We have been busy this week. We gathered soil from several different sources around the campus and mixed it and put it into planters down by the outdoor classroom in a spot that gets maximum sunlight. The students then planted the seeds of five different kinds of flowering plants and one flower bulb, so that they could observe the process of how differently monocotyledon plants and dicotyledon plants begin their lives. The plants got a good soaking shower of rain on Wednesday, and we watered them especially heavy on Friday, in hopes that our not being able to water over the weekend will not deter their growth. The students are recording their observations in their Botany journals. This journaling will continue until the end of school. The potted plants will be coming home with the students on June 4, and most of the plants will need to be transplanted since we packed the planter pretty full.

The Mod Podging ( the students have named it SWS for sticky white stuff) is going well, and the treasure boxes are going to be fun to fill with memories. The grades classes are going to record an end-of-year, aging-out ceremony on the last day of school. Our class collectively wrote a recitation, which we are in the process of memorizing. Each of the grade pods is going to sing a song. I anticipate that it will be a very special recording.

We will continue to explore the world of flowering plants - trees, shrubs, vines, grasses, and non-woody stemmed flowers for the next week. The old crone has come to pick up the umbrellas, but we are trying to talk her into hanging around another couple of weeks because there are still places we want to go. The math workbooks, although not the most popular book in the room, are doing their job, and everyone is becoming more confident.

Have a great week!

Blessings,

Kathee