Saturday, February 7, 2009

A Great Week Outdoors!

We had another great week out in the Outdoor Learning Area!

First, MISD's landscaper extraordinaire, Thomas Yourman and crew are doing a fantastic job on the retaining wall. They have done such a great job that we were thrilled when it was approved to extend the wall all the way around the ampi-theater/classroom to the concrete slab. Many thanks to Corry Crager, MISD Director of Maintenance and Mrs. Monroe for their continued support and enthusiasm for this project!

The brick columns were also completed this week. Finding just the right brick to match the existing 23 year old "out of production" brick was not easy. But thanks to Joe Salinas of Salinas Construction and our great SVE color advisory team, we think we found exactly what we were looking for! (click on any of the below pictures to enlarge)

The new brick blends amazingly well with the school's existing brick. We could not be happier with how these columns turned out and are very excited to have this crucial step in construction completed!

Next the committee (and little friends) worked Friday to level out more of the gravel in preparation for the delivery of the quarry block benches in our ampi-classroom. This made for a long, hard work day. We are very pleased with the end result!



After a long morning, the gravel was level, the markings for the ampi-classroom were laid out and we were ready for delivery!

Delivery...

Moving 900 pound blocks of limestone around requires lots of skill and a big machine!

We quickly learned that these blocks/benches can not be easily moved.
That did not stop us from trying!
Tired PTA Moms and "future Panthers" taking a break and trying out the new benches.
It's beginning to look like an outdoor ampi-classroom!



A teacher bench that can convert into a lab table will be placed at the front and center of this area. The bench can be moved for dramas or other class presentations. Mrs. Hair thinks this is going to be a great reading theater as well.

We are all very excited to see our outdoor learning area steadily continue to take shape! Please contact the Outdoor Classroom Committee or any of the PTA officers if you have any questions about this area or feel free to leave comments below.

The Outdoor Classroom Committee

4 comments:

  1. I am just pleased as punch with all of the progress that has been made. You ladies in this committee are really doing an oustanding job!

    We still cannot believe that this outdoor classroom is becoming a reality! This is an awesome addition to our school and it will be one of the favorite spots to be! Thank you SVE PTA!

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  2. We have an AWESOME PTA! Can't wait to find out the name! Thanks for including us in the process! You guys rock!

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  3. everything looks fantastic! this is so exciting! i'm already thinking of what lessons i can teach outside next year...our students will love it! such a refreshing change to the ordinary days. :) thank you for all the hard work you are putting into making this classroom a reality!

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  4. We are all so excited to learn the name Tuesday night! Everyone is excited about this outdoor classroom. Spring Valley is going to have the best TEACHING outdoor classroom in Midway! Thank you so much for designing this space around the kid's AND the teacher's needs. Our grade has been brainstorming on what we will do in our beds. We can not wait to get our day outside starting in May! You PTA ladies have blown us away with your progress on this. THANK YOU! Please let us know if you need some extra help.

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