.  If we regard truth as emerging from a complex process of mutual inquiry, the classroom will look like a resourceful and interdependent community.               -- Parker Palmer

Welcome back everyone!  It is so exciting to begin again as we enter a new season and a new unit of learning and communal inquiry.  This quarter I hope will embody a good deal of what Parker Palmer is talking about in the quote above, what he sometimes calls a "community of truth."

This week we will begin our Salmon Studies.  Salmon are such amazing species.  They bring together so many elements.  They live in both the forest and sea ecosystems.  As together we study the amazing particular details of salmonid species, they will be a vehicle for us to learn about huge universal topics: life cycles, interdependence, human history, and a variety of cultural relationships with the natural world.  Salmon eggs will be arriving shortly in our classroom.  This will give us the opportunity to apply a lot of scientific skills as we engage firsthand with living organisms.  We will observe and nurture the eggs and eventually witness their transformation into "eyed eggs" and later "alevin."

In the meantime, we will be reading salmon stories and doing some multimedia salmon-inspired art projects.  We will start things off this week with a neat science activity building the concept of "watersheds."  We will also learn a bit about salmon species and their biology.  I know this will be a high interest topic and it will be one in which the students, Jen, and I will truly be learning together.

We will be trying out some adjustments to our daily schedule, which I hope will match the amazing growth I  have witnessed in the children towards the end of fall quarter. We will cut back a bit on student choice time and whole group circle time to make room for some small group explorations.  For a short period of time each day, students will be placed in small heterogeneous groups and will rotate between teacher-designed activities.  These will focus on art projects, math explorations, and language work.  I will be asking a little more from the students in terms of their willingness to: be self-monitoring, lengthen their span of attention, work cooperatively with classmates, and follow teacher's leads.  I believe the children, in general, are ready for this slight shift, though I will certainly be watching carefully to see how they are responding as individuals.

We will be getting back into weekly Spanish Language instruction with Robin Freeman.  We also will welcome back Mast Storyteller Antoinette Bottsford, for weekly storytelling sessions.  An old Salmonberry friend, Antoinette will present stories in the oral tradition that will help build our awareness of our thematic studies as well as seasonal tales from many cultures.  Antoinette will certainly share her particularly strong repertoire of First People's stories from the Northwest Nations and her own Ojibway and Chippewa heritage.

A couple of requests: Please make sure your child is dressed appropriately for the weather each day, and please make sure he/she has a full set of spare clothes appropriate for the season.

Do your best to arrive on time and please avoid arriving during our morning circle time (around 9:30 - 10:00.)

Please send in, by Thursday, two photos of the same family member at two different life stages for a life cycle activity.  For example, a photo of grandma as a child and an older adult.  Or one photo of your child as a newborn and one from today.  I promise we will take good care of the photos and they will be returned to you.

Does anyone have a frozen fish, preferably a salmon, we could borrow next week to make some fish prints?  Let me know.  Thanks!

Have a wonderful week!

Paul 

November 6, 2006

Significant learning combines the logical and the intuitive, the intellect and the feelings, the concept and the experience, the idea and the meaning.  When we learn that way, we are whole.    -- Carl Rogers

So we come to the end of our first quarter.  What tremendous growth we have witnessed.  The kids and I have come together as learners and  begun trusting and sharing with each other.  In this way we have accomplished my largest goals for this quarter as we have laid the important groundwork for all the learning to come.

Of course I am saddened by Mairi's departure from Salmonberry at the end of this week.  I am so appreciative, however, for the time we have all shared with Mairi and for the lasting imprint her presence will have on our classroom and community.  I am also excited for the new opportunities this change will present for Mairi in her next pursuits and for the new teacher who will join us after Thanksgiving (we have not hired anyone yet.)  At this point Mairi would like to keep her good-byes low-key and intimate, and she has requested no big send-off.  She will remain in the Orcas Island community  and will surely check in on us from time to time.

Last week at school we celebrated Halloween as well as Dia De Los Muertos with the older class.  Both were great fun and provided for a dramatic cross-cultural comparison.  We also began talking about Election Day and models of group decision-making, including the voting process.  We designed and held some unique "elections" and polls and tallied the results.  We made lots of bar graphs with these results.  We discussed the pros and cons of making decisions by majority vote.

