Kathryn, Emily H., and Lucy enjoy the water at Half Sound

We started the week out with introductory classes and quickly dove right into our regular school schedule. We're all still having a little trouble realizing that summer has finally come to an end, but now it's back to the grind. The schoolwork is piling up and we are all learning how to manage our time with the distractions of one of the most beautiful campuses on Earth.

Amir prepares to take a big bite of his birthday cake

Last Thursday we became certified in our PADI Medic first aid course. Now that we are all "trained to help each other," parents can rest assured that their children will be safe. We also began to talk about the word "querencia," and the importance of developing a sense to place. We went out on the island and found our own querencia spot, a place where we felt at peace with ourselves. On Saturday we had a cookout at a beach in Deep Creek, and about 10 students also volunteered at the Deep Creek Middle School. We stayed at the beach all afternoon, worked on our suntans and played all kinds of games. We celebrated Sarah's birthday later that evening.

Nick hard at work on our new cordwood building

On Sunday morning some of the students went off to a Methodist church, but caught up on sleep. When people arrived back at the Island School from church we had a really good brunch. The rest of the day the kids spent catching up on rest or doing work on the beach. We helped the economy of Eleuthera by going down to the Marina and buying massive amounts of candy. It was the first day we had been able to buy candy at the store.

Jess Baylor and Skyler hard at work!

After a long day of rest, we woke up Monday morning early for exercises, where we ran to "No Name" Harbor," for a 3.5-mile run. At No Name, we swam laps before heading back to campus. Monday afternoon we had art class and went outside to create something out of the natural resources on campus. People came up with really creative pieces. Later that night, people caught up on their Omeros reading for a quiz on Tuesday. Tuesday started with Chris Maxey leading us in calisthenics and a snorkel in the cut. Our English quiz was postponed, which was a big relief on every student's part. We all piled into the Lecture Hall for a slide show or different organisms that live in the ocean. We then celebrated Everton's birthday and ate ice cream and cake in the dinning hall area.

Emily B. helps green campus

This morning we slept in for an extra hour and had morning circle at 7:30. Right after circle we had chores. Following chores we went to Sunset Beach where half of us learned how to scuba dive and the other half learned how to kayak. The scuba was amazing. It was so much fun to be underwater without coming up to breathe. Overall, it was a really fun week, and really busy.

Emily- hi to everyone at home! I miss you guys all so much but I am having a lot of fun…

Kristy- hi everybody, I miss you all a lot. I really can't wait until December to see all you guys...

Nick- Mom, Dad, Alex, Dana, Joanie, and Paul-I love you all and miss you very much…I can't wait to see you in December. I'm having a blast.