Language Arts: Students have continued their work in 1,100 words and have a test today on Week 2’s words. Our vocabulary work thus far has focused on words, definitions, and contextual meaning. We will be adding the spelling of those words in the upcoming weeks.

Last week, students went to the Tacoma Public Library and checked out a book for their Independent Reading Book. Every month or so, students will be required to make a selection of a book for their Independent Reading Book. Students will be required to complete a written review of that book based on the guideline that are provided. Each month, students will select books based on guidelines that they receive from me.

Students have been doing a wide variety of writing assignments and I am impressed with the quality and perseverance that students are demonstrating. Today, students are turning in a short story they wrote based on the their boats journey down the Puyallup River to Commencement Bay. As I write this piece, students are writing a descriptive essay on their experience on the Adventuress schooner on Thursday.

Math: Most of our students have been working with the Order of Operations at various skill levels this week. Other topics have included exponents and square roots, and algebraic expressions.

Social Studies and Science: Students have been researching point source and nonpoint source pollution this week at the library and in class. We’ve had several questions to answer. What are the different of agricultural pollution? What compounds should we be looking for in our Puyallup River samples that would indicate agricultural pollution? How do we test for those compounds?

We also continued our study of the Puyallup River by making it out onto the Sound to the mouth of the river. There we got to do some dissolved oxygen and salinity tests, as well as enjoy stories about the historic ship we were on, and interface with the people who work on the ship fulltime. See pictures of this on our Photos page!

Also, check in next week as we’ll be posting the essays the students have written about this experience.

Technology: Students got set up with Outlook this week so that they can use the calendar portion of the program to keep track of homework.

Music: Students have been working on major and minor keys.

French: Students have continued their work on numbers, irregular verbs and conversational skills.

October 9, 2009

Language Arts

Students have continued their work in 1,100 words and have a test today on Week 2’s words. Our vocabulary work thus far has focused on words, definitions, and contextual meaning. We will be adding the spelling of those words in the upcoming weeks.

Last week, students went to the Tacoma Public Library and checked out a book for their Independent Reading Book. Every month or so, students will be required to make a selection of a book for their Independent Reading Book. Students will be required to complete a written review of that book based on the guideline that are provided. Each month, students will select books based on guidelines that they receive from me.

Students have been doing a wide variety of writing assignments and I am impressed with the quality and perseverance that students are demonstrating. Today, students are turning in a short story they wrote based on the their boats journey down the Puyallup River to Commencement Bay. As I write this piece, students are writing a descriptive essay on their experience on the Adventuress schooner on Thursday.

Math

Most of our students have been working with the Order of Operations at various skill levels this week. Other topics have included exponents and square roots, and algebraic expressions.

Social Studies and Science

Students have been researching point source and nonpoint source pollution this week at the library and in class. We’ve had several questions to answer. What are the different of agricultural pollution? What compounds should we be looking for in our Puyallup River samples that would indicate agricultural pollution? How do we test for those compounds?

We also continued our study of the Puyallup River by making it out onto the Sound to the mouth of the river. There we got to do some dissolved oxygen and salinity tests, as well as enjoy stories about the historic ship we were on, and interface with the people who work on the ship fulltime. See pictures of this on our Photos page!

Also, check in next week as we’ll be posting the essays the students have written about this experience.

Technology

Students got set up with Outlook this week so that they can use the calendar portion of the program to keep track of homework.

Music

Students have been working on major and minor keys.

French

Students have continued their work on numbers, irregular verbs and conversational skills.

October 2, 2009

This week was mainly spent processing the Fall Field Study from last week. Check out the writing the students did on our Student Work page! This is only a sampling of what was written. On Friday, we went to Gathering at the lower school campus and presented our writing along with a slideshow of some of the best photos.

Math progress continued as well this week! We continued our work on variables and algebraic equations and exponents.

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 3

Written by our ace reporters, P.R. and E.K.!

On our third day at Mt. Rainier our evil alarm clock woke us up at about 7:30. We had a wonderful breakfast of eggs, waffles cooked in the toaster, sausages, and cereal.

We got together all of the things that we needed for the day (including a swimsuit) and headed out the door for Sunrise, Mt. Rainier.The car ride was about two hours long and everyone entertained themselves in very different ways.

On our hike we saw two marmots and lots of fat chipmunks. The hike to the viewpoint was about 2.5 miles round trip. We had an amazing view of the Emmons Glacier and the Fryingpan Glacier.

We then headed out for yet another two hour drive to Ohanapecosh, where some of us went swimming in the freezing water. All of our limbs were frozen popsicles. We would now like to give out some credits to be added to the Seabury records. Hadyn was brave and was first to get in (Elise was the first to touch the water though), Paul was the first to get his whole body wet, followed by Lars, Elise was the first person to swim across the river and back, and Petria was the person who stayed in the longest. The brave people to enter the water are as following: Elise, Hadyn, Paul, James, Lars, Jordan, Petria, and David (we are dreadfully sorry if we forgot your name, we’re tired and want to go to bed). The smart (smart, if not brave) people who are Jackie, Sadler, Donovan, Emmet, Nick, Guy, and all of the adults did a fist bump because they were wise enough not to swim.