The first and second graders continue to rise to most any challenge during their extra hours, and are working hard in Math, Reading, and Writing.  They are truly planning collabooratively with me as we together create their program to meet them where they are.  There is great interest in augmenting the craft component to the afternoon program.  I'll be working on this over the break.  On Friday, we had a truly amazing writing experience that followed a visceral encounter with Mother Nature as we faced a powerful windstorm together.  The writing about the wind afterwards was powerful and rich.  I'll have to tell you more about it at a future meeting.

This week we will build toward our first quarter close.  We will sew a large felt banner which some of the students designed to illustrate, celebrate, and commemorate our learning.  We will learn some songs for the Martinmas holiday, and we will make lanterns to bring with us to our Martinmas celebration.  Speaking of which: the Dudley family has invited us all to their house (map and directions coming separately) to celebrate Martinmas on Friday, November 10.  This is a non-religious celebration in which we reflect upon St. Martin, champion of the poor and underprivileged and his message of spreading light to challenge darkness.  At the celebration we will share some cider and take a singing lantern walk.  Plan to arrive around 4:30, and bring some food to share.

We will have our final parent discussion/book talk on Lucy Caulkins' Raising Lifelong Learners on Wednesday at 3:30.  Please come and join us if you can.  Topics include supporting your children's creative play.

You should all know that while this quarter has provided me with many professional challenges and too many surprises, I still feel so wonderfully optimistic about the primary classroom, your wonderful children, and their incredibly supportive parents.  I feel that together we are co-creating an amazing learning environment, a truly child-centered, holistic program, which is both challenging and engaging, and simultaneously nurturing and accepting.  At the first Orientation Night in August, I spoke about building our Salmonberry School primary program and community to be one which defines itself by embodying and ethic of care.  With sincere gratitude, I thank you all for joining me in moving significantly toward realizing this vision.

Have a wonderful two-week vacation.  See you on Monday, November 27.

*Please send in one small glass jar by Wednesday (for lantern-making.)

Thanks!

Paul

October 16, 2006

"I need my kids to talk.  After all, these kids can't think with their mouths closed."          -- Lucy Caulkins

Apologies to all.  As you all are now aware, Salmonberry is dealing with the reality of replacing our wonderful intermediate grades classroom teacher, Maria Klein.  Her last day in the classroom will be this Friday, October 20.  I have been somewhat distracted working with this challenging situation, and planning for the transitions to come.  At this point, things seem to be well in hand, and I once again feel present and focused in the primary class.

Last week in our class, we spent some time talking about and exploring concepts around water.  We brainstormed water words, created some water art, played some water games.  We talked about the water cycle and solids, liquids, and gasses.  The older kids wrote some lovely water poems as well.

This week we will begin to develop our awareness of temperate rainforest.  We will use our increased understanding of the importance of water and apply it to our own bioregion.  We will work with some maps and identify geographic features which contribute to the creation of our ecosystem.  Here we will begin to build towards our segueway into the winter quarter when we will begin our integrated thematic study of salmon!

Robin Freeman began Spanish language instruction last week, and she began Form Drawing with the first and second graders as well.  In Spanish we learned some songs, and played some games.  We also learned some new vocabulary.  Spanish will continue today, Monday, at 11:00 am.

On Monday afternoon we will be visited by an amazing elementary educator who specializes in impersonating Ben Franklin.  He is a friend of Brigid's family, and is here to work with the intermediate class, but our first and second graders will get a taste of colonial America as well.

This Thursday from 6:00 - 7:30, our newly formed study group will meet.  The text we will be discussing will be Lucy Caulkins' Raising Lifelong Learners.  I understand the books are not in at Darvill's as of last Friday.  If necessary we will get you all some photocopies of the first chapter.  If possible, let's read through chapters 1 and 2.  Whether or not you've had a chance to read the text, please come and share in the discussion.  I will facilitate for this first week.  If I get the chance, I may have some questions to hand out for you to think about before we meet, otherwise, we'll just jump in cold.  Our goal is to build some shared understandings and share our thoughts and parenting concerns with one another.  This book focuses on identifying ways we can support our children in their learning; I think you will find much of it very reinforcing as it includes many ideas that I know you do a lot already.

