Completion and Gratitude
Grades 7 and 8 at Headwaters
The seventh and eighth grade class completed a Rite of Passage at Headwaters Outdoor School in Shasta this week. We look forward to seeing them next week as the eighth graders prepare for graduation.
Congratulations Grade 3!
The third grade gave a beautiful performance of Joseph and His Brothers this week. A special thank you goes to Scott Everett for his incredible mural!
Last Weeks in our Specialty Classes
With one short week left till the end of the year, students are having the last classes of their specialty subjects. The culmination of a full school year brings so much purpose and pride in all of these meaningful lessons and projects.
In Spanish, the classes are working on their last entries into the Spanish books. First and second grades have been working with fairytales and animal stories and learning sign language. In third grade, the students have learned about parts of the house and farm, while grades four and five have been working in Spanish with the study of plants and the foundations of grammar. The sixth graders have been learning about South American countries and prepared meals from several of those countries. The 7th and 8th graders were given the opportunity to walk to a nearby Mexican restaurant where they ordered and chatted with the staff all in Spanish.
In Handwork, the students are finishing their projects. First graders are working on their knitted rainbow balls, while the second graders are completing their knitted gnomes. The third graders are finishing up their spinning and crochet projects and the fourth and fifth graders are almost done with their knitted socks. The sixth graders are hand sewing elephants and felting slippers, the seventh graders are sewing dolls, and the eighth graders have created their own pajama pants on sewing machines.
In Games, the students in all grades are reviewing what they have learned this year and are enjoying the warms days of Spring and playing their favorite games one last time.
In Gardening classes, the students are finishing up their nature journals and reviewing all the lessons from the year. Compost has been harvested and spread into beds. The garden is in full bloom and fruiting and fed the students of the third grade and their chosen guest for a garden party. The seventh and eighth graders planted a Three Sisters bed of beans, corn, and squash.
In Woodwork, the fourth and fifth graders are completing their swords while the 6th graders have finished shields as a part of their Knighting Project. The seventh grade and eighth graders have completed their personal projects, which range from beautiful boxes to shelves.
Gratitude
As we reflect on the school year, we wanted to share appreciation for all of the hard work of our parents who support the school, and to plant some seeds of intention for next year.
We want to start by expressing our heartfelt gratitude for the parent leaders who held many of the events this year.
Our Halloween Journey, a deeply beloved tradition, was led by Jillian Provan, Lisha Pacheco, Stephanie Abbott, and Jenn Sgobba. This group has successfully completed three years of planning and orchestrating this event, which serves as a magical alternative to Halloween, as well as a valuable outreach and fundraiser event for the school.
Our Fundraising Events Committee has put on all the additional fundraising events for the school, including the Winter Faire and Spring Soiree, along with bringing their support to the Hike-a-Thon and other smaller fundraisers. This has been held by the same group of parents for three years as well, including Sara Ojjeh, Kate Juliano, Lindsay Batsford, Jamie Davin, Juliet Simpson, Sarah Wallace, Giuliana Mottin, Brandon Boesch and others.
These events require dedication and a great deal of time and energy, and have been held beautifully. Both these teams are stepping away for a well deserved rest. We encourage and welcome new leadership for the Halloween Journey and the Fundraising Events Committee. Please let us know if you are interested in joining either of these groups. The events have been carefully planned and documented so there is a wealth of information available!
We also want to thank the parents who serve on our other committees, including Castle and Grounds (Chris Del Moro and Ben Kenan), POEM (Brina Carey, Celsea Jenkins, Alexis Schoppe, Nico Constantinides, and Mila Gaffney), the Finance Committee (Emily Cotter, Mike Sgobba, and Kate Juliano), the Parent Association (Johnny Gill and all class parents), and of course, our Board of Trustees (Lisa Itamura, Brina Carey, Olivier Deschenes, Sara Ojjeh, Emily Cotter, and Matt Potoski). They have put in endless hours and have supported in many meaningful ways.
Lastly, we acknowledge all the parents who have helped in so many other ways: creating the yearbook, chaperoning trips, showing up for reading groups, serving pizza, cleaning, watering the garden, and more. We couldn’t have made it through without you!
Please consider how you might be called to support next year. There is much to gain from contributing your time and skills. We are truly grateful.