Welcome to our CHIRP! page. Here you will find weekly blogs from our Outdoor Program students. Read what our students are focusing on during our time outdoors. Come back each week for an update!
The Week of May 16th, 2016
The last sit-spot entries for the school year.
The last sit-spot entries for the school year.
My Year in the Outdoor Program
By: Safi This year in the outdoor program school I learned a lot. This year was very enjoyable.We went on hikes, we caught fish, we went into the steam, looked for deer, and much more. The point is, that this year in the outdoors was really fun. Over the summer I am going to miss it. Lucas and Matt did a great job at teaching us outside. I would like to end thus with a rhyme. I hope you enjoy. I had a good time that's why I'm writing this rhyme. In the outdoors we went to the stores and shopped for some wild boars. The boars were so wild we had to eat mild. Mild sauce was so like a child that we named someone Kyled. We walked and walked through the lean trees they were as tall as leaves. |
My Favorite Part of the Year
By: Michael What we did at the Arboretum is, we explored in the streams and tested the water quality for the fish. And wile we were exploring around the whole streams, we were catching some fish to find out and identity how the fish looks and how fresh the water is for the fishes. And some of the other days when we were studying this, Lucas, Matt, and Deb set up a fish hunt for us, by putting lots of pictures of different kinds of fish, and we were writing down all of the types pf fish in our notebooks, and write down the definition of each of them. And not just that, when we were studying about the water quality for the fish, we were also testing the water in the stream, because it was very dirty, and we were trying to figure out how it effects the steam, including the fish. So pretty much all of these things we were studying about the stream was pretty good for me. |
My Outdoor Year
By: Neilia My year in the outdoor school was great. We searched for deer and learned about plants and trees. I will always remember my sit spot and all the things i saw and heard, how a bird almost landed on my arm, and so much more. A tree branch fell on the man hole I like to sit on, and it formed a kid of throne, as if it knew I was leaving. My sit spot has changed so much since my first time here. I will miss it, and it will miss me |
My Last Year
By: Liam I've had a great year this year. I think the Outdoor Program was my favorite part of it all. Knowing that it's my last year, I feel appreciative that everything and everyone made my final experience great. All in all, the Outdoor Program brought me so much closer to nature, and to my peers. This is something I will definitely miss next school year. I'll be honest, I used to be scared of everything in the outdoors, but this brought my fear, into curiosity. I often wonder now, "Will I ever go back to the Eatontown Arboretum?". The answer is probably not, but my memories will make me happy. In conclusion, this was a fantastic last year. |
Surrounded By Nature
By: Camille Here at Voyagers' we don't learn the usual way. One way we learn differently from most schools is, how we go to an arboretum three times a week. We learn so many things, including how nature works, how to listen and pick up things most people wouldn't notice. We have learned how to identify different types of birds, animals, aquatic insects, and different types of plants. Learning this way helps us stay engaged, and let's us figure things out in a fun and hands on way. Being in the outdoors has taught be to see more beauty, and has given me more appreciation for it. I am truly going to miss the outdoor program and sitting in my sit spot. I have witnessed the trees change from one season to the next in a blink of an eye. I will miss exploring nature and growing in my love for it. I will forever remember and miss the outdoor program. |
The Week of May 2nd, 2016
The Late Knight Show with Jake
By: Jake Hello interwebs! It's your favorite host, Me! (Otherwise known as Jake) So speaking of webs, I saw a very large web yesterday. It had this red spider on it and then I thought : Since this spider is likely a baby, I wonder what genetic traits it inherited from it's parents. Maybe it's mother was a light red and it's father was a darker red, but since that the mother had the recessive allele and it's father presumably had the dominant one, the spider must be that color for those reasons. I like ham! So that is what I did yesterday. And remember, don't get your toe stuck it a pencil sharpener. |
Inner Beauty
By: Hannah An old tree That to most wasn't special It was to me During the hot it would lend shade During the cold it would block the snow During the hard times it wouldn't judge And as I stick this tree I finally see it blossom with beautiful pink petals I always knew it was beautiful Now everyone can know And though the petals last for a little I will enjoy them And when the petals are gone I will still enjoy my tree |
Cell Watercolor
By: Mikayla On Thursday the 21st we made watercolor cells. We used natural items we found in the park mixed with watercolor to make it colorful. We had to draw the cell and then use watercolor for the cells parts. Such as the cell wall, cell membrane, nucleus etc. After we were done we had to label all the parts of the cell with sharpie. I really loved the way my cell came out because it is a vary colorful being. |
April Blog
By: Summer As I sit under the tree above me, I feel a cool breeze on my back and through my hair. The change of the seasons is making me feel very happy. I saw three dear across the stream. Two of them ran away from me but the other one stared at me for maybe a full minute then ran away. I sign that Summer is coming is that the weather is very warm and I can finally wear shorts. As well as flowers and more greenery. Leaves are finally starting to fill up the trees. I'm very excited for the rest of spring and summer. |
Ocean Man
By: Andrew Yesterday for the last day of national poetry month we looked up lyrics to a song and tried to find the deeper meaning within the lyrics. I looked at the amazing ocean man song. I actually found a deeper meaning in that song. It is about a man who wants to be a child again. Ocean man is full of youth and the land that he understands is childhood. |
What Are We Made Of?
By: Camille We have been studying plant cells. So one day we went out and gathered natural materials to create a cell replica. This activity was really fun and interesting, and it helped us understand the cell in a whole new way. Then we got to talking about DNA and genetic mutations. The class had a lot of questions about this topic, so we have been discussing our genetics and what's from our parents, and what is and isn't in out DNA. We played a game where we had to collect four letters from the box (CGAT), the letters that make up our DNA, put them in the correct order, and find out what we created. This lesson has been really fun and I can't wait to continue this lesson. |
The Birds
By: William When I was in my sit spot a herd two birds cherping I was trying to find them I looked up and was them on the tree above me one more came on the tree above me as I was writing this me pencil fall in the stream I got up and I was trying to get it and I made a splash in the water and the birds flew away and now in writing with the other pencil in my sit spot. |
Michael's Flowers Near His Sit Spot
By: Michael It's currently spring time, and lots of things has changed at my sit spot. And I have already seen lots of flowers growing near my sit spot. I even saw lots of leaves growing near my sit pot, and they have been coming from some of the trees. There is also a patch behind the tree of my sit spot, and I have been noticing that there is lots of leaves that have grown there, and it's making me wonder if it's actually poison ivy. So pretty much this is the first time I have been at my sit during the spring time. |
Deer Limbs
By: Safi We were walking in the woods the we came across deer limbs. There was a deer skull, legs, and some fur. A lot of the students were freaked out. It was a mystery, why world deer limbs be ripped apart on the ground in the middle of the Arboretum. Till this day the mystery is still not solved I think we need the Hardy boys on the job. |
Roses are Red and Roses are Pink
A Poem By: Basem A rose attracts me The color is just so vibrant in the sun A rose is the flower that's always in the middle of the path Or the only flower still alive in a patch of dead daisy's A rose is the last man standing poking out of the snow Roses are troopers... the only troopers |
March, 2016
Deer Obsession
By: Basem Ever since we were given an assignment to build a deer blind for science, people have been finding deer antlers. I was in my deer blind area showing the other groups why me and my group picked that area, when Andrew found a deer antler. Me and William were so upset that the deer antler was right in front of us. That is when our deer antler obsession started. Deer Blinds and Spinal Cord By: Basem Today we visited a groups deer blind and saw a bunch of deer. A deer blind is a spot where you sit, that is covered with leaves and sticks. Hunters use deer blinds, duck hunters use a blind, and observers use deer blinds. We're using a deer blind to observe deer. When we visited a groups deer blind, Lucas found a spinal cord to a deer. Common Crane: Re-wilding the Arboretum by 30 By: Basem During science class we were talking about re-wilding the arboretum. We were told that the arboretum was multiplied by 30times in size and that we had to re-wild the park. We were separated into groups and were given a sheet of animals that could be re-wilded. Re-wilding is to re-introduce or introduce a new animal or an organism. My grouped picked the crane as a re-wilding animal because the crane flies to lakes and brings fish to its home. The crane eat the fish and poop out the eggs which will increase the population of our fish. Hopefully when the crane poop out the fish eggs they land in the water or next to the lake. Once Crane have a territory they hog that area until they migrate or die. Crane as well don't like heavily wooded places like the arboretum, that's why me and my group school a beaver to make a wetland type of area. What the crane might do in our Eco system that me and my group are creating is push out other pelicans, seagulls, beavers, etc. Which means all of the other species that live in the wetlands won't have a home. The common crane disappeared in 1542 because of over hunting. Cranes came back to eastern England in the 1970s. Crane can cruise up to 32,000 feet in the air. During mating season the male crane land in a smoother fashion than they usually would during non mating season. They land like that in mating season to impress the females. In conclusion the crane is a good species to have for the park and a bad species to have in terms of hogging territory. |
