Passport Club March News

Another trip around the world with Bonny Slope Passport Club awaits you! Watch out for an early Check Day this month–March 18th which is right before Spring Break. This month students start with Costa Rica, Ireland, Kazakhstan, Ethiopia, and Finland in Level One. Those students who learn all five levels will learn the capitals from Level One countries, too. Spend extra time on memorizing capitals; students often struggle to remember them on Check Day. Fifth-graders completing the Continent Challenge itinerary learn the countries of Northern Europe in March. Fourth-graders pursuing the Special Itinerary have already learned the American states and capitals and now move on to Canadian States and Provinces and their capitals (watch out for tricky pronunciations again!). Third-grade Special Itinerary students learn important rivers (such as the Nile and the Amazon) and American mountain ranges this month. Special Itinerary can be done by any interested student; it serves as enrichment material to complement Passport Club and what students are learning in their classrooms.

Keep your interest in geography going strong—Certificates of Participation in Passport Club are being designed for students at this time! Watch for acknowledgment of our internationally minded students at the end of the year.

February Passport Club

This month students studying Passport Club levels 1-5 will learn about India, Cambodia, Romania, Chile, and Libya along with 25 other locations. Our test date is Wednesday, February 25, 2009.

Third graders completing Special Itineraries of Landmarks & Monuments will be asked to identify pictures of the Taj Mahal (India), Angkor Wat (Cambodia), and the White House and Lincoln Memorial (Washington, D.C.). And since it’s February students will also be asked to identify where Punxsutawney Phil lives.

Fourth graders completing Special Itineraries: The Western Hemisphere will be tested on the remaining states in the United States. This month they will identify states in the southeast. Throughout the year fourth graders learned the states and capitals of all 50 states. Next month they move on to learn the territories and provinces of Canada.

Fifth graders have a choice of completing the Passport Club levels or taking the Continent Challenge, where students learn countries in the entire continent. This month fifth graders taking the Continent Challenge will be tested on 26 southern African countries. In March they begin learning the countries in Europe.

Don’t forget to check this website for Passport Club study guides. The study guides provide study tips and facts about these locations. We also pulled geography books from the Bonny Slope library collection to help you learn more about the countries being tested this month. Look for these books near the checkout counter in the library.

December Check Day Rescheduled to Wednesday, January 14th!

Since our students were snowed out on the December Check Day during the week before winter break began, we will have a make-up Check Day on Wednesday the 14th for the December materials only.  The January list of countries and capitals, etc. will be held as previously scheduled on the 28th of this month.  Please note, Study Hour for the December material will NOT be held for the make-up.  We will get back to Study Hour sessions on the 27th for the January list of countries and capitals.  Thank you!

If you have any questions, please contact Meagan Ghorashian or Maggie Wamken.

Five Japanese Students Attend Bonny Slope for Two Weeks

At the end of October, Bonny Slope Elementary was the temporary school for five Japanese exchange students from Katoh Elementary in Numazu, Shizuoka Japan, approximately 80 miles southwest of Tokyo.

As part of their school’s English immersion program, these students traveled to the United States for two weeks in order to enrich their understanding of the American society and culture. Hisako Kuwana, Jikun Ryu, Risa Furusako, Yuyu Kawakami, and Rintaro Inoue stayed with Bonny Slope families and attended class with Sara Carter, Leah Miller, Kendall Klein, Harry Zabel, and Tyler Loescher.

They participated in all of the class studies and activities, including Passport Club, classroom Harvest parties, and cafeteria lunches! They also participated in numerous family activities from soccer practices to visiting OMSI to going shopping. Several of the Japanese students commented on the fast pace of life we Americans live when compared to their lives at home. They were also fascinated with some of the Halloween “traditions” like carving pumpkins, dressing up in costumes, and going door-to-door for candy. The Katoh Elementary students returned home on November 3rd with many fond memories that will last a lifetime!

Are You Studying the November Map And Want to Learn More?

Each month you will find geography books from the Bonny Slope library collection that highlight countries we are learning about in the Passport Club. These books are displayed next to the checkout counter and are available for you to borrow. Here are some of books from our collection:

• Look What Came from the Netherlands by Kevin Davis
  What’s the first thing you think about when someone says the Netherlands? Do you think of tulips, windmills, and wooden shoes? This country has contributed many great things to the world from telescopes, bowling, Gouda cheese, and doughnuts. These facts and more in this fun book.
• Hana in the Time of the Tulips by Deborah Noyes
  A little girl seeks to regain her father’s attention during the tulip craze in seventeenth-century Holland. This book has wonderful pictures.
• Turkey: A Question & Answer Book by Mary Englar
  This book answers the following questions: Where is Turkey? What is school like in Turkey? What are Turkey’s favorite sports and games? What are the traditional foods of Turkey? What is family life like in Turkey?

Don’t forget Passport Check Day is November 19, 2008.

Passport Club October Check Day – Wed., Oct. 29th – 8:50am to 11:30am