Other Happenings of Interest (Catching Up)

Other pretty cool things that have been going on:

-Field trips. I have to say our advising has had a great quarter of field trips. Some of them have been wacky, some have been wet, but we have gone to many different places in the community and done things from fun and irreverent to serious and educational. The students did great by contributing to the planning process. We still have the next quarter which is empty, but some students have not planned their trips yet. I look forward to helping steer the upcoming adventures.

-Buddies. Not only have buddies gotten off the ground, this is now a student lead project. Each week we meet with the k,1,2 to do different activities. Auryn White is our Buddies Leader, and each week his is assisted by a different class member.

-Class Meetings. They can be painful and tedious. They can also be awesome when students bring up and discuss issues that are important to them. Your children have been running them, and they are getting better. Our discussions are more real, and proposals are happening. We should be drinking cocoa, finally, when our water cooler arrives next week.

-Service Learning. This year we did not get this off the ground. Next year I hope it will be a monthly—as it is supposed to be—element of our advising. I still have hopes to do a follow up service project in the upcoming months as a follow up to our last field trip to Northwest Medical Teams International. It was a pretty stark and moving exhibit that reminded us that Fridays are meant to be more than just field trips. Please keep you eyes open to see how you can help.

-Community Partnerships. As a science teacher I have a pretty cool partnership build with Purdue University and some local environmental groups to look at brownfields—local areas that have abandoned and often polluted. With this comes funding for some cool science experiments, and many great speakers from the community. This should be a very cool science experience.


There is still so much to do as an advisor, from making our space more pleasant, to being in better contact with families.