Yearbook Orders

The 2006-2007 Washington Yearbook is complete! Make sure you gets yours by ordering one for $10 from the PTA. The last day to lock in this great price is Friday, May 4th. After that, it will cost $15. Order forms are available in the Office.

Aloha!

Friday was Hawaiian Day at Washington School, here are some pictures of Room 7 kids getting into the act!

Recorders and Mission Projects

In Room 7, we have music every Wednesday morning. While Ms. Sun is on maternity leave, Ms. Cha is teaching the class how to play the recorder. Here are a few pictures of this week's lesson.



Our Mission Reports were due this past Wednesday, and a few students chose to submit the extra credit Mission Projects. Projects are being accepted until next Friday and will be displayed at Open House next month. Check out the examples below!

The California State Tests are beginning next week. Make sure to be on time to class, get plenty of sleep, and eat a good breakfast!

Awards

Congratulations to Rm. 7's award winners! All students should try to win at least two awards, Honor Roll (or Principal's Honor Roll) and Perfect Attendance. Both awards have unlimited recipients. Honor Roll is based on grade point average, with most grades being 4's and 5's. Everyone can shoot for Perfect Attendance just by coming to school on time every day. Good attendance is important to your education, so get to school on time and ready to learn!

Oranges and Asparagus

On Monday we had a special art lesson by Mrs. Mary Charles, a retired Washington teacher. Students learned about the artful designs of California orange crate labels. They then created their own verions of these beautiful labels, which will be displayed in Room 7 very soon.

See photos of the lesson at the Room 7 PhotoSite (links on the left).

Learn more about orange crate labels at the California Historical Society website below.

http://www.californiahistoricalsociety.org/exhibits/past_ex_big_orange.html

On Wednesday, students sampled the food of the month, asparagus. Uncooked asparagus is surprisingly crisp and tasty. This nutritious vegetable is low in calories, contains no fat or cholesterol, and is very low in sodium. It is a good source of folic acid, potassium, and fiber. Though we ate ours raw, asparagus is delicious lightly boiled. Oh, and by the way, California produces nearly half of all the asparagus in the United States.

Learn more about asparagus and find recipes on the California Asparagus Commission website:

http://www.calasparagus.com/consumer/recipes.htm

Indian Trade Fair

Pick up the latest issue of the San Gabriel Unified School District's newsletter, VISTA, and you will see a picture of Washington's 4th graders participating in the Indian Trade Fair. Most of the students in the photo are from Room 7.





In this annual event, students make Native American items to barter with their fellow 4th graders. It's a great way to learn about economics as well as reinforce the California State Social Studies curriculum and everyone goes home with some great goodies!

Missions Galore!

So, as I was telling Rm. 7 today, I visited three Missions over the Spring Break: Santa Barbara, Santa Ines, and La Purisima. These three Missions are very close to each other, less than an hour apart, and a two-hour drive from the San Gabriel area. You can see tons of photos over on my PhotoSite (see links to the left).



Mission Santa Barbara (above) is the "Queen of the Missions." A self-guided tour is available for $4 per adult. If you go, be sure to take note of the artifacts regarding the "Lone Woman of San Nicolas Island," the inspiration for Karana in Island of the Blue Dolphins. Founded by Father Lasuen, Santa Barbara was, for a time, the headquarters of the Mission system.



In the quaint Danish town of Solvang is Mission Santa Ines. This Mission overlooks a beautiful valley and looks very much as it would have in the 19th century. Santa Ines owns more than 500 vestments (church robes), many of which are 400-500 years old. A selection of these is on display inside the Mission. The self-guided tour is $3 for adults.



The last Mission I visited was La Purisima. Located in the city of Lompoc, La Purisima is a State Park. For $4 per car, you can step back into the world of 1820s California. La Purisima has been faithfully restored after years of ruin and neglect. Displays accurately show what life was like at the Mission in the 19th century and include two Chumash huts made of tule reed. There is even livestock (horses, cattle, turkeys, pigs, goats, etc.) and wildlife (snakes, mountain lions) on the premises. Even the plants are authentic! If you plan to visit, call or check their website to see if they are offering special events that day. They often have demonstrations or reenactments. Expect to walk quite a distance as there are several hiking trails in addition to the paths between Mission buildings.

I brought home lots of souvenirs from the Missions, including maps, brochures, and postcards. Have a look the next time you are in Rm. 7!

Mission San Buenaventura

I visited Mission San Buenaventura on a trip to the Santa Barbara area in 1998. That's a very tiny me in the picture to the left.

In 1882, San Buenaventura was the last Mission to be founded by Father Serra. It was built on the site of a Chumash village. There are many original artifacts in the museum, some that are up to 400 years old.

Keep an eye on this blog as I will be posting some pictures from a Mission-related Spring Break trip!

California Missions

There are 21 Spanish Missions in California. Part of the 4th grade curriculum is the study of the California Missions. During the Spring Break, I encourage all 4th graders to visit at least one Mission. Of course, we are very fortunate to live close to Mission San Gabriel Arcangel and most Washington 4th graders visited during a field trip earlier this year. Here are some photographs I took a few years ago:




Father Junipero Serra (depicted in the statue) chose the site of Mission San Gabriel. Today, a street near the Mission is named after him. The Mission Bells represent the path of the old El Camino Real (King's Highway). All of the Missions and Presidios were linked by this road. Designed to look like a fortress, it is the only mission to have 6 bells in it's companario (bell wall).

Final drafts of the Mission Reports will be due on April 27. Mission Projects for extra credit are optional and may be brought to class during that week to be displayed until Open House.

Hello!

Hello, I'm Miss Cong, the long-term substitute for Mrs. Mangahis at Washington School. Mrs. Mangahis will be on maternity leave for the remainder of the school year. For those "Warriors" who don't know me, I have been a sub in the district for the past few years. Prior to that, I taught 4th grade at another school and was a CSR (Class-Size Reduction) teacher at Washington from 2001-2003.

I will also be teaching Summer School for SPEF in South Pasadena again this year from June 25 to July 26. The classes on my schedule are: Pirateology, World of Narnia, and Zuckerman's Farm.

Keep an eye on this space for updates on all of my classes! This is going to be a busy and productive couple of months!