The Dead Moles
By: Ryan Today at outdoor school we had a visitor named Christopher, who was interested in our school. We showed him around the arboretum and to each of our Deer blinds, though as we did we had seen four dead moles scattered around the trails. Though especially strange was how each of their corpses was next too a pile of poop. We theorized about what could have killed them, and why so many had died, most about the increase of the deer population. Re-Wilding the Capercaillie By: Ryan For the rewinding project I am researching the Capercaillie, it is a bird that can live very well in the arboretum due to how it can thrive in very green and lush areas. While they live there, they can get rid of any extensive amounts of bugs, and said bugs are also very important for their chicks, being able to eat many of them at a time. And at times if there are no other male birds around, the cappercallie will attack anything it finds that be a threat, which can be both good and bad, deer would often avoid the birds after learning of this behavior, however any people nearby may not now about this behavior, and may get themselves unknowingly attacked. However the birds would rarely ever move out in the open, as they would rather protect their young from black bird predators. The many deer fences have also killed many capercaillies, and steps should be taken to stopping the consent deaths of they are too be integrated into the ecosystem of the arboretum. The birds will also eat much of the vegetation in the arboretum, and in doing so would push the deer out of some areas, and would cause them too eat vegetation in even more concentrated areas, however in the locations they are at will loose greenery far less fast due too the far smaller amount of eating the capercaillies would do, added on to how little they mate because of weather conditions. Thus creating both reasons too and not too introduce them there. The rewilding of the the capercaillies into the arboretum would be a more controversial. |
Birds
By: Neilia Birds sit up above us, watching our every move. As they tweet and tweeter, warning other birds and animals that someone is here, they talk too, but in a way no human can under stand. |
My Senses
By: Michael Ever since there has been a big snow blizzard last weekend, pretty much all of the snow on my sit spot has melted, because of the sun that has been popping up pretty much every single day, ever since there has been a snow storm. And now when I just came to my sit spot, it made me realize that there is some snow my sit spot, and when I just sat on it, it made me realize that the dead pine needles on my sit spot is still wet. Because since all the snow has melted on my sit sit spot, all of the snow on the pine needles has turned into water. And so since it's winter and there has been a snow storm, pretty much all of the trees near my sit spot has no leafs at all, except for the tree my sit pot that still has some pine needles. I enjoyed writing my senses at my sit spot because since it's winer some things at has changed, since it's new season, witch means that I get to observe all the things at my sit spot, and see all of the things that have changed, since it's a new season. Measuring the Wind By: Michael On Monday, we were doing wind direction to figure out which direction the wind was going to, it was either North, South, East, or West. And we each also had the map of the Arboretum to figure out which direction the wind is going to in the Arboretum, and we were writing down on the map which direction the wind is going to. On Wednesday, we did the balloon test, there were a few groups split up into, and each group had their own balloons, and we all had our notebooks with us so that we can write down how much degrees our balloons went up to. And the group I was in was with Camille, Hannah, and Neilia. And so our balloon was laying on the ground and we were waiting until the wind was coming, and then until it did come, we started saying 1 Mississippi, 2 Mississippi, 3 Mississippi, and so on. When we were doing the balloon test, we were asked to test our balloon 5 times, and write down the 5 five balloon tests in our notebooks, and write down each of the degrees it went up to 5 times. On Friday, we were measuring the humidity outside by using thermometers. We split up into groups, and each group had thermometers, and in the group I was in, we were over by the Bouncy bridge, and we put our thermometer on the ground to measure the humidity, and we were asked to measure the humidity 5 times, and write down it down in our notebooks. |
Sneaking Up On a Deer
By: Safi We went on a hike around the Arboretum and saw three groups of deer. They stared at us for minutes. The whole class was still and silent. We kept on crawling towards them, as quiet as possible. The deer were now aware of our presences and ran away quickly. We all shocked in awe that we were that close to a deer. Re-Wilding the Beaver By: Safi The animals my group have chosen to re-wild are a Beaver, a Capercaillie, and an Elk. I chose to talk about the Elk. Adding the Elk would improve the diversity of wild life by a little. Elks are not keystone species but without the Elk keystone species could not live. Elk are strong animals that need a lot of food to stay strong and survive. The Elk would reduce the deer food which would drive out the deer against them. The Elk disappeared to 3,000 to 4,000 years ago from hunting. They are semi-amphibious, so they can submerge themselves under water and close their nostrils, they can feed underwater that's if the beaver is re-wilded so the water level raises. Elk eat shrubs, grass, bark, twigs. They need 21 pounds of food a day, the Arboretum does not have enough food for the Elk so before we re-wild them we need to plant large amounts of grass, trees, and plants. Since they eat so much the arboretum will have to be expanded to a 1,000 acres. The arboretum will be improved with greenery. The effect on the Arboretum that the Elk will bring is taking away a lot of the greenery, driving animals and insects out, possibly. The Elk will be eating so much that the other animals will not have enough food to eat. In conclusion the Elk is a strong species that could possibly raise the diversity of the Arboretum. |
Re-Wilding the Common Crane
By: William During the out door program we had to pick a animal on this list so I pick the Common Crane I thought this would be good for this project because more birds more fish we found only one type it was the creek chub now we can get more fish here's how the bird gets the eggs on them because the birds swim in the water from other places and the fish eggs stick on the birds and they land in the arboretum and In the stream and when they do that the eggs will come off so and the fish will hatch so it's better for are stream and that's why I picked the Common Crane. Deer Blind By: William In the Outdoor Program we had to make a deer blind what deer blind is its a spot were you go to look at deer you take sticks and make a fort so the deers won't see you can use them for hunting and looking when I was in my deer blind we did not see any deer Deer Antlers By: William I lot of people and finding deer antlers I really want to find one I been looking everywhere well almost everywhere well to no were a antler can be you need to look for shavings on a tree the bark will come off because the deers rub there antler one day I will find a deer antler |
Deer Blinds
By: Liam We all visited each other's deer blinds today. My group's new deer blind is in the middle in the woods in an open area. Today was our second time entering the blind. We walked in and saw deer standing there and staring at us. The deer started to come closer to us, but some people kept on making noises and scared them away. |
Beavers in the Arboretum
By: Camille If I were to rewild the arboretum one animal I would bring in are beavers. There we quite a few reasons to do this, but like any animal there are reasons not to as well. Within the past 20 years the population of the beavers has gone down by over 100 million. By putting them in the arboretum it could raise the population by restricting their hunting. Beavers naturally prune trees by taking the branches from trees for food and to create dams. This could possibly be a problem as well if they did that too much. By building the dams they create a watery environment for other animals in the arboretum. There is a very small likely hood to over populate the arboretum, they only mate once a year. If the arboretum becomes over forested the Beavers take down trees and bushes for their dams and food. By the Beavers creating dams it creates a deeper stream and a more damp environment for other animals. The Beavers existence depends on certain situations, but if those situations are right they would have a helpful effect on the environment. |
The Interesting Boar
By: Andrew If I started a re-wilding project in the arboritum we decided that the boar would be a great choice for a place where people walk their dogs. Sound interesting? Yes it does. I promise you, this project won't be a BORE! Main predators of wild boars are: tigers, leopards, lynx, wolves, bears and humans. The only species on top of this that will also be in the arboritum is the Lynx. Although humans are in the arboritum, I am assuming we won't start attacking them. Wild boars only kill if they are in danger. They are not carnivores, but omnivores. That means they only eat vegetation. Considering the size, and the amount of Lynx in the arboritum. ( 6 ) I will put about 20 wild boars in the arboritum. Because they only eat vegetation they might have to fight for the food and obviously the deer would lose. |