Belated but sincere thanks for everyone who attended the school-wide work party and potluck on Sunday, October 8.  It was so energizing to hear about the terrific turnout and to see the tangible results of your hard work!

Have a great week!

Paul

October 2, 2006

We had such a wonderful quiet week last week.  We missed Ethan, Milo, Eve, Maddy, Cierra and Eamon in their absences.  The smaller group did have space to explore some new relationships and try out some new roles.  We had an outstanding field trip on Monday: beautiful weather, an incredible passionate host, and an amazing facility.  We played games, picked apples and pears and pressed cider.  We got a tour of Ed and Maile's amazing organic garden, and even got a taste of fresh stevia!  Thanks to John Miller and Mark Morris and Andria for helping with transportation and supervision.

Thursday's Michaelmas celebration was another highlight.  All week we read dragon stories and tales of bravery.  We talked about fears and courage, and explored our feelings through art and song.  On Thursday we formed our beautiful dragon bread, baked it and ate it, as we symbolically faced and conquered our fears.  There was plenty to share with the intermediate class as well.  We also, using a more "feminine" symbology, released our fears as we blew them into bubbles and let them drift away.  It was quite beautiful.

This week we will get back to building our awareness of place.  We will return to our special places and explore our various senses.  We will also begin to explore our place within the world as we start to learn some basic Pacific Northwest geography.

On Wednesday this week at 3:10 we will have a Parent Meeting.  We should be done by 4:30.  Please bring your calendar and we can try to set some dates for future meetings.  At this one I will discuss some classroom processes.  It is a great time to ask general questions about the class.  Also it will be an opportunity to establish some topics that we want to work on as a parent community together during this year.  I have a few ideas, but please bring your own.  What do we want to do together this year?  Working towards a shared goal or around a shared interest can be such a powerful thing, particularly with a group of committed parents.  Let's do something great!

This week many of Salmonberry School committees will be meeting.  You are strongly encouraged to join at least one committee.  Each of these groups will work together to focus on a particular area and make real progress over time.  The school relies on these committees to hand a lot of responsibility.  We truly need your help here.  The current committees include: Public Relations, Building and Grounds, Finance, Fund Raising, Middle School, and Hospitality.  I'd be happy to tell you more if you're interested.  This week's meetings will be the first of the year and may be a great opportunity to jump in and get involved.  Thanks in advance for your help.

There is a school-wide party and potluck on Sunday, October 8 from 10:00 to 2:00.

Paul

September 25, 2006

"Seasonal festivals serve to connect humanity with the rhythms of nature and of the cosmos. The festivals originated in ancient cultures, yet are adapted over time. To join the seasonal moods of the year, in a festive way, benefits the inner life. Celebrating is an art. There is joy in the anticipation, the preparation, the celebration itself, and the memories. "
-AWSNA (The Association of Waldorf Schools of North America)

Happy Michaelmas!

Mairi and I so enjoyed meeting and talking with you all at last week's Parent Conferences on Thursday and Friday. amazingly not only was one parent present from each family, but in all but one conference (during which Dad was on a boat in distant waters) both Moms and dads were present! Particularly as I am just getting to know so many of you, it was profoundly helpful to receive your guidance and input as I work to find effective strategies with each unique child. You all have the luckiest children. I was amazed by the depth of love and connection you all share with your little ones. I feel privileged to be entrusted with the great responsibility I have been given. In addition I was very touched by the outpouring of support I felt from each of you for the work Mairi and I are doing. I am also so excited to work together as a parent group community this year. I am heartened by the extent to which we all seem to share many common goals and understandings of the myriad ways in which children learn, and the role of school in our kids' lives. 

Building on the enthusiasm I felt last week, let us get together next week and begin to form our new adult community. We will have a Parent Meeting next Wednesday, October 4, at 3:10. I'll remind you again next week. Let me know if there are particular topics you'd like to see on our agenda. 

Last week's field trip to Ed Suij's orchard was canceled due to weather, so we are going today. We will pick apples, taste them, press them and learn about some of Ed's organic orchard management practices.

