From Wisconsin: Here are our answers to your questions - we enjoyed thinking and talking about them. :-) We watched the bread baking video this morning and started to answer the questions below. We talked about how the bread looked like giant bagels (is it challah bread?) and the oven was similar to the pizza ovens in restaurants here.
Khader wants to know:
Do you have soccer class at the school?
No we do not have a soccer class, but we learn to play during physical education class. Many girls and boys like to play soccer for fun at recess. Many students also play on soccer teams after school and on weekends.
Sometimes the boys at our school fight. (The boys who fight get in trouble) Is that the same at your school?
Yes, students who fight also get into trouble at our schools. They might have to talk to the principal or the counselor, have a time-out, get a write-up which your parents see, or another consequence that the teacher or principal feels will help the student do better.
When school is closed during the summer can you still go to use the playground or is it locked?
We can go to most playgrounds in our town.
If someone is hurt at school do you have a school hospital?
No, we have a school clinic with a nurse who helps us when we get hurt or get sick or need to take medicine.
George wants to know:
What do you do in the summertime?
We are all giving our ideas: go swimming, go to the park, go to day camps, go to parties, go on family trips, play baseball, stay up late, watch movies, play football, go to Water Parks, riding bikes, play with friends, travel, go to the Milwaukee Zoo, sleep late, read, play outside later, play tennis, and go to festivals and fairs.
What are your favorite sports?
Football, tennis, fishing, baseball, soccer, golf, basketball, swimming, kid-sized motorcycles.
We are all watching the world cup, are you?
Some of us are watching the World Cup and some of us are not. Those watching would like Brazil or Spain or Germany to win.
Do you take your food to school with you or not?
Yes, we do because only middle school and high school have lunch made at school.
Do the people there know about us?
Yes somewhat because of what we read in the news and see on television.
Danny wants to know:
Do you have scouts or camping?
Yes, people can join Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts if they like. Some people go to day camps, some go to overnight camps, and others go camping with their families.
Do you watch NBA?
Some of us watch the NBA games. The team in our city is called the Milwaukee Bucks. A few students like them but most like the Lakers or Celtics instead.
Henriette wants to know:
At school we have sports competitions and field days where we play sports. Do you have field days?
Fourth and fifth graders can choose to join a field day one afternoon in May after school. They do running races, relays, hurdles, and long jump.
How many minutes do you have for each class? We have 45 minutes here. Do you have the same?
Classes are different times – they may be anything from 25 minutes to 60 minutes, depending on the subject.
How many children are in each class?
There are usually about 20-23 students in each class.
4th of July Celebrations: This is a big deal here in Milwaukee and Whitefish Bay! There are fireworks, Summerfest, lots of eating, parades, games, getting ready for guests, and many people have a day off of work or school. Here is a web site with news about the celebration here in Whitefish Bay!
http://www.wfbcivicfoundation.org/
Thanks for reminding me of the Fourth of July. It just does not seem like it is coming up. I think tomorrow a friend of mine and I are going to try to do something "American" together. I am not sure what that will be!
I am posting too often now to this blog, but I have a few pictures of a trip I took to hear some speakers at the Friend's Meeting House in Ramallah and the Bed and Breakfast where we stayed over night. The main speaker was Dr. Michael Sonnleitner, who is a Ghandi Scholar and then two Palestinians responded. Thuqan K. Qishawi who is working for the American Friends Service Committee as the director of the Quakers Palestine Youth Program and Zoughbi Zoughbi, who is the founder and director of the Wi’am Palestinian Conflict Resolution Center were the two who responded. It was interesting to hear what they had to say about how Ghandi's approach does or does not fit the Palestinian situation. 
