Catalina Day 2

Day 2 was filled with more thrills at Toyon Bay! Some of us began with an early morning hike up Shrine Trail. Congratulations and thank you to Danny, Sergio, Sergei, Zack, Luke, Nick S., Dominick, Garrett, Nick E., Mr. Lalescu, and Ms. Koda for joining me on this short adventure. As you can see from the photos, the view was worth waking up a little earlier.

Our morning program involved rotating through lab stations, where we learned about algae, sharks, and different types of fish through hands-on activities. We enjoyed more snorkeling in the afternoon, which also included some time jumping off the floating platform. The water was very clear, allowing the students to see several more leopard sharks and garibaldi. Some of the instructors were also able to locate sea stars and a sea cucumber, which they brought to the surface for the students to see. Yes, it was cold, but the students were thrilled and had a great time. As the activity came to a close, fog rolled in, creating a beautiful backdrop as we returned to the island. Our evening program was an island simulation, where students had to address critical issues as they planned the development of a newly discovered island. They had to work together as a team to present a model that would help solve such problems as power/energy supply, waste removal, and resource protection; it was great fun watching them think and discuss (and argue, of course) during the project. You can see photos from today’s activities at www.flickr.com/photos/sandpiperprincipal. (My apologies for not making this a link… I can’t get it to work. Also, I did not upgrade my Flckr account, so it only allows me to upload 200 photos. Many of the photos from day 1 were removed to make way for photos from day 2.)

We will leave Toyon Bay on Friday morning and take shore boats to Avalon. The express shuttle leaves at 11:45 am (12:45 pm – Arizona time), and it typically takes about an hour to get to Long Beach. I will send out another phone message when the bus is loaded and we are ready to travel, which I expect to be around 1:15-1:30 pm (2:15-2:30 pm – Arizona time).

Your students are having a great time, and I know they are eager to get back home to share this experience with you!

Catalina 2011

We had a great first day on Catalina Island, although it was a bit colder than we are used to! We obviously began with our bus ride through the night. All of the students attempted to sleep, some with more successful than others. Aside from struggling to get comfortable, it was an uneventful drive, and we arrived in Long Beach a little ahead of schedule. Our ferry ride was a fairly smooth one with slightly overcast skies for most of the trip. The students were excited to see some dolphins and sea lions swimming along the way. Once we arrived, we enjoyed a quick lunch and basic orientation session about the camp before beginning our first snorkel activity. The weather was perfect and the water was clear, so our students were able to see many different types of marine life, including bat rays, guitarfish, garibaldi, and a few leopard sharks. While the water was cold, it became even colder as they had to exit the water with the sun disappearing behind the mountains. After dinner we learned a great deal about marine mammals in our evening lab, where students participated in a scavenger hunt for facts. It was an exciting and exhausting day, one that ended with many students asleep long before our prescribed quiet time. Tomorrow we have several lab activities scheduled, as well as another snorkeling outing. With the exception of facing the cold water, the students are eager to get back out there to see some more marine life. You can see pictures of today’s activities by visiting www.flickr.com/photos/sandpiperprincipal. (This is not a link; cut and paste it into your address bar to see the photos.)

Great Happenings

We have had a great month of fun and engaging activities as we prepare for the close of the year!

Our MARE program once again brought the ocean to the Valley of the Sun as our students explored different bodies of water and their ecosystems. Ken Watson returned from California, bringing his diving experience and ocean artifacts, and Wayne and Karen Brown shared videos of their diving experience with the belize whale shark. Students participated in many hands-on activities, including squid dissections, phytoplankton "creations," sand analysis, and a "bird beak buffet." Thank you to everyone who attended our MARE night and shared the great work our students did during MARE week.

Our 4th grade students performed the play, "The Wizard of AZ," which focused on the 5 C's of Arizona (copper, cattle, climate, cotton, and citrus). They performed with enthusiasm and put on a great show!

Mrs. Clark's 4th grade class met with Peter Raisanen, a former Sandpiper student who is planning to ride his bike from coast to coast this summer to raise money for the Children's Heart Foundation. Peter shared his expectations for the trip, answered questions, and is setting up a blog to answer student questions during his trip. His message to the students was that he is just an ordinary person doing this, and that anyone can make a commitment to make a difference--a message that supports our character education program. If you would like to follow Peter's ride or offer support, check in at petey4kids.blogspot.com.

The 5th grade held their state parade, where students created small floats to represent their research on one of the 50 states. They shared their creative work with the rest of the students as they participated in a parade around the school.

