End of the year parties, etc

We had a lot of end-of-the-school-year festivities here.  I remember playing this game once when I was a kid.  It's a fun, easy game that seems pretty popular here.  A group of kids sit in a circle taking turns rolling a die.  When someone rolls a six, they start putting on all the gear and try to further open a chocolate bar that's wrapped in lots of layers of newspaper, using a fork and knife, before another kid rolls a six.  

There was an end-of-the-year party for each school (the girls were at 3 different ones this year) and each class, as well as hiking days and other field trips.  Only German would children think that it's perfectly normal to hike up to a couple castles with your school for a field trip!  Only German children would also think that it's perfectly normal that there's no bathroom around and so you just use the woods.  Luckily, our girls are blessed with nice friends who helped them out with this.  

Macy had a special art show with her kindergarten for the parents.

Her "Phantasiefeuerballtier" can be translated as "Fantasy Fireball Animal."

The girls and Myles had fun trying this out at a Medieval Fest.

Carly's class entered their drawings into a contest at a big park, and one of their groups won!

This "German" caterpillar was my favorite.  Very creative, I thought, and timely during the big soccer games.

Macy's kindergarten theme for their big party was Rome.  The kids had lots of fun blowing their little trumpets.  Myles had fun making a catapult for them to try to shoot a little Papa Smurf into a bucket.

Here is Macy with one of her best friends from kindergarten.

And, Carly with one of hers.  My favorite thing about her report card was that the majority of it was about how they learn and treat others, not academic grades.  The most prestigious award given to a boy and girl from each girl in the graduating class could be translated as "The nicest student" award.  Although Carly and Robyn's principals both said they would not give any German grades for their first year here, their teachers said they did so well that they chose to break the rule.