Hello South Dakota science teachers and friends of science!  We are finishing up another school year with its demands, joys, and frustrations. It will be a time to regroup and plan for a new school year.

    As summer approaches and we clean our classrooms, revise our curriculum, and think of new ideas to engage our students, here is my message to you: plan a few days outside to enjoy the beauties of our state or other places as you travel, meet new people and share (science) stories, attend new seminars, workshops or classes, relax with a good book or a long walk, in other words give yourselves a little ME time.

    We also know that there are no breaks without commitments for work-related projects or family time. As you plan your summer calendar, mark the date for the SDSTA summer meeting scheduled for Monday, July 30 from noon to 2:30 PM in Chamberlain/Oacoma at the Community Center. It is located on Exit 260 on the opposite side of the interstate from Al's Oasis: the first brick building on your right. Feel free to contact me for further information. My cellular phone number is 605-645-1346. Among topics to be discussed at the meeting will be the new officers' handbook and conference speakers. We will also share stories of some of our summer projects.

    I will leave you with a quote from Jochanan Ben Zakkai "If the heavens were all parchment, and the trees of the forest all pens, and every human being were a scribe, it would still be impossible to record all that I have learned from my teachers."

    Enjoy your summer!

Micheline Hickenbotham
MichelineHickenbotham@bhsu.edu