Thus begins the long car ride home to our extremely cozy cabins. Showers were first priority for the still frozen popsicle people (without the sticks). Some people (Jackie, Hadyn, and David) built a fire and others (Nick, Sadler, and Guy) made dinner and others (Elise and Petria) are still here typing away on this computer about this very exciting day. Pretty much everyone else played pool.

For dinner we are having tacos/burritos, and for dessert we are going to make s’mores! Then we will start packing up and heading for a well-deserved sleep in our comfy beds (or the couch!) after a long day, awaiting the ring of everyone’s dreaded enemy: the alarm clock.

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 2

Written by our ace reporter, J.F.!

Today we started with a hardy breakfast. We had bacon, waffles, bananas, many types of cereal and more. After breakfast we got to have some time to take showers, pack, and get ready for the hike ahead of us.

After that we enjoyed an group problem solving exercise that Toby had set up for us. It was like a spider web. It had 14 openings that we had to get through. The game was called electric fence. If we touched the rope (which was pretty far off the ground) we would have to go back. We accomplished that after many “zaps.”

We got in our cars and we were off to Paradise. It took about 35 minutes to get up there. When we got there we started hiking immediately. We went on the skyline trail. The trails in general were all up hill and the paths had lots of bumps. From that high point, we got a great view of the entire Nisqually Glacier. We were able to see the summit of Mt. Rainier as well. It was very clear and we were able to see Mt. Adams to the south. We got to where we were going to turn back, but it didn’t seem that long.

fter we hiked back to Paradise, we went to the visitors center and we ate lunch, filled water bottles ect. We went to look at a 3D map that Toby told us about. When we got in there we broke out into singing happy birthday to Lars. He was apparently really mad about it because he said “dang it” and walked in circles.

We headed off to meet Dr. Todd by the bridge. She came and we went down to the river. There was a steep hill that we had to get down. Once down, we had to go through an over-grown path to get to the river. After we had all made it through the brush, Dr. Todd answered our questions that we had thought of earlier. Then we headed down to the actually river. There were 3 canals that the water used to get though. One of them was being used by the river. Once you reached the canal that had the river in it was really loud. Dr. Todd told us about her career and what she does. We did some water samples and recorded the turbidity. Dr. Todd also offered to go snowshoeing with us in the winter to the exact spot we were standing at.

We headed back to the lodge. Dr. Todd showed us some of her pictures that she took in Antarctica. They were really cool. We rewarded her time with us with a signed snow picket (an anchor for snow). She really liked it!

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 1

Written by our ace reporter, E.C.!

On Wednesday the 22^nd, we went down to the mouth of the Puyallup River where it dumps out into Commencement Bay. As soon as we got there, we got to work. Toby had us split up into four groups, one for the temp of the water and water samples, one for the width of the river and turbidity, one for recording the rivers surroundings, and one for measuring the rate of flow. When we started at the mouth of the river, we could tell that part was not being well taken care of. Our next stop was a bridge just two blocks away. We walked the width of the river on the bridge laying down a rope with 25 feet markings. We got back in the cars and started driving to our next stop.

Our next stop was beside a freeway. We all got out and again got to work. This part of the river was greener. There was still trash all over the ground, but it was way cleaner then our first stop. We started to notice more fish and that the river was more controlled by a levy on either side to keep the river from flooding and going onto the street.

Part by part of the river we started to notice there were beginning to be more rocks, sand and plants, and the water was getting faster and faster each stop.

Along the way we decided to visit Tom. He is a third generation farmer and grows some really good corn, pumpkins, rhubarb, and many other crops. He started to tell us about how his grandfather was a dairy farmer and raised over 100 cows. Tom told us that he had stopped being a full-time dairy farmer and now he is only a part-time farmer and doesn’t have any more cows. As soon as we pulled into the drive way we noticed a little stand that was in his yard. In that stand he had corn, pumpkins, etc. It was a self-serve stand where people could buy his crops.

At our last stop we were pretty worn out from all the testing on the river. This was the last stop at the Puyallup River that we would make and the current of the water was the fastest that we had seen it today. We took the last tests that we needed to and then Toby called us to a rock out by the river and one by one we put our boats in the water, hoping that they would get to the ocean.

October 2, 2009

This week was mainly spent processing the Fall Field Study from last week. Check out the writing the students did on our Student Work page! This is only a sampling of what was written. On Friday, we went to Gathering at the lower school campus and presented our writing along with a slideshow of some of the best photos.

Math progress continued as well this week! We continued our work on variables and algebraic equations and exponents.

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 3

Written by our ace reporters, P.R. and E.K.!

On our third day at Mt. Rainier our evil alarm clock woke us up at about 7:30. We had a wonderful breakfast of eggs, waffles cooked in the toaster, sausages, and cereal.

We got together all of the things that we needed for the day (including a swimsuit) and headed out the door for Sunrise, Mt. Rainier. The car ride was about two hours long and everyone entertained themselves in very different ways.

