Alpha House After Care Project

I want to thank all of you whose children took part in the after care activities to benefit the Alpha House for Mothers and Children. This two-week, multi-faceted project included cooking, a bake sale, buying gift cards at a local grocery store, making multicultural ornaments, visiting a tree farm and cutting down a tree, and finally bringing it all together by setting up the tree at the Alpha House shelter, decorating it with the ornaments, and giving the residents the gift cards funded by the bake sale. Phew. That was a lot of work, and our students were enthusiastic and dedicated throughout the process. Some of them were there for a little of it, some were there for all of it - every child who participated did wonderful work to help homeless families feel supported and cared for this holiday season. Congratulations to all of you! I applaud your kindness and your energy in helping others.

The Ann Arbor News sent a reporter to Braun's Tree Farm, and the article she wrote can be found here:

http://www.mlive.com/news/annarbornews/index.ssf?/base/news-30/1229960435198520.xml&coll=2

(You may need to copy and paste the link into your browser.)

Thanks to Shan and Sabriena for leading this project. Thanks also to Braun's Tree Farm for the donation of the tree, and to the Alpha House for allowing our children to participate in this wonderful experience.

Happy Holidays, everyone!

Writer's Workshop

Today I had a rare opportunity to work with the students in Will's room on writing. I love this kind of work - it is so inspiring to see children developing their unique writer's voice and learning to trust their instinct for language. They have been doing some pretty interesting work (through the mythology theme) on creation stories, and the creation of new worlds, so we combined that idea with an exercise on atmosphere and mood development in writing. The students all generated notes, and from that point worked on a piece of writing more like a painting of words than a story or logical progression of thoughts. They all got absolutely caught up in their writer's bubble, creating their own thoughts in their own way with some striking results. I had so much fun reading their work, I wanted to share some of it with you. (Please bear in mind that not everyone had a chance to fully correct for spelling and punctuation. I have not corrected unedited work.) These are snippets, to give you a flavor, and names have been omitted to protect the artists from paparazzi.

'...They reek of sadness
angry at nothingness
sad at everything
the core like bread being ripped
apart
the forest so sad
frost
ice
rain
snow
cold
forest
blue forest...'

'You think of lime as beaing calm. You think of red as anger. You think of blue as beaing sad but I beg to differ...'

'...I see a young shadow of me, he hums and walks away - I try to follow but a huge drop of water falls and... my ears hurt as they are listening to metal scraping the edge of nothing...'

'...I see a bleached, bright
yellow, then comes
a calm blue. A burning
red comes flaring
at me...
...Something
tapped me. It was
a great warrior,
he said: The people need you. So bring me there I said...'

'...Only bubbles popping on the brook
dare disturb the sacred peace
The trees beside are still
all is still, all is still'

'The beach is flotty with its pretty blue water. It makes me feel so wonderful and happy. I hear a bird chirp, I hear the wind blow...'

'The tiger is stuck in the tree. Crying. Yelping. It's madness. I try to help but I can't. The tiger can't get out... It's yellow red and orange swirling and swirling...'

'If you look down the sea looks blue when you swim in it. It might look clear or white to you. The sun bright yellow the cherrys ripe red...'

'...Then it breaks into tiny particles of snow. But it is still very dark out. Then it gets darker and darker. Black now. Then my head goes blank.'

Thank you to all the students for making my day!

Two Great Events

Zara Zangana, from Will's class, is dancing in 'The Nutcracker' with Ann Arbor Dance Classics Ensemble. The performance is on Sunday, December 14, at 2 p.m. at Milan High School auditorium, 707 Marvin St, Milan. Tickets are $12, available by calling 734-302-4248. I won't be able to see this myself - I'll be out of town for the weekend - but I'm sure it will be beautiful. Good luck, Zara!

I also wanted to mention an event which has nothing to do with Summers-Knoll specifically, except that all families from anywhere are welcome. It sounds so lovely, I wanted to bring it to your attention:

Community Menorah Lighting and Sing-a-long: Families are invited to a Community Menorah Lighting and sing-a-long on Friday evening, December 26, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. inside
St. Clare's Church / Temple Beth Emeth, 2309 Packard Street, Ann Arbor (near Stadium Blvd). Refreshments, musicians, choral works, and sing-a-long with the children's choir, cantor Annie, and Rabbi Levy. Bring a menorah and candles if you have one, for the largest menorah lighting
celebration in the city. All are welcome.

