This is the impressive base layout created by CVA student Sam in Mr. Huffman's class. Working alongside his friends from CVA, Sam has designed something truly special in Minecraft Education Edition. His creativity and skill are evident in every detail, making it simply exceptional. Great job, Sam! #MinecraftEducation #washingtonstateeducation #CVA #onlinelearning

CVA 20th Anniversary Celebration

Greetings CVA Students and Families!

CVA celebrates our 20th Anniversary this 2023-24 school year. We would like a special T-shirt design to commemorate 20 years of serving students and families through our parent-partnership program. What do you think of us starting a new tradition of having a commemorative CVA T-shirt each year available for CVA students?

If you would like to participate and share your creative T-shirt design for this year, you are encouraged to follow a few guidelines:
-Please include “CVA 20th Anniversary 2023-24” in your design.
-Keep your design simple using 3 colors or less. See our CVA-colored logo in the photo.
- Design due by March 24th. Please send your T-shirt design to your CVA Teacher or Kimber.rolfe@cva.org .
-Participation = 1 free T-shirt of the final design. (CVA staff will vote on a final design.)

Hello CVA Families!

The spring art and music contests sponsored by the Veterans of Foreign Wars Auxiliary are open for your submissions. There are three contests available for your students to participate in. The "Illustrating America Art" Contest is for students grades kindergarten through eighth grade. For high school students grades nine through twelve, there is a 3-Dimensional Patriotic Art Contest. These contests recognize young artists who want to express their patriotism through art. The final contest is the "Get Excited for the Red, White, and Blue" national singing contest for students in grades kindergarten through twelfth grade. Entrants in this contest make a video of themselves singing the Star-Spangled Banner.

The entry forms show the deadline as March 31st; however, that date is incorrect based on information from the local VFW Auxiliary representative. All entries need to be sent to Lynnette Franks by March 13th so that there is time to get the entries to the VFW representative. Please reach out to your homeroom teacher for the applications to any of the contests.

What is CVA

Registration for the 2024-25 school year opens TODAY!

What is CVA

Registration for the 2024-25 school year opens March 1st!

Students in Ms. Dulaney’s CVA class, in grades 3-8, participated in a LEGO TEAMS meet- up to share their creativity. Students shared their expertise and interest with each other, reviewed LEGOS resources, and were able to build connectedness within our virtual class setting through a shared interest.

**Student Spotlight**

Brynlie, age 12, a 7th grader at CVA, can think of few pastimes she enjoys more than crocheting. At age 10, she first decided she wanted to try her hand at this hobby. Although initially a struggle, Brynlie challenged herself to learn with the help of a book. After making a few hats, she soon progressed to crocheting sweaters and plushies. In addition to designing potholders for her parents, she is now considering selling octopus keychains online. Brynlie enjoys creating these colorful animals in various shapes. Learning to crochet was far from easy, but Brylie feels certain her hard work has paid off over time. Take a look at some of her work!

Students in Rebecca Dulaney’s class participated in a class-wide family yoga session on Thursday, January 18, 2024, taught by Susan Reid (Ms. Dulaney’s sister), on ZOOM, all the way from South Carolina. Susan is a certified yoga instructor there. Susan introduced us all to centering energy claps, and we learned some yoga poses like cat/cow, sphinx, and cobra. We ended our session together with a couple meditations including, “Today I want to be”/”Today I am”, and we learned the meaning of “Sat Nam” to challenge each of us to “Be true to ourselves/Be yourself”.

CVA teacher Jason Harrison's 4th-grade student Abigail did exceptional work on the Concept 2 Unit 2 Social Studies "The Power of People" Final Project. This project asks students to select an important citizen from American history, research that person, and develop a wax museum presentation. Abigail selected Amelia Earhart, and her performance is a good representation of Earhart and her life.
#ameliaearhart #virtualschooling #cva

Madison Watts, a 9th-grade CVA high school student, who maintains straight A's has had a lot of success this year wrestling. She's ranked 4th in the state for the small school division . In December, Madison traveled to California for the West Coast Women's Tournament Of Champions and placed 6th in a 68-man bracket. Way to go Madison!

**Student Spotlight**

"This past weekend (January 20th, 2024) I competed in Paris, France at one of the biggest Jujitsu competitions in the sport. I had 2 matches and 2 wins. In my first match, I was able to finish in a minute with a submission. Unfortunately, I injured my opponent but I was able to move on to the finals. In the finals, I won by points with 2 points and 1 advantage! It was a very good match and I learned a lot from this experience. I wouldn't have been able to achieve this without God. Before my matches, I spent most of the time praying that he would give me the speed and the strength to win and thankfully my prayers were answered and I was able to go home with a gold medal. I spent 3 months preparing for this tournament, I spent most of my time In California training for this competition and I did 7 hours of hard training Monday - Friday. I had some minor injuries throughout this but I pushed myself past my limits and worked as hard as I could to make sure I felt prepared enough to win. This was an amazing experience and my next competition will be another major competition in Florida. Thank you for all the support!"

