Science Fair & Trip to Fairbanks

So this is a little late but near the end of March I was able to take 3 students to Bethel for science fair. I took two 6th graders and a 4th grader. They did so well and loved every minute of it, as did I. We went swimming twice and launched rockets and did many other activities. Here is a pic of them with their rockets.

They also worked really hard on their presentations and it paid off. The 4th grader in the back got 1st place in elementary. The 2 in the front got 2nd and 3rd place for middle school.

Directly following science fair I went to Grant and watched them board a plane with another chaperone. I was staying in Bethel a little longer so I could catch the night flight to Anchorage and then continue on to Fairbanks for training for a program. The PREPARES program has been great for my 7th grade students. We have been learning about how climate change is impacting their villages. We are partnered with a Hawaiian school. At the conference we got to meet with our partners and experience sites that our students might get to experience next year. We first went to the Open North American sled dog race. During this event there as also a parka parade and fur auction. 

Another really cool thing to see was the ice sculpture competition. So many great sculptures but since I am a science teacher I will leave you with this one.

One of my favorite places was Chena Hot Springs. We had plenty of time to soak. It was super hot. I only lasted like 10 minutes. This might be a too much info but it was really weird using the toilets. Some of them had water from the springs. When you sat down you could feel the heat. It was a really bizarre experience. 

I also got to see a bear and reindeer!! The bear was at the culture museum. So not a live one. But the reindeer are real. We went to a scientists personal reindeer farm. We got to feed and pet them. However they were terrified of us. The scientist studies permafrost. His experiment is so easy but so cool. All he does is drill down about 5 feet and put a pvc pipe in. Then he takes plastic tubing, seals one end and fill it with water and some dye. He places the tubing into the pvc pipe and lets it sit. You can then pull it out and see which layers are frozen. I want to have my students do it.

Last, I have to share a picture of us leaving. Being a bush teacher we always have totes. We were each given a tote with supplies for next year. It filled the van and we were piled in the back.

This was such a GREAT trip!! I can't wait to bring students next year!!

Running

I have been attempting to run outside. In the last week I have probably tried it about 4 times. A few of the days were far too windy and cold, plus I was super busy anyway. Nali has been my running buddy. She absolutely loves it!!

Nali smelling the ice on the beach. A few weeks ago they caught a few belugas.

I have had to get some gear. I have shoes called icebugs. They are waterproof and have built in spikes. They work great for the ice roads. I have windproof leggings and a a jacket with windstopper. Usually I wear tall thick socks and just a long sleeve 1/4 zip top underneath the jacket. For my head I just wear a headband and if it is extra cold I use the hood on my jacket.











The views on my run have been spectacular. I usually get a very beautiful sunset. I always have to run after school so I usually don't get out until 6 or later at night. Last light is about 7:20 pm.

 Here is a video that I forgot to post. About 3 weeks ago I was in Anchorage for the RTI conference and I took Nali with me. On our way out Bethel was super cold and her poor legs were freezing up. So I got her some booties. Rita (a co-worker and my roommate for the conference) took an awesome video. You can decide how much Nali liked her gift.

On another not while in Anchorage there was a 7.1 magnitude earthquake with an epicenter located about 160 miles away. I was on the 11th floor of the Hilton in downtown Anchorage. Rita yelled at me and I literally jumped out of bed. She says Nali was dead asleep and sat up a little before the earthquake, she knew it was coming. Our room shook like crazy! The toilet water slopped out of the toilet and all over the floor. I must be crazy because I thought it was kind of fun. I mean that is after I realized our building was still standing. The room shook for probably 2 minutes. It was very eventful.

This year has been crazy. Fork 3 weeks we had unsafe drinking water, I experienced an earthquake on the 11th floor, and now we have had a TB outbreak. Can't wait to find out what is next!

So many things, so little time...

I have been so busy. Coaching, teaching, chaperoning, and taking classes online have led to a crazy semester.

Our school sent high school students to perform at AFN. This is a gathering for Alaska Natives. They have meeting and discuss what is going on and then they celebrate with Eskimo dance at night. Our high schoolers did great!!

Next came Halloween. Nail just loves Halloween. This year she was a Dinosaur and I was a worker at Jurassic World. It was so much fun. So many students and staff participated this year making it so much fun. It was tough to choose the best costumes. I remember my first year very few outside of the elementary participated, and now we have quite a few middle and high schoolers joining in. I also remember that no teachers really dressed up my first year. Even I didn't. This year I don't think there was a teacher who didn't participate. 

I stole this pic from Kelly's Facebook. Thanks Kelly!!

This year I was also helping the seniors try to raise money for their class. We had asked for a popcorn and slushie machine on donorschoose. Here is the popcorn machine in action. We had a lot of fun playing volleyball and selling some concessions to try to raise money.