Cooking

Our organic lunch program is about to begin a new era. Rather than having lunches brought to us, we will be making them ourselves, and involving the children as much as possible in the preparation, serving, and communal eating of the meals we provide.

Our children love to cook! The bake sale last Thursday is a wonderful example of what happens when they get inspired. They baked breads, cakes, custards and cookies from different cultures and traditions, and sold them to benefit children at the Alpha House shelter. They were passionate about what they were doing, took it very seriously, were proud of their work and their cause, and were dedicated cooks, organizers, and salespeople. Now they will take the $70+ they made on the sale, and use it to buy holiday gifts for homeless children. This coming week they will complete the overall project by making multicultural holiday ornaments, cutting down a holiday tree (generously donated by Braun's Farm), setting up the tree and decorating it at the Alpha House, and leaving their bake sale gifts beneath the tree for the children.

The power that our students feel when they are able to do something so effective for others, and to use their skills and time to such clear good purpose, is palpable. They glow with it. They move and speak with authority and resolution. And, especially where cooking is concerned, they have so much fun! So, from here on, we will be enlisting their help in cooking lunches, and we will be serving the lunches family-style, to enjoy the community spirit that comes from a job well done and good food to share. The children have been great at cleaning up after meals for some time; now they will have the chance to cook and serve the meals also. We will also have occasional after-care shopping field trips to local ethnic grocery stores, and to the Food Coop, where the children can buy local organic produce, sugar, flour, and other bulk foods. When spring comes, we will make some trips to the Farmer's Market on Wednesday mornings.

If you have any thoughts as to meals you would like to see on our lunch menu, please share! We want to reflect the cultures and lifestyles of the many different families in our community - we want to try recipes from all around the world, as well as experiment with regional American recipes, vegetarian and vegan, and regular gluten-free meals to enable all our children to participate. And if you would like to come in and help cook, and be an honored guest for the meal, you would be very welcome! We would be delighted to have you there.

Please remember, we will only be able to cook food that is peanut and tree-nut free, so please bear that in mind as you share your favorite recipes.

Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was well-timed to give everyone a chance to relax, revitalize, and get healthy. So that in itself is something to be thankful for!

As an Englishwoman, I find the festival of Thanksgiving fascinating. It is such a lovely idea; people reconnect with their loved ones and families, sitting down to enjoy unabashed comfort food and remember how much they care about each other. Many people have told me it is their favorite day of the year, and with good reason.

It also has a dark side, and it is hard for me to think about it without the complications of its history kicking in and confusing me. The story of the first Thanksgiving is attributed variously to the joy of the first good harvest brought in by the Pilgrims, after training in good agriculture from the Wampanoag; to the gratitude those first settlers felt towards their God who enabled them to survive and enjoy the fruits of the earth; to the triumph of a huge massacre of Native Americans, including the helpful Wampanoag, in which horrible atrocities were committed by the white settlers; and to the good thinking that led the first settlers to abandon their failed attempt at communist principles and embrace the beginnings of capitalism, thus enabling the crops to thrive and the harvest to prosper.

Everyone who takes a particular angle on this seems absolutely sure that they are right. They know the origins of the tradition, and they have a monopoly on the truth. I would have to go far deeper than I have into the documents of the time to be able to say who has more historical evidence on their side, but I am sure they all have some basis in fact. How the facts translate to today, how thanks are given now, how blessings are counted, how injustices are remembered and resolved, these are things that each person and family will think through to their own satisfaction.

The conflict of opinions here strikes me as being one of those golden opportunities to show children that sometimes different versions of the truth co-exist. Sometimes things are not just one way or just another. Sometimes it's important to listen to other people's versions of things and take them into account - even if you don't abandon your own version in the process. Sometimes other people's stories are worth looking into for the sake of truth and accuracy - not to make one person right and one person wrong, but to find out what is real. And sometimes it's there are seeds of reality in many places. Our children have a hard time with that concept sometimes, and take any disagreement with their own opinions very personally. It's good to find opportunities to help them see that people don't really have a monopoly on the truth, and finding out what the truth really is can be more satisfying than simply holding on to an attitude. Let's encourage them to consider shades of gray, and look for higher truth over that instinct to be the one who is right.