**Isabella, 10th Grade Student at CVA High School, Kettle Falls**

Martin Luther King, Jr.

Why is Monday, January 15, 2024 a school holiday?
We celebrate the life of Martin Luther King Jr, an influential speaker and courageous advocate for the rights of all humans in the United States. He is most known for his role in organizing and inspiring people to stand up against the injustices that were occurring against African American people in the United States in the 1950’s- 1960’s through the use of peaceful protests and boycotts. Martin Luther King Jr. was an eloquent and astute speaker whose leadership and courage helped pave the way for changes to be made.
To learn more about Martin Luther King Jr, you can visit: https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/martin-luther-king-jr
OR,
You can find various Martin Luther King Jr. activities for your student to engage in to learn more here: https://www.teachstarter.com/us/blog/how-to-teach-about-martin-luther-king-jr/

Every Kid Outdoors

Visit www.everykidoutdoors.gov to access a valuable program providing FREE park passes for 4th-grade students to explore Federal Lands and Waters. This initiative, known as Every Kid Outdoors, offers a unique opportunity for young learners to engage with nature. Find more information and print your pass to embark on exciting outdoor adventures! #EveryKidOutdoors #ExploreNature #FreeParkPass

Four students from CVA placed in the local Chewelah VFW Post Veteran’s Day essay contests. While our local post is right down the road from the CVA-Valley District offices in Eastern Washington, they graciously sponsor CVA students from around the state in their contests.

In the Youth Essay Contests for grades three, four, and five, Malachi placed first for third grade and Stanton placed first out of all fifth-grade students. Congratulations Malachi and Stanton!

In the Patriot’s Pen Contest, which is for students grades six through eight, congratulations to Esme and Breccan! Esme’s essay was selected by the Chewelah VFW Post as the 1st place winner and Breccan was the 2nd place winner. Esme’s essay will also move on to the next level of competition, Eastern Washington District Nine.

Because our students are from across the state, students and their families are invited to join the Awards Social virtually so that their accomplishments can be celebrated. Students will also receive certificates and awards in the mail.

In the spring, the VFW also sponsors art and music contests. Be on the lookout for information on those contests late February or early March.

Again, congratulations to all our CVA students!

#writingisawesome
#cva
#WashingtonSchools

**Student Spotlight**

CVA junior, Jayda Murphy Ray, is one of 84 girls who have qualified to compete in the Junior National Final Rodeo in Las Vegas from December 7 to 16. She is part of the Washington State High School Rodeo and Northwest Junior Rodeo organizations, qualifying specifically in barrel racing—a competition where the horse runs a cloverleaf pattern for the fastest time. Jayda is responsible for caring for and training five horses, each of which is utilized in different events. At the Junior NFR championships, she will be riding Yogi. Notably, three girls from her trailer and barn have also qualified in different events

The CVA Student Gallery is up and running! Student projects displayed range from curriculum final projects and Art club assignments to independent artwork. We are loving getting to see all the great things our CVA students create.

Want your work displayed? Contact taylorspencer@cva.org or your homeroom teacher.

**Native American Heritage Month**

What started at the turn of the century as an effort to gain a day of recognition for the significant contributions the first Americans made to the establishment and growth of the U.S., has resulted in a whole month being designated for that purpose.

One of the very proponents of an American Indian Day was Dr. Arthur C. Parker, a Seneca Indian, who was the director of the Museum of Arts and Science in Rochester, N.Y. He persuaded the Boy Scouts of America to set aside a day for the “First Americans” and for three years they adopted such a day. In 1915, the annual Congress of the American Indian Association meeting in Lawrence, Kans., formally approved a plan concerning American Indian Day. It directed its president, Rev. Sherman Coolidge, an Arapahoe, to call upon the country to observe such a day. Coolidge issued a proclamation on Sept. 28, 1915, which declared the second Saturday of each May as an American Indian Day and contained the first formal appeal for recognition of Indians as citizens.

The year before this proclamation was issued, Red Fox James, a Blackfoot Indian, rode horseback from state to state seeking approval for a day to honor Indians. On December 14, 1915, he presented the endorsements of 24 state governments at the White House. There is no record, however, of such a national day being proclaimed.

The first American Indian Day in a state was declared on the second Saturday in May 1916 by the governor of New York. Several states celebrate the fourth Friday in September. In Illinois, for example, legislators enacted such a day in 1919. Presently, several states have designated Columbus Day as Native American Day, but it continues to be a day we observe without any recognition as a national legal holiday.