Re-Wilding
By: Summer If I started a re-wilding project in the arboretum and multiplied the arboretum my twenty acres I would re-wild beavers. Beavers create habitats that allow hundreds of other species to enter and be healthy. Young salmon grow faster and are healthier where beavers live. If beavers were to be introduced into the arboretum they would cut down trees to build dams in the stream. If they build dams then the water level would raise and if it raises it could add more species of fish. If they cut down the trees then there would be less diversity of trees. In addition there would be more diversity of animals since beavers create habitats that let hundreds of other animals and species. Those animals would also eat a lot more plants and they would make those plants less diverse. That might effect the deer population because the deer would have less plants to eat and their diet would be less healthy and they wouldn't be able to reproduce as much. In conclusion if I re-wilded the beavers there would be a lot of changes in the arboretum. It would effect the diversity of animals and plants. It would also effect the deer population and the fish population. Overall it would effect a lot of things In the arboretum. Deer Blinds By: Summer On Monday this week we went to our deer blinds and built them and finished them up. We also talked about biodiversity and what biodiversity is. We played a literacy game about conjunctions where if you get tagged you have to link arms and eventually everyone else is tagged and everyone makes a big chain out of people. On Wednesday we studied re-winding and we also went to our deer blinds again. Also in global studies we were deciding if we wanted to go to war with Vietnam and the majority of my group decided not to. Finally on Friday we explored other people's deer blinds. While we were exploring we found four dead moles. We also found so many owl pellets and bones along with reading the introduction in to the Vietnam war for global studies. |
The Wolf
By: Hannah We were told to imagine if the arboretum was the size of Yellowstone National Park and what animals would be good to re-wild. For my re-wilding proposal, I (of course) chose to learn about the wolf. The wolf is a carnivorous mammal and is a member of the dog family. Wolves are also keystone species, which means they would have a big effect on the ecosystem if they were reintroduced or taken away. The reason I think that wolves would be good in the arboretum is because since there is a large population of deer, the wolves will be a big predator of them, which would make deer more cautious and would decrease the population of deer as well. This will also allow plants to grow more because deer would try to move to flat plains, where they can see a wolf coming. All the plants they used to eat would be able to grow again. This will also cause birds and insects to live there. Wolves kill coyotes too which will allow more rodents and other small animals to live there. This could even be good for tourists who want to see wolves. The downsides to having wolves is that they will need a big space to live, so they would need 800-1,000 acres of land so they wouldn't kill all the deer and overpopulate. Also, people walk their dogs in the arboretum, which could now be a threat because if dogs go into a wolves territory, the wolves are likely to attack. Wolves may also go after nearby livestock to eat. Another big problem is that to reintroduce one wolf would cost from $200,000 to $1M! I am still not sure if wolves would be a good or bad choice to put in the arboretum if expanded. But what I do know is that they will make a big impact on our ecosystem. My Great Old Tree By: Hannah Once upon a time, an old man planted a tree. He sat on the tree everyday, looking around him. The tree was happy when the old man came. He gave the tree company and care. The old man loved the tree. The tree loved the man. One day, the man said to the tree,"Tree, I am old and sick." The tree didn't understand. The old man never returned. The tree sat lonely. "I will never love again," The tree said. Years passed. The tree stood there, losing some bark and few branches breaking. The birds came over. "What's wrong Mr.Tree," they chirped. "I am lonely without that man," The tree said sadly. The birds did not know how to help and flew away. "What's wrong Sir Tree," A passing chipmunk asked. The tree did not respond. The tree grew old like the man and he had lost hope. One day a girl came along and sat on the tree. She held a notebook in her hand. She was a lot younger than the man. "Hello Mr.Tree," the girl said. The tree was full of joy! Someone loved him like the old man. The tree and the girl grew to love each other and that girl's name was Hannah. |
Re-Wilding the Arboretum
By: Quinn In science we talked about rewilding the arboretum and possible species to include in the process. I thought the Lynx would be a very important animal to introduce to the arboretum. It's a top predator and would be great for controlling deer population and lives in woodland such as the arboretum. It is a very shy animal and will not usually show around humans which will make it harmless towards visitors in the arboretum. The decrease in deer will lead to vegetation growing and making the plants in the arboretum more diverse. This might cause more animals to be attracted to the vegetation and make the arboretum more biodiverse. |
Wednesday Poets
By: Seth I see nothing but garbage, so many cigarettes, cans logged in the dirt and even though all of that nobody seems to care even I sometimes just seem to overlook the garbage, pretending it's not there. Friday Beaver Helpers By: Seth During science class we were learning about what we would add If we were re-wilding the arboretum... If I did that I would add beavers to the arboretum, first of all they are a keystone species which would greatly help or destroy the arboretum. Here are some reasons the beaver is a good/bad keystone species. one of the first things I found out about them is that they would be annoying by taking down some of the trees,and that would diminish the some space for birds which would help no one. Then they do a good thing by building a dam which would leave flowing water but also a pond for many animals to live in, also it would also leave a perhaps big space were all the water would drain from so more plants would be uncovered and more plants would grow in and lastly they would leave a calm place for fish to live in. so in conclusion beavers would help the arboretum a lot with bio-diversity of water life among land life, help plants and fish but they would do a bad thing too by taking out the trees it doesn't help the birds, is very annoying, and takes out stuff for other animals so would it be good or bad. I don't know. |
BLOG OUTDOORSMEN
BY: PETER WALSH ENTRY 1 DAY 11 ON FRIDAY WE ALL WENT OUTSIDE IN THE ARBORETUM JUST LIKE OUTDOORSMEN TO SCOUT SOME DEER MY FEET WERE KILLING ME BECAUSE MY SHOES WERE TOO SMALL, BUT I CARRIED ON LIKE AN OUTDOORSMEN. I FOUND MANY THINGS LIKE BONES, MOLES, POOP, AND ALSO OWL PELLETS. I WILL TALK ABOUT MY SKILLS IN FINDING BONES. I FOUND A BABY FAWN JAW AND HOOVES THE JAW HAD ONE LAST TOOTH IN IT. AS A GROUP WE WNT TO EACH OF OUR DEER BLINDS AND FOUND DEER AT MY DEER BLIND. AFTER WE WERE DONE EXPLORING WE READ ABOUT VIETNAM AND I LEARNED ALOT OF THINGS I DIDN'T KNOW. JUST LIKE AN OUTDOORSMEN I WENT INSIDE AFTER WE WERE DONE AND I WASHED MY HANDS LIKE ANY SMART OUTDOORSMEN. Re-Wilding By: Peter WOLVES --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Questions: Why should we put this animal in the arboretum? What will its job be? What is it called? What does it do? ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In science everyone played a game where you had to find papers with re-wilding animals. Each person found an amount and then those were all added up when we put the total of everyone in the deer blind. We had the most points. Then we had a list of animals to re-wild and we put in the animals I listed. The animals my group have chosen to re-wild are Moose, Osprey, Wild Boar, Blue Stag Beetles, Lynxes, Beavers, and Wolves. Re-wilding is when you put an animal that once lived in that habitat back in the habitat. The animal I will be writing about is the Wolf. The Wolf should be put in the arboretum because it will control the population of deer in the arboretum and will have the shrubs and bushes that the deer eat and have them grow back. Its job will be having the population of deer and other animals stay controlled. The wolves usually stalk other pray and then kill it. By putting in 3 female deer they might leave the arboretum and mate with dogs and then the wolves will be everywhere. There are some pluses and minuses to putting in deer it will control population but it will also threaten the humans too. The arboretum needs the animals that were there before. By re-wilding some animals the lifestyle of other animals will be back to normal and will start by getting better everyday. My group wants the arboretum to be better and wants to see other animals in it and by making the scale of the arboretum bigger like Yellowstone it will have the space for all the animals to roam. I believe that all the animals we are adding will do a great deal of good in the arboretum. |
The week of February 1st, 2016
Animal Absence
By: Basem
Ever since the snow came my sit-spot became more deserted. They're no squirrels and less bird chirping. Some days their isn't even birds. What I can hear is the wind blowing through the trees instead of the pleasant sound of birds. I just hope they come back full time.
By: Basem
Ever since the snow came my sit-spot became more deserted. They're no squirrels and less bird chirping. Some days their isn't even birds. What I can hear is the wind blowing through the trees instead of the pleasant sound of birds. I just hope they come back full time.
