What an exciting holiday!  I have been enjoying seeing all of the creativity and craftsmanship in the students costumes.  The teachers have also shown a lot of spirit in their holiday garb.  Some of the highlights have to be Jeff Switzer's Kitty Cat, and Kitty Conde's Andy Warhol.  

This is also the time of year that I love to bring out one of my favorite integration units.  Under the guise of a campfire stories the 4th, 6th, and 8th grader have been doing a wonderful job creating persuasive stories using the first person narrative.  As per their stories, I will no longer 1)enter abandoned buildings, 2)walk alone in alley ways at night, 3)Go into a cemetery at 2am, or 4)go anywhere near or think to hard about abandoned hospitals.  I feel a little bit safer learning the lessons from the students even if it limits my "abandoned buildings" travel.  Happy Halloween!

While we are still waiting for the photography permission lists, here are a few photos on our progress with the Giant Snake Puppet.  The art teacher and myself got started with the paper mache-ing while the set design crew scrounged for some recycled paper.  Once the students came back, we got a lot done!  The current state of the snake is hanging in the Drama Room.  It has quite a visual impact. I can't wait to get this thing finished and see how it looks on stage.  More to come!

It was a phenomenal first week of rehearsasl. I couldn't be happier with the cast's first reading of the script. It is a challenging piece and I love seeing the cast rise to meet it head on.
In brief, Señora Tortuga, is a heart warming play about the power of stories and the strength of family. However, it is a bilingual play with some phrases in Spanish. As some of the cast speaks no Spanish, I am incredibly proud of their bravery at tackling the new language. I am equally as proud of the Spanish speaking members stepping into a leadership role and helping out their fellow cast mates. I can't wait for the next rehearsal!