This past Monday a group of twenty-five students traveled to Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo. The students earned the special field trip by reading books this summer. Kindergarten through second grade students read forty books, while third grade through fifth read twenty books. This culmination of the summer reading experience was amazing for the students, staff, and parents who participated.

We began the trip by meeting at school around eight o'clock. We then boarded the Arrow Stage liner and departed for Omaha. On the ride down many students enjoyed watching Charlotte's Web (live action version) and the first half of Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron. Soon we saw the desert dome cresting over the horizon. But before we entered we had a nutritious picnic outside of Rosenblatt Stadium.

At the zoo we broke into groups of five students and enjoyed amazing exhibits such as: Cat Complex, Lied Jungle, Cheetah Valley, Dairy World & Petting Zoo, Desert Dome, Bear Canyon, Giraffe Complex, Scott Kingdoms of the Seas Aquarium (my personal favorite), Hubbard Gorilla Valley, and Kingdoms of the Night. We concluded out zoo outing by meeting back up at the Wild Kingdom Pavilion.

On the ride home, many of us were tired from miles of walking. We sat back and enjoyed the remainder of Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron and followed that by watching Shark Tale. We finished Shark Tale as we reentered Grand Island and arrived at school just before five o'clock. Some walked home. Others were picked up by family. But all of us had truly amazing trip. Thank you Mr. Hauser for this opportunity to enrich the lives of our students. And thank you to those students who have been reading this summer, keep it up!

You can all find out more about the Henry Doorly Zoo at www.omahazoo.com