End of the Year Happenings

By Ann DeCerbo
At the end of each school year, the Norfolk Volunteer Fire Department arrives early one morning with a pumper truck to fill kiddie pools and buckets with water. This kicks off the annual Botelle School Field Day. Led by Botelle’s physical education teacher, Hannah Sobieski, Field Day is a favorite day of the year for many students.

Field Day games are organized in stations and the students rotate until they have tried them all, from tossing water balloons, to sack races, to passing soaked sponges over their heads. The goal is to exercise, get wet and have fun. Students are served a snack of fresh fruit and a drink at a station provided by the Botelle PTO.

Students spent their last few weeks of school planning and planting the Norfolk Community Garden behind the Botelle building. Each class planted a bed with vegetables or flowers that were chosen by the class and the teachers. Themes include a pizza garden, a flower garden, and a “Three Sisters” garden, based on the Iroquois tradition. The setting provides a natural classroom, and its lessons support multiple curriculum objectives.

A community effort, the garden is maintained by the Botelle PTO. Over the summer, in addition to weeding and harvesting, work will continue on the perimeter fencing and irrigation system. When school resumes in the early fall, students will return to the garden for a new crop of lessons and experiences.