We are getting so excited about our upcoming farm trip! In preparation, we invited Yukie Ohta,  LREI’s archivist and mom to Hanako, to come in and share artifacts that pertained to our school’s farm trips of the past. Fourth graders were very excited to see that they were a part of a long tradition. In response, students wrote thank you letters to Yukie. Below are snippets from those letters.

“Each time I had a lot of fun and I think my classmates did also….There is not a thing I don’t like about June Camp.”

Also included in this post are a few examples of the maps students created detailing the route from LREI to the Hawthorne Valley Farm.

Now all we need to do is pack! Hawthorne Valley Farm, here we come!

Alejandro: “It was so different then because you could go in the lake and you go for a month and it starts when you are six.”

Arlo: “One of my favorite parts of your share was the crushed flower from the LREI archives. Also, I like the cool pictures from the 1920s, 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s.”

Bo: “My two favorite parts of your share was the fact that long ago they went for a month! And the second is that they even went in kindergarten.”

Bayo: “Thank you for teaching us about archives and LREI history. One of my favorite parts of your share was when we looked at photographs from the 1920s.”

Cece: “When you showed us the picture from last year’s farm trip I remember the moment those pictures were taken.”

Cy: “I thought it was really cool how their artwork is so similar to ours…Another similarity is that both of them were awesome…I was so so so so excited for the farm after your share.”

Giselle: “I loved when you showed us the picture when Elisabeth Irwin was taking people on the farm trip.”

Hanako: “The differences are that back then they stayed a month and we only stayed three days and they went in June so they called it June camp and we go in October so I don’t know why it’s not called October camp)…I’m looking forward to getting away from the city and the construction.”

Harley: “My favorite parts were when you read about the farm trip in a book. I notice that in both farm trips the kids had fun. I can’t believe they used to go for a month.”

Henry: “Thank you so much for learning this so you can teach us about all of the farm trips….I am looking forward to seeing a chicken named Bob that my sister saw and named on the farm trip.”

Libi: “I learned that we both had to do dishes and brush our teeth.”

“Responsibility for oneself”

Macy: “My two favorite parts of your share was the song and the flower and the book about our school that was published.”

Palma: “One of my favorite parts was when you told us that there had been 91 farm trips so far.”

Saffron: “I also liked the pictures of the farm trip last year.”

Sarah: “I loved the song written by kids at the farm. I also loved the pictures of past trips. The similarities are animals, a beautiful landscape, community work, and most importantly fun!”

Sebastian: “Thank you for taking time out of your day to speak to us about the farm trips past and present…I am so excited I am going to burst into flames.”

Sonia: “Thank you so much for telling us about the evolution of the farm trips and how they’ve changed.”

Theo: “I loved the history share and the archives….I am looking forward to playing with the animals.”