THE CHALKBOARD: Girl Scouts make a heart and body-warming contribution

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St. Vincent Elementary School Cadette Troop 10445 and Brownie Troop 10366, with parent leader Trisha Young, collected gently used winter coats before school all last week. Each morning from 8 to 8:30 a.m. at the entrance to the campus and through Sunday at St. Vincent’s church, donation boxes were available to collect the public’s used coat donations in an effort to support the North American organization One Warm Coat. Last year, these two local Girl Scout troops gathered more than 100 coats that were donated to COTS, fulfilling the goal of the program: “Warming Communities… One Warm Coat at a Time.”

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Author and illustrator Mike Curato, creator of “Little Elliot, Big City,” paid a special visit to Valley Vista Elementary School last week.  “The authors’ and illustrators’ personal stories are especially meaningful to our students. Hearing about hard work and perseverance really inspires them. It’s exciting to think about how the kids will reflect on these visits,” said Jackie Hoppes, librarian for Valley Vista. The event, and another author visit on Oct. 15 featuring Ian Lendler, author of “The Stratford Zoo Midnight Revue Presents Macbeth,” are made possible through Copperfield’s Books.

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Petaluma’s annual student Ag Day took place on Sept. 26 at the Sonoma-Marin Fairgrounds for students in kindergarten through fourth grade. The event celebrated its 13th year offering Petaluma area school children an opportunity to learn about agriculture and the roll it plays in our lives in this this region. 

Students had an opportunity to see a cow milked, pet farm animals, watch sheep dogs at work, receive a visit from the USDA trained dog inspection team and meet local legend “Clo the Cow.” Numerous local community, as well as statewide organizations, were present to offer demonstrations and educational information to the excited youngsters.

The day of exhibits and instruction exposed the young participants to the agriculture heritage of Petaluma, and how this important industry is still contributing to the community today.

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McKinley Mustangs in Mr. DZ’s class had a special treat when they wrapped up their study of the first Americans with a lesson on drawing dreamcatchers, courtesy of art docent and international award-winning designer Emma Gardner.

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Starting last Wednesday, Harvest Christian School is hosting the first of ongoing Harvest In Action events from 9:30 a.m. until 10:30 a.m. The school staff invites the community to come and hear more about classical education, the vision for Harvest and see students in action. “These are not the same as our admissions tours, as guests don’t need to be prospective parents to attend,” says Kerri Petersen. Each Harvest In Action event is free and is open to anyone interested in learning more about the school.

Contact the school office for more details.

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The St. Vincent High Debate Team found more success at a recent tournament held on the CSU Long Beach campus. Kylie Clark and Julia Hunter were undefeated in the six preliminary debates and Sky Doble and Adam Martin were 5-1 in their rounds. Both teams advance to the Elimination Debates final round later this month.

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‘Tis the season… for jog-a-thons. Liberty School will be holding its annual walk-a-thon on Oct. 17 from noon to 7 p.m. The theme this year is “Racing.” Students are asking family, friends, neighbors and other community members to sponsor them to walk around the Liberty School track in an effort to bring donations to support the Liberty School Foundation. Each student receives a lap card, which is punched every time they complete a lap. According to Liberty’s Amy Grant, at every 20-lap mark they earn a prize, like popsicles, sunglasses and crazy hair. “Many students walk over 100 laps each year, equivalent to approximately 10 miles,” says Grant. A barbecue dinner is available for purchase and Jeff Goodwin of DJtainment will be providing music. This is the biggest fundraiser for the Liberty School Foundation and is always a fun-filled school community gathering.

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Grant School hosts its annual jog-a-thon tomorrow, Friday, at the Grant track where students are encouraged to wear crazy socks to kick-start the fun. McNear’s Falcons showed their school spirit last week as they raced around their jog-a-thon course to the cheers and encouragement from teachers, parents and special guests.

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(Maureen Highland is a Petaluma mother and interim executive director for the Petaluma Educational Foundation. She can be reached at schools@arguscourier.com)

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