Winter at Nana Cardoon's

Rachel's Tree Swallows have enjoyed several trips to Nana Cardoon's family farm, despite the rain and chill this winter. In top secret, they have been interviewing Nana and Richard about their garden practices to create a Treasure book this Spring. The book will be a thank you for the many treats that the couple has shared with the class. Below, see the delicious rolls that they taught Swallows to make in their earth oven. This month, Swallow students also had the chance to share their knowledge of farmlife at Nana Cardoon's with their Level Three Owl buddies.

The Kestrels Fish Release

A few weeks ago, Charlie's Kestrels trekked out to Scoggins Creek at Hagg Lake to release the trout that they had been raising from eggs in the school aquarium. It was a frenzied race against the clock to scoop up as many trout as possible before loading onto the bus. After finding a safe location for their tiny trout to start their life in the current, students explored the creekside, discovering beaver sticks and other treasures. After lunch, the class got an exclusive tour of the Scoggins dam spillway.

During this trip, the Kestrels were already experienced fish releasers: just in December, they made the trip to John Blodgett Arboretum off Highway 6 to release a batch of salmon. The tree full of woodpecker holes and a salmon jaw, below, were just a few of the discoveries made in these woods. Students also gathered up over 16 pounds of garbage on this trip, sorting and disposing of it back at school.

Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile

Exactly how do you catch a crocodile? And, if I blindfold you and spin you 3.6 times, will you stil be able to find your way? An what is that magical energy that keeps anti-gravity poles off the ground? When it comes to team-building activities, games that challenge students to work together in creative ways, the more outrageous the challenge, the more fun! Just ask these students...

Senior Center

During December, Level 2 classes made visits to the local Senior Center to learn and share stories with the seniors of Forest Grove.

The Falcons presented a short play they had been working on about land rights in Forest Grove. Since many of the Seniors had been residing in this area for over 40 years, they were able to share stories of watching Forest Grove change and grow over time.

Seniors at the Center on Wednesday got the chance to make holiday cards with the Merlins. With stacks of old cards, scissors and glue at their disposal, students worked with Senior buddies to craft creatively reused cards. At first timid, students worked up to asking the seniors to share stories about their childhood and schoolyear memories. The cards were sold at a winter Celebration of Learning as a fund-raiser for Pennies for Peace.

For the Kestrels visit, students brought their most prized skill: oragami. They folded paper crane ornaments as a gift for seniors, and taught those who were willing to fold their own cranes. They ended by singing, "Cranes Over Hiroshima," inpiring many tears among the audience. As I rounded up the troups to head back to school, 6th-grade Abe turned and said, "I don't ever want to leave! This place is awesome." There you have it!

The Great Level 2 Leaf Dump!

At Outdoor School, Level Two students learned all about the layers of soil, and how forest duff decomposes to make the rich topsoil in which plants grow. They put their knowledge into practice several weeks ago by mulching the lot that will soon be the Community School's Learning Garden! Equipped with shovels, wheelbarrows, and other garden tools, the Kestrels, Merlins, and Falcons had to practice teamwork and communication in order to move and spread the massive leaf piles through the garden.

As they dug through the piles, some students made an exciting discovery: the center of the pile radiated warmth, steaming into the cold outside air! The presence of so many microorganisms and other decomposers in the pile, hungrily breaking down the organic material, can actually generate heat. It is this rich, decomposing matter that will ammend the soil, improving its quality for planting in the Springtime. Great work level two students!

If you would like to learn more about the development of our educational garden, please contact me at e.morgan@fgcschool.org. Meanwhile, enjoy the pictures below. Thanks!

Swallow Shelters in the B Street Wilderness

On recent Out and Abouts, Barn Swallows and Tree Swallows have been hard at work learning wilderness survival skills. Before the cold drove us inside for the Fall, students learned to make shelters using natural materials.

Several weeks ago, students began preparations by investigating how animals make their homes. Sherry's Barn Swallows went on a search for homes underneath a rock or log, and recorded the living creatures they discovered there, from slugs and worms to colorful fungi. Karen's Tree Swallows used cameras to record natural animal homes they found all around B Street. They photographed hollow logs, bird nests, and gopher holes, and used their knowledge to predict who might make a home there.

Next, the classes read about building shelters from a wilderness survival guidebook, and spent one week investigating B Street to find excellent locations for a shelter. They had to consider many factors, such as the slope of the land, water drainage, the direction of the sun, and natural hazards that might endanger their shelter!

Once a prime spot was chosen, teams of students had the opportunity to practice building their own shelters! One type of shelter is a wiki-up, a stick structure similar to a teepee, insulated with leaves and other debris. Find a nearby swallow student, and I'll bet that he or she can explain all the steps to build this shelter. The second type of shelter students built was a lean-to. This was a challenge for all the groups, but with amazing teamwork, they succeeded beautifully! See below for pictures: