Community
Earth Day
By Kiernan
11 May 2017
Earth day is a time for our school to help the earth. Our school goes around and picks up trash off the side of the road and on the school campus. We have the event once every year on April 22. After the cleanup, students are treated to 0ice cream. Earth Day was on a Saturday the 22rd but we celebrated it on Friday the 21st.
Everyone In our school participates in Earth Day. This year the 6th grade cleaned up highway 83, going south, while the 7th and 8th graders work on to the north. Every class participates in Earth Day, but the younger kids don't go out of the school boundaries.
The most interesting thing that a student found was when Sarah from 6th grade discovered part of a car. This event is put together by Mr. Gaiser, who said we have been participating for 15 years.
Kindergarten Meeting
By Sean B.
11 May 2017
On April 25, 2017 at 6:00 p.m. at SRS in the Kindergarten room, Mrs. Stephens headed up the Kindergarten meeting. At the meeting, Mrs. Stephens and parents of future kindergarteners talked about the curriculum and what is going to happen in Kindergarten. We are going to have close to 14 new students next year.
The meeting focused on the layout and structure of Kindergarten. It is important for parents, especially those who are experiencing school with their children for the first time. Student ages in Kindergarten range from 5-6. We welcome our newest additions to Swan River School for 2017-2018!
Memorial Day
By Dylan
11 May 2017
Memorial day is a day that is about the remembrance of those who have died serving for their country. The holiday is the very last Monday in May each year. Families go to their family members' resting places , who have died serving the military, to put flowers on their graves to remember their service.
Memorial day started on May 5, 1868 after the Civil War ended. The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR), were the ones who started Memorial Day to honor their service in war. Memorial Day is a United States holiday, it is only celebrated here. To represent the soldiers, people put flowers and American flags on graves.
Mathletes
By Soraya
1 March 2017
Mathletes is a group of students who come together each week on Thursday mornings to have fun and do math problems. For the past few weeks, before the event, these students have been preparing for a day out of school. Making shirts and solving math problems, the Mathletes got ready for a math competition. It was located at Flathead Valley Community College, or FVCC, on February 16.
This competition is a national middle school math competition put on by the MATHCOUNTS Foundation. The MATHCOUNTS Foundation is a non-profit organization that provides middle schoolers, of all abilities, with different math programs. Including the Mathcounts Competition Series. This program brings middle schoolers, from all 50 states, together in a series of in-person contests.
Many of the mathletes went to this event to represent our school, and four lucky students were able to compete. To decide the four students to compete, the mathletes took a test including very advanced math. Those four students were Eli M., Grace, Landon and Kian. The other mathletes were Soraya, Shelton, Sean, Bryce, Kol, Fin, and their coach was Ms. Richmond. Landon was in the final round of Jeopardy and Eli M. scored twenty-fifth place out of all the students who participated. Go mathletes!
Waste Not Project
By: Sean B.
1 March 2017
On February 17, 2017, Allison Batch presented the Waste Not Project to the middle school students. The Waste Not Project is a program that is trying to reduce the waste in our local landfill. Ms. Batch carries out the program through Citizens for a Better Flathead.
The presentation focused on the three R's, which are Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. Reduce is to use less of products and not waste them. Reuse is to take some waste and turn it into something new. Recycle is to collect plastics number one and two, aluminum, cardboard, or paper and bring them to places that turn it to something else. The Waste Not Project is trying to reduce waste so that we won't have to have so many landfills and keep more places we like, such as parks.
The students thought the Waste Not Project was cool. Nai'a said, "It was interesting and cool to learn about how plastic becomes a polyester shirt." They do this with many machines that melt the wrappers off and stretch the plastic out into strands. All in all, it was a great presentation.