Evolving Definition of Giftedness

Back in October there was a lot of discussion about the nature and terminology of giftedness. It remains a term that many people misunderstand, and construe as somehow bragging, or elitist. Those who work or live with gifted children (or gifted adults), know that it is a condition of extreme intellectual ability, often complicated in various ways by asynchronous development or co-existing issues, some of which are endemic to giftedness and some not. If giftedness is ignored or mishandled in a young person, it can cause extreme distress, frustration, and anger. These in turn can lead to disconnection, depression, and other problems.

There is an on-line text chat on theories of giftedness and its definition tomorrow at 4 p.m. It sounds interesting. I believe it focuses on definitions of giftedness that are specified by test results. Details and the link to the chat are copied below. It is open to all.

The Evolving Definition of Giftedness
When: Wednesday, November 19, 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern time
Where: http://www.edweek-chat.org
You can submit questions in advance.

For years, giftedness was considered to be a static category, with children either possessing the trait or not. But developmental theory has now led to more nuanced view of what makes some people gifted. Instead of being innate and immutable, giftedness can be nurtured and even taught—and if ignored, it can also be lost. Please join our guests, the three editors of the upcoming book The Development of Giftedness and Talent Across the Life Span, who will talk about what researchers currently believe about giftedness, and its implication for classroom practice.

About the guests:
Frances Degen Horowitz is a university professor and president emerita at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York.
Rena F. Subotnik is the director of the Center for Gifted Education Policy at the American Psychological Association.
Dona J. Matthews is currently a visiting professor at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education, engaged in several writing projects, and working with families and schools on issues relating to gifted education. From 2003 to 2007, she was the director of the Center for Gifted Studies and Education at Hunter College, the City University of New York.

For background, read "'Gifted' Label Said to Miss Dynamic Nature of Talent," Education Week, Oct. 15, 2008.

No special equipment other than Internet access is needed to participate in this text-based chat. A transcript will be posted shortly after the completion of the chat.

Results: Walk to Cure Diabetes

The Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation has published its results for the Walk to Cure Diabetes that took place in September. The walk raised an amazing total of over 1.7 million dollars for diabetes research. Zara Zangana's family and friends, walking in honor of Ava Zangana as 'Ava's All-Stars', raised $3,463! Thank you to everyone for helping us support Ava, the Zangana family, and diabetes sufferers and their families everywhere. If you would like to find out more, you can visit the JDRF web site at http://www.jdrf.org - and put October 4th, 2009 on your calendar to join us for the next Walk to Cure Diabetes!

Thanks again to everyone for your support, love, and positive energy. You are a wonderful community, and it is a privilege to work with you.

Food Allergy Support

There are a number of on-line discussion groups for parents, and I just now became aware that there are two in particular which deal with food issues. Since we have many families who have an interest in managing allergies of various kinds, I thought I would share the links with you here. They are easy to join. The first is for people who want to trade thoughts about being gluten-free:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/glutenfreeannarbor/>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/glutenfreeannarbor/

And here's the one for parents of children with food allergies:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arborkidsallergies/>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/arborkidsallergies/

Maybe this will provide interesting, useful, supportive information to some of you. Wishing you all healthy, nutritious eating!

Reactions to the Election

There was a lot of excitement in school after the election. Children came in eager to talk about the results, and to share their enthusiasms or disappointments. It really seemed, however, that they were trying to be mindful of each other's sensibilities despite the strength of their feelings. I was very impressed by a particular McCain supporter who entered generously into the spirit of his friends' jubilant energy.

I shared a small part of Barack Obama's acceptance speech with Susan Carpenter's class, because the message behind it - that everyone is important, whatever race, whatever age, gender, orientation or political affiliation, everyone is part of the whole and we must work together - was one that I felt has particular significance for the children. Susan talked about John McCain's gracious speech in which he also stressed the importance of working together for the common good. Feelings have run high amongst the children in the lead-up to this election, and when children like these engage their passions, they do so with intensity. It's a perfect opportunity to help them practice using the strength of their experiences to connect with each other. How can they use their own experience to understand someone else who has a similar emotional response but comes from a different direction? How can they learn to listen to other points of view, and understand that 'different' does not mean 'wrong'? How can they use that knowledge to understand each other better? The political leaders whom they have supported so eagerly are both advocating a move into the future with tolerance and cooperation. Let's harness the children's support for their political heroes to this idea of mutual support. How can we all work together to make this a better country and a better world? What do the children think?