On our hike we saw two marmots and lots of fat chipmunks. The hike to the viewpoint was about 2.5 miles round trip. We had an amazing view of the Emmons Glacier and the Fryingpan Glacier.

We then headed out for yet another two hour drive to Ohanapecosh, where some of us went swimming in the freezing water. All of our limbs were frozen popsicles. We would now like to give out some credits to be added to the Seabury records. Hadyn was brave and was first to get in (Elise was the first to touch the water though), Paul was the first to get his whole body wet, followed by Lars, Elise was the first person to swim across the river and back, and Petria was the person who stayed in the longest. The brave people to enter the water are as following: Elise, Hadyn, Paul, James, Lars, Jordan, Petria, and David (we are dreadfully sorry if we forgot your name, we’re tired and want to go to bed). The smart (smart, if not brave) people who are Jackie, Sadler, Donovan, Emmet, Nick, Guy, and all of the adults did a fist bump because they were wise enough not to swim.

Thus begins the long car ride home to our extremely cozy cabins. Showers were first priority for the still frozen popsicle people (without the sticks). Some people (Jackie, Hadyn, and David) built a fire and others (Nick, Sadler, and Guy) made dinner and others (Elise and Petria) are still here typing away on this computer about this very exciting day. Pretty much everyone else played pool.

For dinner we are having tacos/burritos, and for dessert we are going to make s’mores! Then we will start packing up and heading for a well-deserved sleep in our comfy beds (or the couch!) after a long day, awaiting the ring of everyone’s dreaded enemy: the alarm clock.

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 2

Written by our ace reporter, J.F.!

Today we started with a hardy breakfast. We had bacon, waffles, bananas, many types of cereal and more. After breakfast we got to have some time to take showers, pack, and get ready for the hike ahead of us.

After that we enjoyed an group problem solving exercise that Toby had set up for us. It was like a spider web. It had 14 openings that we had to get through. The game was called electric fence. If we touched the rope (which was pretty far off the ground) we would have to go back. We accomplished that after many “zaps.”

We got in our cars and we were off to Paradise. It took about 35 minutes to get up there. When we got there we started hiking immediately. We went on the skyline trail. The trails in general were all up hill and the paths had lots of bumps. From that high point, we got a great view of the entire Nisqually Glacier. We were able to see the summit of Mt. Rainier as well. It was very clear and we were able to see Mt. Adams to the south. We got to where we were going to turn back, but it didn’t seem that long.

After we hiked back to Paradise, we went to the visitors center and we ate lunch, filled water bottles ect. We went to look at a 3D map that Toby told us about. When we got in there we broke out into singing happy birthday to Lars. He was apparently really mad about it because he said “dang it” and walked in circles. J

We headed off to meet Dr. Todd by the bridge. She came and we went down to the river. There was a steep hill that we had to get down. Once down, we had to go through an over-grown path to get to the river. After we had all made it through the brush, Dr. Todd answered our questions that we had thought of earlier. Then we headed down to the actually river. There were 3 canals that the water used to get though. One of them was being used by the river. Once you reached the canal that had the river in it was really loud. Dr. Todd told us about her career and what she does. We did some water samples and recorded the turbidity. Dr. Todd also offered to go snowshoeing with us in the winter to the exact spot we were standing at.

We headed back to the lodge. Dr. Todd showed us some of her pictures that she took in Antarctica. They were really cool. We rewarded her time with us with a signed snow picket (an anchor for snow). She really liked it!

Fall Field Study Trip: Day 1

Written by our ace reporter, E.C.!

On Wednesday the 22nd, we went down to the mouth of the Puyallup River where it dumps out into Commencement Bay. As soon as we got there, we got to work. Toby had us split up into four groups, one for the temp of the water and water samples, one for the width of the river and turbidity, one for recording the rivers surroundings, and one for measuring the rate of flow. When we started at the mouth of the river, we could tell that part was not being well taken care of. Our next stop was a bridge just two blocks away. We walked the width of the river on the bridge laying down a rope with 25 feet markings. We got back in the cars and started driving to our next stop. Our next stop was beside a freeway. We all got out and again got to work. This part of the river was greener. There was still trash all over the ground, but it was way cleaner then our first stop. We started to notice more fish and that the river was more controlled by a levy on either side to keep the river from flooding and going onto the street.

Part by part of the river we started to notice there were beginning to be more rocks, sand and plants, and the water was getting faster and faster each stop.

Along the way we decided to visit Tom. He is a third generation farmer and grows some really good corn, pumpkins, rhubarb, and many other crops. He started to tell us about how his grandfather was a dairy farmer and raised over 100 cows. Tom told us that he had stopped being a full-time dairy farmer and now he is only a part-time farmer and doesn’t have any more cows. As soon as we pulled into the drive way we noticed a little stand that was in his yard. In that stand he had corn, pumpkins, etc. It was a self-serve stand where people could buy his crops.

At our last stop we were pretty worn out from all the testing on the river. This was the last stop at the Puyallup River that we would make and the current of the water was the fastest that we had seen it today. We took the last tests that we needed to and then Toby called us to a rock out by the river and one by one we put our boats in the water, hoping that they would get to the ocean.