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The First Ten States

California 93010 Due 9/5/00 and left California 9/5/00
Dear friends of Owney,

Owney began the school year with Mrs. Adams' class. It was the first day of school and he enjoyed meeting all the new students. We watched the Animal Planet show all about Owney. Last year's students read the book on video tape and we read along. Mrs. Adams bought a miniature California license plate, had today's date cut into it, and put it on Owney's vest.
Owney is traveling with a guest book this year. We all signed the book, but there are only 14 signatures so far. How many people will sign his book before the end of this year's journey?
The day was beautiful here in California. The temperature was a comfortable 76 degrees with blue skies and a gentle breeze, one of those days that travel agents love to brag about. Our school has a new lawn, so we weren't able to go out and play on the grass. But it was great for everyone to come back to school and see all their friends at recess.
We didn't have time for a party in California since it was the first day. Camarillo is still an agricultural area. Owney saw lots of lemon and avocado trees. The strawberries are all done for the year. They are harvesting onions. There is still some corn growing. The beach is still nice. There was not time to go up to the big cities of Los Angeles or Hollywood, the mountains or to the desert. There was no time for Disneyland or the other amusement parks. There is so much in California to see and do and no time to do it. Owney was eager to get back on the road to visit all his friends around the US.
We were thinking about all the changes that will happen before Owney finishes his journey. It will take about 9 months to travel to all 50 states and the school year will be nearly over. The seasons will change back to fall, winter, spring, and then back to summer. We will be playing on our schoolyard grass. We will all be very used to the new ways in Mrs. Adams' class and thinking about the next year. There will even be a new president to visit in the White House! It is exciting to think about what is to come this year. We all hope it's a great one.
Bev Adams and her 4th and 5th grade class.

Washington 98902 98902 Due 9/11/00
9/15/00 My appologies, I've changed schools and locations. Owney was forwarded to my current school. Since I don't have any students yet Owney visited Anne Marie Deloza's 3rd grade class. My appologies for the delays, she will update his most current adventure and has a picture to share.

Oregon 97008 Due 9/20/00

9/21/00 Dear Journal,
I arrived in Ms. Burnett's third grade classroom September 21. The students were excited to meet me. They passed me around, hugged me, and checked out the pins on my harness while their teacher read them the story Lynn Hall wrote about my travels. They were impressed by my sense of adventure! Then they returned to their desks to research their great state of Oregon. The state tree is the Douglas fir, the state bird is the western meadowlark, and the state nickname is the Beaver State. Did you know that Oregon is one of the major growers of Christmas trees and that the beloved children's author, Beverly Cleary, is from Oregon? Each student wrote a sentence describing their favorite thing about living in Oregon. Favorite activities seemed to be snow skiing at Mt. Hood and playing on the Pacific coast beaches. After a rainy recess, they had an Oregon food tasting party including hazelnuts, cranberries, marionberry jam on wheat bread, Tillamook cheese, apple juice, and peppermint candy, all served on placemats featuring the map of Oregon. Some students took me to meet the principal, Mrs. Sharp. She wished me luck on the rest of my journey. I had to leave for the post office at lunch time but I did enjoy my visit. The students wished they could see me again at the end of the school year when my harness will be full of pins from around the country!
Now, it's off to Nevada!

Nevada 89120 Due 9/25/00

Owney arrived in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Monday, September 25,2000, at about 1:30 p.m. Needless to say we were all excited about his arrival. Owney was able to join us for academic Olympics in the classroom. He was able to visit former students who experienced Owney. They are now in fourth and fifth grades.
On Tuesday morning Owney had his picture taken with the class and joined us for the Dragon of the Month assembly and reading. He said good-bye to the boys and girls at 11:00 a.m. and was off to the post office to be mailed to Alaska. The postman was curious about the box so the story of Owney was shared with him. He in turn told everyone else in the department.
Diane Kajcienski
Tomiyasu Elementary School
Las Vegas, NV

Alaska 99501 (Originally due 9/15/00, but Alaska was somehow skipped. Owney must have been in Anchorage sometime around 10/1/00

New Mexico 87020 Due 9/29/00
10/5/00
Owney arrived in NM and has an Alaska return address. I will take him to school tomorrow and get him out in tomorrow's mail. I will be mailing him to Arizona and hope that is correct. In the last revision I got it looked like I was to send him to Alaska but that is where I got him from. I hope I am sending correctly! The box is already a bit tattered so I will try to reinforce. I will email Marjorie in AZ and tell her to be on the lookout.

Arizona 86325 Due 10/4/00
10/11/00 Owney arrived in Cornville, AZ yesterday afternoon. The students will get him this morning and take him to Flag Salute so all students K-3 will get to see him. He will go with the students as they go through their day. It is an overcast day here with chances of rain. We have spelling, handwriting, language and silent reading this morning with a fire drill. Lunch will be followed by Mrs. Wieweck reading to the class from Nerd No More and then we will go to the Library. Math and then afternoon recess will be next. We will work on our puppets and Henny Penny play that we will put on for our parents and other classes on Friday. Owney will have a busy day here in Cornville.
Cornville was to be named Cohnville after the Cohn family. The Post Office read the "h" as an "r" and it was never changed. It is a small rural town in the middle of AZ. We are 100 miles north of Phoenix the capital of AZ.
Our school is a small K-8 school with about 320 students.
Owney will travel on to the next state this afternoon.

Utah 84107 Due 10/9/00
10/17/00
Dear Friends of Owney,
Owney is alive and well in Murray, Utah. He arrived Monday,16 October, just as our third grade class gathered for Community Circle. Community Circle is our time for reading aloud and sharing ideas. Each student held Owney for one minute while Mrs. Hanson read "Animals That Survive." Owney worked on math surveys with us, helped us solve a word puzzle, then enjoyed recess. Our weather was mild--a lovely autumn day. Owney spent the rest of the day helping us learn about bones. Our skeleton, Mr. Bones, even had a chance to hold Owney in his bony hands. Owney will rest tonight by his mail sack.
Earlier in the day, our class visited a nature center along the Jordan River. We discussed animal habitats, listened to a Native American legend, and sang songs about the American West.

Idaho 83401 Due 10/13/00
10/20/00
Hello from Idaho!
Our classroom is somewhat unique. We are nicknamed L.E.A.D. This is the acronym for the gifted and talented program of Bonneville School District in Idaho Falls, ID. Each day different 4th/5th grade children from different schools ride a special bus to our classroom. Iona, Fairview and Ucon students attend on Tuesdays; Cloverdale, Falls Valley and Iona students attend on Wednesdays; and Ammon and Hillview students attend the g/t program on Thursdays.
Since Owney cannot stay for a complete week and visit all the children, the students were invited to an "Owney Party." Eighty students returned to Cloverdale (and the LEAD classroom) after school on Friday to meet and hold Owney. The famous dog then had a front row seat as we watched his video and ate pizza. One of the boys this year even brought doughnuts to share. Yum!
We made our postcards and you should receive them soon! Thanks for your cards. We have a neat bulletin board where we can see them every week.
On to Colorado!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Colorado 80809 Due 10/18/00
10/24/00
Well, Owney had a great time in Colorado. He got to hang out with Mr. DiFiore's class for the day. He did math with us, wrote with us, and all kinds of school things. Then, at the end of the day, we had our Owney party! Owney really knows how to have fun! Well, off he goes and we miss him already! Note: we enclosed our class picture with him. You can also check out our class.
-Mr. DiFiore's class

On to the next 10 states.

Back to the opening.

Email: adamsb@vcss.k12.ca.us