Also Starring....!

Maria LoCicero, the talented and glamorous celebrity of our 4-6 class, is also acting in the Ypsilanti Youth Theater's production of 'East of the Sun, West of the Moon', along with Eli, who I mentioned in my last post. Maria will be playing Garth, the strong elder brother, AND a troll, demonstrating great versatility in her acting skills. Maria, my apologies for omitting you! I did not realize! Congratulations, and break a leg!

Alumnus in the Limelight

We have been blessed over the years with many amazing and talented students, who are now out there being amazing and talented in different arenas. One such is our much-loved Eli Tell, who is starring as Justin, the prince who has been turned into a bear by the trolls, in the Ypsilanti Youth Theater's production of 'East of the Sun, West of the Moon'. Look on our community notice board for the flyer. The play will be performed November 14, 15 and 16.

Eli discovered theatre - or it discovered him - here at SK when he played Banquo in our production of Macbeth two years ago. He has never looked back. Last year he played Arlecchino in the Commedia del'Arte production the kids devised and performed for our Graduation ceremony. It was about the funniest thing I've ever seen in my life. It makes me very proud that he is continuing to act - he has a great talent! Congratulations, Eli. I look forward to seeing you on stage!

And on the subject of recess...

You might want to check this out. Liz Goodenough is the wife of Gil Leaf, who was Head of School here at Summers-Knoll when I first came on board as a teacher six years ago. Her film has become something of an icon, and is well worth watching.

PLEASE JOIN US FOR A SCREENING OF

WHERE DO THE CHILDREN PLAY?

Thursday, November 6, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
Leslie Science and Nature Center
1831 Traver Rd, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Sponsored by the National Wildlife Federation and WDCP?
FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Come see the Emmy award-winning documentary that has sparked an international discussion on the importance of open-ended outdoor play and the relationship children and the natural world must have in order to thrive and be sustained. A talk with Originator/Outreach Director Elizabeth Goodenough and NWF Regional Education Manager Rebecca Nielsen will follow the film. Refreshments will be provided. For more information on the film please visit: http:www.wfum.org/childrenplay/


DVD/Book Prizes will be given to first 20 people to RSVP to: wdcpscreening@gmail.com

Energy Consumption at SK

Trying to model good ecological practices for our students is an on-going process - we are constantly trying to do better, to re-evaluate and ensure that we are managing our environment as mindfully as possible. There are things about this building that it's hard to combat - it was not built with lightness of footprint in mind. But there are definitely things we can do, things we are doing, and things we can learn to do more effectively.

One thing we are doing that is working really well is managing our electricity consumption. We have reduced our use of electricity by almost 20% since we consciously decided to 'become' green. We are enthusiastically turning off lights, we've changed over to fluorescent bulbs, we've reduced the length of time that parking lot lights are used in the evenings - and all that adds up to a significant amount. Dave Alber (Mike's father) is looking into installing motion-sensor light switches in the children's bathrooms. (Thank you, Dave!) This helps reduce our environmental impact; it also helps reduce our costs. The savings allow us to focus more on programs and teaching, and less on utilities and bills.

Our gas bill savings are not as dramatic (although we are going the right direction): we're brainstorming right now for ways to reduce our heating and cooling consumption. We're looking into replacing the thermostats in each room to give us more control; that will help. We're also investing in some draft-stoppers for the outside doors, to reduce cold air coming in (perhaps the children will make them in aftercare...). If you have ideas to contribute, please let me know! Get your child involved in the conversation - it makes a great over-dinner discussion: how can we all become more energy-efficient? What gets left on that could be turned off? How can we keep heat from escaping? The children are often the ones to come up with the best, most creative solutions.

Recess Thoughts - and conference

Recess is important to all our children in so many ways. It gives them a time to let their thoughts wander and flow. It develops creativity. It refocuses brains and recharges attention spans. It allows social relationships and physical health to develop effectively. It enables those magical moments we all remember from childhood when our time was our own and we reinvented the world. At Summers-Knoll we have watched with delight year by year as the children have played together (kindergarteners, third graders, sixth graders all muddled in together), created forts from leaves or snow, swung and slid, made mazes in the woodchips, climbed trees, made landscapes from leaves and twigs, dug holes through the sand to the center of the earth, collected bugs, and so much more. Recess is a time for rejuvenation and joy. Without it, learning is harder, concentration is fragmented, and quality of life suffers.