On Thursday this week we will celebrate Michaelmas. This holiday is often celebrated as an early fall festival in Waldorf Schools. "St. Michael is known as the conqueror of the dragon, the heavenly hero with his starry sword who gives strength to people.". While this celebration clearly comes out of the Christian tradition, we will focus more on the changing light and the need for bravery as we enter the darker months of the year. During the week, we will discuss and read books about the concept of bravery. We will also explore symbols and symbolism. On Wednesday we will make bread dough and on Thursday we will form and bake a large loaf of bread in the shape of a dragon, and then, symbolically face and triumph over our fear of the coming darkness by eating the dragon. We will also sing some songs and play games to demonstrate our strength and bravery. I know it sounds kind of heavy, but I assure you it will all be very fun and light hearted. I will let you know if it looks like there will be parts o four celebration for which you might want to join us. 

In the afternoons this week we will continue to work in reading groups. We will continue with daily writing activities. We will also begin a more regular rhythm of math time which will include puzzles, games and projects. This week we will begin our work with computation.

Reminder: There will be a school-wide work party and potluck on Sunday, October 8. Please mark your calendar.

Have a terrific week!

Paul

September 18, 2006

These Children learn mutual respect from sharing meals, they learn self respect from learning how to prepare meals, and they learn respect for the planet from learning how to grow food in an ecologically sound way.

                             -- Alice Waters, Center for Eco Literacy

Happy Equinox!  The seasons change.  We harvest the garden and put summer to rest.

Last week we celebrated our bountiful potato harvest.  Many of the primary students began this project last March as they helped prepare the bed and dig the trench for the potatoes.  We cut up some of the potatoes from the previous season's harvest and began a new cycle with planting.  We watched and nurtured these crops for six months (some did more nurturing than others, of course.)  Finally, on Monday we harvested and on Thursday we prepared a wonderful potato salad together.  The intermediate class spent all day Friday preparing a variety of gourmet recipes, some of which they shared with us.

So what's all the fuss with the Salmonberry garden?  Why spend all the time and energy?  The gardening we do at Salmonberry is an integral part of the ecological literacy component of our program.  Inspired by the work of Bay Area educators, including David Orr, Fritjoff Capra, Alice Waters and Zenobia Barlow.  In these projects we help children connect experientially in the taking care of living things.  The payoffs for this work are huge.  Often the students grumble about the garden work, but there was nothing but pride, joy and wonder as fist after fist emerged from the earth grasping a huge potato.

We have borrowed from the Center for Eco Literacy a "pattern of education for sustainability" which includes:

• a knowledge component connecting ecological content and an understanding of the patterns and processes by which nature sustains life.
• a real world context with a hands-on experiential project that provides for the application of ecological knowledge.
• a social dimension in which students, teachers, parents and others are given meaningful opportunities to work together as a community.
• a sense of place connected to the land.

This week we will continue our seasonal harvest theme with a trip to pick, taste, and press apples.  We will depart from school by 9:30 on Wednesday and return to school by 1:00.  Ed Suji, the island's most passionate orchardist will introduce to some of the wonders of apples.  Please bring a small basket in which to gather a few specimens!  Be warned, there will be yellow jackets about as we press cider.

We will also be reading several versions of the classic folk tale Stone Soup.  Then, on Tuesday, I will be asking each student to bring in one or two items to add to the pot.  Please talk with your child about what he/she would like to contribute.  Ideally, bring something from your garden or from a neighbor's or friend's.  Then we'll "take what we've got and put it in the pot!"  The stone, of course, is the magical secret ingredient.

Another amazing occurrence last week was the arrival of our wooden blocks.  When we broke out the blocks Tuesday morning, the kids began their most focused and cooperative work of the year so far.  It is amazing how the right toy, simple in nature, open-ended in application, can elicit such universal response.  The blocks we are using are patterned after those designed by progressive educator Caroline Pratt.  Much has been written about the pedagogical significance of these particular forms.  I'll have more to share about blocks and block play at our next Parent Meeting, if you're interested.

Our first and second grade students took a walk to Madrona Point on Friday.  We set up the adventure by reading Byrd Baylor's The Other Way to Listen.  We went to visit this amazing natural place where the forest meets the sea.  We went to look and to listen.  The four children were amazingly perceptive.  I wish I had brought a camera and a tape recorder.  A few choice cuts: "Look how those trees are working together!"  "I can sit still as that gull there."  "Look how far that ant has to go!  All the way up that fir tree."  "This is my special place; I wish I could stay here forever."  "We could stay until it got dark and everyone would wonder where we were!"  We did come back to class and added a page to our ecological pop-up books.

