Outdoor Adevtnures at Monkton

Here are some pictures from this session's Outdoor Adventures workshop, facilitated by 1st & 2nd grade teacher Jenn Livingston. Our young naturalists always have a splendid time in the woods with Ms. L.!

The Great Indoors... And the Great Outdoors!

Session III at Monkton is our biggest one this year! We are seeing lots of new faces, thanks to the popularity of our Outdoor Adventures workshop, facilitated by Jenn Livingston, a dynamite first and second grade teacher here at MCS. With 22 students ranging from grades K-5, this workshop exemplifies the "one-room schoolhouse" philosophy that MCS's expanded learning program embodies. This is the second session we have run Outdoor Adventures and students have participated in nature walks to listen for various birdsongs as well as hunt for tracks. This week, students remembered to look up and spotted a unique nest-type structure high in the branches of a tree near Cedar Lake. The speculation about who might live there was a great discussion for these young naturalists! Next week, the group will be making mittens and, rest assured, there will be hot cocoa at the end!

Not to be outdone by the great outdoors, kindergarten teacher Katie Kuzio is facilitating a lively "Minute to Win It!" workshop with students (again ages ranging K-6, which we love!) engaging in fun time trials to do such challenges as stacking six dice on a popsicle stick in a minute (the popsicle stick is held in your teeth, by the way!), getting a cookie from your forehead to your mouth (no hands!), and successfully stacking six apples on top of each other in sixty seconds. Sounds easy, right? Well, ask any workshop participant and they'll tell you that it takes some crafty thinking to beat the clock during these fun activities!

We are thinking now about what our next sessions hold in store for MCS kiddos. Stay tuned for more news from after school!