Most weeks are pretty ordinary for most of us. These weeks leading up to the end of school (three weeks to go) are still full of projects, routines, and tasks that must be finished before June 19.
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| This is Akshara and Benji. They are in kindergarten, and have been coming to me each week for about five weeks to do a "research" project. They are both fluent readers but very much just-turned-six-year-olds in every other way. We made a big book together about the life of . . . well, you can see as well as I can! The inside of the book consists of their questions about Ben Franklin along with the answers they found to them. It is all hand written except for the title, though the pictures are colored and not hand drawn. |
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| Here are some of my Friday morning before-school book club members. The girl in the blue jacket had been asking me all year to have a club (as we had done last year), and I finally pulled it off for the last six weeks of school. We meet at 8:15 in the library, and I bring treats (a major drawing factor)! I had spots for 15--the first 15 to sign up, but in the end I allowed 17 because I couldn't say "no" to someone who wanted to be in a book club after all! They are all 5th and 6th graders. We are reading The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil Frankwieler. The author of the book recently died, and she was a Falls Church resident. The boy on the far left is Norsang, of Tibetan heritage. He's my most voracious reader this year. He's read every series I can get and recommend, including the Stephen Lawhead series on Arthur. Kim is next, the adopted daughter of a single mom who works for Ranger Rick Magazine. Then comes Redeit, an Ethiopian girl whom I love. Her family has been to our house before. She speaks perfect American English but has lived here only about four years. Her mom works for World Bank and her dad for Lufthansa airlines. Then Arijana is next. She's training for a kids' triathalon. I see her sometimes after school when I'm driving home running while her mom bikes behind her. There are, of course, about 12 other kids too, but they don't all make it on any given day. |
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This is Julie (in pink). She's new this year from Alabama and has a really southern accent and always "mam-ing" me. She's really smart and nice and vivacious. That's Soo-Bihn (not her best picture) in black. She's a sweet and quiet girl whose mom used to volunteer in the library. They are Korean, and I don't know if they're staying here permanently or not.
Below are home scenes from the week. Dad has been working hard in the yard and with flowers. He tried hard to get many of our flower pots planted with fresh flowers before going to Paris. |
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| Here Steve is pulling up the pansies that have been around the beech tree ever since October. They became so pretty again in early spring, but now they've become leggy and past their prime. So go they must! |
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| Good-bye pretty pansies... |
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| Hello, periwinkles.... Where we've normally had impatiens, we can't this year. All the impatiens are dying in this area due to some fungus in the soil. We wondered what was wrong with them last year. The nursery says to wait a few years before trying them again. |
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| My radish is growing! |
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| Awaiting their permanent locations |
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| Good-Bye, Virginia, and hello, Paris! Bon Voyage! |