Sit and Observe
By: Safi The birds are chirping, there's a slight breeze, the ground is muddy and wet, trees are swaying back and forth, the stream water is flowing mildly, the greenery turned brown, the water is trickling down a ledge, all the snow is melting, there are no insects crawling in the mud, and its gloomy and sad. That's what my Sit-Spot looks like. I can't wait till the greenery turns green and everything blooms. |
Senses
By: Liam My senses were very active today. There was melting snow on the ground, and it was all very humid which was good. My sense of smell was dysfunctional because of my cold and congestion. I heard a whole lot of birds chirping away, and I saw a lot of mud next to the moving stream. I didn't taste anything, and I felt the melting snow running down the sides of the stream and into it. |
Super Sciencey Senses
By: Camille You can hear the birds giving each other warnings. You can see deer tracks in the snow. There are many different bird sounds, proof there are many bird types around. After a few minutes the birds are still calling, even after we've shown them that we are not a threat. Perhaps they are just communicating to each other rather than warning. The temperature seems to have dropped back down to, what feels like, around 40°F. There are still heavy gusts every few minutes. The snow has become more patchy, possibly because of the recent rise in temperature. |
The Birds and the Berries
By: William I was really still not a sound I looked up thinking I was going to see some snow but I was being watched by a bird we was looked at me and picking down Berries 3 hit me in the chest I looked away of the bird I looked to the left there was a baby spider on its web it looked to it was going to land on my face I got up making a loud noise and that's when all the birds went away. |
When the Wind Blows
By: Mikayla The wind around me slightly moves me every time it blows. It sends shivers down my spine. The dead leaves that haven't yet fallen off the trees rustle loudly with each fierce gust of wind. Even when the wind blows slightly the trees rock and make creaking sounds. The wind is a beautiful thing that illustrates feelings in the outdoors. |
Where Are You Deer?
By: Hannah I look into the forest, where I saw you, though you are no longer visible. I listen carefully at the birds chirping, hoping they will and invite you to me and not scare you off. I feel sadness blow at me, like the cold, dry wind. For I know you won't come. I hear a thump, but it is only a old branch, that couldn't hold onto its tree. Hope is low now as I sit here, alone. But I feel you, I sense you. I know you are there. Watching from afar. Wondering if I am friend or foe. Wanting to approach, but too scared. When I saw you, I saw something in you different than I've ever felt. As I write, it saddens me to see your not there, as if I share my feelings you will magically appear. If only it worked that way. For now I will just wait, alone. |
Sit-Spot
By: Madison On February 1st, 2016, we all went to our Sit-Spots. When I sat down on the cold wet ground I opened my notebook, and then looked up. Right in front of me there were three female deer, AKA Dos on the other side of the river. After a little while they moved towards me a little more. It was so cool! They were so pretty, their fur was bright white and tan. Very tall and pretty fast. Deer are so amazing. I love them. If you ever come across a deer. Be very quit and they'll stay for as long as they want. |
How the Wind Works
By: Jake The wind is something hard to describe. But I have a theory on how it works. What I think is happening is that the air is being pushed from the earth's rotation. This might also explain why the wind is stronger in the poles. Because the earth has less distance to rotate the wind grows stronger. The wind occurs in different places because of the height of the land effects it too. The higher you are the stronger the wind is. This happens because since the air gets more pressure the higher you are. Which means that you're getting pressurized wind that's stronger and faster. |
The week of January 25th, 2016
The Husky Brook Stream Report
Written by: William Wednesday, January 27th, 2016 Today at the Husky Brook Stream the water is 41°F and the flow rate is 1CFS. The outside temperature is 38°F. The bank of the stream is 4 inches deep and the middle of the stream is 10 inches. No fish have been spotted so I don't suggest you fish here. |
The week of January 18th, 2016
The Husky Brook Stream Report
Written by: Seth Wednesday, January 20th, 2016 Today at the Husky Brook on the 20th of January, 2016, the temperature of the water is 39°F and 5°C. Also, it's running at about CFS. Also, if you're hoping to see some wild life, you're out of luck because there have been no spottings today of any fish or bugs of any kind. But, they still just might be hiding. |
Measuring Humidity
By: Andrew During the outdoor program different groups went around the park taking temperature of the air. We also looked at how humid every part was. We used a dry and wet thermometer to see how humid everything was. My group was William, Hannah, Michael, Quinn and I. My group researched the bouncy bridge. We also used a thermometer to find out the temperature of the arboretum. |
So Close Yet So Far
By: Cameron On January 20th, in Science class, we talked about the historical journey of Amelia Earhart. She made the daring attempt to be the FIRST female pilot to fly in a big fat circle around the globe. She took of at Oakland and went all the way to Hawaii. But something went wrong, the radio signal cut out because of a wall of clouds. Her path got threw off because of the wind and she disappeared. |
Amelia Earhart's Journey
By: Camille On Wednesday, 1/20/16, our class researched Amelia Earhart's journey across the Atlantic Ocean. With Google Maps, we looked at each location that she visited and found pictures she took throughout her journey. I learned a lot about her that I hadn't know before. We got to discuss how she must have felt throughout her journey; and possible reasons on how she went missing. We will soon be creating our own journey, based on Amelia Earhart's mission, by looking at wind speeds and directions to figure out the best way to get to our destination. We got to learn about this because of a question someone in the class asked. It was extremely cool to be able to learn about something that we were interested in. Though her story is sad, her bravery and courage is extremely inspiring. |
Weather
By: Liam I'm really excited for this weekend's blizzard. My family is all prepared just in case the power goes out. In school, each table got a graph and estimated what it measured for the blizzard. The second I stepped outside, I could already feel snow was coming. Best luck for the blizzard everyone! |
Winter Greeted My Sit Spot
By: Hannah On Wednsday, January 20th, I finally got to see my sitspot again! I missed sitting on that little tree branch. It's so great to calm down after learning and just get the chance to enjoy nature. But there were defiantly some noticeable change. First off, there were no leaves on my tree anymore! Also the ground was slightly icey and snowy. But the biggest thing was it was DEAD silent and when I say dead silent, I mean dead silent. There was no wild life, which is sad for me because I enjoyed the birds chirping and the chipmunks rustling in the leaves, and ever so often a deer or two! But I am excited to see all the exclusive things I can only see in winter now. |
Amelia Earhart
By: Madison On Wednesday, January 20th, 2016 we looked at a map and looked at were Amelia Earhart traveled from place to place and were her plane crashed. We got to see pictures of what destinations that she went to and we got to her some facts at every stop she went to. It was so sad how close she got to her destination but then her plan just disappeared. |
Amelia Earhart
By: Paul This week, we talked about weather, because of the upcoming blizzard. We talked about El Niño, humidity, and for an example of this weather taking effect (or at least maybe), we talked about Amelia Earhart's journey. On Google Earth, they had documentation of of all of her stops, including photos, descriptions, and other areas like nearby islands. We looked at each individual stop, including the ones she never got to, and witnessed how close she was to her goal. Unfortunately, she never got there. Whether this was from weather or something else in unknown. Soon, we will make out own travel paths using the weather maps from Google and hopefully make them successful. |
Sit Spots
By: Mikayla On Wednesday, we went to our sit spots and Deb was talking to me about listening to everything around me. We talked about everything we heard, like trees creaking, cars passing etc. She also taught me to trust my instincts and told me an interesting story from her childhood about trusting her instinct to not do something. |
Back to My Sit Spot
By: William We have not been to our sit stop in a while, but on Wednesday we went to our sit stop. I was really excited to go to my sit stop. I walked down the path to my sit stop. A lot has changed. A lot of sticks and rocks washed in the stream, but some trees were still there and alive. |
The week of January 11th, 2016
The Husky Brook Stream Report
Written by: Camille Friday, January 15th, 2016 On Friday, 1/15/16, the stream is quickly flowing in a SE direction. The depth on the shallow end is 3 inches, though the depth in the deeper end is about 10 inches. The flow rate is about 2 CFS (cubic feet per second) The water temperature is 50°F or 10°C. The outside temperature is 43°F or 13°C. There appear to be no aquatic insects or animals. |
The Wind Test
By: Camille On Wednesday, 1/12/16, our class did an extremely fun that tested our patience. We took balloons (non helium), tied them to a string, and stood in the field waiting for the wind to put up our balloon. We were measuring how fast the wind was going, by when the balloon rose, how many seconds it was up in the air. We did this trial 6 times, recording the seconds each time. Then on Friday, 1/15/16, our teacher, Lucas, decided to have a little fun with us and play a trick on us. He took us on a hike in the arboretum and told us about a new found chemical in our water and ecosystem: ni hydrogen monoxide. As he told us about the destructive things the "chemical" is doing to our ecosystem and water. We started to discuss what we could do to prevent this problem from getting worse. But when we got back to the class room, Lucas reviled that it was just a prank. Ni stands for 2, in the period table hydrogen's letter is H, and mon"oxide" transfers to oxygen (O), so in the end he was teaching us about the down sides of H2O, water. Almost the entire room class was outraged at his prank, as it really scared a lot of us. I was a little upset at first but then realize how clever his prank was. These are the kind of memories that will stay with us forever. |
DHMO Joke
By: Cameron On Friday January 15, our teacher told us about the crisis of DHMO. In 1999 11 inches of rain fell on Hawaii and it turned out to be Di Hydrogen Monoxide. We were all terrified and thought we were all gonna die. Then we came back to the classroom and our teacher told us it was H2O and took us to a scam website. You would be able to donate to stop water on the site. Our teacher got us good. |
