On Thursday, January 6th the two Jr. Kindergarten classes went on our second field trip of the year to the Ocean Institute in Dana Point.  The first excitement on our trip was when our bus turned toward the ocean, and we saw a beautiful ocean view.  The students were very excited to see the water.  We were then divided into four groups and rotated through learning stations inside the institute.  At one station the students were each given a photo of a type of ocean life; dolphin, shrimp, whale..., and they listened to the sound the items made.  After learning eight or nine sounds the students were challenged to name the sounds without assistance.  They did a great job!  At a second station the students were given a pile of plastic ocean animals.  They were asked to be scientists and sort the animals into like groups.  They then put their sorted animals on a graph.  The objective of the third station was to learn about where different types of ocean animals live.  Each student was given a small picture of an animal and was asked to find his/her animal in one of four aquariums.  The students then were able to see where many animals lived (in the rocks, on the sandy ocean floor, in the plants).  In one of these four aquariums is a bubble that the students could stand in to get a "fish's eye" view of a tank and swimming fish.  The last station was an open aquarium.  The students first learned about sea stars, and then they were invited to roll up their sleeves and touch sea stars and a sea cucumber.  Almost all of the students took the opportunity to touch a new animal--a fun memory I doubt they will forget.  Please return to the Ocean Institute with your families, it is great fun for all ages and a bit educational, too!

 Dr. Khan visits 4th grade 

Biodegradation and gene cloning may sound intimidating to some people, but ask any 4th grader at Edgewood, and they will let you know what it means!  The 4th graders welcomed Dr. Nasreen Khan to science class on Wednesday, January 12th. 

Dr. Khan taught the students about both the harmful and beneficial uses of bacteria!  The children enjoyed learning how some bacteria can cause sickness such as pneumonia, yet others are essential to breaking down food in their bodies and the environment. The highlight of the presentation was when the students acted like scientists and modeled how insulin is cloned into bacteria to help those who suffer from Type I diabetes!  This was at first a difficult topic to understand, but with the help from Dr. Khan, it was enjoyable and easy to learn! 

Sally Yi Kyung Yoon is the 6th Grade Student Spotlight for this month.  She was born September 25, 1998 in Seoul, Korea. Sally later moved to California, and she has been attending Fairmont since the 3rd grade. With great effort, she has never gotten anything below a B on her report cards and has placed on the honor roll ever since the 4th grade. Some of her interests include singing, playing the viola, drawing, and snowboarding. When she was little, everybody thought that she was meant to be an artist. But Sally wanted to accomplish something even more unique, something only a few people can do. So when she was 10, she started to ride horses.

Sally first started riding at the Riding Academy of Orange County as a hobby. She leased two ponies in the lesson program. But as time passed by, she wanted to ride horses as her career. So then she began working with a professional trainer, Stosser Stables. She also made a big decision to buy her own horse. She has been riding for 2 years and has experience with the English, Western, and Dressage styles. One change she has had in her riding is switching back and forth from English and Western style because of a problem with falling off her horse. Now she is in the Hunter/Jumper program, an English type of riding.

Sally has won some awards from the two shows she's been to so far. She now has six ribbons and has won fifth place at a show, her highest so far. This is quite an accomplishment when compared to the more experienced riders she competes against. The two recent competitions she has competed in are the Del Mar Horseshow and The LA National Preview Horseshow.

Sally is currently in training for two upcoming shows.  She will be attending a horse clinic run by Olympic Medalist Richard Spooner to receive extra training in Pasadena. In addition, she will be attending a show called Thermal in Palm Springs. In the future, Sally aspires to be either a horse trainer or a vet for horses.