The fourth and fifth grade classes will be taking an extended day field trip to the Lava Beds National Monument near Tule Lake, California (just south of the border from Klamath Falls) on THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 29th. Students will be exploring volcanic caves and learning about the history of the Modoc Indians. Your child will need to be at CPE at 7:30 a.m. The bus departs promptly at 7:50 a.m. We will return to CPE at 5:45 p.m. Students can be picked up at the back of the building on the corner of Ash and 2nd Streets. Please be prompt in picking up your child. If your child is going to ride home with someone else or will be walking home on his or her own, please notify me prior to the trip.

COST

While we’re often able to find grant money to cover transportation expenses, we are not able to do so for this trip. Instead, students will each need to contribute $4 (to the front office by Wednesday the 28th). Note that the National Park Service waves its park entrance fee for us. Also, because field trip approval appears on CPE’s registration materials, there is no need to complete a permission slip. Instead, please notify me if you DON’T want your child attending. Thanks.

GEAR

Students will need to bring the following items on the day of the trip:
• sack lunch plus several healthy snacks for the bus ride both to and from
• water bottle (water only, no carbonated drinks or sports drinks)
• flashlight (with good batteries; test before the field trip, please)
• bicycle helmet for head protection in the caves (REQUIRED)
• sturdy shoes such as tennis shoes or hikers (no sandals or open toed shoes due to the rough, sharp terrain)
• warm clothes (dress in layers; long pants, gloves, hat) It’s 42 degrees inside the caves.

ELECTRONICS

Electronic games, MP3 players, and cell phones will be allowed for use on the bus, and cell phones and cameras are welcome for taking photos throughout the trip. However, their care and security are each student’s responsibility.

CHAPERONES

If you would like to join us on this marvelous trip, please let me know right away. We need at least 6 adults to supervise small groups of students on the bus, while eating lunch, and during the exploration. Adults must be willing and able to enter the caves, stay with their group at all times, and enforce basic behavior expectations including cleaning up after lunch. We prefer that chaperones ride the bus, but we’ll work with you. Chaperones must have a volunteer app on file with the front office. If you wish to chaperone and haven’t filled out an app in the last two years, please do so right away, as it takes a week or longer to process.

This is a great trip with excellent learning opportunities! To get a taste, check out this short video from a previous excursion.

Wednesday morning promptly at 7 a.m. we’ll be loading up and heading out on our 5th Grade Ocean Adventure!  Kids took home their cargo lists and itinerary, and they’re busy in class presenting their tide pool research projects, which will make each of them an expert on a creature of the tidal zone. One of my favorite is the nudibranch. Think slug–just like those monsters you find munching on the hostas in your garden–but adorned in a fascinating array of shapes and colors. It is always a highlight to spot a nudibranch on the Oregon Coast. Be sure to send your kids with everything on the cargo list, including a sack lunch for Wednesday’s bus ride. As in previous years, we have one adult for every three kids going, so our students will be well-supervised. If you have any questions or concerns, e-mail me at mack.lewis@district6.org.

The Br’er Rabbit cast reprised their musical performance at the all-school assembly last Thursday and were once again a big hit. Though the video isn’t HD, its well worth watching. Be sure to pay attention to the marvelous dialects and subtle intonations that many of the actors deliver. And of course, the real magic is in the music.

We need reliable, energetic chaperones to join us on Friday’s field trip to Lava Beds National Monument! This trip is so great that students do it twice–both in 4th and 5th grade. During odd years, students study the geology of the area–rocks, volcanoes, lava tubes, et al. (They study Native American history during even years).

On Friday, students will be descending with their groups into a variety of pitch black caves. Ideally, these groups should be around 6 students, but right now we have only enough chaperones to have groups of 10 to 12. If you’re able and willing, please email us ASAP! Thanks.

Students will need sturdy shoes, layered clothing, a flashlight, and a bike helmet in order to attend. That means not flip flops or sandals, gym shorts, or skirts. The bike helmet is an absolute requirement. Students also need a sack lunch, a full water bottle, and snacks for the bus. It’s supposed to be hot over there this week, but the caves themselves are a consistent 42 degrees. Permission slips for the trip went home a week ago and are due Wednesday at the latest. If you need a new one, please download and print from here.

If you have any questions, please contact us at mack.lewis@district6.org or charles.hadley@district6.org.

Here’s Aiden B’s experience hiking up Table Rock with our 1st grade book buddies. Aiden is wearing one of our GoPro cams acquired using a grant from YES for Kids.

Here’s the start of the 40th Annual Sams Valley Mini-Marathon. Over six hundred 4th and 5th graders from Central Points five elementary schools participated in the 5K event. It was won by Tate Broesder of Mae Richardson in a time of 21:21, but several CPE kids finished in the top 10 including, for the boys, Ryder White (3rd), Dylan Garrett (4th), Tyson Palodichuk (6th), and Brayden Gray (9th). For the girls, Room 15 kid Haylee Baldwin finished 3rd, and Abbie Nevers finished 6th. Congrats to all our kids for a job well done! Watch for the next episode of CPETV for more coverage of the race.

Due to overwhelming response, we’re forced to split our lunch time sewing club with Mrs. Lewis into two sessions. Each group will meet with her on Thursdays for a month at a time. The group that starts tomorrow (Thursday) includes Sophie Q., Yuri, Rose, Sidney, Kara, Alyssa, Rayden, Mya, McKenna, and Hailee H..  The second group (the other kids who turned in slips) will meet next month.  Thanks for your patience and understanding as we kick off this project.