DHMO
By: Jake DHMO* is a serious threat. As it makes up most of our bodies it can be very bad to inhale. DHMO also frequently rains down and contaminates our water that we drink. DHMO can be used as a cleaning substance but if used too much it can cause indents and wrinkles in your skin. The government will most likely never try to stop the spread of DHMO as they say "It is good for America to have a surplus of DHMO in every household!". DHMO is contaminating our streams, rivers, oceans, lakes, drinking water, and even our bodies as we speak. Please make a donation today for the silent killer DHMO to stop. *HDMO is water |
First Stream Report
By: Hannah On Monday, January 11, I was chosen to be the first stream reporter! Cough* because nobody else wanted to. Cough* I was honored to serve all you viewers the first weather report, which should be below. The big problem with me doing the stream report was it was FREEZING!!! The second I took off my glove to write, my veins froze and my hands went numb. I also had to stick my hand in the water. But why am I complaining? All in all it was so much fun. I feel like.... A Weatherman! |
DHMO
By: Liam Warning! There is a bad substance that surrounds Hawaii! It's called DHMO. It has killed many in innocents in large quantities. The government has disagreed to abolish this matter because it makes a large amount of money for the economy. It is everywhere. It is told hat there is traces in DHMO in every stream in the country. Just kidding! DHMO (Di-Hydrogren Mon-Oxide) is just water. |
Blog Entry Number 4
By: Madison On Friday, January 15th, Lucas and Matt pranked the middle schoolers. Lucas made up this fake disease that lives in water, like the rain, streams, oceans, ponds, and lakes. He said that if you breathed it or if it gets on your brakes they'll stop working. Di-Hydrogen Monoxide. Which means H2O, it's water. He got us, we were all pretty scared. He explained that if you breathe water then it gets in your lungs so you can die, if it gets on your brakes eventually your brakes will rust. |
We Got Pranked
By: Paul So in class today, we were studying a chemical called DHMO, which was Di-Hydrogen Monoxide. The teachers spoke to us about the chemical, which killed people every year. They also said Hawaii had a lot of water, which it does because it is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean. It wasn't until we broke it down where we figured out it was water. Di- means two and that makes two hydrogen, making H2. Then we took monoxide. Mon meant one, leaving oxide, which was oxygen. That left us with H2O. So, in short, we got pranked. |
DHMO
By: Ryan Today at the Outdoor School we learned of the "dangers" of "DHMO" we went around the arboretum and read out different facts about it: how it was in our food and water, and could stall the breaks in cars. When the class heard about it, they freaked out, couple of them specifically. When we got back to school, we were told it was just a prank, and it was meant to instill fear in us, like how people felt in World War Two. |
The Balloon Test
By: Mikayla On Wednesday we took balloons and tested the winds. We had our notebooks and had six trials. The groups needed to write down how many seconds the balloon stayed in the air. Most of us waited for the wind to blow in an open space of the Arboretum. People who stood in between the trees had a harder time getting a longer time. My groups longest time was 27 seconds. |
The Husky Brook Stream Report
Written by: Basem Wednesday, January 13th, 2016 Today on January 13th, 2016 the Husky Brook Stream is 13 inches deep with no signs of aquatic life. The stream is 40°F and 1°C. The water is approximately 3 cubic ounces per second. That is today's stream report. Thank you for tuning in on channel 3, Basem's forecast. |
Catching the Wind
By: Safi On Wednesday the lesson was to put a ballon in the air and see how many seconds it would stay in the air with the wind blowing. My group was able to get the ballon in the air for 27 seconds thanks to the gust of wind that went by. Our lowest time was, I think for 2 seconds. It was a lot of fun just letting the ballon fly in your hands it could sometimes backfire and blow into your face. |
Friday Poisons
By: Seth Today we learned about DHMO which is Di-Hydrogen monoxide it is one of the key elements in acid rain which can contaminate water and can also destroy the brakes of a car. When it is in water it can attract sharks and is very poisonous to inhale but the most terrifying part is that it is found in almost every stream lake and river in America and it also consumes most of the space in oceans. Ha ha just kidding di is the scientific word for 2, hydrogen is h and oxide from monoxide is 0 so it's H20. |
The Husky Brook Stream Report
Written by: Hannah Monday, January 11th, 2016 Today, on January 11, at 10:26AM, the outside temperature is 38°F and the water is 46°F. The stream is higher than normal today, as the deepest depth is 7 inches. The water flows 8 ounces per second. There has been a scarce amount of fish in the area, but none spotted today. All this data was taken by the entrance bridge. |
The Week in Review
By: Summer On Monday this week in the Outdoor Program we learned about nouns in literacy and looked at wind direction. On Wednesday we did our balloon experiment about catching the wind and seeing how long we could keep the balloon off the ground. Today, on Friday we studied DHMO witch was a PRANK because it was actually just water and there was nothing to be scared about because apparently DHMO can kill people and help plants grow. |
The week of January 4th, 2016
Friday Presidents
By: Seth My class was learning about how President Truman dropped an atomic bomb on the Japan instead of giving Japan their Emperor and ending the war. Lucas asked us to write a statement about what we would have done at the time. My statement stated that I would have not dropped the bomb and gave them their Emperor back to stop the war. |
The Husky Brook Stream Report
(Written by: Camille, Madison, Safi, Cameron and Jake) Monday, January 6th, 2016 Today, 1-6-16, the stream seems to be mildly flowing north. There appears to be no aquatic insects or fish in the stream. The temperature of the water is 41℉ or 5℃, though the outside temperature is an estimate of 30℉. The speed of the water flow is an average of 1CFS (cubic feet per second) In the shallow part of the stream the height of the water is about 3 inches, but in the deeper parts it is about 6 inches deep. |
By: Summer
On Monday, we did an activity in the classroom where we leaned pencils toward or away from the sun to represent the seasons. We also recorded temptress outside in the shade, the sun, and in the stream and learned about the eight parts of speech, and we also took a hike to be reminded of the paths of the arboretum. On Wednesday we started doing stream reports with our groups and explained the relationship between Japanese and America after world war two. On Friday we measured the flow rate of the stream and we talked about the atomic bomb that we released on Japan by walking around and looking at pictures and quotes from that time. |
By: Ryan
At Outdoor Program on Friday we studied the two atomic bombings on Japan. We went to one section of the arboretum that was completely filled with just dead trees, named "ground zero" which very lightly resembled what an atomic bomb explosion would create. The teachers scattered cards all around the area, with stories of the victims who survived, and from those made the bomb itself. |
By: Camille
On Wednesday, 1/6/16, the class split up into groups to go to different parts of the stream, in the arboretum. Our assignment was to write a group a stream report. After it was written we turned it into our teacher, Lucas, and he chose the best stream report (as seen at the top of the page.) how we did this was: We measured the CFS (cubic feet per second), by putting our thermometer in the stream and seeing how far it goes in one second. We later learned more accurate and efficient ways to measure the CFS, for example if have a five gallon bucket, you put it in the stream, and see how quickly it fills up. We measured the temperature with our thermometer, to see how cold the water was, verses how cold the outside air, there was a surprising difference in the temperature of the outside air, verses the temperature in the water. We looked around to see if there were any aquatic insects or animals. Lastly we evaluated how calm the water was. After our data collection we wrote the report and turned it into Lucas. In the end my groups stream report was chosen and put on the blog. I loved learning how to collect this kind of data and how to turn it into a well-written report. |
My Epic Stream Report
By: Basem On Wednesday we had an assignment to write a stream report on a specific spot. My group chose to go upstream. In our stream report we had to include water temperature, what aquatic life there is, and how many CFS the water as moving. CFS means cubic feet per second. Here is my groups stream report. Today on January 6, 2016 the Husky Brook stream is about 5 inches deep with no fish. For all of you fisherman we don't recommend that you fish here because we have not spotted any fish. The stream is approximately 4 CFS and the temperature is 30° F. We have seen a snapping turtle on pasted so take caution while walking in the stream. That is it folks. |
By: Andrew
Today at the outdoor program we were studying wind. What we were doing is Lucas put three places in the arboritum on the map inside a circle. What we were supposed to do is take that map, go to the places and find which direction the wind was coming from from that spot. My group was Paul, Quinn and Me. We did not get to finish ours because we had some confusion about something so we only had time for two. |
By: Liam
On Wednesday, last week, we walked around a section of the arboretum looking for pieces of paper with dates on them. Each date had a little story that took place before, during or after WWII. Each story was about the relationship between the Americans and the Japanese. We learned how the Americans entered the war, and how it ended. It was a fun activity but it was a little sad hearing how the Japanese-Americans were treated in those times. |
First Stream Report
By: Hannah On Monday, January 11, I was chosen to be the first stream reporter! Cough* because nobody else wanted to. Cough* I was honored to serve all you viewers the first weather report, which should be below. The big problem with me doing the stream report was it was FREEZING!!! The second I took off my glove to write, my veins froze and my hands went numb. I also had to stick my hand in the water. But why am I complaining? All in all it was so much fun. I feel like.... A Weatherman! |
Flow Rate
January 8th, 2016 By: Paul Last week, on Friday, we took the first step in discovering the flow rate of the stream in the arboretum. What we did is we took a five gallon bucket and put it on an angle to where as it would fill up to three gallons. We did six tests as to how long it'll take to fill the bucket to three gallons. It averaged at around 2-4 seconds per test, and we will find out how to calculate the CFS (Cubic Feet per Second) in math class. |
WWll Atomic Bomb Dropped, What Decision Will You Make?