Mrs. Crisp's 6th grade students researched how to make fire (without a lighter) and put their knowledge to practice as they tried to make smores in the front of the school. The activity is part of the "Bones and Stones" simulation activities, which traces the importance of fire in the evolution of man.

Congratulations to first grader Elizabeth M.! Elizabeth's watercolor painting of a clown was selected by the district for purchase, and the award was given at the last Governing Board meeting. Each year the district purchases individual pieces from the district art show, and Sandpiper has had three students receive this honor in the past five years.

Congratulations to Sandpiper alumnus Wafa Shahid for being selected for a summer internship at the Arizona Biomedical Collaborative at the University of Arizona Medical School. Wafa is a junior in the International Baccalaureate program at North Canyon High School, and we are very proud of her accomplishments!

Sandpiper recently received an upgraded mobile laptop cart so that our teachers and students can continue to have classroom -ccess to the digital world. This also allows us to deploy our older laptops to the teachers so that every classroom will have more up-to-date technology on a daily basis.

A Trip to Mars

I had the pleasure of joining our Sciensations club on a field trip to the Mars Education Program at Arizona State University. Our students received a tour of the facility, where they saw replicas of the exploration rovers and learned how ASU researchers are helping map the surface of Mars. We also were given a brief look at the history of space exploration and how we have benefited from our first trips to the moon. The Mars Education Program partners with K-12 schools to enhance classroom learning and further student interests science. A special thanks to Mrs. Arn for bringing this amazing experience to our students!

World Connections!

Our 6th grade students just completed their country reports and celebrated with a world's fair. In addition to learning about the customs, tradition, and history of other countries, our students made an extra connection with the Marines in Afghanistan. Corey H. chose to learn more about Afghanistan since his brother is stationed there. When Lance Corporal Brandon Swisher learned about his brother's report, he sent back several photos expressing a big hello to Mrs. Urlaub's class. The students were certainly excited about the message, and we hope to establish an opportunity for Lance Corporal Swisher to communicate via Skype with the class before school lets out.

Foreign Language Update

Our FLITE program is taking off as we have received a healthy interest in people wanting to enroll their students in a Spanish immersion program.

We currently have enough students to commit to a FLITE section in 1st grade, and we hope that enrollment will continue to grow so that we can open a second section. We have already ordered classroom supplies and have collected resources from retired teachers who were willing to donate their Spanish materials. In April we will post a position and begin the interview process for hiring a bilingual teacher.

Our kindergarten program for next year is growing well ahead of last year's pace, and many of these parents are expressing an interest in FLITE for the following year. Even though we are not planning for an immersion offering at the kindergarten level in 2011-2012, our teachers are committed to introducing Spanish through vocabulary and basic phrases. This exposure will benefit all of our students, and it will help build a foundation for those students enrolling in the immersion option in the 1st grade.

We are also getting many phone calls about our Pre-K program, and we expect that this will be another great addition to Sandpiper.

Sandpiper Rocks!

I want to thank everyone who helped make our Sandpiper Rocks! night such a great success! More than 150 students, including new kindergarten students and invited guests, attended our scavenger hunt/showcase/sock hop, and everyone had a great deal of fun. Our teachers and parents invested many hours during the week to make the night happen, and I can't begin to express my appreciation for such a committed group of adults who come together as a community to support our students... another sign that Sandpiper truly does ROCK!

Congratulations to our poetry contest winners!
1st Grade - Luka Z., Nia S., Elisabeth M.
2nd Grade - Ella B., Kyle S., Ron B.
3rd Grade - Josh L, Peyton S., Hunter A.
4th Grade - Ayah O., Annie S., Kyler S.
5th Grade - Caroline K., Diana L., Daniel F.,
6th Grade - June O., Paula C., Kobe R.
Each grade level submitted entries at the end of their poetry units in January and February, and the following students were recognized for their work: You can see their poems in the hallway just past the entrance.

With the addition of our character education program this year, we have been using the morning announcements to celebrate student success outside of the school:

• Henry W. (6th grade) was a national finalist in the NBA Dribble, Dish, and Swish contest and earned a trip to the NBA All-Star Game, where he served as a ball boy!
• Our 3rd grade Brownie Troop recently visited an animal shelter and made a $200 donation to help support their cause.
• Mark M. (4th grade) recently took 3rd place overall in gymnastics at the Arizona State Champions, and he was state champion on the pommel horse. Mark will compete on the All-Star Arizona Boys team for regional competition in April.

Playground Update
Progress is being made on repairing the damage to our playground that occurred over winter break. The canopy was replaced last week, and we expect that the students will have their equipment available to them in the next month!