Expedition Express

I’ve Been Working on the Railroad: As we wrap up our fall Expedition, we turn our focus to Case Study #3: Railroad: Good or Evil. Learning Target: How did the Transcontinental Railroad affect the Native Americans?  Our crew as been learning and reading about the positive and negative effects the railroad brought to the western United States. Students will learn how to write an opinion paragraph stating their opinion with supporting reasons and examples.

Questions to ask:

  • How did Native American tribes feel about the Transcontinental Railroad? Explain why.
  • Describe how Native Americans and U.S. soldiers treated each other during the construction of the Transcontinental Railroad.
  • Give examples of how the railroad was good and how it was evil.

CREW NEWS

Cross Country Skiing:  As part of our Adventure Program, the Welch and MinBorg crews are learning the lifelong sport of cross country skiing. This is a great activity for students to learn at a young age to inspire a healthy, active lifestyle for the rest of their lives. We are focusing on maintaining a growth mindset as we face challenges and having fun all at the same time. Parents are needed as drivers and ski buddies, so come join us and sign-up on our Google Doc.

Arts for the Schools: Meena’s Dream: Our crew will be attending a school performance hosted by Excellence in Education on Friday, January 15. These performances bring performing arts to local children giving them the opportunity to view different artists in action.

Nevada County Library:  I am extremely proud of the high level of responsibility our crew has been showing with our visits to the Nevada County Library. Students are checking out books to read themselves, to share with family, and returning them in a timely manner to the library. This is a great skill to learn at an early age.

Harvest of the Month: A huge shout out to Steve Anderson, our Harvest of the Month parent volunteer. Each month, our crew is treated to a delicious recipe made with locally grown fruits and vegetables. This month, students tasted legumes and were asking for Steve’s hummus recipe by the end of the day.

SELS NEWS

Fall Semester: Our fall semester is quickly coming to a close on January 29. Progress reports will be sent home the first week of February. As a reminder, our progress reports are scored on Standards Based grading, which means students are working towards an end of year standard. If you have questions, please come see me for clarifications.