SOLSC #10 - Signs of Spring

To read my student's posts on the
Classroom SOL challenge click here

Introduction: Hello and welcome to my blog! This is the third year I have participated in the SOLSC and also the third year for my students as well! I teach students, ages 11-14, in a multi-age classroom at The Logan School for Creative Learning in Denver, CO. This year, I am hosting students from all three middle school classes and they are participating on a volunteer basis (with a few prizes thrown in for inspiration). I'm looking forward to being part of this amazing community again!

Signs of Spring!

In Colorado, spring doesn't come gradually, and right about the time everyone figures that winter is over, a snowstorm bullies through, breaking limbs from trees and burying the first flowers and crops. So while I know it's not completely spring yet, here is a list of the signs of spring I have noticed this week.

The flickers are banging away on the HVAC units and gutters at school, shocking everyone with the noise as they look for mates.

The first daffodils at home and school have bloomed in brilliant yellow, shaking off a dusting of frost each cold morning to shine throughout the day.

The Swanson's hawks have returned, migrating north. They stand sentinel on the light poles around school and put the pigeons on guard.

The maple in my yard has dropped thousands of pieces of debris from the ends of the branches, as the buds of new leaves swell and ready themselves.

The Canada geese still fly across the sky in flocks and Vs, but pairs of them are starting to separate themselves and stake out their territories with hisses and pumping necks.

The ground in my north-facing backyard has completely thawed and an earthy smell arises from each spongey step on the way to feed the chickens in the morning.

The wind has returned. It always seems windy the spring, especially in the afternoons, catching Frisbees and sending them into amazing and unexpected flight patterns.

I heard a robin, perched high on the roof, singing its heart out for a mate. But not so early that it woke me up.

I wait for the tulips,
Anticipate the meadowlark's tune
And the blackbirds trill,
The first hot day
When even my cold-blooded friends wear short sleeves
And the first snakes are found sunning
Themselves agains the brick walls