This morning at our all school gathering, the students huddled around a campfire (of paper logs) while Amy Brown told an Ojibwe story about Nanabozho stealing fire from the Sky Giant. They were silent, hardly moving as the story unfolded, Amy's voice sometimes a quiet whisper in the otherwise soundless room. It felt so good to be there, sitting with the school in a circle, crowded together in comfortable comaraderie. I found myself reflecting on the memories kids make at Prairie Creek. It's something that I think makes Prairie Creek special — kids remember their time with us.
On Monday and Tuesday the fourth and fifth graders created invitations to Specials Persons' Day and hand delivered them to the homes and businesses in Castle Rock. All sixty of us fanned out across town on a frosty morning. A few of the fifth graders asked to return to the house they had delivered an invitation to last year. The man who lived there had told them he wouldn't be able to go to the event because he was going to be having surgery. The girls wanted to check in on him and invite him to come this year.
On Wednesday, the Herons untangled the ski poles that we hadn't been able to use at all last year and went cross country skiing. The sky was unbelievably big as the kids skied out toward the hills. It's not easy at first — I let the kids know I had really disliked it the first ten times I went. Many students fell down repeatedly but got up in good spirits and continued on…and on…and on. They would have stayed outside all day. (You can read (and see!) more if you follow Simon's tweets: @PrairieCreekMN) We were a "few" minutes late to Spanish and John looked at me very seriously and said firmly (in spanish!), "Next time, you must be sure that you ask me to come skiing too!" It feels so good to be at a school where skis cluster in the entryway and you have the freedom to head outside and teach a different kind of lesson.
Finally, today we headed to Arcadia to see The Emporer's New Clothes. It was exceptional — creative, funny and well acted. About half of the cast were former Prairie Creekers and many of the performers gave quick hugs to former classmates as they moved through the crowd. The play was in promenade style which means that there are multiple stages around the room and the audience is free to move around to watch the play unfold. Many of our students were literally in the middle of the action (some even had to be moved out of the way by actors). Their faces were amazing to watch; they were so enthralled with what was happening around them.
When I run into Prairie Creek alumni, they invariably share a story or two or three about their time at Prairie Creek. Perhaps one of this week's moments will become part of your child's story.
The Rookery 
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