The U.S. History students started the semester with a unit on indigenous cultures in America. They decided to focus on tribes in the southwest, specifically the Apaches. They've been doing several projects in class to better understand how they lived in the desert, including practicing throwing an at-latl. 

To make a tipi, they found saguaro ribs for the frame, and dug them into the ground. They used tarps to make the coverings instead of animal hides. 

They also have been making their own adobe bricks to build a fire pit at the Animal Center. They've been experimenting with mixing dirt they harvest from the desert with different materials, such as sand, concrete, and hay, to strengthen the bricks. 

Jennisquirrels's Homeroomies: Eliza, Aurelia, Dillon, Mari, Grace, Lucas, Lorenzo, Selki, Amaya, Sam, Kellen, Z, and Diego
Jennifer S.'s homeroom is right in front of the art center and has lots of cute Mario Bros decorations.  So far this year, they've grown a "pet flamingo" in water, which they named Gerald Stevens; played the Loteria; and have answered lots of getting to know you questions.  They are looking forward to a field trip to the park and Purple Penguin Candy Shop, and they are already excited for Halloween! 

Lisa's Homeroomies: Will, Cadence, Taliyah, Justice, Nurhan, Aidan, Lailah, Elijah, Jack, Kaiya, Nathan, Nico, and Andrew
Lisa's homeroom is in the middle of the north side of the school and is decorated using Legos--they even made Lego nametags for their cubbies!  They are have played lots of games so far in homeroom: charades, Pictionary, tag, and other party games. They are looking forward to a field trip today to get boba and more field trips during the year, potentially including a trip to Mt. Lemmon!

Jennifer K.'s Homeroomies: Violet, Luis, Jordan, Nick, McKayla, Zach, Kit, Darion, Carter, Raiden, Janeya
Jennifer K.'s homeroom is in the library and is sloth-themed. They went on a field trip today with Tony's homeroom to the Reid Park Zoo, which is home to a new sloth! In homeroom, they've been playing "would you rather?" and going outside to play basketball. They are looking forward to another fieldtrip to Shamrock Farms next month.

This year, we have 6 homerooms and 3 new homeroom teachers! Homeroom is a unique and important part of Kino. Homerooms meet for 30 minutes at the start and end of every school day. They are mixed aged (K-12) and a place for kids to work together, get to know each other, set goals, and have fun! 

Caroline's Homeroomies: Kalliope, Evans, Felix, Grey, Kat, Asher, Joan, Ana, Reese, Danae, Parker, Joseph, and Ridley
This year, Caroline's Homeroom meets on the south side of the school. It's got cool "mythical worlds" decorations, so it's hard to miss! So far, they've been reviewing schedules, learning about medieval snacks, and playing drawing games. They have an exciting "to do" list that includes breakfast, boba, Defy, and game stations!

Neha's Homeroomies: Jaylie, Ellie C., Kaimoku, Myka, Ellie S., Rex, Camrynn, Calen, Quinn, Joey, Leo, and Magic
Neha's homeroom is in the middle of the south side of the school by the south door. So far, they've been playing games like spoons and trivia, coloring, and watching The Lorax. They're looking forward to celebrating homeroom birthdays, going to see a play, and lots more games!

Tony's Homeroomies: Cosme, Archer, Jessara, Rosemary, Noah, Matthew, Sawyer, Sy, Brian, Andres, Sophia, and Maddox
Tony's homeroom is on the south side of the building right in front of the castle. So far this year they've played a heated game of Scattegories, made playdough animals, played basketball, and played a word game called Centipede. They are going to the zoo next Friday and the Botanical Gardens next month! 

On the last day of school, the Primary Music/Spanish class performed the cumbia to El Monstro de la Leguna (Monster of the Lagoon). They showcased their dancing as well as their knowledge of Spanish words for body parts. Here's a video of their performance:

After the Primary performance, our Rock Band performed outside. This was Caden's final performance in Rock Band as a graduating senior. They played Peter Gunn, Paint it Black, Home Sweet Home, and Bad Moon Rising. Here's a video of Home Sweet Home, featuring Quinn on guitar/keyboard, Reese on vocals, Caden on bass guitar, and Scott, their music teacher, on guitar: 

Here's a video of their final song, Bad Mood Rising, featuring Reese on vocals, Caden on drums, and Quinn and Scott on guitar: 

We love seeing all the performances--it was a perfect way to end the year. Next year, Scott will be back teaching music, so if this inspired you, think about signing up for lessons next year! 