There is a one-day conference on October 25th called 'Rethinking Recess', co-sponsored by the Rudolf Steiner School and a local not-for-profit organization called Generations to Come. You can find details here: http://www.fgtcsanctuary.org/RethinkingRecess/. It is open to families, teachers, anyone who has an interest in the benefits to our children of play and connecting with nature.

Presentation TONIGHT: Life with the Gifted Child

There's an event coming up TODAY which I only just heard about, but want to get the word out just in case you have time and interest:

Monday, October 13, 2008—PORTAGE, MICHIGAN
EVENT SPONSORED BY PLUS of Southwest Michigan, Region 4 Affiliate of MI Alliance for Gifted Education
TOPIC: “Life with the Gifted Child: Practical Solutions for the Home and Classroom”

WHEN: Monday, October 13; 6:30 – 8:00 pm

LOCATION: Kalamazoo RESA Building; 1819 E. Milham Rd., Portage

Does your accelerated student deal with issues associated with his or her advanced abilities? Do traits common to the gifted create difficulties in their life – and yours?

Characteristics of gifted children that can be difficult to live with, both at home and at school, might include:

· Perfectionism

· Intensity

· Heightened Sensitivity

· Introversion, and

· Questioning of Authority

To aid parents and teachers of advanced and accelerated children who could use coping strategies to make life easier for them - and you - Partners in Learning for Unlimited Success of Southwest Michigan is proud to host Dr. Michele Kane of Northeastern Illinois University.

Dr. Kane will discuss effective strategies and techniques for dealing with these personality traits, as well as ways to help kids to deal with the unique stresses of giftedness.

This FREE presentation is open to the public.

We hope that all of you will be able to attend - and tell a friend!

Thanks!
Nan Janecke, President, PLUS, 269-353-3757

Over coffee the other day, various of our parents and I were discussing common perceptions of giftedness: how the word is interpreted and what it actually means. Why would these children - who are ahead of the curve already, with brains and talents exceeding most others - need special care and attention? Don't they have more going for them than other children already? Why give more to those who are already privileged? We who live and work with these children know that their abilities are matched by needs, and that if their needs are not met the children become miserable, blocked, frustrated, self-doubting, stressed, and often angry. Their 'gifts' don't mean that everything comes easily to them. On the contrary, often issues of perfectionism, uneven development, processing, extreme sensitivity and others can make their journey intensely difficult for them. Our goal - parents and teachers alike - is to give our children the resources, attention, and environment to develop happily, deeply, effectively, responsibly, confidently. We want them to become the amazing adults that they deserve to be, for their own sake and the sake of the world they inhabit. To do that, they must be given a learning environment that supports their unique needs. If you have the chance to attend Dr. Kane's presentation tonight, I'm sure it will be worthwhile. If not, please know that I and the teachers are here to discuss your child's needs with you at any time. Don't hesitate to ask.

Annual Fund Kick-Off

Today the Summers-Knoll Annual Fund hit the ground running with a very generous donation from Steve and Sunny Chapel. Donations to the Annual Fund support programs and services, and have a direct impact on the experience of your child.

Summers-Knoll is what it is because of the quality of our teachers, the size of our classes, our commitment to support and nurture the individual gifts and spirit of each child, our dedication to educational opportunities such as languages, art, music and PE for all, and because of the richness of the exploratory, multi-faceted learning experience to which we are all committed. The Annual Fund helps us provide all these things and take them to new levels each year.

The Annual Fund is open from now until December 31st. Our goal is $30,000. Your donation is crucial, deeply appreciated, and 100% tax-deductible. No matter at what level you are able to give, whether $25 or $2,500, you are directly affecting the lives of our students.

Summers-Knoll exists because of the strength and generosity of our community. I am truly grateful to all of you for being a part of our school experience this year.

Thank you again to Steve and Sunny Chapel for making the launching gift to this year's Annual Fund drive. You are wonderful!

