MARCH NEWSLETTER

🌟 Hello, March! We 💚 Growing & Learning Together 🌟

March has arrived, bringing a fresh month filled with opportunities to learn, create, and connect in our online community. As we move forward, we are excited to share new challenges, meaningful activities, and highlights that showcase the amazing things our learners are doing every day. Let’s make this month a celebration of curiosity, growth, and positivity!

Inside this month’s newsletter, you will find:

🍀 Lucky Story Scramble: Build Your Own Magical Story!

🍀 March Mix‑Up: Make Your Own Shamrock Shake!

🎨 Creative Corner Spotlight

Check out the amazing artwork, writing, and creativity from our talented LLVS learners.

📸 LLVS Learner Engagement Recent Events

Take a look back at the exciting experiences our learners participated in this past month.

📅 LLVS Learner Engagement Upcoming Events

Mark your calendars — new opportunities to connect and explore are right around the corner!

We hope this newsletter brings a smile to your day and inspires you to stay curious, stay kind, and stay engaged.

Let’s make March a fantastic month of learning together! 🌟

🍀 Lucky Story Scramble:

Build Your Own Magical March Story!

This month, you get to create your very own St. Patrick’s Day–inspired story starter by mixing and matching magical characters, enchanted settings, and mysterious objects. Follow the steps below and let your imagination shine!

⭐ Step 1: Choose Your Character

Pick ONE character to star in your story:

• ☘️ A friendly leprechaun
• 🌟 A mischievous woodland sprite
• 🐉 A lost baby dragon
• 🍀 A lucky forest creature

⭐ Step 2: Choose Your Setting

Pick ONE enchanted place where your story begins:

• 🌈 At the end of a rainbow
• 🍀 Inside a hidden clover meadow
• 🌲 Deep in an enchanted forest
• 💧 Near a sparkling springtime waterfall

⭐ Step 3: Choose Your Magical Item

Pick ONE object that will be important in your story:

• 🪙 A glowing gold coin
• 🪄 A tiny enchanted shovel
• 🔮 A rainbow crystal
• 🗺️ A map to a mysterious pot of gold

⭐ Step 4: Put Your Story Starter Together!

Use your three choices to create a short story.

Pick ONE option to create:

• ✏️ Write 3–5 sentences and 💬 Record yourself telling the story.
• 🎨 Draw a comic panel or illustration and 📸 Take a picture and share your creation.

⭐ Step 5: Story Spotlight Opportunity!

Want to be featured in next month’s newsletter?



After you finish your Spring Scramble story starter

send us your creation at LLVS@iu13.org

We will choose one story/picture to highlight in April's Newsletter and send a small prize to the winner!

🍀 March Mix‑Up:

Make Your Own Shamrock Shake!

This month’s hands‑on activity is a fun and tasty way to celebrate March! Learners can create their very own Shamrock Shake (or a no‑blend version) using just a few simple ingredients.

⭐ Option 1: Classic Shamrock Shake (Blender Version)

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vanilla ice cream
• ½ cup milk
• A drop or two of mint or peppermint extract
• Green food coloring (optional)
• Whipped cream + sprinkles (optional but fun!)

Directions:

1. Add the ice cream, milk, and mint extract to a blender.
2. Blend until smooth and creamy.
3. Add one or two drops of green food coloring and blend again.
4. Pour into a cup and top with whipped cream or sprinkles if you like!
5. Enjoy your magical green shake!

⭐ Option 2: No‑Blender “Magic Cup” Shake

Ingredients:

• 1 cup vanilla yogurt or softened vanilla ice cream
• A tiny drop of mint extract
• Green sprinkles or a drop of food coloring
• A cup with a lid (or a jar with a lid)



Directions:

1. Add everything into a cup or jar.
2. Put the lid on tight.
3. Shake the cup for 20–30 seconds.
4. Open it up and stir!
5. Enjoy your mini magical Shamrock Shake!

🎨 The Creative Corner Spotlight

Each month, we highlight the creativity, leadership, and unique talents of our Lancaster‑Lebanon Virtual Solutions learners. This month's Creative Corner Spotlight features Isabella, a Manheim Township Virtual Academy senior whose dedication to service, the arts, and academic exploration truly stands out.

Here is Isabella’s story in her own words:

“As a senior at the Manheim Township Virtual Academy, I’ve used the flexibility of my schedule to stay involved in both creative work and my community. I’m currently a member of the Youth Advisory Council for Penn State Health and the Youth Advisory Board for the Manheim Township Public Library. I’m also a resident writer for Greet Manheim Township Magazine, where I enjoy covering local events and youth-led initiatives around Township."

