May, as per usual, was a busy month full of all the good things that come with the end of school. We had concerts, launches, parties, field trips and the like. Here's a rundown of a few of them:
Every 5th grader looks forward to the district's bike ride at the end of the year. Miriam, of course, was no exception. The 2020 bike ride was canceled due to COVID. The 2019 bike ride was canceled due to rain. We were hoping the 2021 bike ride would go off without a hitch.
And it did. Mostly. Rather than busing to Ucon Elementary and riding from there to Iona Square, the Fairview kids had to bus to the Iona stake center and meet up with the Ucon kids there before hopping on their bikes and going all the way to Iona. Apparently there weren't any buses available early enough in the morning to get the Fairview kids to Ucon, so they had to settle with a shorter ride to the park. From there on it was business as usual with playing and eating in the park and riding back to Ucon. I got to accompany the group of brightly dressed kids on their bikes.
Miriam hides from the camera and Kaitlyn covers her while they eat their lunch at the park.
Starting mid-March, Miriam participated in elementary band. Normally they limit the participants to 6th graders, but due to COVID restrictions necessitating they start the program so late, the middle school band teacher opted to let any interested 5th and 6th graders participate. This was exciting news for Miriam who has wanted to learn/perform percussion since Bekah started band.
We rented a bell kit, snare sticks and a drum pad, and started making the after school drive to Rocky Mountain four days a week. The bus wasn't an option this year, so that meant I got to pick up the girls from the elementary school parent loop, take them home, drive Miriam to the middle school at 3 and pick her up at 4. It was a lot of back and forth, which was made easier by Bekah's 6th hour parent release.
This deserves a paragraph explanation itself. Bekah was hoping to participate in Bonneville's pit orchestra 3rd trimester, but the orchestra didn't have a part for her to play. So she asked her trombone teacher (Hillcrest's band director) if his school could use her. He said they needed a French hornist, so Bekah told him if he supplied the horn, she'd play. Hence Bekah having a parent release 6th hour so she could drive to Hillcrest and participate with their pit orchestra. Their musical was finished by May 1, so after that date, Bekah would finish 5th hour at Bonneville, then head over to Rocky Mountain to help Ms. Schumacher with the elementary band. That meant I didn't have to bring Miriam home at 4; after I dropped her off at 3:15, I could head home for the day.
So back to elementary band. The kids had just a short time to learn their instruments and how to read music before having their final (and only) concert on Wednesday, May 19. Miriam played snare drum, bass drum and bell kit.
Winnie participated in the high school's choir clinic. Usually it's held in February, but due to COVID restrictions, they waited until they were able to have a group that large meet together. So the clinic and concert were held on Monday, May 24. The elementary school kids have had every other Monday off, and this was one of their off Mondays, which meant Winnie was available to go to the clinic from 8-1. She learned about music and singing, then participated with the high school girls' choir in a concert held at the Hillcrest Performing Arts Center.
Miriam got to finally launch a rocket on Tuesday, May 25. Fourth through sixth graders get to launch rockets, but due to the COVID shutdown last spring, Miriam and her classmates did not get to participate in their first launch. So this year as a fifth grader was her first time.
Rebekah also had an end-of-the-year concert; hers was on Wednesday, May 26 in the BHS gym. She played trombone with the jazz band (and KILLED her feature in "Tall Cotton") and euphonium, clarinet and bass clarinet with the symphonic band. They also had a lot of awards and recognitions that night for the graduating seniors and the band director who will be going to another school next fall.
Mini concert video.
On the last full day of school (Thursday June 3), the elementary school kids had their field day and Accelerated Reading assembly. Due to COVID restrictions, the school hadn't been able to hold an assembly all year long. But by dividing up the assembly into time slots and having only two grades (and the kids' parents) in the gym at a time, they were able to have their end-of-the-year assembly.
Winnie was in the 200 point club, and Miriam was in the 1300 point club. Winnie earned the most points in her class, so she received a certificate and a candy bar. Miriam did not earn the most points in her class (!), but she and another girl in her class earned WAY more points than anybody else in the entire school, so the librarians recognized both of them at the assembly.
Cheering with her classmates and teacher Mrs. Campbell.
