Welch Crew

Welch and MinBorg Crews getting ready to board the Amtrak to Sacramento. Expedition Express I’ve Been Working on the Railroad: The start to our 2015-2016 school year began with many exciting fieldwork adventures. On September 17, our crew walked to Donner Memorial State Park to kick-off our fall expedition. We met with Ranger Steve and began our learning of the historic Transcontinental Railroad. On October 6, our crew, along with the MinBorg crew, headed up to Donner Summit to experience the famous tunnels and snowsheds built by Chinese laborers. We learned about the longest tunnel built, Tunnel #6 and how the Chinese worked on that tunnel for 18 months from 4 different directions. Our most recent fieldwork included a train ride from Truckee to Sacramento on Amtrak with a visit to the California State Railroad Museum. These in-field experiences cannot be replicated by reading text in a book. Our students get hands on learning by visiting these historic locations and seeing actual locomotives from the 1800’s. Questions to ask your child about their learning: Why did people call Theodore Judah “crazy”? Who was the BIG 4  and why were they important to the Transcontinental Railroad? Who built a majority of the railroad for the Central Pacific Railroad from Sacramento through Truckee? […]

Welch and Minborg crews heading out for a hike at Five Lakes in Alpine Meadows Ahhhh, the calm before the storm! Hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend and got some much needed R & R. This week is not as busy as our last 4 – 6 weeks, but we are in the trenches working diligently to finish our case studies before Celebration of Learning next week. Here is what we have in store for this week: […]

As you have probably already heard, our overnight campout to Meek’s Bay has been cancelled. Justine and I sent out an email at the end of school today informing both crews that after long discussions with David, analyzing the weather on the Weather Channel, and determining what is best for our children, we have chosen to cancel the trip – but don’t worry, not all is lost. We still plan to go on an all day hiking adventure on Thursday. We will determine the location as the day approaches, but most likely it will be someplace in Truckee. If you signed up to chaperone and drive on the fieldwork, we are planning to use you on Thursday after you have a nice restful sleep in your warm comfy bed. 🙂 We still have a very full week ahead, even though we are not camping. The week ahead: […]

Take a DEEP breath! Standardized Testing for our 3rd graders begin this week. The most important “take-aways” from these tests are: Don’t stress out about these tests – your child can sense your anxiety, so reassure them to do their very best, that’s all we can expect from any of us. Get a good night’s rest. Put your child to bed early. Eat a healthy breakfast and pack a good lunch with plenty of healthy snacks. Food is fuel for our brains…..splurge on the premium over the next few weeks. My personal philosophy is to keep your child’s scores to yourself. You do not want your child attaching a number to their ability. Use the information to help you understand where your child may need some extra support. The week ahead: […]

Here is a quick look at this week’s activities. As I mentioned last week, I will send a weekly email on Monday to give you a head’s up for the upcoming week’s events. […]

Hope you had a restful and fun-filled Spring Break!! Now that we are back for the final stretch, our calendar is full with many adventure and fieldwork activities, not to mention Celebration of Learning and Passages for our 3rd grade students. I will be sending out a weekly notice via email to keep you posted for the remainder of the school year. […]

Expedition Express Fire and Ice Over the next week or two we will be wrapping up our Fire and Ice Expedition on Truckee history.  The crew now has a good understanding of Truckee’s foundational industries and how Truckee came to be.  Students have been working hard to publish a newspaper from the late 1800s, showcasing their newfound knowledge. They will soon be bringing home a copy to share with their families.  Anoto-ME Following Ski-Skate Week, both 2/3 crews will launch a new and exciting science expedition that will carry us through the rest of the year.  The Anato-ME expedition takes a close look at the human body and the 6 main systems:  circulatory, respiratory, muscular, skeletal, nervous and digestive. Students will investigate how these systems interact with each other and the importance of maintaining a healthy body for a healthy lifestyle. […]

Expedition Express Fire and Ice:  Students have continued to learn more about the fascinating history of Truckee and our early beginnings in industry and economics.  Our crew has completed a timeline of events in Truckee’s history, dating back to 1844.  After completion of the timeline, students worked collaboratively to help create 3 original Reader’s Theater scripts based on the informational texts we read in class.  Each script contains factual information on Ice Harvesting, Lumber Mills, and Fire in Truckee during the late 1800’s. Each Reader’s Theater script will be presented during our Celebration of Learning on December 18th.  One group will perform at 6:15, the other at 6:45 pm.  Your child’s performance time will be sent home in the next few weeks. Crew News Celebration of Learning:   Mark your calendars for our Fall 2014 Celebration of Learning on Thursday, December 18 from 6:00 – 7:30 pm at SELS.  Plan to attend the Reader’s Theater performances in our classroom at either 6:15 or 6:45, then feel free to roam the school and learn about the other Expeditions happening in all the crews.  It truly is a Celebration of all our Learning. […]

Expedition Express FIRE and ICE:  Earlier this month, our crew set out on our Fall Adventure Fieldwork to the historical townsite of Boca.  It was a great experience for all involved.  The 2nd and 3rd grade students showed how to live by the SIERRA norms throughout the trip by showing RESPECT to our experts, STRENGTH by stepping outside of their comfort zone and spending the night with their crewmates in tents, and RESPONSIBILITY when cleaning up our campsite and keeping track of their belongings.  Students listened to stories about Ice Harvesting in the old town of Boca and were able to hold and experience authentic Ice Harvesting tools brought to us by expert Tom Macauley.  Another area for students to explore was the Cal Fire trucks and bulldozers.  The crew learned how these firefighters manage and contain wildfires in our area. […]