The Great State Challenge

Well the Great State Challenge has begun.  The children all wrote letters to various people around the country.  We received addresses from parents, staff members and friends from all over.  After we sent them all out we waited and today our first packages arrived.  The kids are so exicted to see what came.  I have made arrangements to put up a display in the front display case across from the office.  Next time you are in check it out as it grows.  It will be going up next Monday. 
This is so exciting!!!!!

Mouse Update

Well Surprise, surprise......  We think our white mouse is pregnant!!!!  That is right my two female mice seem to be not two females and now we are having babies.  The KIDS ARE ECSTATIC!!!   Me not so much!  So now we are doing research on what Mama Mouse needs for her babies and how to care for them once they are born. 
Talk about Teachable moments!!!!  We are now like anxious dads waiting the arrival of our new class pets.  The discussion about adoption has already begun, but one thing is for sure.  As soon as they are born our little boy mouse is moving into a new tank otherwise she will be pregnant before the babies are weaned. 

Any parent who wants to adopt some really cute little mice, I can sex them for you when they are about 20-25 days old.  I promise to do a better job then Petco did.  I have done some serious research this AM on how to sex them and there is no denying that they are one of each sex.  Wish I had known that a month ago. 

SURPRISE!!!!

Homemade Wreathes

Our class made wreathes out of things we found in the woods, like pine cones, acorns, seed pods and other things found in nature. We  glued them on a peice of cardboard and it was tons of fun.  Next we are going to put a red bow on it to take home. 
By Keenan

Kids teach kids

Last Monday Mrs.Garcia's class  tought a lesson to Ms. Jenn's and Miss Galuecia's second grade classes on how seeds travel . We  explained how water and wind move plant seeds from one place to another and how plants can explode out seeds when you touch them or when they are exposed to certain temperatures.

"It was cool to teach other kids and get them to look forward to learning about nature." said Madiline Fife, one of the pair of girls who started the lesson off.                                                                                   

                     

                    We also told them how some plants are  "superpoopers" .They are plants that rely on animals to eat their seeds, digest them, and then poop them out, therefore depositing  them in different places. Then some demonstrating kids showed some different examples of plants that travel in different ways.  After that, we helped the second graders make charts and lists grouping together plants, seeds ,and the ways seeds travel.
Finnaly, we read booklets we made to the second graders on the ways seeds travel.  I  think I can speak for all of Mrs. Garcia's class when I say that teaching the second graders was really fun!
Written by Phoebe

Tree Update

Our tree is now up and on display at the Berkshire Museum.  It is on the second floor to the right of the stairs as you go up the stairs.  It is in the group in the center of the second room.  The title of our tree is "Hike Safe" on the AT for yourself and the environment.

The children created over 150 ornaments that show the principles of hiking safe including mini water bottles and compasses.  The Appalachian trail winds around the tree from Springer Mt at the bottom to Mt. Khatahdin at the top.  Also on the tree is one copy of each post card that the children created.  They are all invasive species that can be found along the AT in the North east.  The focus was to teach not to track seeds while you hike.

The post cards will be going through a second printing and will eventually be displayed on the kiosk we will be building to place at an AT entrance point and the remaining cards will be spread throughout our community.  They will also be on display in our school.

The Festival of Trees will be up until Jan. 2nd.  Please take the time to take your family up to Pittsfield to see the show.  There are wonderfully creative trees to see as well as the normal museum exhibits.  Look for a notice next week to come home including a free pass for your child and a hint of how to get a museum pass for your whole family by using your library card.
Thank you for all of your support on this incredible project...

Making a Tree

Today we made oraments for a tree that we are going to put in the Berkshire Musuem.Yesterday we made ornaments for the tree and Mrs. Neet's class made signs for the AT.

I made a first aid kit with Trevor and then two 5th graders put them in plastic ornament holders.   Phoebe and Charlotte made some jackets to represent to bring clothes while you are hiking and to keep warm.  Justin and Mikel made little mapa of the AT and put them in the plastic ornaments.  Keenan and Justin took off tags to the little commpasses to hang on the tree.  Fifth grade girls put H2O on one side of the little bottles  and on the other side they wrote AT.  We made a rock out of a bowl and we put aluminum foil over the bowl to make it look like a rock.  Then we will put a  sign for Springer Mountain on the rock. The starting point of the AT is Springer mountain in Georgia.  Fifth graders made a sign that says Mt Khatadin, which is where the trail ends in Maine.

All of the ornaments are designed after the things you need to bring with you to be safe while hiking.  We are also putting our invasive species postcards on the tree.  They are being printed at Quick Print in Great Barrington.

Come see our tree at the Festival of Trees starting Nove. 24th and running through January 2, 2014.
Happy Holidays Everyone!!
by Keenan

Appalachian Trail Adventures

This month our class is working on essay.   Each student got to pick out a picture form the Appalachian trail calendar and write a story about it.

They could pick either a winter or a summer scene.  Justin and Charlotte did a winter scene and Phoebe and I did a summer scene.   Oh,  I almost forgot Mikel is so far writing a great story and it's in a summer scene.  Each story had to be at least five paragraphs.  It is really fun!!!   I wrote about a world inside a moutain.   The students all wrote about different things even thought they all are from the same trail,   the Appalachian Trail.   I hope we do another story!!!

By Maddie