The school

Cupcake snack at the end of the day

We are still amazed at this school. Though they only have 10 students, the 2 teachers do a phenomenal job! Our friend Matt has 6 students ranging from 1st - 3rd grade. He has one student who is full of energy and proudly announces, "I'm ADD!" to anyone who enters the room. Go back and check some of the previous pictures. You'll spot him right away! I love him, but he takes a tremendous amount of teacher time to be kept on task.

5th grade math class

 Troy, the teacher we are temporarily replacing, has 4 students - one 5th grader, one 8th grader, and two sophomores. Now there's a spread of ages and interests to bring together every day! Science and Social Studies are taught as a group while the students receive the remaining classes online from a variety of teachers across the district. It is a constant process of checking what is required of each student, assisting with homework, and making sure assignments are all faxed to the appropriate instructors. You need a secretary to keep up with the paperwork! 

Working on some Valentine art

My teacher friends will appreciate this-They have Alaskan common core checklists down to a science and are on top of it every second! These guys are no slackers!

Needless to say, the school is HIGH TECH! The older students all have their own laptops and the younger ones can operate the classroom computers like pros! Both Doug and I have OFTEN said, "Who can come up here and show me how to work this thing?" 

Student council meeting with 1/2 the club

The school also faces the constant fear of closure which is a justifiable concern. Population in this village is not increasing and families are becoming more and more transient. The teachers work very hard to provide experiences and activities for the entire community, often working many, many hours after the school closes (which I know many good teachers in Lincoln also do,) but this effort is a real struggle for survival. I do not know what schooling will be available to the handful of children left if the school should close next year. It breaks your heart!

Proud of their heritage

And while these kids may seem very sophisticated in some ways, they are also very sheltered. Last year a younger student asked, "Are turtles real?" If you have never left your village and not been exposed to the rest of the world, many things probably don't seem very real.