Sierra Outdoor School

This week we had a little time on Monday and Tuesday for staff training. We had an in-service on chaining up vans and other vehicles - preparing for the winter! We also took our staff photo in our new North Face Sierra Outdoor School jackets. Thank you, Clovis! SOS Staff 2012-2013 We had a great, albeit rainy, week with Miramonte and Maple Creek. And of course, we're looking forward to Reagan Elementary and Copper Hills Elementary next week. Reagan, we'll see you on Monday, Copper Hills on Wednesday! Safe travels to all. Have a great weekend!

Welcome back from Thanksgiving break! We hope everyone had a great time with their friends and family. We're excited to be back and looking forward to our two schools arriving on Wednesday, Miramonte Elementary and Maple Creek Elementary School. Make sure to bring your rain gear! The forecast is predicting rain for the latter part of the week. Many of us enjoyed a festive turkey dinner this past week, so here are a few fun facts about turkeys to start off our week. Wild turkeys see in color and have excellent daytime vision that is three times better than a human's eyesight. Their field of vision covers 270 degrees!  A spooked turkey can run at speeds up to 25 miles per hour. They can also burst into flight approaching speeds between 50-55 miles per hour in a matter of seconds. So close, but yet so far... Benjamin Franklin advocated for a turkey to be the national bird, not the bald eagle! Learn more about this interesting historical fact  here .

Sierra Outdoor School had its first snow of the season this week! Bud Rank Elementary and Caruthers Elementary were enjoying the winter wonderland as they challenged themselves on the high ropes course, learned about orienteering and shelter building in Wilderness Skills, and enjoyed a Silent Mile along the ditch, among many other activities. Here's a picture from the blacktop: Our staff is also enjoying the weather! One of our Naturalist Interns was so excited she made a snow star in front of Juniper Dorm.  We're looking forward to welcoming  El Rancho School, Fancher Creek, and Temperance Kutner to SOS next week! Have a great weekend, everybody.

Sierra Outdoor School is finally joining the blogosphere! We'll be posting updates about schools while they're here, so visit our blog to see pictures of your students living and learning in the great outdoors. Check us out for up-to-date weather before you come to SOS. The arrival of November has brought crisp fall weather, so bring your hats and mittens! We've had several gorgeous evenings up on Big Hill...check out the beautiful sunset over our blacktop. We're excited to welcome four schools to SOS next week: Fugman and Riverview on Monday, and Caruthers and Bud Rank on Wednesday. Safe travels up the hill and we'll see you soon!