"Outside of writing and advocacy, I’m involved in acting and modeling, and recently completed a fall research internship in robotics at Millersville University. This year, I’m also a Constellation Energy mentee through the program for Youth Energy Summit alumni, where I get to work with students from across the country. As I complete my senior year at MT, I'm excited to learn more about the intersection of STEM and media before heading to college this fall.”

In addition to her impressive activities, Isabella shared two meaningful reflections that offer a deeper glimpse into her leadership journey:

On a memorable Youth Advisory Board experience:

Isabella spoke about helping organize a Cultural Awareness panel—an experience that became especially meaningful when she stepped forward as a panelist herself. She shared that true leadership means creating opportunities for others while also being brave enough to use your own voice when it matters most.

On mentorship and growth:

Through her mentorship with Constellation Energy, Isabella has learned the importance of not only mastering technical STEM skills but also communicating them effectively. She shared that her mentors have helped her navigate professional spaces with confidence while staying grounded in her mission as an advocate.

Isabella’s drive, curiosity, and commitment to both her education and her community make her an exceptional representative of the learners we are proud to support through LLVS. She is involved, inspired, and already making a difference—and we cannot wait to see where her path leads next!

Learner Engagement Recent Events

The Learner Engagement Event at Acorn Acres turned into an unforgettable day of discovery for learners eager to explore the wildlife living in our region. What began as an afternoon of learning quickly grew into a hands‑on, curiosity‑filled adventure—complete with rescued animals, surprising facts, and plenty of wide‑eyed moments.

Online learners were welcomed by Betsy Shank, the owner and founder of Acorn Acres. Betsy led the presentation bringing both expertise and heart as she shared personal stories from her work in wildlife rehabilitation. Among the tales was a fan favorite: the story of Poppy, the famous groundhog who appeared in a Super Bowl commercial with Bill Murray. Poppy’s younger brother, Elliott, also joined the event—much to the delight of the learners, who got to meet and interact with him up close.

The presentation was rich with fascinating wildlife facts. Learners learned that groundhogs—also known as whistle pigs, land beavers, or woodchucks—are considered a Rabies Vector Species. This means that if a person ever encounters an injured groundhog, they must avoid any skin‑to‑skin contact. Even accidental direct contact would require the animal to be euthanized without testing, because groundhogs are large enough to survive encounters with rabies‑carrying predators like foxes. Learners also discovered that groundhogs are rodents with eyes positioned on the tops of their heads, allowing them to watch for predators while keeping the rest of their body safely hidden.

The fun facts didn’t stop there. Learners explored the world of squirrels and were surprised to learn that squirrels have four toes and a thumb nub on their front feet, five toes on their back feet, and typically 22 teeth—except for the gray squirrel, which has 24. They can run up to 20 mph, and gray squirrels have an impressive bite force of about 7,000 pounds per square inch.

Another highlight of the event was the chance to see a Virginia opossum, the only native marsupial in North America that carries its young in a pouch. Our learners learned how opossums play a key ecological role by eating ticks and other pests, helping maintain a healthier natural environment for everyone.

Overall, the event offered a powerful connection to local wildlife and a deeper appreciation for the ecosystems right outside our doors. It was a day filled with learning, surprising discoveries, and the kind of hands‑on experiences learners will carry with them for a long time.

A huge thank you to SchoolsPLP for sponsoring this event!

Our online learners had a fantastic visit to Millersville University! We began with an informative overview covering the application process, tuition and fees, available majors, and the many ways learners can get involved on campus.

From there, we headed out to explore the grounds. Learners got to experience the dining hall, step inside a residence hall room, and tour the Student Memorial Center. Along the way, we enjoyed views of the scenic Millersville Pond, walked past academic buildings and libraries, and wrapped up our visit at the Lombardo Admission Center.



It was a great opportunity for learners to see campus life up close and imagine themselves as future Marauders!

Our learners enjoyed a hands‑on fossil and mineral workshop led by Sue and Chuck Garrett of the Lancaster County Fossil & Mineral Club. Drawing from their fieldwork, the Garretts brought fossil collecting to life by sharing stories from their trips to Nebraska, Florida, and the Carolinas, giving learners an exciting real‑world view of what it’s like to search for fossils.

Sue described searching for fossils along waterways in Florida—always keeping a watchful eye on a nearby alligator resting along the bank—which offered an exciting reminder of the environments where ancient remains are found. Together, Sue and Chuck explained how fossils are discovered, collected, and preserved, giving learners insight into the scientific processes behind paleontology.



They also shared how their different searching styles make them an effective team: Sue scans the broader landscape for promising areas, while Chuck focuses closely on the ground in front of him. One of the highlights of the workshop was seeing a 34‑million‑year‑old turtle fossil discovered by Chuck, which captured the learners’ curiosity and imagination.