There will be no school on Thursday or Friday this week as we pause for Parent-Teacher Goal Setting Conferences.  The purpose of these meetings is for Mairi and I to listen to some of your thoughts and goals regarding your child's work at school this year.  This is not an evaluative reporting conference.  Rather, you and I will formally begin our work together as we collaborate to identify and articulate social/emotional and academic goals for this semester.  Please sign up for a conference time and let me know if you need  a time other than what you see is available.  I can't wait to hear your thoughts and ideas.  Undoubtedly, it will help me in my planning immensely.

Advance warning: there will be a work party and potluck on Sunday, October 8.  Please mark your calendar.

Have a terrific week!

Paul

September 11, 2006

A grounded or rooted learner stands within the world, acting on its many elements, rather than standing outside looking in...

                --Rural Challange Research and Evaluation Program (Harvard Graduate School of Education)

What a busy short week that was, eh?  By Thursday and Friday everyone seemed pretty tired.  I hope you were all able to catch up on some rest over the weekend as we prepare for our first week of school.

We spent a good deal of time working on processes and establishing routines last week.  We took advantage of some gorgeous weather and special places this week and at various times throughout the year.  We will visit them through different seasons and from different perspectives.  We will focus on different senses, and look for living things both above and below the ground.  The connection with a special place will be the foundation for our place-based studies.  We will gradually expand our circle of awareness from this place to our whole bio-region.  We will use the sense of connection to our special place as the basis for building our awareness of connection with nature in general and with all living things.

This week we will also continue our garden harvest; on Monday we harvest our potato bed.  We will incorporate these veggies in our Thursday snack preparations.  Speaking of which, last week's communal snack prep was a real highlight of the week.  Everyone helped wash and chop a variety of yummy fruits which we ate with yogurt.  This process, centered of course on food, seems to really bring us all together.  Our class is always looking for donations of foodstuffs, especially those from your gardens and orchards, special favorite simple recipes, and even your own (non-religious) blessings or verses of thanks which we might be able to use during our Thursday snacks.  Let me know if you have ideas.  Also this week, students will have an opportunity to work with fresh corn husks, and make some dolls if they'd like.  Andria will help lead this craft activity.

Last week we learned a few songs, read a few stories, and chanted some verses.  We will build our Language Arts program very gradually; we will steadily add components that will grow to surround the children in the natural and joyful acquisition of reading, writing, and speaking skills as well as a love of language and literature.  I would like to make time at a future Parent Meeting to explain the Language Arts program to you in greater depth.  Let's wait to have our next Parent Meeting until after conferences (which, by the way, are on Sept. 21 and 22 -- no school those days.)  We'll get together as a group the following week.

Head's up: Next week will include several celebrations of the transition from summer to fall as we anticipate the autumnal equinox.  We will read several versions of Stone Soup and make our own huge pot of shared soup.  I'll be asking each child to bring an ingredient.  More details to come.  Also, next Wedensday, September 20, will be our first driving field trip.  We will be going to visit local orchardist and passionate purveyor of find fruits, Ed Suji.  He will teach us a bit about growing, grafting and harvesting apples.  We will taste an assortment; then kids will get to harvest a few of their favorite varieties.  We'll conclude with a cider pressing and bring home a gallon or two of juice.  I am looking for a few drivers/chaperones: please contact our new field trip coordinator, Suzi Zobrist, if you are interested in helping out.  More details on this trip in next week's newsletter.

Last week the first and second graders began our studies of Pacific Northwest temperate rainforest.  We visited some trees, and learned a few interesting facts.  We also began and exploration of books with moving parts and we created the first page of what will become an original pop-up book.  This week, we will jump into some hands-on math activities which will build upon conceptual understanding and lead to some computation: mostly addition and subtraction to begin.  The afternoons have already become a precious and focused time for our small group of older children, though again, everyone seems pretty beat by three o'clock (even by two!)

A quick note on Sharing.  We are really trying, especially now that we have the first week under our belts, to keep to our sharing schedule.  The children are invited to bring an item to share once/week -- on their day.  As you can imagine, if we allow all to share each day, there'd be little time for other activities, and the individual presentations become less meaningful, while the group's attention span is strained.  Once your child has shared an item he or she has created, I'd like to invite him or her to bring an item found in nature (perhaps with a few words about when or where they found it and what about the object appealed to them.)  It's ok to practice sharing at home if you'd like.

