It was an unusual and fast winter between breaks and snow days.  With the snow days it seemed like the snow didn’t stay around as long as we wanted. Even so, we made the most of it.  Some time walking around in snowshoes, and a little fun with sleds.  We had some hot chocolate and fires to keep us warm in the cold weather. It felt good to cram in some winter fun while we had it and now as the month ends we are turning towards spring with the trees tapped and the sap flowing. 

Kindergarten

Kindergarten was able to really enjoy winter.  We took a turn with the snowshoes when we had deep snow on the ground and the woods were looking beautiful.  Later we did activities with sleds in the last remnants of a snowfall to practice the letters they had been learning. We also enjoyed a puppet show to learn about animals in winter, learned different types of ducks and adaptations they have for feeding and searched for a “peppermint beetle” using our sense of smell, and practiced counting with things we found outside. To wrap up the month, we learned about maple syruping at the sugar shack and tapped a tree as a class.   

1st grade

First graders in OE also enjoyed the puppet in the OE room and a search for animal tracks in the snow to see what animals were out. We continued learning about animals and habitats through various activities. Students made mini shelters that could be used by animals. We also were able to enjoy looking for signs of spring from birds who migrated back, our creek flowing, plants sprouting and of course the sap flowing. The best part of course was tasting the maple syrup.  

2nd grade

In second grade we spent some time reviewing what it was like for the Native Americans as we cooked corn over the fire and Mr. Sportel demonstrated how to start a fire with a bow drill. We later studied the three states of matter with snow, melting candles to make fire starters and acting out the 3 states. We even learned the difference between reversible and irreversible changes with the fire starter and made a delicious irreversible change on some marshmallows. Second grade students also had a chance to snowshoe. Lately we have been transitioning to maps and directions finding our way all over school and searching for hidden treasures. This includes a quick search for some sap bags to help bring to the sugar shack.  

3rd

Third grade enjoyed some silly snowshoe races in January! We also learned about how birds who stay in the snowy months seek shelter.We were able to hang some nesting boxes to keep them safe and warm. In February the preparations for spring began as we planted violas to share with our neighbors on earth day. Lastly, we dove deep into beak adaptations that God gave birds. We had a blast practicing collecting “food” with different types of tools that act like beaks.

4th

Our fourth grade students have been learning about energy in science. We have been exploring how we get our energy and use our energy through food! We learned about how the food we consume can give us short bursts of energy or long energy. The kids were able to make their own salads and breakfast burritos with what we produce here on the farm!

Mr. Sportel spent some time in fourth grade to teach students what it was like to be a lumber baron in the early years of Michigan and how that shaped our state.  We followed that up with some activities using a variety of tools that shanty boys would have used.  It was a lot of fun for us for a day, but would have been a lot of work for the real lumberman.  To end the month 4th grade helped get the syrup season rolling by putting the sap bags together and tapping the trees. 

5th

Snow days limited our OE time this month but 5th grade was still able to study unity through creation. We spent time hiking in the woods reflecting on the year 2023 and thinking about the type of believer, friend, and person we aspired to be in 2024. We did some nature journaling on these aspirations as we thought about the year to come. 5th grade also continues to do an excellent job taking care of the chickens. We selected our new breeds of chickens to add to our flock based on who we thought would be the most productive layers. The fertilized eggs were delivered and we started the incubation process. So far we explored the parts of an egg as well as the development of a chick inside the egg. We should have baby chicks in just a few weeks.

6th

6th grade practiced goal writing on a hike through creation. We got to talk about the type of culture they could inspire at ACS and worked on setting a spiritual goal, relational goal, and a physical goal for 2024. They have continued to take excellent care of our pregnant goats as they are a little over halfway through their pregnancies. Then we had a few snow days but we were fortunate enough to find a time to snowshoe with a combined OE/PE session. It was great to teach the basics, learn how they work and just enjoy the beauty of the snow. We are also learning about the life cycle of chickens because our 6th grade students missed out due to the programming switch of goats 2 years in a row. So they have been learning right along with the fifth graders about the parts of an egg and the development of a baby chick.

7th 

In 7th grade OE we are connecting the chemistry students learned in science to fire starting. After a few notes on how to start fires we went outside and tried to start our own fires using flint and steel one day and ferrocerium rods. It’s a challenging task in this weather but we had some success. We also were fortunate enough to find a time to snowshoe with a combined OE/PE session. It was great to teach the basics, learn how they work and just enjoy the beauty of the snow. As we reached the end of February, we began collecting sap. We’ll continue to learn about the syruping process and 7th graders will work together to collect the sap around campus.  

8th

Despite the tricky weather, we were able to enjoy sit spots in 8ht grade. In January while students sat in the woods they took time to look back at the year and reflect on what God has done for us. Then they thought about the upcoming year and challenges they may face as well as what they look forward to. In February students found an item to draw in detail and consider the structure and function of the tiny parts they observed. We also spent time studying skulls as a way to explore how God has tied structure and function together in all of creation.