By: Safi On Friday, we learned about the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. All of the students made a speech on whether they would drop the bomb or wouldn't drop the bomb. Here's my speech: I know many people have died in this war, that has brought chaos upon us, but for the good of this country we will let them surrender for the good of America and not drop the bomb. |
A Short Time Ago, In a Galaxy Not Far Away
By: Cameron In the first week back in the arboretum, it was freezing like Hoth but the forest of Endor. We talked about the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in World War II in Global Studies class. We talked about what we would do as president of the USA at the time and if we would accept the surrender or not, I said this. I would not accept the surrender because we would be a wide open target if we accepted the surrender. I would drop the bomb to save 100 million Americans at the sacrifice of 250,000 Japanese. Bring the hate as you please. |
By: Madison
On Wednsday 1/6, the middle school got in groups of five. My group was; Cameron, Camille, Safi, and Jake. We all went to the stream by the bridge, we took the temperature in the water and also outside the water, we wrote what we saw in the water if there were any aquatic insects or fish, and we also wrote what the weather was like. |
By: Mikayla
Monday, January 4th, we learned about temperature for science. We went around the park in search of thermometers that were left around the Arboretum. One was left in the shade, one was left in the sun, and another was left by the stream. We went around to the different thermometers and wrote down the temperature that were on each thermometer. Before we wrote them down we needed to write down an estimated temperature for that particular thermometer. |
The week of December 14th, 2015
The App Trail Hike
By: William We went on a hike. We walked up a mountain. It was part of the Appalachian Trail. We hiked up the whole mountain and we ate lunch on the top. Then we walked down the mountain and we saw a waterfall by the stream. Our teacher said we can go on the rocks. I fell into the stream, so I went swimming because I was so wet, I didn't care anymore. |
The Appalachian Trail
By: Hannah A bit ago we hiked the Appalachian Trail. I carpooled with Nelia, Andrew, and William. During the car ride, I overheated and threw up. Andrew's mom said I was okay to continue! I was very happy and embarrassed at the same time. After all, everyone was in the car when I threw up. When we got to the trail, I decided not to tell too many people about my incident. I hiked with Easy and Matt. The hike started out easy, with small hills. But soon, I was basically rock climbing. I was tired quite a lot and needed to take lots of breaks because I had an empty stomach, which was making me feel faint. Matt decided to try to speed us up by making up Bearmen that were coming to eat us, but I wasn't fooled. I'm glad Matt was there otherwise I would had never made it to the top. When we got to the top I wasn't hungry and felt a bit nauseous again. The trip down was easy and fun. There was an epic waterfall we saw. Then Christi got lost! Lucas went to find her and they didn't come back for another hour! This trip was defiantly one to remember! |
Getting Back to the Arboretum
By: Summer After spending so much time inside working on my project I am excited to go back to the arboretum to have fun and run around. When we get back to the arboretum the trees will probably have a lot less leaves that they had when we left and maybe some snow and especially it will be a lot colder then when we left. |
Appalachian Trail
By: Safi Oh my goodness! We're going to the Appalachian Trail. This year like every other year we go to the Appalachian Trail and hike it. The hike was long and a lot of kids took brakes. When we reached the top of the mountain it was cold and windy. All the kids, parents, and teachers ate lunch. Kids were running around for recess and playing with sticks. We hiked down the mountain and went back into the cars. In my car we slept the rest of the way to school. |
Expectation
By: Liam I wonder what the outdoor program will be like when we come back after out holiday break. Will there be snow glistening on the trees? Will it be warm like it presently is? I'm not very sure of what of what is going to happen, although I'm hoping for snow. To this moment your reading this, it still perplexes me. Have a happy Holidays! |
R.I.P. Prototype Mama
By: Andrew We went on a hike on the Appalachian trail! William, Ryan P, ( R.IP in peace in public school ) Safi, Bassem, Cameron, Seffffff, and I, found a really cool stick that looked like a gigantic gun. We already had a stick that looked like big gun and we named it big mama. But this one was bigger! We took turns bringing it up the trail, but eventually we lost it as we were right near the end of the trail. ( Rest in sphagetti ) |
The Cold
By: Mikayla I don't really like the cold weather so much in the winter but I really miss the outdoor school. Cold weather has always been annoying to me in the terms of I never want to get out of bed because it is freezing outside. I'm actually excited for outdoor school because I want to be learning about things I love in the snow/rain or sunny. |
Hyper for Outdoors
By: Basem It's been 1month since we've been outdoors in the arboretum. I've gotten more hyper and outgoing because I have not yet got to release my energy 3 days a week. Plus holiday break will be 2 more weeks without the outdoors, but I will get a chance to release a lot of energy for the snow. Well that's if it even snows from El Niño this winter but next year it will be La Niña which is very cold. El Niño is when a current from the pacific comes up and warms the coast up. My theory is that the warmth is from whale's poop. |
Appalachian Trail
By: Madison On November 22nd the outdoor school and west 2 went on the application trail. We hiked up the mountain and had lunch on the top and then went done, got in are car and left. The people that went had to be at the school at 7:00 sharp, when everyone got to the school we went down to the all purpose room and had a meeting and got assigned cars and drivers. After the hike we got in the cars and left, my group which was; Shaelyn, Paul, me, Micheal, Summer, and Shaelyn's mom, got McDonald's on the way back. We ended up getting stuck in traffic and we got back at school at 6:12. |
Baby It's Cold Outside
By: Cameron On Monday, January 4 2016, the Outdoor Program will be back in the Arboretum. It's gonna be cold outside, maybe snowing, but it's gonna be cold. I am hyped for winter because snow = good and there's no wasps. Overall I am excited for the Arboretum in winter, it will be a lot of fun. P.S Don't eat the yellow snow! |
The Expectation for the Outdoor Program in the Winter
By: Camille The winter is approaching and we will be trekking the arboretum, no matter the cold. This is my first year being at Voyagers' so I'm not sure what to expect for being in the outdoor program this time of year. I can assume that we will keep out schedule and regular routine, even through the snow. I personally am excited to be outside. Even in the warm weather our strength and skill for being outside continues to strengthen, and I think being in colder weather will be even more of a challenge, which may push our limits even more. Again I am so excited to experience the winter in the outdoor program. |
Muck Wars
By: Jake 1 month ago in a galaxy 1 block away... MUCK WARS!!!!! The Jedi have been out of the Arboretum System for at least a month now. The Jedi almost lost their most skilled, handsome, perfect, and delusional Jedi who's name is Jake when attempting the most dangerous hike in the multiverse... The Appalachian Trail!!! Jake was captured on the smuggling ship called the Disney Dream. Jake fought and eventually returned to the fleet 3 days later. Then all of the Jedi made there own weapons for Project Weeks. They presented their work to the Republic Panel and fought the Empire. But as that was happening the evil Darth Rabbis was returning from his great fall. But the Jedi acted quickly and hung Darth Rabbis in their own civilization called Urban City. But Rabbis had poisoned one of the young Padawans named Zach. Zach rescued Darth Rabbis from his cage in the Urban City and did something. MUCK WARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Coming to your spacial theaters in the year 6016!!! |
The week of October 26th, 2015
Rabbis
By: Liam There was once a Teddy Bear named Rabbis. He was perched up on a tree and lived a very happy life, but a tropical storm blew him off and onto the ground. A while later, he woke up from his long sleep and thought he was in the after life. A giant named William walked over to him and picked him up. He looked at him carefully and dropped Rabbis down on the ground. Another day, he woke up in the steam, drowning. The giant, William, saved him from the rocky river. He was carried on a stick out of his homeland by a tribe of giants, carried by a giant named Jake. Jake threw Rabbis off the bridge into the endless River, never to be seen again. He is still missing to this day. |
Muck Wars IV
By: Jake In a short walk to a galaxy really close by... It has been a full year since the Muck Wars started. A few Jedi have deported to another school galaxy but our numbers have grown since. We now have 19 Jedi fighting against the evil empire. Darth Rabbis has been thrown into an endless pit narrowly escaping the Rapids. The Jedi have almost been caught by a rare Snapchat Turtle but live to tell the tale. Will the Jedi slay the evil Darth Rabbis once and for all? Find out soon. Muck Wars 4!!!! Coming to your special theaters in the year 4016 |
