The new school year starts

During the high school orientation this morning, students were challenged to drop an egg (well bundled) from the loft without breaking it. The results were thought provoking. One team blatantly cheated--they lowered their egg with a string until it was a couple of feet from the floor-- but you could hear the egg crack when it landed. Team 5 forcefully hurled its egg - and it was one of the two eggs that survived.

Rio, Chris and Lisa at Javalina's Coffee & Friends

Rio Finnegan, Chris Schulz and Lisa Otey will be performing at Javalina's, a coffee house on the southeast side of Tucson, on Saturday, August 23, from 7:30 to 9:30. Jabra Robles, Andy Ryan, and Diane Van Deurzen will be performing along with them.

The Javalina's website says: Fourteen year old bluesman,Rio Finnegan, a student of Lisa Otey's will perform with his Quaking River Band at Javalina's from 7:30 pm to 9:30 pm. Rio received a standing ovation from hundreds of people at this year's Tucson Folk Festival and recently performed with Grams & Krieger, Bryan Dean, and Ralph Gilmore during our tribute to Danny Rhodes, The Quaking River Band consists of Lisa Otey, Diane Van Deurzen, Chris Shultz, and Jabra Robles. This young man sure has a knack for finding great musicians to back him up. To see his memorable performance at the folk festival, visit Rio Finnegan on YouTube. If weather permits, this show will be out on our patio, so bring your lawn chairs for another fun evening of music under the stars. Minimum suggested donation $5.

Javalina's is at 9136 E Valencia, om Valencia near Nexus.

Sofia at the School of American Ballet

Samuel might have bumped into Sofia Robbins this summer. Sofia, who is still a junior high student at Kino, has also studying at the School of American Ballet, attending its summer session for students from around the country.

Alumni News: Samuel Greenberg

Samuel Greenberg was one of the handful of students at the School of American Ballet who has been offered an apprenticeship with the New York City Ballet this year! As an apprentice, Samuel will be dancing with the ballet at Lincoln Center in New York and is one step closer to being invited to be a permanent member.

He was also a 2008 recipient of the prestigious Mae L Wien Award, awarded to students at the School of American Ballet who showed outstanding promise.

The New York City Ballet is one of the best ballet companies in the world, so you just can't get more big time than this. Congratulations Samuel!

Mary Jane in Mothering Magazine

Kino received national attention a couple of years ago when Alfie Kahn included a description of Kino in his book The Homework Myth. So when she was researching an article about homework for Mothering Magazine, Wendy Ponte called and talked to Mary Jane.

Wendy's article, "No More Homework," examines and refutes the common justifications for the increasing amounts of homework assigned to ever younger children, and describes the damage that can result from an over emphasis on homework.

Mary Jane is quoted, "We give the students ample time to do their work during the school day. . . Oftentimes children, especially the high schoolers, prefer to socialize during that time and bring work home instead." Allowing students more control over how they choose to spend their day and how to manage their time is an essential part of respecting them.

"No More Homework" is in the July-August, 2008 issue of Mothering.

Summer Spiffing: The Bathrooms Project

Last spring Martha Martin got the whole school involved in creating a beautiful mosaic for the girls' bathroom. Each flower and butterfly is unique; Martha made sure everyone painted at least one.

This summer she's getting a head start on the boys' bathroom, which will be decorated with a desert scene. She's been getting help in glazing the hundreds of shapes from Mia, Emmi, and Lela.