There is a Board Meeting today, Monday, September 11.  If you have time, please come.  It is a nice way to become informed about our long term planning, budget matters, and ways in which we are working to grow and expand into a sustainable institution as well as a model for outstanding alternative education.  There will be new Board elections later this fall, so if you have any interest in getting involved at this level, today's meeting may be a nice opportunity to get your feet wet.

Have a terrific week!

Paul

September 5, 2006

So let's together learn...  I'm not teaching you, you're not teaching me, together we're going into it deeply.   - J. Krishnamurti

So let's together learn.  I am so excited to be embarking on this new journey.  I cannot even imagine the ways in which we all grow individually and together in the coming months.  Beginnings are just amazing!

I realize that some of the children may be pretty nervous right now, as perhaps some of you may be too.  I will do my best to provide the support you all need; the truth is, I'm pretty anxious myself.  Maybe we all need to see Ethna for a little massage or something.  I highly recommend Mairi's lap as a place of refuge as well.  She has been a wellspring of comfort for many, many children.

Before we get started I want to recognize and thank all of you who came to last week's orientation and for all the kind and generous words of support.  I have been talking with some of you by phone, running into you at the market, and you have all been so encouraging and thoughtful.  I sincerely appreciate your trust as I begin to work with your children.  It is an awesome responsibility and one I take with great reverence.

This week in school we will start to develop our community.  We will play games together as well as explore independently.  We will share stories and songs.  We will begin to establish some rhythms and routines, discuss class rules and responsibilities, and hopefully we will begin to trust one another.  We will establish school as a place where you have fun and where you are always safe!  These first days are so important as we lay the  foundation for all the risk taking and challenges to come, we will take care and go slow.

That said, sometimes it can help to have some challenging subjects around which we can being to coalesce as a group.  So, we will have plenty of free choice time inside, and we won't forget to enjoy the truly spectacular weather outside.  But we will also dive right in with some challenging open-ended projects.

I hope each member of our class this week will begin to share him/herself with the group.  We will use Daniel Pinkwater's book, The Big Orange Splot as a jumping-off point and we will begin to share some of our "dreams" through art.

Also, "sharing" will be an important element as we get started this fall.  Each child will have one day each week which will be his/her sharing day.  Perhaps this first week everyone could bring in an item which they have created.  I'm sure the special toys will come in eventually, but for now let's focus on the children's incredible capacities for creativity.

Here is the fairly arbitrary sharing schedule:

Monday:

• Cierra
• Ethan
• Eve
• Grayson

Tuesday:

• Solana
• Benjamin
• Eamon

Wednesday: 

• Emma
• Milo
• Maddy

Thursday:

• Henry
• Robert
• Claire

Special thanks to Suzi for volunteering to be our field trip coordinator, to Tess for vounteering to take on lunch and recess duty once/week, to Andria for volunteering to help out with crafts during some choice times, to Jon and Lynn W. for helping with a huge dump run, to John M. for supervising the new bathroom construction.  Many more volunteer opportunities will arise as we go along.  Thanks to everyone for the great feeling of teamwork and mutual support.

Does everyone have spare clothes?  A mug?  Forms complete?  I will let you know if I notice anything you may have forgotten.

Have a great week!

Paul

Salmonberry Preschool Newsletter

January, 21st, 2008

Greetings everyone,

I hope you are all in good health. I am feeling much better, the flu was pretty intense and although I am low on energy I am ready to be back at school.

Samara will continue to work on the abyss and the unfolding dramatization attached, the children are making up great stories and working on bringing them together. They have also been working on properties of water, experimenting with salt water versus plain water with sinking and floating objects. The levels of the abyss have been painted and are ready to be adorned with marine creatures from all levels of the deep. As Samara is deep into the abyss with the children she will continue to lead with this one.

Eliza will be in tomorrow and I finally hope to start doing individual projects with children who are interested.

Spanish continues to go well, Caitlin has been great with the children. We will continue to do music, and singing. Please dress your children warm with hats, gloves and boots. We will continue to be outside and it is very cold.

