Santa Fe Bear Journals

Diary Entries:

 March 3, 1998 - Enfield is located 10 miles West of Ithaca, NY. The weather is still cold and snow is often in the air. (During the summer it is hot and in the 80's, while in the fall the leaves turn orange, red, and yellow. In the spring it rains a lot and everything blooms again.) Enfield is surrounded by forests and fields. The town is located in the country amidst the hills that border Cayuga Lake. Enfield does not have a lot of stores so people need to drive to town for goods. There are two classes of 14 fifth graders here and they have fun. They have fun in math and gym. The fifth graders are also studying social studies, health, reading, science, and library skills. They have nice teachers and worms for pets. The students have just started playing basketball against other schools in the area. The fifth graders here are preparing for an overnight trip to the Thousand Islands. They have already spent a lot of time raising money for their trip. {I hope it goes as well as mine.} During the 1800's in Enfield there were many farms and dirt roads. Many of the houses built during that time still exist. I am now moving on to Brooklawn Elementary School in Cleveland, OH. I'll write more then.

March 13, 1998 - I arrived safely in Cleveland , OH. I am spending a few days with Mrs. Redfield's fifth graders at Brooklawn elementary school. It is Winter right now but the children tell me that this Winter has been unusually warm. This area has lots of trees, houses, buildings, and businesses. Cleveland is a city in northeastern Ohio located on the Cuyahoga River on the south shore of Lake Erie. Cleveland is an industrial center which produces electrical equipment, fabricated metals and automobile parts. Cleveland was founded in 1796 but didn't begin growing until the Erie Canal opened in 1825. Cleveland became a major production center for metals. I have enjoyed my stay with the children of Brooklawn Elementary School but it is time for me to continue along my trail. My next stop is Ft. Wayne, Indiana.

March 24, 1998 - Today I arrived in Ft. Wayne Indiana. It takes about four and a half hours to get to Ft. Wayne from Cleveland by car. Several days by wagon! Ft. Wayne is the second largest city in Indiana. It is famous for Archway Cookies, DeBrand Chocolates, Tokheim Gas Pumps, Edy's Ice Cream, and Seyferts Potato Chips among other wonderful things. (I have decided to restock my wagon here.....yumm!) It was about 34 degrees today, and we had a light snow fall this past weekend. I ended up in a fifth grade class at Adams School. This class has 34 students in it!!! They have an enrollment of about 300 students in grades Pre-K to 5th grade. Everyone is very happy because spring break begins on Monday, March 30. This class is currently studying Australia. They are also beginning studying the United States. When their study of the United States is finished, they will take a trip Washington, D.C. on May 27th-30th. The students sold candy, and asked for donations, and paid $200 each to go on the trip. The students love to watch cartoons, dance, and listen to rap music. They had a dance on Friday for the third, fourth, and fifth graders. Well, I'd better go now. I'm not sure where I'll end up, but I will keep in touch.

April 29,1998 - My wagon lost a wheel , so I didn't get to Greenville Elementary until April 23, 1998. Hopefully, I can fix my wagon here in Greenville,Illinois. I got to see the country side by riding in someone's car. Greenville is on a prairie. It is warm right now, in the spring. It is getting very warm for summer. Usually, they are in the 80's and 90's in the summer. Greenville has a couple of hills. It also has woods and a lake. The children in Mrs. Lurkin's enrichment class tell me that it is beautiful in the fall. There is a lot of flat land. You can go on walks in many different parts of Greenville. It is a small town. The kids around here like to listen to music, skate at the school's blacktop,and talk. There are 3 pods of fifth graders here. I guess they have my wagon fixed. I am not sure where I will go next, but I am sure that it will be an exciting journey.

Diary Entries:

November 15, 1998 -  Enfield is a small town out in the country a few miles away from Ithaca, NY Which is in the Northeastern part of the country.  We are in the Finger Lakes Region of NY.  It is called the Finger Lakes Region because there are many lakes that are long and lined up next to each other like fingers on a hand.  We are at the southern end of Cayuga lake which is the longest of the Finger Lakes (about 40 miles long).  The lakes and hills were created by a giant glacier that covered this area a long time ago.  As a result of the glaciers there are many beautiful gorges in the area.  They are fun to hike in. Enfield is a farming community in the hills outside of the city of Ithaca.  On the hill opposite of Enfield is Cornell University and on the other hill is Ithaca College. I have been with Mrs. Wirt's 5th grade class since school started.  In this class there are 27 fifth graders.  The kids here are a lot of fun.  They are very supportive of each other.  I saw this when I went with them to the Cayuga Nature Center and they got to help each other on rope climbs and pole jumps.  They really like field trips, they'll be going to New York City later this year and the Thousand Islands.  Since there are so many kids in this class Mrs. Wirt is helped out by Ms. Dykoschak and Mrs. Sposito.  We also have a student teacher named Mr. Novick who is great but will be leaving in December.  I will miss all my friends here who have asked me to never forget their school motto - Enfield Shines. I'll tell you more when I get to my next school - Anne Frank Elementary School in Philadelphia, PA.

December 29, 1998 - I have been delayed at Anne Frank Elementary School for a long time.  They have been unable to help me get a message off to you so my family has decided to continue on our jouney.  We have lost a lot of time and learned very little about this school or this area.  I will continue my journal from my next stop which promises to be more helpful.  Oklahoma  here I come!

January 26, 1999 -  I arrived in Owasso, Oklahoma and have been visiting a 5th grade at Mills Elementary. On the day I arrived it was very warm out with hardly any clouds in the sky. I find that very weird because it's usually snowing in New York at this time, but you wouldn't have ever guessed what happened the next day, it snowed! I was here for the first snow of the year! It hasn't snowed again so far though. The weather here is always changing, but it doesn't usually get very cold here. In Owasso there are lots of houses and there are churches on almost every corner. Owasso is a small town that is close to Tulsa. Owasso is what some people call a bedroom city because alot of people here live in Owasso, but work in Tulsa. Here the land is flat and grassy. On Feb. 2, an author came to Mills named David Schwartz. He wrote How Much is a Million and seven other books. It was really neat! Fifth graders here enjoy listening to music and playing sports like soccer, basketball, baseball, and softball.  Here I am getting help with my spelling for this letter. 
In the 1800's Oklahoma was Indian territory to the Cherokee, Creek, Seminole, Choctaw, and Chickasaw. Then they had the landrun. Some people went ahead before they shot the gun to go claim the best land. These people were called the Sooners and to this day Oklahoma is called the Sooner state. A lot of towns in Oklahoma are Indian names. Owasso means where the trail ends. Alot of people think it means the Trail of Tears ended but it really means where the trains ended. I miss everyone back home. Oh, and the teacher's name is Mrs. Bergeron and she is really nice and she loves OSU! (that's a college here) In her class there are twenty students, eleven girls and nine boys. They are studying the westward expansion too! Goodbye for now and I hope to be on my way to another school soon.