Friday Assembly

Resident lambs, Sunny and Frisco, and chickens

Jack's school has an Assembly every Friday. Two things happen just before Assembly starts: 1 - there's coffee and morning snacks for the parents to encourage mingling and 2 - the younger kids are picked up by their "buddies" and escorted to the Assembly .

 

At the start of the school year, each preschooler is paired up with a buddy from

the 7th or 8th grade. Every Friday morning the buddies drop by the preschoolers' classrooms and the pairs walk to the schoolyard and sit together for Assembly. Afterwards, they get to play together for a bit. It's very sweet and Jack is really excited about his buddy, Paolo.

 

Jack and Paolo

The Assemblies start with everyone singing a Welcome Song and then kids are asked to step forward if they have a birthday in the coming week and they receive a Happy Birthday serenade from everyone. Each week is hosted by a class that does a little something for the crowd - starting with the oldest class at the first Assembly (8th grade) and working their way down one class at a time to the preschoolers.

 

This week's Assembly showcased the Farm & Garden program (the classes learn about sustainability, organic farming, and ecology in the small farm plot onsite at the school) and the resident farm animals (two sheep and a few chickens). So that the animals didn't get spooked, everyone silently, though enthusiastically, cheered in sign language (by raising our hands and flapping them back and forth) which was pretty fun to watch. A student escorted each animal out to the crowd while an MC recited a fun fact (the chicken, Nutmeg, lays blue eggs!) I was impressed that these city kids picked up the chickens and lovingly held them as they paraded around. I know I could never (or maybe want to?) catch a chicken and hold him in my arms.

 

Silent cheering

Lining up the kids and animals

The lambs are especially cute. They are "bummer" Babydoll Southdown lambs which means they were orphaned at birth and have been bottle fed so they are very attached to people. The breed is known to be easy to handle and are not aggressive. Because of their small size (they are only 24 inches tall when mature), miniature Southdowns are said to make outstanding weeders for use in orchards and vineyards. Their small hooves help break the soil surface without compacting it. And not only do they provide an organic alternative to pesticides, their manure helps improve soil fertility as well at the farm.

 

These Friday Assemblies have become a fun ritual for both Jack and me. Just as Jack looks forward to Assembly with his buddy, I'm looking forward to what the kids have in store for us next Friday.