Hello Cedar Families,

What an amazing month we have had!  We focused on learning as much as we could about the Western Red Cedar and its significance to the environment, animals, and people of the Pacific Northwest. The more we learned about this lovely tree, the more we realized why it is also known as “The Tree of Life”.

We would like to acknowledge Trenton Gibbons who is a parent of two children at our school, neither of whom are in our classroom!  Trenton donated many of the cedar samples we used in our classroom study.  He went above and beyond in sharing parts of cedar trees that enhanced the children’s ability to experience cedar trees in very personal ways.  Thank you so very much Trenton!!!

As the earth has turned on its axis, the days have become colder and darker.  There has been a learning curve for some of the children who were resistant to putting on more clothing, like coats, before going outside.  It did not take long before they decided it was a very good idea to prepare before going out in the cooler weather!

Our class has been enriched by having Einar Mikkelsen, Charlie’s dad, come in and help the children with cedar bark dying.  Einar showed the children how to dye lovely materials by using bark from the cedar trees. He used his incredible patience as he also helped the children carve the most interesting pumpkin! We appreciate his positive encouragement with even the most apprehensive children so all were successful! Thank you also to Lydia Walsh for guiding the children as they created their beautiful lanterns for the lantern walk.  She has also substituted in our class and always brings such a calm and positive presence with her. For our celebration of Diwali, Karla made Lassi and shared it with us.  YUM!!  Thank you Karla!  She is so thoughtful. As always we appreciate Kim for substituting and presenting Sandpaper Letters to the children. Kim has a sweet manner and the children love working with her.

This month, we have been learning about North America and thankfulness.  To celebrate our gratitude for each other, the three primary classes each prepared for and shared a grateful meal together on the last day before break.  It took a bit of coordinating to get it all put together but, all enjoyed being together and creating a sweet memory.

Both of us would like to say how very much we appreciate the support from all of our wonderful families and are grateful to all of you for the amazing support you give to your children and to this lovely school community we are so fortunate to belong to.

Remember it is cold and sometimes “accidents” happen! Please send a warm change of clothing for your child.

Warmly,
Shirley & Mary