Thank you Tess for filling in a little last week. Especially thank you to Samara for holding the fort down by herself for most of the week.

It is good to be back!

Love & Blessings

Ethna

January, 15th, 2008

Dear Preschool Parents,

This week we have been playing out various Abyss stories and scenarios. These will lead up to a final, ìfilmî in which we videotape one of our stories. We have continued to explore the theme of leadership in the form of rhythm games where one person is the leader and the others must first listen carefully and then try to copy that leaderís rhythm. We are learning that once people learn to listen carefully to one another, we can then feel free to vary our rhythms to complement each other and add other layers to what our leader has already put out. Respectful listening always comes first though.

We have also discussed what it takes to get an expedition going ñ what sort of support you need, and ways to gather that support. One of our budding entrepreneurs was excited about the idea of fundraising, and as a part of one version of our story, we discovered that we might need to do a show to raise funds to build or buy a submersable (The vehicle used to go into the Abyss). This opened up an whole can of worms - who would do what for our show within a showñ who wants to be back stage, who wants to be out in front, who is thinking about costumes, and who is more focused on set design.

We have now chosen some of our characters for the next phase of our film, and will be taking turns acting as story leader for the others to act out.

We will soon be adding science to our exploration, experimenting with sinking things in salt and fresh water, and looking at water pressure and itís effects. Counting and numbers have also come into play with numbered fish puppets which we may become part of our final story. For music we are singing, ìThe Ocean is our Home, Please Take Care of it.î To the tune of The Earth is Our Mother.î We are looking for more fun, simple, ocean ñthemed songs to sing if anyone knows any.

It has been a rich unit as everyone is getting quite involved. We are finding it much more fun to work together as a team than it is to work in isolation. As we get to know what each of our gifts, strengths, and passions are, we can then call on each other as ìexpertî in a particular area. Itís been interesting to see which ideas each child gravitates towards and how they inevitably build upon each otherís knowledge and strengths.

We are thankful that most of us are healthy these days, and are wishing our beloved Ethna a speedy recovery, as we have certainly missed her absence.

A final important reminder for winter or water proof boots as well as hats and gloves/mittens.

In Peace,

Samara

January, 7th, 2008

Dear Salmonberry Families,

Welcome back to Preschool and Happy 2008! We come back refreshed and readyÖ to enterÖ. The Abyss. As the darkness calls, the cold winter and lack of sun might leave us feeling more quiet, perhaps even gloomy, and without a lot of get up and go energy. But we can see this time as a chance to discover and explore those deep, dark, places within us, where an ever-present light forever lies, waiting for us to re-connect. This time of darkness can provide us with a peaceful place to rest in this inner light, and a quiet time to reflect on the passing year as well as on the year ahead. We often miss these more subtle energies though, if we feel we need to constantly charge ahead, to ìget somewhereî or ìdo somethingî.

We will play with these ideas at Preschool by entering into the Abyss ourselves as explorers of a vast, uncharted territory. Our friend Zane has inspired us all to take a closer look at this part of our earth that is so mysterious, and potentially so frightening. There are bizarre creatures down there that are so different from anything we know, and we can choose to fear this territory or we can be curious, knowing that we can always help each other feel safe. We certainly do not enter this territory lightly. The Abyss may also feel scary because we are not entirely sure of what we might find there. No matter what we find, we can trust that we will discover something of value, something that could help us, or something that our community may need.

In preparation for our journey, we may ask ourselves some important questions. What is the purpose of our trip? Why do we even need to go on this journey in the first place? How will we get there? What will we need once we get there? Do we know enough about what we might find there? What else do we need to know? Do we need a leader or can we work as a team without a leader? Can we take turns being leader? What does it mean to work as a team? What does it mean to be a leader? Do we each need jobs to do, and what will each of ours be?

So, join us as we enterÖÖ The AbyssÖ.. Dun dun dun dun dun dun dun dunÖÖ.

We do hope everyone had a healthy and joyful holiday. It looks as if all of us at Preschool are clear of Whooping Cough symptoms and everyone is set to return in good health. Please let us know if your child has had any symptoms over the break so we can act accordingly. Remember hats scarves, mittens, and warm boots are crucial even if it feels warm in the morning. The weather changes so fast with wind and other factors, we want to be able to spend as much time as we can outdoors.