Meeting a Celebrity
By: Hannah I am soooooo excited! I just met Edwin Evan, a famous soldier who wrote journal entries from WWI! We were walking and he popped out. He looked strangely like Matt's identical twin! What was also strange was Matt strangely disappeared before we met Edwin. We called him Ed for short. Ed showed us all his journal entries, including being sea sick on land and his dog named Ruffy McBowow, which he didn't actually have. After he left, Matt came back and I told him all about Ed. I felt bad for Matt because he missed seeing the great Edwin Evan. |
A Spooky Blog
By: Cameron On the day before Halloween, my friends and I were heading back to school and we were in the stream and I saw Rabbis the Teddy Bear. An hour before this happened they threw Rabbis in the stream and they noticed him again and they tried to save him and they did. It was funny, really funny. |
Seeing the Blue Jay, Testing Water & Matt Posing as Ed Edwin-Jones
By: Camille On Monday, 10/26, I was sitting in my Sit Spot and a Blue Jay came and landed on the branch that I was sitting on. Usually the Blue Jay will make a warning call to the other Blue Jays, but it just sat there looking at me. It was really interesting to know that we have settled into where the birds trust us. Then on Wednesday 10/28, we split into groups and each group went to a different part of the stream and collected water samples. Then, we came back to school and tested the water. We did that by adding chemicals that tested the levels of ammonia, PH, nitrate and nitrite in the water. It was really cool to see that different parts of the stream had different test results. Finally on Friday, 10/30, Matt posed as Ed Edwin-Jones, a World War I soldier. We walked around the arboretum trail and "Ed" read us his journal entries from the war. It was extremely interesting and helpful to learn in an interactive way. Matt added some comedy, which kept us engaged, and was extremely skilled at on the spot questions. Overall I really enjoyed this week in the Outdoor Program and hope there will be more weeks like it. |
Stream Expedition
By: Basem Wednesday of last week, we went to go fishing in the stream. We went all the way upstream where the residential homes were. In order to get there there was a bridge that was 4FT high and some people went under the bridge and others chickened out and crossed the street. Under the bridge was very hot, moiety, and mucky. Jake and Seth sunk in the muck because they stepped in the wrong area to where we were leading them. That's the adventure to get our fish. |
Up the Stream
By: Paul On the Wednesday of last week, we were curious where the stream originated. So we followed it. We climbed through thorns, trekked through the stream, and even went under a road. We eventually went so far that we were out of the park! When we couldn't go any further because it was blocked off, we took out our nets and jars and caught some fish called the Creek Chub. Then, we went back and analyzed the data and found that the fish we found were only female, bringing us one step closer to finding out all we can about the water. |
Huge Turtle
By: Shaelyn For my third blog I am going to talk about a huge turtle that my group found in the Arboretum. This turtle that we found was really big and it was nicely camouflaged! The shell was the size of my head! I thought it was dead, but Will saw it move. There was a plastic bag next to it, and I thought it would eat it and die so I wanted to remove it from the turtle. I wasn't allowed to take it off with my fingers because the turtle could snap my fingers off. Ryan decided to move it with a stick, so he did. I wanted to move it with the stick, but Ryan got to a stick first. Ryan took the stick and started pulling the bag off of the turtle. He couldn't move it off of the turtle! Suddenly the stick broke! He then used the other side and got it off with a big pull. I took the bag and I brought it with us until I found a trash bin. |
Snapping Turtle
By: William In the Outdoor Program, we were walking by the stream and I thought I saw a rock in the stream, but it was moving. It was a snapping turtle. The shell was as big as my head. I think it saw me because it moved and stopped on the side of the stream. It looked like it was eating a plastic bag, so me and Ryan got a stick and picked the bag up so the turtle couldn't eat it. |
Friday Soldiers
By: Seth On Friday, we were going through the trail when we were greeted by Matt disguised as Edwin E. Jones, a World War I solider. We followed him through the woods and every once and awhile we found a small laminated piece of paper that had one of his journal entry's written on it and each one told us more about him. |
The week of September 28th, 2015
Bad Story Dat Girl
By: Basem On Monday, in Literacy class at the arboretum we had to write a bad story. A bad story is a short and not detailed story with misspelling. My story was about a girl and her brothers having ice cream, then walking home to play hide and seek. While they're playing, the girl finds them and eats them. In this story you will see misspelling. Here's a sample of my story: Dat Girl She went into the closet and ate both dem boys. She came out of the closet all full. She ran to her ma and pa and said "Dem boys are missing we have to file a po po report. Then ma and pa go to the police and file a report for missing kids. 5 days later the chief said, we don't feel like looking for your kids anymore. |
Bad Boss
By: Hannah After a role play activity in our Global Studies class. Stomach grumbling and sweat dripping down my face. Thinking about my children and how hungry and dirty they probably were. This was what work was like everyday. It also didn’t help that I had THE WORST BOSS EVER, Mr.Pullman (A.K.A. Matt). He said my job would be to break sticks that other workers brought. The job seemed simple enough, so I took it. Big mistake. I started breaking sticks. Every 10 sticks I broke I got 1 brown bead which was worth about 25 cents. After I broke 10 sticks, I went and presented them to Mr.Pullman. He said he couldn’t accept them because he said I broke them. I mean, WHAT IS WRONG WITH HIM!!! Of course after that I was handed the biggest stick I had ever seen! I think it was a branch! Luckily, I had another worker who helped me named Camille. We tried to break it in many ways. Jumping on it, sitting on it, and even hitting it against trees. It didn’t break. I started to get desperate, thinking about how much my family needed this money. I went to someone and begged for money and said I’d do whatever they wanted. The man to me to get lost. It was a high class person. I HATE them, acting like they are the best and no one else matters! One day I will revolt! And everyone will be free from their misery! But for now, I will have to keep working…ugh. |
10 Word Short Stories
By: Shaelyn In this blog, I am going to talk about our 10 word short stories. What we needed to do was have 10 things that you could see. I had stick, leaf, water, flower, brick, sky, sand, tree, bark, and grass. Those were my 10 things that I could see by my Sit Spot. With those words we wrote a short story about something and included those 10 words. Mine was about a beaver, I didn't see that though. This is my story: I was walking along the stream and I see a little beaver. I say hi to it and start walking over to these broken pieces of brick, they are all different g into the ground and just laying there on the ground. I take a picture of the bricks and keep on walking. I hear a noise behind me and I slowly turn around . It was the same beaver I saw before. I politely asked it why it was following me, and I saw it just staring at me, with its share my, big blue eyes. I felt the beaver inside of me like it was looking at my soul. Then I quickly looked away and up at the sky. The big blue beautiful sky! I took a picture and the beaver collapsed into the water. I ran into the water and grabbed the beaver. I thought it was dead so I cried and snuggled it. It then woke up and I was so happy! I grabbed a leaf and put the beaver in the leaf. I took him with me. I put the beaver in the pocket of my backpack. I was walking in the grass and saw sand on the left of me and on the right I saw a bunch of trees. I went to my right and took a picture of really cool bark with the flash off. I took lots of pictures for a while. I took pictures of trees, sticks, and even flowers! I then assumed that the beaver likes me so I gave it a home and a name, the name was Sweety. |
Bad Books
By: Paul This past Monday, we made up characteristics of bad books and listed them as a competition. Whoever had more that didn't repeat others won. We also wrote some bad books, one being about stupid humor and another about repetitive lines. Here's a line from someone's story: "On Halloween Night, there was a kid dressed like a turd log and he didn't get any candy." As you can see, we tried our hardest to make these stories bad. |
Friday Workers
By: Seth On this Friday, we got there and we started to read more about history and slavery. Then, we played a game where we had Matt, Mr. Pollman in this case, and we had jobs like stick collecting and acorn collecting. I had the job of collecting bugs which was high paying but I hated bugs so I did not get any money. So, if I ever play that game again, I will not catch bugs for my job. |