In 1990 President George H. W. Bush approved a joint resolution designating November 1990 “National American Indian Heritage Month.” Similar proclamations, under variants on the name (including “Native American Heritage Month” and “National American Indian and Alaska Native Heritage Month”) have been issued each year since 1994.

https://www.nativeamericanheritagemonth.gov/about.html

Photo credit: Native Americans from Southeastern Idaho: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/519256

Each year on November 20th, World Children’s Day promotes the welfare of children around the world. The day also spreads awareness for issues that children face and celebrates international togetherness.
-National Day Calendar®

CVA thanks our nation’s veterans! As a way of showing appreciation for their sacrifices, students in Mr. Gonzales and Mrs. Naccarato’s homeroom classes created letters and pictures that would be shared with local veterans. While all submissions were fantastic, we wanted to take a minute to highlight a beautiful drawing from Mrs. Naccarato’s third grade student, Roxas. His photo made its way to Lt. Col. (retired) Brad Liberg, current principal at Pasadena Park Elementary. Join us in admiring Roxas’s artwork.

Jeada is a new 7th grade student with CVA this year. When creating her learning plan, she chose to add Artistic Pursuits art curriculum as an elective, which focuses on the elements of art and composition. Recently, Jeada has been learning drawing techniques to create texture. These are just a few of Jeada’s art samples from her lessons. In addition to learning about art through her art curriculum, Jeada has been attending the CVA Art Club this year which is a recreational time for students to meet together through video meetings to work on individual but commonly themed art projects. She is really putting her creativity to work!
#cva
#schooldays
#virtualschool

CVA teachers and staff enjoyed costumes and a fun day of hocus pocus! They dined on some spooky and scrumptious"char-boo-terie boards" and even had a few trick-or-treating visitors!

Jackson and Aubrey enjoyed their first earned Donut Party! They worked together to earn 25 marbles, which took a little over a month to earn. They were able to earn marbles by putting in extra effort in their schoolwork, having a great attitude, and being helpful to each other and their mom/teacher. Each week they would announce how close they were to their goal during their Teams video chat with their CVA Teacher, Ruthanna Frizzell. Jackson and Aubrey enjoyed sharing their donuts with a homeschool group they are a part of on Friday, where they meet at a park and enjoy time with other families. They are excited to start again and work hard to earn another Donut Party soon.

The Rock Cycle Rap

Hudson is a 6th-grade student who has attended CVA since Kindergarten and has been on Ruthanna Frizzell’s class list all seven years. Hudson has a passion for creating YouTube videos and even has his own YouTube channel. Hudson had a great time creating a rap video for one of his final projects within his Moving Beyond the Page curriculum. When Hudson isn’t creating videos or doing schoolwork he enjoys hiking, biking, playing soccer, baseball, and basketball. He also raises goats!

The Rock Cycle Rap:

**Student Spotlight**
Hello, my name is Solara. I am 11 years old, and I’m in Mrs. Beck-Friend's 6th-grade Social Studies. I learned a lot about ancient civilizations in my lessons. One thing I learned that I did not know was what bias meant. My mom has these Chatbooks that hold all of our picture memories in them. One of the pictures of me and my siblings had the caption, “Aren’t my kids so cute?! Or am I just biased?” I had no idea what that meant, and I wanted to know! In Social Studies, I learned that bias is an opinion that does not let someone be fair. Using an example from my Social Studies lesson, if someone said, “All dogs are mean,” that would be biased. Maybe that person had a bad experience with a dog, which led them to believe that all dogs are mean. It’s alright for them to feel like that, but that doesn’t make it true! My aunt and uncle have a dog, and he is super sweet! I have also seen mean dogs. Some dogs are mean, and some are sweet. You would also be biased if you said, “All dogs are sweet.” Thank you so much, CVA, for helping me learn the meaning of bias. Doing school with CVA is the best, but then again, I’m biased! ??

Romeo and Ami Swanson are students at CVA. They are excited to show off their monster truck collection to Mr. Huffman in their monthly review meeting.

CVA Teacher Mrs. Spencer and her family got to visit with a CVA family in Everett last week! Students Rafi and Raheem hosted them for a delicious Middle Eastern meal. Rafi, Reems, Finn, and Quinn had tons of fun playing and running around! This is Rafi and Raheem’s second year with CVA. Thankfully, because of these relationships and the flexibility provided for each student, they plan to stay with CVA forever.

**Student Spotlight**
Hi my name is Joshua. I’m 9 yrs old and in 4th grade. I play piano and like to run track. I’m hoping to take taekwondo this year! I went on a field trip for my science class at CVA. I had to graph the difference types of trees, measure a leaf and needle and count rings on a tree stump. The tree stump had 30 rings making it thirty years old!