An exciting week ahead...

This week we have several adventures in store for our fifth and sixth graders!

Permission slips for the fifth grade orienteering field trip went home last Wednesday. This field trip takes place this week on Wednesday, June 1st at Sunday Mountain. Students need to be prepared to be outdoors all day, so outdoor clothing (close toed shoes), a bag lunch, and lots of water will be important. A reminder note will be sent home on Tuesday, May 31st.

For our sixth graders, Wednesday, June 1st is an exciting day. It is their "Step Up" day at Rivendell Academy, where they will meet with R.A. administrators, meet next year's core teachers, and have lunch in the R.A. Cafe.

Thursday evening we will have our fifth and sixth grade curriculum night. We will be planting our gardens. Students will have the opportunity to share their "Genius Hour" projects, and other curriculum projects. We are planning a potluck dinner. We hope you will join us.

Dates to Remember:

• June 1st--5th grade orienteering trip and 6th grade step up day at Academy
• June 2nd--5th-6th Grade Curriculum Night and planting our Gardens
• June 2nd--Last day of Visions...picnic day
• June 7th--kickball game
• June 9th--Field Day
• June 10th--Graduation: last student day; dismissal at 1:00 PM

We are back in the swing of things in these final weeks of the school year at SME. Our sixth graders have finished their Hulbert experience and yesterday went to R.A. to participate in the beginning of the Summer Reading Program. Eighteen more days of school!

Dates to Remember:

• May 18th--6th Grade Peace Poster Celebration w/Lions Clubat 5:30 PM
• May 19th--Preschool Picnic
• June 1st--5th grade orienteering trip and 6th grade step up day at Academy
• June 7th--kickball game
• June 9th--Field Day
• June 10th--Graduation: last student day; dismissal at 1:00 PM

Working out of doors on a beautiful spring day!

This is a big week for our sixth graders! Their field trip to the Hulbert Outdoor Center is coming....Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, May 11-13, 2016!

Dates of Upcoming Events:

• May 9th - Fourth Grade Hulbert
• May 11th -13th--Sixth grade Hulbert Trip
• May 13th -VRP Conference
• May 16 - Sixth Grade Summer Reading at R.A.
• May 18th - Sixth Grade Peace Poster Celebration w/Lions Club
• May 19th - Preschool Picnic
• May 31st - Sixth Grade "Step Up" Day at R.A.
• June 1st - Fifth Grade Orienteering Field Trip to Sunday Mountain
• June 10th - Graduation

Vermont Rural Partnership Spring Conference

On Friday, May 13, 2016, The spring meeting of the Vermont Rural Partnership will be hosted by Samuel Morey and Westshire Schools at
Lake Morey Inn & Resort Fairlee, VT
8:30 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Based on their willingness to volunteer to help on our SME Outdoor Classroom project, six fifth grade students have been invited to attend this conference. They will also be serving as guides during a tour of our SME playground and acting as "MC's" during the conference. Below is a description of the conference:

"Hear community stories like Eden Central’s “History Through Story.” Learn about raising sh with Doty’s Aquaponics Project and Hyde Park’s “Something
is Fishy.” Explore agricultural connections to community with Concord and Twin eld’s school gardens teams. Ride the wave of outdoor learning environments that are getting students outside at Barnet with an adventure course, and Fayston with new tech on their nature trail. Listen for student- made outdoor musical instruments built by Walden students. Find out how Samuel Morey, Westshire, and Washington Village are enhancing their outdoor learning environments with new structures.?

May 2, 2016

Samuel Morey Elementary, Farm To School Event on May 7th, 9-12 AM.

This Friday, SME will host a community event including; FREE workshop on compost bin design and the science of composting with CVSWMD. There will be two different models of backyard compost bins for sale. Learn about SME's new Farm To School partnership with Root 5 Farm and their C.S.A. (community supported agriculture).

Maps identifying locally grown and produced food and locations where it is sold will be available. Learn hands-on how to build a wattle fence. Volunteer garden workers will be needed to help build new class gardens for grades 3-6. Volunteers will be provided with generous locally produced foods for refreshment. Volunteers who wish to help with construction of our class gardens please contact: mb.gravityhill@gmail.com

Upcoming Events:

• May 6th--Jobs on the Move
• May 11th-13th--6th grade Hulbert Trip
• May 18th--6th Grade Peace Poster Celebration w/Lions Club
• June 10th--Graduation

Fifth Grade field trip to the Tsongas Industrial History Center

Below are some photographs of the fifth grade field trip to the Tsongas Industrial History Center in Lowell, MA last Friday. While there, we were introduced to the themes of immigration and industrialization in the 19th and early 20th centuries. We participated in a program called, "Yankees and Immigrants." Students participated in a town meeting role play, as well as a new immigrants at Ellis Island role play. We walked through a functioning "loom room" and visited a replica of a boarding house where "mill girls" would have stayed while they worked in the textile mills at Lowell,