Progress Reports, salmon, and state testing...

Students have their first trimester progress reports in their mailboxes. They will bring them home tonight (Monday, November 30th) for your viewing. Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns about your child and their progress.

On Tuesday, December 1st we will begin our first round of state testing. The test usually takes two or three testing periods to complete for each section (reading and math). Students are being encouraged to get plenty of rest, eat a good breakfast, take their time, and do their best.

We will be releasing our salmon on Thursday, December 3rd in the afternoon with Mrs. Lilly's class. Our trip will be to Dabney State Park. A permission slip went home last Wednesday.

Hard to believe that we only have three weeks of school until our Winter Break!

Take care,
Michelle

We Are Thankful Video

Area of Study November 19, 2009

We had an amazing afternoon of sharing our Area of Study projects. It was so fun to watch the kids from Room 12 shine as they shared their topics with others. I enjoyed how much work many of the kids put into their project and the creativity they possess. This was a great start and I can't wait until the next one! Thank you to those that were able to join us. For those unable to be with us, please be sure to ask your child about the event. I have posted a few photos to help them tell the story.

Buck Creek pictures 11/09

Rowena Slide Show

The Incredible East End of the Gorge

After a long ride the bus and a visit to Mosier Community School, we arrived at Rowena Crest. It was such an amazing place. The contrast from our "end" of the Gorge to the east end was very evident. The kids all noted that that there were fewer trees, the soil contained a lot more rocks, and that the vegetation was quite different then what we are used to seeing. We had many questions like: Why did they paint the grass pink? What makes the climate so much drier compared to where we live? What kinds of animals live in the area? We do know that deer are around. We saw tracks, scat, and two of them jumping over a fence! Here are just a few pictures of our trip.

Salmon Homecoming at Oxbow Park

What an incredible day we all had together. We were so fortunate to have such gracious hosts provided by Metro. Dan, along with the other volunteers, told us many stories that involved Native Americans, salmon, and many other animals. We learned how to hear like a deer, walk like a fox, and see like an owl. These new skills allowed us to discover many things that we might have normally passed by. We viewed spawning salmon, saw a bald eagle (he was also looking at the salmon), examined a salmon that was dead along the river bank, and we found deer tracks along the banks of the Sandy River.

We learned the importance that the salmon have in the growth of the trees and in the nourishment of other animals. As a way to show our appreciation we gathered sticks to represent the bones of the salmon, leaves to signify the fins that help the salmon move through the water, lichens to protect the fish from the cold water, and we used rocks to show the strong teeth and jaws, and another for the eyes. We ended with giving our salmon a heart. We then all said a huge "thank you" to the salmon as we ended our day with our new friends from the park. A day well spent.