Throughout the workshop, the Garretts displayed a wide variety of fossils and artifacts from their travels, allowing learners to explore and make observations up close. Learners were especially excited to take home their own fossils, including steinkerns (clam‑like internal molds), pieces of Stylemys turtle from Nebraska, stingray mouthplates from Maryland, South Carolina, and Florida, fossilized mammal bones from dolphins, whales, and dugongs, and even shark teeth.

This event introduced learners to paleontology and earth science, but also sparked curiosity, wonder, and a deeper appreciation for the natural world.

LLVS learners recently participated in the Zoom and Inflate STEM Challenge, an engaging, hands‑on activity that combined creativity, engineering, and friendly competition. Learners designed and built their own balloon‑powered cars while exploring how shape, materials, and structure affect speed and distance. Through experimentation, learners gained a deeper understanding of key science concepts such as forces, motion, and energy transfer, making STEM learning both meaningful and fun.

As the challenge continued, learners used problem‑solving and critical‑thinking skills to test their designs, observe results, and make thoughtful adjustments to improve performance. The experience concluded with exciting races to see whose balloon car traveled the farthest, sparking enthusiasm and celebration throughout the group. This STEM challenge was the perfect blend of learning and excitement, inspiring curiosity and encouraging learners to think like engineers and innovators.

Learner Engagement Upcoming Events

This event has been rescheduled from a previous date. New date is March 31, 2026.

Get ready for a paws‑itively awesome experience! Our online learners are invited to join a special event where learning, creativity, and kindness come together—with the help of some very special furry friends.

At this event, you will spend time with certified therapy dogs who love meeting learners just like you. These gentle dogs are trained to bring comfort and happiness to people in schools, hospitals, and communities, and you will get to see firsthand how they make a difference simply by being themselves.

You won’t just meet the dogs—you will get to do something meaningful, too. You will have the opportunity to create tasty treats for pets. You can take them home for your own animals or choose to donate them to a local animal shelter to help brighten the day of pets who are waiting for their forever families.

You will also work together with other learners on a hands‑on group project by helping create a cozy tie blanket. This blanket will be donated to support animals in need of warmth and comfort, showing how teamwork and kindness can make a real impact.

This event is all about connection—connecting with animals, connecting with other learners, and connecting with ways you can help others. If you enjoy animals, hands‑on activities, or giving back, this is an experience you won’t want to miss.

We can’t wait to see you there, making memories, helping animals, and learning how small acts of kindness can make a big difference.

Are you curious about how engineers help solve real‑world environmental problems? This Eco‑Engineers experience invites you to think creatively, experiment boldly, and use your imagination to help design a cleaner future.

In this hands‑on challenge, you will explore environmental issues that affect communities every day and discover how simple materials can be used in powerful ways. You will be encouraged to design, build, and test your own ideas while thinking like an engineer—asking questions, trying new approaches, and learning from what works (and what doesn’t!).

This is your chance to turn everyday items into meaningful solutions, work alongside other learners, and see how innovation and teamwork can make a difference. Whether you enjoy building, inventing, or problem‑solving, this experience is all about learning by doing—and making positive change along the way.

Get ready to imagine, create, and engineer ideas that help build a cleaner, greener community!

Virtual Reality opens the door to learning in ways you have never experienced before. This exciting Virtual Reality event gives you the chance to explore new environments, spark creativity, and discover new interests through immersive technology.

During the event, you will be transported into virtual spaces where learning feels like an adventure. You will explore dynamic environments, engage with interactive experiences, and see how science, technology, and discovery come alive in a whole new way. Virtual Reality makes it possible to visit places, try activities, and experience ideas that go far beyond a traditional lesson.

You will also have the opportunity to explore different careers through hands-on virtual simulations. By stepping into these roles, you can begin to imagine future possibilities and gain a better understanding of how their interests connect to real-world paths—all in a fun, engaging virtual setting.

This experience is designed to inspire curiosity, encourage exploration, and make learning unforgettable. Whether you are interested in science, technology, creativity, or simply trying something new, this Virtual Reality experience is a chance to learn by doing, exploring, and discovering.

We invite our online learners to join us for this innovative and interactive experience. Get ready to try new things, visit new places, and unlock exciting possibilities through the power of Virtual Reality.

Connect with us on Social Media

Just a reminder: We are excited to expand our social media presence, and we want YOU to be part of it! Following us on Facebook and Instagram is a great way to stay updated on the latest news and events! You will see real-time updates on important announcements, deadlines, and events.

Click on the links below to follow us!

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Don't miss out on the chance to be more involved and informed.