In Peace,

Samara and Ethna

December 10, 2007

We have so much to going on these days, Monday morning we will have a full school meeting. Each class had the assignment to make up a Holiday song and return this Monday to teach the rest of us.

The song we made up is to the tune of Jingle Bells, about riding angler fishÖ.we can sing it for you if you request.

Tuesday Lydia will be coming in to talk about Hanukah, and we get to eat latkes. Wednesday Deb Martyn (who will be subbing) is spending some time with us getting to know the children and the routine. On Thursday we have Spanish again, the children are doing a great job. Wed or Thur Eliza will be doing a plant craft with us. We finished up most Mom presents last week. This week it will be Poppaís presentÖ..so no peeking Dadís.

The book swap will happen on December 18th. I had hoped to hand out the book swap names by now, I promise to do it tomorrow. That way you will have a week to bring your book in. Ideally the books will be here sooner than the 18th to make sure we have one for everybody. In the past we have suggested keeping the price under $15, if that is still too much of a stretch you may bring a book from home so long as it is in very good condition. Please wrap the book and put the receiving childís name on it. Tuesday, December 18th is the last day that ALL the children will be at school, due to schedules and early trips.

I trust you are all enjoying the flurries today; the weather seems to indicate it will not interfere with school tomorrow. Just in case keep your phone tree handy and if you are not sure please check Orcas Island school District website, www.orcasislandschools.org on the left hand side you will see closures. It might be a good idea to bookmark this site.

Please be sure to dress your kids for outside play, including gloves and hats. Thank you!

I hope you got a chance to read the full article in the paper about the Orcas Island Early Childhood Consortium. Erin OíDell is doing a terrific job. All the preschools have made tree decorations to place on ëthe learning treeí at Darvilleís book store. Attached to each decoration (we made reindeer) is the name of a book the preschool would like to have.

Our hope is that people will purchase the book through Darvilleís and keep the decoration for their tree. I think it would be a great idea to involve your child in purchasing a book for preschool, any preschool for that matter.

Other giving ideas are the food bank; I will make sure food will get to the bank if you wish to drop of non perishables at school. Then there is the ëgiving treeí at island market. You pick up a tag with gender, age and some gift ideas, and return the gift to island market. I saw a photo of a bill board in England, it said ëSanta gives more to rich kidsí I felt a jolt when I saw this. This will not be true in our community!

I will miss you all next week, but trust I will be having a blast!

Many blessings, Ethna & Samara

December 3, 2007

Wow! December came quickly. We found it to be rather cold while outside last week. It is really important that all children have hats, gloves, warm coats and boots/shoes. Please make sure you put names on your child's clothing, it really helps.

Please make sure you have the Salmonberry phone list for snow closings. You can check online at the Orcas elementary school for closings at http://www.orcasislandschools.org/ there is a tab on the left for closures. Salmonberry school follows Orcas Island school district for closures.

Santa's workshop has been going well, almost everyone has an elf hat, we have been painting, glueing and getting messy. The children seem pretty excited about making gifts for you.

We had our first Spanish lesson with Caitlin this week, it went well. It was amazing what the children remembered from her visit about 3 or 4 weeks ago.

In the next three weeks Samara will be working with the children on a Christmas story and puppetry, as well as music and movement with the primary class on Tuesdays.

We are still looking for a volunteer maybe twice a week, from 9 - 10 am, so we can work on individual projects.

My son Peter and I are heading to Australia for Christmas for a family reunion. I grew up there, it has been over 12 years since I have been back and 19 years since we have been together as a family. This will be Peter's first visit. I am taking some extra time off school. Deborah Martyn will be assisting Samara December 17th - 20th. Tess White, Caitlin (Spanish teacher) and hopefully Whitney will be filling in for me January 7th and 8th. I will return on January 9th.

As Head of Salmonberry Preschool I am part of the Orcas Island Early Childhood Consortium,(OIECC). Erin O'Dell our family advocate has been busy, helping families with coats, shoes, Thanksgiving baskets etc... If you are in need of assistance please call Erin at 298 4541, all calls are confidential. If you are in a position to help, please check out the learning tree at Darvilles, the giving tree at Orcas Island Market or pick up some extra groceries for the food bank. I would be happy to deliver if you want to drop goods off at school. These events provide wonderful oppo