Birchtree

Friday Update

Birchtree Charter School 7107 E. Palmer Wasilla Hwy. Palmer, AK

May 6, 2016 T. 907-745-1831 F. 907-745-1843 Save The Date

May 9, 2016 4th grade field trip to the Musk Ox Farm and rRindeer Farm

May 11, 2016 7th grade class plays at PHS 6 PM

May 13, 2016 3rd grade field trip to the Anchorage Museum

May 13, 2016 Mrs. Tran’s field trip to Reflections Lake

May 14, 2016 Elementary Track Meet @ WHS

May 14, 2016: May Faire at Birch-tree Charter School 11-3

May 14, 2016 Elementary school track meet @ WHS

May 17, 2016 Rose Ceremony for 1st and 8th grade students at 9 AM

May 17, 2016 3rd grde field trip to the Reindeer Farm

May 18, 2016: 8th Grade Gradua-tion. To be held at Birchtree Char-ter School.

May 19, 2016 School assembly the first group is scheduled from 9-10 the 2nd group from 10-11 at Birch-tree Charter School

May 19, 2016 School wide picnic 11:30 to 1. A flyer is attached on what each grade is requested to bring.

GREEK PENTATHLON

The gods of Greek mythology were summoned to help our fifth grade athletes yester-day as Birchtree's Keenan Caldwell, Gabrielle McKimmey, Connor Weaver, and Isa-belle Zink read their odes at the start of the annual Greek Pentathlon held in Anchor-age. While these Olympic games test athleticism, they also call forth several virtues, a combination found throughout Greek history.

The events of the Pentathlon--foot races, wrestling, long jump, discus, and javelin--stem from the Ancient Greek Olympics, whose games have grown into our modern-day Olympics. In ancient times, however, the games were held to achieve utmost harmony between city-states, and governed by the Sacred Truce, which decreed that all wars and battles cease for a six-month period. In Waldorf schools all around the country, these games have come to symbolize both prowess and virtue. As with the ancient Greeks, pentathletes are judged not only for distance or speed, but also for grace, beauty and form.

Running, for example, represents harmony, finding a balance between the heavenly and the earthly. The fastest runner may not necessarily win over a slower runner who exhibits more beauty and grace. Self-confidence is called upon during an athlete's wrestling event, where a participant is judged on his/her sense of noble power. Here again, a sense of harmony is sought between the gravity of earth, and the space of the heavens. Ancient Greeks performed the long jump by leaping with weights called halteres. This event invokes the virtue of moderation: a surge of energy, from run-ning and jumping, immediately followed by the restraint of a controlled, two-footed landing. Discuses from ancient days were made of metal or stone, weigh-ing between five and eight pounds! Athletes are expected to create beauty and rhythm within their throws: contracting and expanding, holding and letting go, taking and giving. Throwing the javelin represents a gesture of will-direction and determina-tion. The unity of thought and action reveal an individual's sense of morality and jus-tice.

In acknowledgement of the athletes who most embodied both skill and vir-tue throughout the Pentathlon, students from each city-state were crowned with lau-rel wreaths. Of the twelve pentathletes crowned, six attend Birchtree. Laurels were given to the following:

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Birchtree Charter t. 907– 745-1831 Friday Update May 6, 2016

Gratitude and Expressions

Thank you to all of the parents that volun-teered to make this years pentathlon a success!

Thank you for the amazing soups and breads that were brought in for the staff lunch on Wednesday! Very much appreci-ated.

Thank you Mr. Zink for your continued help with elementary track.

Calling all Tennis Coaches!

MatSu Tennis Association is sponsoring tennis camps for competitive high school team play-ers on July 16, 2016 at the Chugiak High School Tennis Courts.

Two sessions are available: 10am-12:30pm and 12:30pm-3pm

Anchorage instructor Aaron Haines and his staff will conduct two sessions focusing on player skills, drills and round-robin play.

Preregistration is required. Cost per player is $40.

Please make the camp flyer and permission slips available to your players. We are looking forward to a great turnout!

I am forwarding this to you now so you can reach out to your play-ers before the school year ends. There is additional information on the MatSu Tennis Association website:

www.matsutennis.com or contact matsuten-nis@gmail.com with any questions.

WE NEED YOUR HELP Parent Work Days!!! You will be getting requests from your teachers to come and help us move. You are formally invited to come help log some service hours to finish off this year, or apply them to next school year if you have already met this year’s hours.

On Friday, May 20th from 9am-Noon we need as many adult volunteers as we can get to move our teachers’ stuff from their current classrooms to the hall-way outside of their next years classrooms.

From Friday –Monday we will be having the floors cleaned, shampooed/waxed so that they are ready for next school year.

Then on Monday, May 23rd from 9am-Noon we need as many adult volun-teers as we can to come back and help us move the teachers’ stuff into their next year classrooms.

Then our custodial staff can work on cleaning all of the hallways.

Additionally we have a long list of volunteer opportunities that can be done prior to the weekend of May 20th and 21st.

~ Clean up and sweep side walks around the building and collecting sticks around the building

~ Prep flower pots for Spring planting

~ spray stain the outside wooden fence along the Palmer-Wasilla HWY

~ Spread wood chips on the play scape May 9th-13th

~ Hang 3 large maps in the middle school classrooms

~ Putting together 2 large metal hall games

~ Hanging mats on gym walls

~ repaint the chalkboards in the hall way with black chalkboard paint and paint lines and days of the week with white chalkboard paint.

We thank you for all that you do to support our school and look forward to seeing you on one or both of these moving days.

Requests: If you need volunteer hours: I have a stack of small older chalkboards

which need a coat or two of chalk paint. ~ Ms. Rogers

PLEASE CHECK THE LOST AND FOUND!

Birchtree Charter t. 907– 745-1831 Friday Update May 6, 2016

(Continued from Page 1)

Representing the city-state of Athens: Helayna Western

Representing the city-state of Corinth: Lucy Shea

Representing the city-state of Sparta: Jenna Galloway and Blaze Hronkin

Representing the city-state of Thebes: Teagan Dervaes and Isabelle Zink

Congratulations! Many thanks to all teachers and parents who worked so very hard to make this day a success. As Zeus's parting words commanded: "May this year's fourth graders convene one year from now to participate in the next Greek Olympics."

~Donna Levesque

Pedagogical Dean

Ms. Johndro’s and Mr. Clark’s 5th grade classes participating

at the Pentathlon opening Ceremony's

Birchtree Charter t. 907– 745-1831 Friday Update May 6, 2016

May 2016

Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat

1 2 3

Middle School

track meet at @

WMS time TBA

4 5

5th grade pen-

tathlon at Goose

Lake in Anchor-

age

1st grade parent

night 5:30-6:30

6

Pastries for Parents

8:30-10 AM

7

8 9

4th grade field

trip to the

musk ox farm

and Reindeer

farm

10 11

7th grade class

play at PHS at 6

PM

APC 6 PM @

Birchtree Charter

School

12

JV Track Finals

AT HMS

13

3rd grade field trip

Anchorage Museum

and Reflections

Lake

Mrs. Tran’s class

field trip to reflec-

tions lake.

14

May Faire

11-3

Elementary

Track Meet @

WHS

15 16 17

Rose Ceremony

1st and 8th grade

participate 9 AM

at Birchtree Char-

ter School

3rd grade field trip

to the reindeer

farm

18

8th grade gradua-

tion at Birchtree

Charter School 6

PM

19

End of the year

picnic 11:30 –1

Last day for stud-

nets

20

Work day for Staff

21

*Early Release days are every Thursday at 1:30*

Summer Break