2016-2017 -- Greatest Hits

I made a video last year that was a sort of greatest hits from the year (view it here). It was fun to create, and well-received by the kids, so here is this year's version. Enjoy this peek into what we've been up to this year. (Tidbit: The still photos at the beginning were all taken on the first day of the school year.) 

Week 36 -- We have begun our final descent

As I’m sure you know, we had an amazing trip last week, and I heartily recommend you take a look at the previous entries to see what we were up to. We’re not taking a break now that we’re back!

First of all, we’ve clearly wanted to reflect on our adventures in Kentucky (and Ohio), so our warm-up on Monday was to draw a comic depicting one (or more!) favorite moment from the trip. (We also spent some time reflecting on the experience in a more hands-on way: Thoroughly cleaning out the bus that we spent so much time in.) The rest of our homeroom time has been spent either finishing up projects (we ordered our final set of biome game cards!), or enjoying the fruits of our labor (we’ve been able to play several rounds of the completed biome games.)

Much better...

We’ve also spent some time looking through our writing portfolios. Students in our group do a lot of writing over the course of the year, which is often done in small increments. I collect dozens of writing responses from them over the year, then periodically hand their entire folders back so they can see just how much they’ve produced. This week, kids are revisiting their old work one last time, selecting pieces to polish and/or share with the group.

The entire 5/6 group also spent part of Thursday composing group poems (in which multiple people are required to recite the piece), then spent part of Friday performing them for Elaine’s class.

In our math group, we’re also winding down, with some students finishing assessments before the summer begins, and others making progress in their Singapore sequence.

Performing this year's greatest hits in Music

Spring Trip -- Day 4 -- Serpent Mound and HOME

Greetings from Ohio! We woke up in LaGrange, Kentucky this morning and made our way to the Serpent Mound in Adams County, Ohio. Check out these photos from the final day of our trip. 

(For even more photos and tidbits, visit our Twitter page. You don't need to be a Twitter user to see it. Just click this link: https://twitter.com/JasonsClassTrip )

Walking the grounds 

(Most of) the serpent can be viewed from this observation tower. 

This is what it looks like from ground level. It's difficult to imagine people even realizing that this was in the shape of something without the benefit of a tall viewing platform. (Though I suppose the surrounding trees could serve that function.) 

Here it is from much, much higher. 

A model of the serpent being built. These people moved a lot of dirt to the top of this large hill. 

A burial mound. Mounds of various sizes and complexity can be found all over the Ohio River valley. There are mounds from a few different cultures and time periods located at the Serpent Mound site. Check out the Wikipedia article on the topic for an over view. 

Model of a small mound. 

This shows the original mound being expanded for further use over a period of time. 

This third model shows even more use over time.  

And... back to the bus. It's amazing how much bus riding they can handle. 

Serpent Mound is in very rural Ohio. At several points, the GPS just gave up. 

Thankfully, we eventually found food:

Home at last! This harrowing sight is the floor of the bus after everyone was picked up and whisked off to their homes. Animals. Of course, no spring trip would be complete without the traditional cleaning of the bus on the Monday following a trip. 

And now, hopefully, a weekend of rest for all! 

Spring Trip -- Day 3 -- photos and photos and photos

 Greetings from Kentucky! Please enjoy these photos of our third day of adventures.

(For even more photos, visit our Twitter page. You don't need to be a Twitter user to see it. Just click this link: https://twitter.com/JasonsClassTrip )

In this one, I said, "Now do a cave pose!" I had no idea what that might mean, but they apparently did. 

Our second cave tour was the "Domes & Dripstones" excursion. They drive you on a bus to an entrance that has a steel door. It feels much more like you're walking into a mysterious utility box than a cave. 

The manmade vestibule inside the bunker door. It gives way to the actual cave pretty quickly, but not before someone noticed all of the albino cave crickets on the walls and ceiling. At a glance, they look like large, white spiders. Unnerving. 

The tour begins with a lot of stairs in very confined spaces. 

As mentioned previously, the caves are clearly visible when you're in them, but they're very difficult to photograph without a flash. (Flash photography is forbidden in the cave because once your eyes adjust to the dark, flashes would be particularly blinding.)

The solution is long exposures, which means that anything that's moving even a little bit comes out blurry. (These kids move a lot, so they're mostly blurry.) 

The tours all have stopping points periodically along the way. People take a rest as rangers point out formations, talk about the history and geology of the place, and answer questions. 

During this stop, the ranger turned off all of the lights, allowing us to experience total cave darkness. He then pulled out a lighter to give us a sense of what it must have been like to explore these caverns before they had been lit so strategically by the Parks Service. (If you are wondering what that would have been like, the answer is NIGHTMARISH.) 

After finishing his talk while illuminating the room with just the lighter, he said, "If you have any questions, raise your hand." He then IMMEDIATELY doused the light, plunging us back into complete darkness. It got a laugh. Then he said, "that's a little cave joke. Some people say cave jokes are the lowest form of humor." 

This tour featured many dramatic stalactites, stalagmites, curtains, straws, and other cave formations. It's positively otherworldly. Ella remarked that some portions looked like Dr. Seuss had created them. 

Emerging from the cave

After lunch at the Mammoth Cave Hotel's restaurant, we headed to Big Mike's Rock Shop. 

Big Mike's Mystery House, much of which is decorated like the room of a teenager in 1976. (It had a lot of black lights and skull posters.)

Hall of mirrors

The laws of physics are defied!

Between the caves and this slanted portion of the mystery house, it's a minor miracle that no one rolled an ankle on this trip. 

Strange and sudden growth spurts (and regressions): 

Scenes from Churchill Downs:

At the paddock, where you can check out the horses before their races. 

Trackside

Watching a bunch of horses race past you is exhilarating. 

I'm holding a winning ticket in this photo. Later, I would hold several losing ones.

Watching your Horse Lose, a short play in three photos: 

Gassing up for the drive to the hotel. (Spot Evie.) 

Our home for this evening is a hotel in La Grange, Kentucky. Final day tomorrow!