21 May 2017

 Helen's class spent Monday and Tuesday at on outdoor school program called the Siskiyou Field Institute.  Brandan went along as a parent chaperone.  They started their experience at the Oregon Caves.  This photo was taken near the entrance to the caves.  From the left are Clara, Helen, Lucy, Aubrey and Hannah.

 They used nets to pull "macro invertebrates" from the stream coming out of the caves.  A park ranger taught them the process of catching and identifying the critters.

As they collected invertebrates they transferred them to an ice cube tray so they could identify them.

They used a chart to identify the critters, which were mainly mayfly and stonefly nymphs.  Once they identified which invertebrates were living in the stream they could tell how healthy or polluted it was.  The stream they visited was healthy.

 Back at the Field Institute, the students played on a ropes course and did some teambuilding activities.

 Here are Clara, Helen and Hannah.

 Here's Helen at another stream taking a water sample to measure pH.  They learned about pollution and fertilizers that run off into streams and change the pH.  Tuesday was a rainy day.  Helen thought the rain helped them focus on their work better and not goof off as much.

 Helen's class went home on Tuesday and Gibson's class arrived.  His class stayed Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.  Both classes got to use the bigger ropes course.  Here's Gibson trying out a catwalk about 2 stories above the ground.  He was harnessed to a rope so he could be belayed to the ground if he lost his footing.

 Here are Brandan and Gib just before Gib gets harnessed into the giant swing, a cable suspended between 2 large pine trees.

This is a photo of Brandan being pulled to the top of the swing.  Each person could choose how high they wanted to be pulled by the rest of the group before they started swinging.

Here he is swinging.

 More swinging.

 And swinging.

 Here are Gibson and Brandan around the campfire where they roasted marshmallows and sang camp songs before going to bed.

 A retired birding expert taught the kids about some of the birds that live in the area, then took them outside to walk and look around.  Here's Gibson doing some birdwatching.

In addition to all of the activities at the institute, the kids found ways to make their own fun.  Here Gibson and his friend are playing war.

After we got back from camping we borrowed a friend's truck and picked up some bark for our yard.  Helen and Sofi helped shovel the bark into the wheelbarrow, and Brandan and Becky distributed it around the yard.

Abe's school held its annual honors night on Thursday.  Abe got awards for being on math team, having a 4.0 this year (Academic Excellence Award), having a 4.0 throughout middle school (Principal's Award) and having good citizenship and character (Solid as a Rock).  His friends also received many honors.  From the left are Abe, Spencer, Ashton, Malakai, Camden and Jake.

On Saturday Abe participated in a sonatina competition.  A sonatina is a shorter, lighter form of a sonata.  He had to memorize the entire piece and play it for one of the faculty in the music department at the university.  Although sonatinas are shorter than sonatas, it's still the longest piece he has memorized-- over 5 minutes long.  Abe played Sonatina. opus 55, number 1 by Friedrich Kuhlau and won first place in his division.  

Besides the trophy, his prize for winning was performing his piece at a recital held at an assisted living home for the elderly.  The top pianists were invited to play one movement from their sonatinas and the first place winners in each division were invited to play their entire piece.  Abe's performance stood out for its musicality and expression.  This is a photo of Abe warming up before the recital.