I can’t believe it’s already March! Villa’s annual auction is coming up next weekend so the development office is full of class projects and donations, and parents are constantly filtering in and out to help. The Fund-A-Need for this year’s auction is all about Academics, Communication, and Extracurriculars (ACE). We are looking to transform Villa’s art room, install an electric messaging center, and upgrade the Rainbow Theater. Because I’m sure all of us who performed on that stage back in the day remember just how badly it needs some refurbishing.

There are a lot of fun activities and events going on for the students as well. The second graders have started creating weekly podcasts that feature stories written by the students. They work closely with Villa’s Educational Technology Specialist, Kim Alessi, to edit and add sounds to create the podcast. You can listen to the podcasts here: Second Grade Read-Aloud Podcasts. In addition, our P.E. classes finished up Fitness Week last week, where they focused on personal fitness goals, mediation, and relaxation.

The third graders kept busy this week by preparing for and celebrating Diversity Day! Each third grader studied a different culture over the last few months and then put together a book of facts and images. On Diversity Day, the students held an exhibition of their projects. I fondly thought back on the Cultural Fair tradition that Villa had when I was in middle school. My classmates and I created poster boards with information on our different heritages, and some people even brought in food from the regions. It was a great way to get to know each other better on a more personal and cultural level.

Madame Joulain’s eighth grade French class was feeling particularly ambitious as they took on some challenging French cooking this week.  The 2nd floor hall was filled with the delicious smells of chicken cordon bleu and mousse au chocolat cooking today. That is, until something was burned, and then it was incredibly smokey. But both of those dishes are not exactly easy to prepare! So, well done to our eighth grade French class! Back in 2003 when I was an eighth grader, Madame Joulain and Ms Zamberlin, the other French teacher who has since left the school, always had such fun events and activities planned for us. I remember going to see the play “Le Petit Prince” and then going to eat at a French restaurant and ordering the food in French. I’ve been told that they are downsizing the French program at Villa since not as many students are signing up for that class over Spanish. A group of students used to be lucky enough to travel to France each year with their class. It’s too bad they ended that opportunity.

It’s been a fun and busy past few weeks here at Villa. Despite some snow fall earlier in the week, we are hoping that spring is just around the corner! As always, if you think of any memories that you’d like to share with the Villa community, please don’t hesitate to reach out.

Go Vikings!

Claire Smith’ 03