This year, we have five high schoolers graduating from Kino! They are pictured above (from left to right): Mia Redman, Graham Turner, Sofia Wittman, Caden Wilfong, and Jayden McGinnis.  On Wednesday, they all presented their Senior Projects to the community.  Senior Projects are a year-long investigation of an area of personal interest.  Seniors come up with a project plan and spending the year working with an advisor to complete it. 

Mia spent the year writing A Book about Autism that discussed her personal experience and interviewed students with autism. Mia's goal was to educate the community about the different presentations of autism, and a copy of her book will be available in the Kino library. Mia joined Kino as a freshman, and she'll be attending Project Focus at the University of Arizona next year. 

Graham completed a portfolio of original pixel art. For his presentation, he animated the artwork and paired it with music he composed. Graham has been at Kino since sixth grade, and next year he plans to attend the University of Arizona to pursue a career in pixel art. 

Sofia fused her love of a video game called Twisted Wonderland with characters from The Nightmare Before Christmas to write a short story, titled "The Risk of a Gambler." She also digitally illustrated the main characters of the story. Sofia joined Kino her sophomore year, and she'll be attending Pima Community College next year. She's interested in continuing writing and studying historical fashion. 

Caden completed 6 chapters of a novel for his final project.  During his presentation, he briefly summarized the book, read an excerpt of the prologue, and had signed copies for the community available afterwards. His novel was inspired by gothic horror novels and biblical fiction. Caden has been at Kino since fifth grade, and he'll be attending Pima Community College next year. After completing his prerequisites at Pima, Caden plans to attend a four-year university to study law. 

To showcase his love for the animals, Jayden spent the year expanding the donkey pen. He had to dig trenches for the fence and holes for the posts, which is no easy task in the desert. The expansion doubled the space for the donkeys and sheep, who were excited to explore their new pen! Jayden joined Kino as a freshman. In the future, he hopes to continue to work outdoors with animals, and plans to volunteer at Kino this summer.

During Project Week, a group of junior high and mid-level students began a mural, which they finished this week! This was a student-led project, from start to finish. They sketched, designed, and executed the entire project completely on their own. Click through the slideshow to see their progress and the finished product. The mural looks incredible--stop by the school and sea it!

We also had our very first overnight field trip since COVID this week! Charlie and Cezanne took a group of students to camp at Lake Patagonia from Wednesday-Friday. They got to spend their days fishing, kayaking, and swimming. They camped in tents and made all their meals with a fire pit (including walking tacos). We're so excited about having overnight field trips again--this is hopefully the first of many! 

This year, the parent of a Kino alumni and former Kino teacher, Christina Paige, has been volunteering to come and have tea with all the students. This Friday, she hosted a tea hour with the junior high and high schoolers. She prepared a spread that included earl grey and rose tea and a variety of biscuits. While they ate, she read from Norse and Japanese mythology books. It was a lovely and scrumptious afternoon. Pinkies up! 

Last Friday, Kino held its annual Art Auction and Sale. Jennifer Shelton spent many months collecting and organizing student artwork, and the students made so many beautiful pieces that were for sale! We also had donations from local artists and businesses up for auction. Our teacher/alumni/student band, Las Vacas Muertes, provided entertainment during the silent auction. It was a lovely evening that raised over $3000 for our school! Thank you to everyone who came to support the community and the arts. 

This week, we welcomed two new members to the Kino community: lambs! Lisa, along with student volunteers, spent the weekend introducing them to their new home at the Animal Center. They are Painted Desert Sheep, which means they won't ever have to be sheared. The students have been holding tryouts to decide who will be the new lamb animal trainers--there's one open spot left! They also voted on their names this week, and after student submissions and several rounds of voting, have decided to call them Cinnamon and Nova. They were a little shy at first, but have warmed up! If you have a chance, stop by and say hello.