PTA News and Newsletters

Dear Burbank Families,

The 27th Dr. Feinberg Geography Challenge is fast approaching!  This year’s Challenge will be held in the Burbank gymnasium on Thursday, March 28th. Below is the schedule of events:

8:45-9:30 Grade 4

9:45-10:30 Grade 3

10:45-11:15 Grade 1

11:40-12:10 Grade 2

12:45-1:15 Kindergarten  

HOW TO FORM A TEAM

Students lead the team formation, but may need guidance from parents and/or the PTA.  If your child needs help finding teammates please email Julie Waters (jflynn97@gmail.com), Lindsay Doherty, (lindsay.prendergast@gmail.com)  or Kelly Michaud (kellysmichaud@gmail.com).  We will ensure that every interested child can participate.  Teams must be made up of students in the same grade level, but the students do not have to be in the same classroom.   Teams are comprised of 3-4 students; we do not recommend teams of 2 because if one child is out sick or otherwise cannot attend it leaves a student on their own without a team.  Teams of 5 are too big and won't allow us to fit students around a desk.  

REGISTRATION

Team registration is now open and is conducted online.  Students sign up as a team of 3-4, not as individual students.  You need the students’ names, team name and their teachers’ names to complete the registration.

Visit  2024 Geography Challenge Registration when you are ready to sign up.  Please only register once per team.  Registration will be open until Friday March 8th.

EVENT DESCRIPTION

The Geography Challenge is a non-competitive display of students’ knowledge.  As in past years, students form teams of 3 or 4 members and answer questions found in the Dr. Feinberg Geography Challenge Study Books, which will be distributed via email before the event.  Students who participate will have the opportunity to learn basic geography facts and terms.  

It is not necessary to memorize the entire study guide.  This is meant to be a fun learning experience.  Some teams will break the study guide up and assign a section to individual members, others will just have all members study the entire guide. 

Teams will often dress up or make t-shirts/costumes to represent their team name - this is the really fun part!

EVENT DETAILS:

This year's event will take place in the school gymnasium.  The teams will be spaced out standing at desks equipped with dry erase boards/markers.  All non-participating students will be seated on the floor. During the event the MC will ask teams ~10-15 questions from the study guide.  The teams will have 30 sec to 1 min to record their answer on a dry erase board (correct spelling is not required).  With 3-4 players on a team there is a good chance that one of them will know the answer!  The MC will then ask the teams to hold up their boards and will call on the individual team to give their answer.  After the last team has answered the MC will announce the correct answer.  This is then repeated for each question.  The final question for all teams is to identify a flag that volunteers will hold up.  Teams tend to rotate players so that each is given the opportunity to write and verbalize their answer but this is not required.  

Participation in the Geography Challenge tends to be high, with about two-thirds of all Burbank students electing to take part.  The Geography Challenge is unique to Burbank - we are the only elementary school in Belmont that hosts this fun, educational activity.  

STUDY MATERIALS

Study packets will be posted on the PTA website starting Friday, February 16th.

All students attend the Geography Challenge regardless of whether they are on a team. 

Fun, teamwork, learning, and enrichment are all part of the Geography Challenge!  If you have any questions after reading the registration materials, please contact one of the Geography Challenge co-chairs.  All of our children have participated since kindergarten and we can assure you this is a fun event and your children will surprise you with their geography knowledge at the end!  We hope that your child decides to participate this year.

Sincerely,

Lindsay Doherty, lindsay.prendergast@gmail.com

Julie Waters, jflynn97@gmail.com

Kelly Michaud kellysmichaud@gmail.com

PTA Geography Challenge Co-Chairs