Garden Party

Thank you, all of you who turned out yesterday to make our Garden Party such a successful event! You all worked so hard, and the whole place looks wonderful. Thanks also to those of you who could not make the actual event, but who sent donations to help us along. I appreciate all of your efforts.


The children who came worked very hard, especially on the sand area! They helped empty all the sand bags, and then they worked assiduously at mixing and testing the sand. Thanks to them, we know that the sand is effective for building, tunneling, designing offices and studios, pouring, sieving, and making pizzas.

Thanks again to all of you!

Supporting Local Businesses

Currently one of the things that is happening in the SK administrative world is that we are doing our annual check into our regular vendors, taking bids for things like snow removal and groundskeeping, and generally making sure that we get good work done at competitive prices. One of the things that is really important to us here is that we support local businesses. If we can also support businesses from our own SK community, that's even better - we just recently discovered that the Zangana family has a carpet-cleaning business, for example. I feel bad that I didn't know this before... so I'm making a general inquiry right now. If any of you are in a line of work that we might be able to support here at school, I'd love you to let me know. Also, I'm designating the area between the 'under 6' and the boys' bathroom as a community notice board where you can put flyers, business cards etc, or let people know about events. That way we have the opportunity to support each other, to build the collective health of our community - and we will get to know each other better in the process. So please feel free to post!

Thanks,
Joanna

Green School Meeting

I had a wonderful, inspiring, informative day at Upland Hills yesterday, working with other Michigan Heads of School on the theme of ecological awareness and what that means for schools. It made me proud to be part of a community of schools that values the environment, the concept of the 'wild', nature, and the future of our children's world.

There is a Buddhist prayer that goes: "We venerate the four treasures: teachers, the Wild, family, and friends." The first treasure - teachers - honors the role that a really great teacher plays in our lives. It also encapsulates the others, in that friends, family, and the Wild - nature, the natural world - are teachers for all of us, lifelong. A child who develops without a sense of connection to the earth, the Wild, has been deprived of a fundamental part of what it means to be a healthy person, just as if she were deprived of family or friends. Yesterday as I walked through the woods at Upland Hills, I met two young boys, each with a handful of salamanders. They were wandering in the woods too, exploring, observing, discovering, connecting. I came away wondering: how can we, as a community of learners and a community of educators for each other and our children, do more to encourage this connection to the earth as teacher?

The meeting brought up other questions: not necessarily new ones, but I find I need to be reminded often! How can we go further in being mindful of the implications of our behavior? What is the dynamic we are communicating to our children? What do they make of it? What kind of footprint are we leaving for them to follow, and how do we assess that? It's a complicated business, and most of all yesterday's meeting left me musing, thinking things over, not answering or even trying to answer. Questions feel better at this point. I'd welcome your thoughts and input on any of this. Let's ask the questions as a community and see where the children take us.

You are welcome to post comments on this or anything else I write, or just email me, or catch me at school. I want to know your thoughts.

Thank you all.

Joanna

I will be out of school on Wednesday, September 24th, for an AIMS (Association of Independent Michigan Schools) Heads of School meeting at Upland Hills School. The theme of the meeting will be Green Schools. Kim will be available all day, and Shan will be in the office from 10 a.m. on. Please go to either of them if you have questions or concerns.

Thanks!

Dear Families,

Here is my blog, finally up and running! I'd like to draw your attention to the list of upcoming events, in the upper left corner of this page. This is a quick way you can see what is in the works: opportunities to meet with the board, opportunities to meet with me, opportunities to volunteer or help out at the school in a variety of ways. Right now we have the Gardening Party coming up this Sunday (I'm hoping to really make the outside areas of the school fun and beautiful - revitalize the sand area, neaten up the flower beds and bushes, and get the bird feeders ready for the cold season - as well as laugh a lot together and eat apples and donuts). Also, don't miss the Community Meeting on October 2nd, which is a great chance to meet Anthony Nitsos, the board president, and get the full picture of where the school is and where it's going financially. And then, the very next morning I'll be having coffee at drop-off time, so if you think of more questions after the meeting, or if you just want to hang out and chat, I will be there.

Thank you all for your great feedback since the beginning of the year. I'm glad people are so happy. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you have any questions or concerns, or just to say hello - it's always good to hear from you.

Warm regards,

Joanna