Calculus Project?

Can calculus projects be fun?

Apparently so!

In the Petra Calculus class the end of the year project is to make a trebuchet.  A what?

A trebuchet, a medieval siege weapon somewhat like a catapult only better because of the counter balance feature (at least according to one of our seniors who wrote a report on it).

It launches on Wednesday, between 2:30 and 3:30.  A further update to follow!

Grandparents are Great!

What a great time we had celebrating our grandparents last month!

The students put on an extra-special recitation to a very crowded room!

This was definately the most people we've ever had to put into one of our rooms, and it proved in yet another way that we are in need of the bigger quarters that will be brought about in our new building!

All of the classes hosted grandparents throughout the morning,

and many of the grandparents were put to work helping students with reading and other lessons.

Many of the grandparents were willing to share themselves with students who didn't have a grandparent present - and that was a very special gift!

After working hard all morning, many of the children were taken to lunch by their grandparent or their grandparent substitute.

All in all, a very successful and enjoyable day!

Football MSU Style

You would expect the boys at Petra to be excited about learning football drills in P.E. class.

And they were!  But take a look at the girls . . .

They were pretty excited too!

We may have to call a few of them "Crazy legs!"

The opportunity to learn football came about through Jon Montoya, who brought a couple of MSU football players with him.

These photos are all first, second and third graders, but the fourth through sixth grade enjoyed the same lessons.

Thank you Mr. Montoya and friends for bringing such a unique and fun opportunity to our students!  We hope to have you back next year!

Senior Thesis Presenations

Last week we celebrated the presentation a Senior Thesis from our three future graduates.  This project is the capstone of a Petra education, demonstrating the student's ability to reason, form conclusions and defend that conclusion.

The opportunity to witness their academic growth, their poise as they delivered and then defended their papers was wonderful.

We opened this event up to community members and were so flattered at the number of people who were interested in participating in this process.

Coming up next:  Junior Thesis, a huge step along the way to completeting a Petra education.  If you missed the Senior Thesis presentations, we invite to you come to the Junior Thesis presentation on May 14th at 11:15.  You will be impressed! 

Hiking the M

After a grueling week at their desks for standardized testing, the third, fourth and fifth grade classes got out to burn off a bit of energy by hiking to the M.

Dressed in camouflage, the fifth graders hid in the bushes and jumped  out at their younger schoolmates - but their camouflage was so good, we couldn't get any photos of them!

The fresh air helped to blow out the cobwebs of sitting for four days, and the beautiful weather was a little glimpse of summer to come.

A good time was had by all!  Special thanks to Mrs. Mann for providing us with some photos of this fun outing!

Ultimate + Sunshine + Green Grass = More Fun!

Having a week or so of warm weather makes a difference at ultimate practice each afternoon.

Light-heartedness abounds!

Hard work and training still happen . . .

while the potential for fun grows.

Add in a pond, and things can really get interesting!

A special thanks to 7th grader L.W. for getting some great photos at the practice earlier this week.

Hear Fishy Fishy Fishy!

Miss Dresser arranged for her second grade class to go visit the fish at the old fish hatchery.

There was the opportunity to feed fish!

And of course the fish were glad to see them!

It was an afternoon of smiles!

The whole gang had a great time!

A beautiful day all the way around and we praise God for that!

In the News . . .

Mrs. Mann's forth grade class culminated their weather unit with a field trip to KBZK to check out the weather center.

They got to see themselves on television!

And they saw the magic of the green wall!

Thank you to Adam Bell for hosting our students!

Ultimate Debutes!

Our team headed over to Missoula Friday for a Saturday of clinics and scrimages.

All went well - hope to have photos from the trip later this week!

Music Abounds

Sixth grade teacher, Mrs. McClaflin, teaches music to the secondary students this semester (in addition to all her other duties).  Last week the subject included brass instruments.  Take a look at the exploration:

The music curriculum also includes rhythm activities.

One of our students (7th grader) has also sought out additional music training, and below is an example of the hand written original work results:

Music is such a blessing in our lives!

Kite Day

A couple of Fridays ago we had kite day - did you see the photo in our Bozeman paper?

Here are some more photos to enjoy from that event.

It was a day of learning how to make kites.

It was a day of learning the history and stories of kites.

It was a day of going outside in the spring winds and flying a kite!

Thank you God for the blessing of playful learning!