peregrine news

Autumn

Autumn is... nice weather after summer. Food. Cold. My birthday.

Happy. Leaves falling, leaf piles to jump in. Rain. Apple cider. Madness. Transitions, being inside. Hot chocolate, turkey. Halloween. My old friend Autumn. Hibernation. Layers and layers of blankets, hot tea. My sister when she was a baby, turkey. Cake. Leaf-Fall. Candy. Halloween. Football and Hockey.

Person Narrative

I am sitting cross-legged in my dark room, hands on my knees, rocking back and forth. My door is shut, my old dog is dead. Close to it. In three hours she will be, while I am at my aunt's house. I don't want her to come in, knowing that she will be gone in 180 minutes. I can't stand it that I know and she doesn't. She thinks everything is as it should be. She thinks she'll have tomorrow to do what she wants and I can't stand it anymore, just knowing that I know she won't be here and she doesn't. It's so unfair. She's only been ours for two years. When we were test-walking her, I was so fixed that I walked right into a tree, but I didn't even feel it. I just cry harder and close my hand around her collar. She must be surprised we took it off. I bite my lip and open up my fist and smell her collar. The world spins around me. Suddenly my face fills with a musty smell, like the collar hasn't been used in a long time, even though it is just her smell.

To me, she is already gone.

I close my fist again and throw her collar against the wall, where it bounces and then lands with an unsatisfying thud in the carpet, a sound that makes my teeth itch and curls my lips against them in a sick smile.

I press my hands against the cold, barren walls, smooth and lifeless. All I can feel around me is warmth and darkness and the faint, salty smell of too many tears. The only light I can see is coming from the slant of gold under my door, and there I can see two russet paws. Then a dry nose and a mouth filled with pink, slobber-covered cancer pushes its way in. Most would find that lump of visible cancer disgusting, but I don't care. She's mine. For now.

Rosie whines and lays down beside me, panting slightly. I rub my fingers through her fur until they have an oily feel. These last words are so common one could almost consider them cliche in an odd, twisted way, but there is nothing else important enough to say. I glance up at the clock. One hundred-and- seventy-two minutes. I bend over into her silky ear and for a second there is silence, and all I can feel is sadness and anger and the hairs on her head brushing my cheek, my lips. The smell of her fur spirals up into my nose and I breathe deep, knowing this will be the last time.

One-hundred-and-seventy-seven minutes. A ticklish feeling in my stomach erupts suddenly and bolts up to my head. I feel sick. I am so numb that I almost can't manage to spill the words before they turn to ash. I wind my fingers through her fur.
"I love you."

-Rebecca Wittman

"Hula Hoops & Dominoes"

Block Creations

cut finger

I was so happy, my mom still had her finger!! It all happened when she was in culinary school. She was cutting a frozen chicken and she got a HUGE cut and she didn't notice until she saw the blood go through the ice. She went to the emergency room and when she got back she had her finger all in bandages and she was O.K.



The end

--Rodrigo

A photo from our field site

Measuring area, Peregrine style

Free Write: make-believe zoo keeper

I was asked to work as zoo keeper for The Exepermental Breeding Co. as this was not a regular zoo, it was an unusal job. The first animal I met was the Hard-chicken, which laid hard broiled eggs due to the tempitnure in the yolk. My favorite one was a Sugar-Mouse which because of it's unusal sugar creation is very fast.

--Luke

Peregrine Rights

Peregrine Bill Of Rights

1. Students have the right to participate.
2. Students have the right to be included.
3. Students and teachers have the right to use the quiet area.
4. Students have the right to be treated fairly.
5. All students have the right to be given attention by teachers.

Peregrine's Good Advice

Peregrine's Good Advice for Teachers and Students

1. Be aware of your surroundings; is it time to laugh or time to learn?
2. Have a positive attitude and be open to new ideas.
3. Ask teachers for help if there is a conflict.
4. Be prepared to make new friends, absorb new information, and to approach the day with enthusiasm.
5. No excuses for not following instructions.

Peregrine Responsibilities

Peregrine Responsibilities

1. Play with games and equipment as if they were your favorite treasured toy.

2. Don't climb on top of the the jungle gym.

3. No mocking or making fun of your classmates.

4. Students will listen to the teachers.

5. Students will respect the house as our temporary classroom.

6. Treat others how you want to be treated.

7. Students will follow directions.

8. Students will act nonviolently.

9. Students will include others.

10. Students will respect other's personal space.

11. No excuses for not complying with the above.

The rough cut of our rights, responsibilities, and good advice

On the second day of school, the Peregrinos broke into "focus groups" in order to come up with some rights and responsibilities to govern themselves by. Here's what they came up with:

Then, the older group categorized and transcribed the list for us. The list was then printed and signed by the teachers and students and posted to this blog!