Parent Hike
By: William Our parents came to the arboretum and we took a hike of the arboretum. I showed my Mom my Sit Spot. She thought it was awesome. It rained a little and the stream was really high. A little water got in my boot when I waked in it. I found clay on the side of the stream. We finished our hike and our parents went home. |
The week of September 14th, 2015
My First Week
By: Cameron My first week as an official Outdoor School student and boy does it feel good. We started out nicely. We played games, discovered new things and we had a lot of fun in general. We played this game called Owl and Mouse. I survived the whole time, while Summer stood there looking for me. We discovered a bouncy bridge. It stays loyal to its name and boy was it bouncy. We had new Sit Spots. Mine is near a stream close to the bouncy bridge. We took a nice hike around the arboretum. We discovered some nice muck, which is a stronger type of mud and it is very, VERY easy to get stuck in. Our week was very fun and I can't wait to see what awaits for the future. |
My Landmark
By: Shaelyn Me and my friend were walking along a path when we saw this really cool gate made out of trees. We went through it like it was a gate way and heard a noise so we ran to get our teacher. We showed him the gate and went through it. We saw a fence made out of metal that marked the end of the Arboretum. It was also the fence of someone's backyard. I looked left and I saw a dark narrow path, I then looked to my right and saw a spacey sunny path. I expected that some how. Our teacher told us to draw this because this could be our landmark, and then left. So I sat and started drawing the fence, the bushes, the paths, the trees, and even the tree gate. I heard a noise coming from the left side. I wanted to look but I got scared so I didn't look. When I was done I got up and brushed myself off. I was waiting for my friend now. While I was waiting for my friend I decided to look on the left side. I started to turn the corner when I heard footsteps coming from where me and my friend were sitting before, so I went over to where we were sitting and I was so relieved that is was just my friend. |
The Tree Lady
By: Madison Monday was our first time at the Arboretum and also our first time back in the Outdoor Program. We went on a nature hike and discovered this lady that had a sun hat on with tons of lace and white scarves on top of the hat and tied underneath her chin. She was wearing these long black pants, almost like snow pants, and a long black coat that went down to her knees, the coat looked like it was the same materials as the pants. She was walking around with two branches in each hand with dead brown leaves. We also played the Owl Game. The Owl Game is when one person stays in one spot, but can spin, and tries to find the other kids that are hiding. |
The Owl Game
By: Safi On the first day of the Outdoor Program we played a game called Owl and Mouse. The point of the game was to sharpen our senses. The game was to use our senses of hearing, sight and smell, if you could smell the person some how but you would have to have a very good sense of smell. The Owl had to stand in the middle of an open area, while the mice, which was all of the other kids, hid behind a tree or camoflauged into the ground. The Owl counted down and everyone hid. The Owl, one by one, called the people's names and spotted them out. |
First Weeks of 8th Grade
By: Summer This week in the Outdoor Program, we did a lot of activities. On Monday, we played a game called Owl. In Owl, a person covers their eyes and counts to twenty. When they count to twenty, they look but they can't move, they can only turn 360 degrees like an owl. I can't remember much else we did on Monday. On Wednesday, we did a landmarks activity where we had to draw different landmarks that reminded us where we were. On Friday, we played a game where we had to play Rock, Paper, Scissors, and who ever won against me I had to follow and chant their name. Eventually, only a few people gained a very big Empire chanting their name. The last thing we did was a circle ceremony and said what our favorite thing was about the week. |
The First Week Back
By: Paul So, this week, we officially went back to the Outdoor Program. A few people are new, a few people left, but we jumped right into working. On Monday, we did things like hiking and the owl game, where the "owl" has to find the "mice" by using their senses like sight and hearing to locate them. They have a minute or so, they have to stay in the same spot, and when the minute is up, the mice have to move closer to the owl, the game is over after about three times when the owl searches. The next day we were outside, Wednesday, we found a few deer when we got there. We also found a Sit Spot, a spot where we observe nature and write. We also gave our opinions on the value of nature. We talked about landmarks, and found one to help us find our sit spot. On Friday, the final day of this week, we did back to back drawing, which is where one person describes something they found in nature to a person that's drawing it, but the person that is drawing can't look at it, and the describer can't look or correct the drawing. We read some history about the war between America and Spain to capture Cuba, and we closed out the week with our new stick ceremony, where we go around, say something we liked about the week, and throw our stick on a platform with a tree, where we all gather. That sums up our first week, and I can't wait until we have more stories to tell! |
An Excerpt from, "The Selfless Rock"
By: Camille I run through the forest throwing rocks and sticks as far as I can, after the horrible day I couldn't wait to get home. Usually the outdoor sounds are extremely soothing, the soft breeze, the swaying trees. After a long day I always take this path home. Today was different. I step in a pile of trash and just stare at it thinking that that is exactly what I feel like, trash that is constantly being stepped on. I don't even pick it up I just stand there staring at it. Eventually I walk away. I pick up a small reddish brown stone, it seems to different from the rest, and again I chuck it as far as I can. The birds chirping in the distance suddenly stop, I hardly notice until a bird the same colors as the stone flys strait into the back of my head, I shout at it both in fright and my aggression and agitation slipping out. It lays in the ground staring at me it almost looks human the way it's looking at me with immense confusion. I shake the image out of my head and focus on getting home and throwing my self on the soft mattress of my bed. That image does comfort me, I really want to be home right now. I start to run toward the gate that surrounds my property and trip over the rock that I threw in the other direction just a few minutes ago. |
Wednesday Sitters
By: Seth Wednesday was our second day at the arboretum, when we were starting to fell like explorers. Among other things, my favorite part of the day was picking our new Sit Spot. I was pleased to have mine on the bouncy bridge which was over the river. It is a bouncy piece of wood. I like it because I was able to see many interesting things such as the branch hanging out in front of me. I have some giant trees that were near me and I will have a fun time finding out what kind of trees they are. |
Tiny Bugs
By: Hannah On Monday, we played an “Owl Game” where one person was the owl and everyone else were mice and tried to hide from the owl. I once saw Matt hiding in a tree and I had to stop myself from laughing. I also tried the tactic of hiding behind the owl….which failed terribly. Haha! :) Wednesday was fun because I saw a deer and I learned how the little things in nature are awesome. On Friday, we were learning about the Spanish-American War…when I felt something on my leg. It was a little bug. I flicked it off but then I realized that there were a million more bugs on me. I told Deb and she had to take me to change. It turned out I sat on a baby tick nest. Ha :) But I’m okay now so…Yay! See ya next time. Bye! |
Tadpoles!
By: Liam At my Sit-Spot on Wednesday, I saw 7 big tadpoles rushing through the water as if they were teleporting from spot to spot. I called over my friends, but the tadpoles all rocketed down the stream by the time they arrived. I ran down the side of the stream to try to spy on them, but they were all out of sight. I think they disappeared to a hole where they live. That was an amazing second day of my second year in the Outdoor Program. |
Puff Ball
By: Basem I found a white squishy puff ball at the new arboretum. This puff ball is white and has a soccer ball design to it. The inside of the ball is yellow, the bottom of it is all white and looks like a mushroom from the bottom angle. If you smell one of these you will want coffee beans to smell. |
The Joseph Saga Continues (Part 3)
Day 1 There is no sign of Joseph but I can feel his presence. “He must be here somewhere!” I shout, but nothing was there that I could see. Day 2 As I search for Joseph, I remember the time when we first saw his 5 kids. I search more but have no luck. Day 3 I hear a honk coming from the newly discovered “Bouncy bridge” while in my sit spot. I dash over the bridge as fast as my legs could carry me but whatever made the noise was gone. Day ??? I will not give up hope. |