A beautiful day for cross country skiing. This was the sunset as we headed back. It was a great weekend right before a headed back for Christmas.

I torture my dog. Nali had to deal with some dress up during New Years. Doesn't she look happy? I had a great time at home for Christmas and New Year's, but it was far too short. I wish it could've lasted longer.  

When Whitney and I returned from Christmas Break this year we had a surprise, a huge pile of snow in our doorway. It was so much fun shoveling it all just so we could get our stuff inside! NOT!!

I think I am starting to get settled back in now. As soon as I returned I left 2 days later to chaperone high school basketball at a tournament in Scammon Bay. I was gone for about 5 days. Then about 2 weeks later all the staff at Toksook Bay travelled to Anchorage for the RTI conference. This was my 3rd year going. I learned some very great things here that I hope to use in the classroom.

I'll leave you all with a picture of Nali stealing my seat. She doesn't look guilty at all. lol

Help My Students Get a Popcorn Machine and Slushie Maker

I have posted a new project for a popcorn machine and slushie maker for my seniors. They are working really hard to raise money for a senior trip, but it is hard in such a small community. These 2 items would really help us to raise more funds in our concession. Thanks so much!!!

Click here to donate to my project, and use the code SPARK if you donate. It doubles your amount.

Fall in Toksook Bay

Sorry it has been so long. A lot has happened since my last update. I have been so busy with cross country, teaching, and I am taking classes for a masters in educational technology through UAS. Nali has missed me lots because I have been travelling a lot. But she did get an extra special treat from my parents. A whole happy meal. Here is her with her burger.




















For cross country we travelled to Bethel and Quinhagak. We also had our own meet, but because of scheduling, only 1 boy from Nightmute came to run. Here is a pic of some of my high schoolers.

Here is a picture I will leave you all with. This was taken when we had a scavenger hunt for 6th-12th grade. I was in charge and I sent myself to the bay to sit for an hour. It was the most gorgeous morning, but it was a little chilly.

Back in Alaska!!

My Dad, Nali, and I made it to Anchorage a little before 4 this morning. I am so grateful that I am almost back home in Toksook for the school year!!

It is just such a long trip. We left Indiana at about 6:40 pm Saturday and then made it to Anchorage by about 8 am Indiana time on Sunday. We are currently staying in Anchorage, at the Puffin Inn, until Monday morning. Our flight is at 9:45 am Monday morning and we should be back in Toksook by 2 pm.

In Anchorage we went to the market in downtown Anchorage to start our day. While there they had some circus performers. It was a great show!! They juggled fire, did some acrobatics, rode a unicycle, and shot a plunger arrow at a pan. It was absolutely hilarious.



After the market, we did a shopping trip at Fred Meyer. I was able to fill a cooler with meat for at a least a month and some other goodies, like bread and fresh produce.


Next we came back to the hotel to rest up and spend some time with Nali. We wanted to get some energy for our next adventure.




Before we left we got the new edition of the Runner's World magazine. I usually look at the rave run and dream of how I could actually do it. It just so happens this month's rave run was in Anchorage on the wolverine trail. Unfortunately, it is 5.2 miles to the peak so that would be about a 10 mile run. However, we did make it out there with Nali and went for about 30 minutes before we turned around. Nali was breathing so hard and I didn't want to have to carry her back. lol.













We wore Nali out. The hike took us a little over an hour. Usually our walks are like 30 minutes, if we take one.

Vacation!!!

This summer I decided to take a vacation where I could learn to surf. So I googled surf vacations and found Surf with Amigas (http://surfwithamigas.com/). I chose to go on their northern Nicaragua retreat. BEST DECISION EVER!!!!!! Last week I learned to surf, did some yoga, went volcano boarding, and went horseback riding down the beach. It was an amazing week, and one I will never forget!! Everyone was so nice and supportive. I couldn't imagine a better group.

For anyone who has not heard of volcano boarding here are some pics. Basically you hike up the most active cinder cone volcano with a wooden sled and then slide down. A guy at the bottom has a radar gun to clock your speed. I went 26 km/hr. It is listed as #2 on CNN's big thrills list (http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/16/travel/thrilling-experiences/). We went down the volcano that is behind us in the group photo below.

My roommate, Cat, and I in front of our cabana

We stayed at el coco loco (http://cocolocoresort.com/), which was about 3.5 hours away from the airport. The resort is eco-friendly so there was no flush toilet or air conditioning. This hardly mattered as I think I only spent time in our cabana to sleep. It was very nice to be in a place that was a little more rustic, as I was able to disconnect for the week. The resort was so beautiful and every night I was able to fall asleep to the sound of the ocean.

Our cabana was the last one on the right

I want to go back!!! There wasn't anything I disliked.