August 2023 | Back to School | |
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"It takes time - loose, unstructured dreamtime - to experience nature in a meaningful way."
— Richard Louv
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A Note from the Head of School | |
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From the heart of Amanda Martin...
Welcome to the new 2023-2024 school year! How exciting it is to think of seeing new and familiar faces as we venture back into the forest with everyone after our summer break. I look forward to hearing about all the adventures that were had. The good news is that we will all see one another soon!
Our Meet the Teacher Days are here! These gatherings are an important time to review our daily routine in the forest, address questions about gear, go over drop-off and pick-up procedures, and discuss anything else you may have questions about for the school year. The Meet the Teacher schedule is provided below and is also posted on Minga. Please review the dates and times so that you can plan accordingly to be there with your child(ren). Arrival procedures and parking information will be posted on Minga as well. Don’t hesitate to reach out to your child’s teacher or our administrative team if you have any questions.
As we begin this year together, we are thrilled to celebrate our wonderful growth at Audubon Acres. We are welcoming our very first 2nd grade class at this campus! We are ever so grateful to continue to be able to offer our community more each year at this beautiful site. We have such gratitude for the opportunities and relationships we have built out at Audubon Acres.
We enter the year filled with gratitude, joy, and humility as you entrust us to be the keepers of your children's holistic development and well-being through nature immersion education. The intention here in the forest is that relationships with teachers and students that your children will be building upon this year will be an integral part of their life, from now on into adulthood. Community building is truly the foundation of how we learn and our innate connection to one another is not meant to be overlooked. Nature gently reminds us of this each day. These connections lead us to a greater awareness of ourselves, and also to others when we put them into practice every day. What a gift it is to actively fulfill the role of meaningful, deep connections here at The Wauhatchie School.
Thank you for supporting our mission. Thank you for being a part of another year of exploration, wonder, and learning here at Wauhatchie. May the forest be with you!
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Our teachers are at the very heart of everything we do and our new staff members have already been demonstrating their passion, dedication, and excitement for the upcoming school year. We invite everyone to learn more about each of our team members - especially your own child's teachers - as we start our year! | |
The magic of summertime has been fully on display as our summer campers enjoyed roaming the woods of Reflection Riding. Campers fully embraced nature with endless opportunities to explore, climb, run, and play in the great outdoors! | |
A forest experience from Kara Cadwell, Wauhatchie Director of Teaching & Learning... | |
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Last spring, during a particularly rainy week, I had the privilege of joining our whimsical first grade students in their forest classroom. I particularly love this age with all their charm, curiosity, energy and affectionate ways. During exploration time, I - ever the observer of childhood play - looked on as several of the students worked together to build a model of the water cycle, a concept they had been working on during STEAM lessons.
Through unfettered, unhindered and uninterrupted play, I admired this marvelous group of children as they planned, created, constructed, and collaborated to build their own water cycle using sticks, mud, stones and a whole lot of rain water. I sat back amazed at their resilience in the face of rainy weather; but more than that, their ability to harness the weather to put their learning into practice in such an active, engaged manner.
At Wauhatchie, we are deeply committed to this playful learning and these unstructured moments of spontaneous exploration and expression. Play is the perfect expression of self. For children, it is the vitally important way in which they can make sense of a complicated world. It is the way that they engage in deep critical thinking skills, where they craft complex and beautiful stories; it is within the framework of play that children are introduced to new, thrilling, and challenging learning opportunities that honor the complex personhood of the young child. At Wauhatchie we are and will always be committed to these beautiful moments of playful learning.
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A Note from Miss Britt
Wauhatchie School Artist-in-Residence
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Dear families,
I’m so excited for another year of art adventures with our Wauhatchie students! This year I am really excited to be incorporating more art history activities and artist studies into our curriculum. We will head into September exploring observational drawing through the work of Beatrix Potter and then learn collage techniques through the work of another author/illustrator, Eric Carle. This year we will be working very closely with our steam teacher, Rebecca Westbrook, and also several guest artists (and scientists) that will support some special projects centering around our Steam theme this year of soil.
I'm an oil painter, collage artist, and mother of a middle schooler and a 2nd grader at Wauhatchie. I received my BFA from UTC in 2008, and have worked with children for almost 20 years in preschools and youth programs. My first year at Wauhatchie presented me with joys and challenges of making art outside. Some projects were eaten or stolen for nest material, other projects refused to dry in the humidity, and then there was the wind, which created challenges for our outdoor artists on even the most beautiful of days.
Weather aside, teaching art in the outdoor classroom naturally encourages what young artists need most - the confidence to explore, experiment, and enjoy the process of art making. On your child’s art day there is an increased chance that they may get paint or other art materials on their clothes or gear. This year I am favoring the use of earth pigment paint over acrylic paint, and I will be providing and encouraging more clothing protection on painting days. Your child may or may not bring home a finished art piece on their dedicated art day; there is often drying time or multiple phases to our projects
The primary goal of our preschool and elementary art program is to not only provide access to quality materials and instructions, but to foster creative curiosity and show unwavering enthusiasm and support for students' creative efforts. As parents, adding your voice of support in all of those efforts, big or small, messy or neat, strange or beautiful - makes a huge positive difference in your children’s confidence as an art maker!
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Back-to-School Bat Cave Adventure
with Rebecca Westbrook-Toker, STEAM Integrationist
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All families are invited to join on Friday, August 18th (Rain Contingency August 25th) for a Back-to-School Bat Bash at Nickajack Cave. Not only does Nickajack Cave have a fascinating history, it also houses a colony of endangered gray bats every year from April through early September. We invite families to bring a picnic and come learn with us at the Maple View Recreation Area before gathering to watch the bats fly out of the cave at dusk. You will have the option to view from land, take your own watercraft out onto the water, or to rent and use watercrafts/PFDs from our partners in this wonderful experience, Outshine Adventures.
TIMES
5:30-7:00 PM | Picnic style dinner, mingling, games, and activities
7:00-9:00 | Paddle to the Cave with Outshine Adventures
LOCATION: Maple View Recreation Area Near Nickajack Cave
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Wauhatchie's version of a PTA is open for any parents or family members interested in volunteering this year! If you're interested, find the Friends of the Forest group on Minga and Request to Join to get plugged in. | |
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The wonderful Ashley Baker will be heading up our Friends of the Forest this year!
Ashley and her family moved here from Texas. Her son has attended Wauhatchie School since 2021. She has been a Kindergarten, First and Third Grade Teacher. She has a natural way of connecting people with ease and care. Ashley, we are so grateful for your willingness to help and create a stronger community within our school!
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Get Outside
As the summer season comes to a close, we encourage you to experience time in the great outdoors with your loved ones. With the heat and humidity, nothing beats a dip in a refreshing creek. Check out some of the best spots around Chattanooga to go for a swim, find creek critters, and spend the day relaxing by the water.
Swimming Suggestions
from NoogaToday
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