Hinsdale School Happenings

Sledding

Recess is more exciting with Mr. Zopp, the new superintendent of Hinsdale Public Schools. He arrived from Wisconsin when the weather was warm and mosquitos were biting. Now, the new administrator has experienced the bite of Montana winters. To counter the doldrums of winter recess with crunchy snow and icy blacktop, Mr. Zopp reintroduced an old recess activity: sledding. The elementary students at Hinsdale have returned to the park sledding hill.

Sledding time is also an incentive for students to "walk across Montana" during morning walk time (the time between when buses arrive and early recess begins, while many students eat breakfast).

Pumpkin processing

The halls of Hinsdale School were quiet Monday, Jan. 30, with all but three high school students attending Honor Band and Choir. Missing high schoolers allowed for flexibility in our day, providing the middle school students with time in the kitchen. Four students, Patti Armbrister, the on-campus garden expert, and the kitchen staff, Joyce Leatherberry and Mabel Burshia, processed pumpkins in the afternoon.

Students cleaned and scraped out the pumpkins, while the adults prepared them for baking. The pumpkins, harvested at the end of September by the freshman class, were stored in the school cellar. Hinsdale School is fortunate to have a large cellar in which garden produce may be stored for later consumption. The students and staff certainly benefit from locally grown produce.

The school began growing pumpkins in 2014, when they were planted along the back fence of the playground. From 2015 to 2021, pumpkins were grown alongside the fruit trees planted by students in 2015. However, due to repeated years of drought, the pumpkin patch was relocated to a farm north of Hinsdale in the spring of 2022; at the same time, it was decided that we could not justify precious water for jack-o-lanterns varieties. The selected varieties grown this year are small, but exceptionally tasty. Two varieties of pie pumpkins, New Pie and Winter Luxury, grew well in our school garden.

In 2021, grasshoppers took a toll on the pumpkin crop, eating small holes in the skins and at times consuming whole fruit. Grasshoppers did not seem to impact the plants and fruit this year. The 2022 pumpkin plants produced a similar number of pumpkins, although they were a little lighter weight due to the dry conditions. Grateful for the healthy plants and resulting fruit, we will feel especially blessed when pumpkin bars await us in the cafeteria.

Spelling Bee

The fourth through eighth grade students at Hinsdale Public Schools participated in the school spelling bee on Thursday, Jan. 19. With eleven students present, the bee went quickly. Students barely had time to return to their seats before they were called to the microphone for the next word. Ms. Lacey Mogan, the Hinsdale High math teacher, pronounced the words, while Honor Society students Zora Holt, Andrew Boucher and Ashton Smith served as judges.

Cienna Strommen, another Honor Society member, directed students and provided much-needed instruction to new bee participants.

Brynlie Boreson and Isabelle Jones tied for fourth place. Haizyn Rutherford, one of the youngest participants, took third place. Kort Strommen came in second behind Reese Bowman. The five students will travel to Lustre later this month to participate in the County Spelling Bee. Best of luck to all participants!