Medieval Times Field Trip

On Tuesday, April 29, the Wolf Team will be taking a field trip to Medieval Times in Kissimmee. We will leave school at 9:30 AM and return before the school day ends so that students will be back in time for regular dismissal. The cost of the trip is $45.00. This includes admission to Medieval Times, charter bus fare, and a generous meal. Students may bring extra money for souvenirs, but it is not necessary. The absolute deadline for the return of permission slips and money is Thursday, April 3. We cannot accept money after this date due to reservation restrictions required by Medieval Times.

Focus Title: A Dream of Freedom

The focus title for our Black History and Civil Rights Movement unit of study is A Dream of Freedom by Diane McWhorter. This full-color nonfiction book traces major events of the modern civil rights movement from 1954-1968. The author was a white child who grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, the most segregated city in the nation, during the 1960s. This background gives her an interesting point of view on the era.

So far we have learned about Plessy v. Ferguson (1892) and Brown v. Board of Education (1954), the two monumental Supreme Court cases that ruled on the doctrine of "separate, but equal." We have also studied the terms segregation, desegregation, and integration. Emmett Till, Rosa Parks, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. are some of the key people whose stories we have read who each had their own "dream of freedom."

Nightjohn

Book Cover

During the next few weeks our class will be doing a unit of study on Black History and the Civil Rights Movement. As part of our study we will be reading the book Nightjohn by Gary Paulsen, one of our favorite authors. I will be showing the class the movie Nightjohn based on the book of the same title. I have shown this outstanding Disney/Hallmark television movie to my class for many years, but it was brought to my attention recently that the movie is rated PG-13 for some scenes of racial oppression and abuse.

School board policy requires written parent permission for your child to view this film during class. Permission slips were sent home with students on Friday. Please return the signed permission slip by Monday, February 25. Students who do not return the permission slip will be given an alternative assignment. If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to call me at 757-9400 ex. 306 or email me at roland.blount@sdhc.k12.fl.us.

DVD Cover

Strawberry Festival Parking

Calling All Wolves!

It’s that time of year again—Strawberry Festival! The Wolf Team will be parking cars at the Ag field on Sunday, March 2, and at the bus ramp on Friday, March 7. The proceeds from parking cars are used to purchase classroom supplies, provide incentives, and fund activities. We have set up shifts so that we can share in the parking responsibilities. We appreciate any time you can donate to the team.

If you can participate, please send a note with your child to school or email me at roland.blount@sdhc.k12.fl.us with the dates, times, number of adult volunteers, and number of student volunteers who will be able to park cars.

Sunday, March 2 (Ag field)
9:30 AM - 12:00 PM

12:00 PM - 3:00 PM

2:30 PM - 5:30 PM

5:30 PM - 8:30 PM

Friday, March 7 (bus ramp)
10:00 AM - 1:30 PM

1:30 PM - 4:30 PM

4:00 PM - 8:00 PM

8:00 PM - 12:00 AM
(Moonlight Madness)

Our Chinese New Year Celebration

Last Thursday, Mrs. Gunn invited our geography class to join hers for a Chinese New Year celebration. Her room looked almost like an authentic Chinese restaurant. It was decorated with red student-made Chinese lanterns and red spring couplets, and the tables were spread with red checked tablecloths and red plates. Several students even dressed in red, the official color of Chinese New Year.

Mrs. Gunn give directions for the celebration.

Hannah proves she can use chopsticks.

Our principal, Dr. Carbaugh, stopped by for a visit.

Jeff, Saulo, Alexis, and Andrea

Mrs. Gunn and Dr. Carbaugh

I want to send a word of thanks to the parents of Jack, Georgette, Chance, Aramis, William, and Tyler who brought or sent in food for our celebration. And of course the biggest thanks goes to Mrs. Gunn who made our celebration possible!

Chinese New Year Celebration Planned

We will be celebrating Chinese New Year together with Mrs. Gunn's geography class this Thursday, February 7, as part of our current unit of study on China. We are asking students to bring in homemade or take-out Chinese food that day to share with each other. Parents, if you would like to deliver hot Chinese food on Thursday, please have it at school by noon. Mrs. Gunn will be providing the hot tea for our celebration.

Progress Reports and Conference Night

Progress reports went home today. Parents, please sign and return them by Monday, February 4.

(sample)

Third quarter conference night will be Thursday evening, February 7, from 4:55-7:25. All parents are invited to attend conference night on a walk-in, first-come first-served basis. Hope to see you there!

Featured Student: Chance AKA Fidelis

Chance is a fine young man in every sense of the word. He is kind to his peers, polite and respectful to adults, and cares about the things that matter.

Chance is also our resident dinosaur expert. Although he loves all animals and nature, dinosaurs are his specialty. On the fantasy side, Chance loves dragons, and his favorite books are the Deltora series.

Recently, Chance started his own blog, and he has been full of questions for me on how to add features to his site. If you read comments on this site signed by "Fidelis," you might want to know that is his alter-ego. I love the name Chance has chosen, because he is truly a "faithful" friend.

You can visit Chance's blog here.