The morning scene of a sled obstacle course and tree/shrub buds on the nature table foretold our adventurous day at the Cobble. Once all had arrived we enjoyed the morning circle in the radiant sunshine. We got our blood pumping with a game of predator prey, learned about the day, and guessed the answer to a ridiculous riddle: “What have I got in my pocket?” Then we played a game of Towhee, Towhee Drink Your Tea, and the students discovered a new triumphant strategy.
Post-snack, it was time to begin our quest to find all of the buds on the scavenger hunt sheet. We divided into two groups, each going a separate way to cover more ground. With each bud that matched, a couple of words were unlocked on the master sheet. These words formed a riddle that explained what we were going to do at the end of the day. The groups met up at the boulder site, and between the two groups all but one bud was found. The riddle was:
Even before all of the words were known, some students had figured out the answer: sled, and that we were going sledding down Hurlburt’s Hill in the afternoon. Then the reward was revealed. Maple candy!
To have fun in the cold winter
You need a snowy hillside
Then climb up to the top with this
So down the hill you can slide
After lunch and hearing Hawk Moth tell the story of The Prince of Wolves, originating from the Indigenous Tsimshian people of the Pacific Northwest Coast, we geared up for a hike up Hurlburt’s Hill. There was little snow coverage on the hill, but there was still enough to have great fun sledding down the path.
While students practiced their sled steering, River Otter warmed up some maple syrup so we could make our own maple candy. Once it was time, all eyes were on the syrup as it was hardening into candy on the fresh snow.
We ended our day with some magical snow flurries at the top of the hill.
In growing community,
Hawk Moth, Queen Fisher, River Otter, and Black Walnut (Quinn, Olivia, Chris, and Raven), January 28, 2023