Dear CKS Families,

All of our students learned about nutrition and the process of food with Common Roots educators this week. The students focused on the creation process of maple syrup, a Vermont staple! Students, faculty, and middle school families gathered in the gym on Wednesday to celebrate national history day. The middle school students displayed their research on topics to faculty, guest judges, and families. All of our students were able to see the efforts of the middle school history projects. We continue our Lenten practice next week by picking up after ourselves. We can all put forth our best efforts to bus our trays and compost more effectively in the cafeteria, along with picking up any paper and pens or pencils on the floor. Working together towards a cleaner cafeteria, bathrooms, hallways, and classrooms will make the school a healthier place to learn.

Best Regards,

Dr. Dwyer

We are entering the sweetest time of year in Vermont - Maple Season! As the air gets warmer during the day and remains cooler at night, the sap in our native sugar maple trees begins to flow. The process of collecting sap and boiling it down to syrup is a long-time tradition here in Vermont, thanks to the discovery by the Abenaki. For many years, this has been a time to bring the community together to share the first harvest from the Earth - a sweet treat that will wake us and energize us after a long cold winter.

This week in Farm to School, the early childhood classes found some energy in maple-inspired movement. We acted like a maple forest with hungry baby leaves encased in buds that needed some sap food sent up the tree straws - from the roots to the tiny buds on the branches of leafless sugar maples. Then the “sap man” (as one astute child aptly put it) placed a tap in the tree to get some sap too. While cooking all that sap, most became steamy clouds going back to the forest - but a little bit of sap turned into sweet syrup - hooray! We also saw how to use last month’s red cabbage leaf to make “Colored by Nature Easter Eggs. See directions at the end.

Grade schoolers used body language to communicate a story across the language barriers in which the original VT sugarers, the Abenaki women, explained their technology to future sugarers. We also discussed the “Sap to Syrup” process and now know that we must boil down 40 gallons of sap to receive one gallon of maple syrup! We worked together to organize the thirteen moon cycles the Abenaki used as their seasonal guide to sustain themselves with nourishment from the land. We took some time for mindful tasting and offered gratitude to those who have worked so hard to collect and boil down the sap for the lesson - all while enjoying some cornbread cakes with maple syrup drizzled on top! We hope you give this recipe a try at home.

Mini Corn Cake Recipe: GF, DF, Egg Free Goodness

Makes 10-12 mini-bites

Ingredients:

• 2 cups corn flour

• 2 tsp baking powder

• 1 tsp baking soda

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 ½ cups milk (plant based or regular, we used rice milk)

• ¼ cup olive oil

• 1 chia egg (1 Tbsp Chia seeds, 3 Tbsp water)

• ¼ cup maple syrup

• Water if needed to thin batter

Directions:

1. In a large mixing bowl combine corn flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

2. In a small bowl mix the chia and water to make a chia seed egg. Let sit for 2-3 minutes to thicken.

3. In a medium bowl whisk together the milk, olive oil, and maple syrup.

4. Add the chia egg and other wet ingredients to the dry ingredient bowl. Whisk to combine.

5. In a skillet over medium low heat place 1 tablespoon of olive oil. Once hot, cook the corn cakes about 3-4 min on each side or until golden crispy. Note: This batter will be thicker than a pancake batter. You may have to shape the patties with your hands or a spoon after adding batter to the pan.

6. Serve with an extra drizzle of maple syrup. Enjoy!

Fun fact: The Abenaki name for tree sap is “wskidakuam” (pronounced whs’-kee-dah’-koo-ahm). Can you say that? “Zinzibuckwut” is the Algonquian word the NY tribes use. Maple forests are spread across the northern territories into Canada and are traditional foods for many communities.

Nature’s Colors Easter Eggs

Wrap a hard-boiled egg up in the outer leaf of red cabbage. Hold in place with a rubber band. Place in a bowl of hot water overnight. No peeking until you unwrap the egg in the morning! You can also enjoy other Nature’s colors on hard-boiled eggs, all edible! Cut a beet into a block crayon and cover the eggshell with the beet color. Rub blueberries over the eggshell. If you make a protected surface for Nature dyeing you can rub turmeric all over the egg but be forewarned - that bright golden sun color will last a while on fingers. You can also make all these colors on peeled hard-boiled eggs anytime of the year. Rainbow eggs have a way of tasting a little magical :-)

The Annual Champlain Valley Regional Art Show is back at the University Mall in South Burlington. Many of our amazing art students have original artworks on display to share with our community. Including all students in Prekindergarten, Second Grade, and Fourth Grade. A variety of works from middle school and early ed are also on display. They are located in the carpeted area between Kohl's and Applebees. Their works will be up through April 8th, 2022. We hope you have the opportunity to see their works and celebrate our hardworking talented young artists.

The 1st annual National History Day project fair was a success for all of our middle school students.

Here are the award recipients for the best project:

Laken Beste- 6th grade “Black Fives Era of Basketball”

Edonusem Pomeyie & Owen Audette - 7th grade “Napoleon”

Kaylee Dye- 8th grade “Gender Pay Gap”

Logan Forcier- Overall Best Researched Project “Diplomatic Deities”

CABARET:

It is time to submit your “individual acts” (two minutes or less) for the online Cabaret! Does your child (or family!) have a special talent? Dance? Piano? Yodeling? Record it and load it at the link below!

We will be posting your video on the 2022 Cabaret and online Auction site as well as sharing it via social media. Just like Cabaret, this is the time for your child/children to show their hard work and unique talents to all our friends and supporters.

If you have any questions, please email the PTO at cks-pto@cksvt.org.

Post your video HERE. Please post your original files and do not load to YouTube. Send submissions by April 1st!

ONLINE AUCTION - New this year: Theme baskets!

As we start to think of Spring, our school community is gearing up for one of our biggest fundraisers of the year- the Silent Auction! During the “Covid Years” we have moved to an online auction format and will continue that way for Auction 2022.

This year, we are looking to create theme baskets for bidding. You will find a link to a google doc with 12 different basket themes below where you can sign up to bring either items listed or add your own item ideas- We welcome your creativity!

Please turn in all basket items to the front office (marked with the basket theme) by 3/31. Baskets will be put together, photographed, and added to the auction in April. A link to the basket themes can be found HERE

We also welcome your donation of gift cards to area businesses. If you would like to support your favorite local business AND support CKS at the same time consider purchasing a gift card and donating it to the auction.

Got a question about gift cards? Reach out to Jon at jhughes@cksvt.org

If you have any questions about this event, please reach out to us at cks-pto@cksvt.org!

Deadline for submissions to The Cardinal's Nest: Wednesday, 1:00 p.m. to Dr. Dwyer

"May grace and peace be yours in abundance.”

(1 Peter 1:3)