The students are almost finished!! Wow!  They have been really making it difficult for the teachers to catch up.

Right now the students are 95% of the way around they world, which is incredibly impressive.  They are currently in Cuba right off the coast of The United States, and have traveled a total of 23790 miles.

Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean Sea.  Cuba has an interesting terrain, or how the land looks.  About 1/3 of Cuba is covered by mountains and rolling hills, while the other 2/3 are lowland plains.

Fast Facts (taken from www.kids.nationalgeograpic.com):

• Official Name: Republic of Cuba
• Form of Government: Socialist
• Capital: Havana
• Population: 11,382,820
• Official Language: Spanish
• Money: Peso

To learn more about Cuba visit http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/places/find/cuba/

The teachers are in Indonesia with 5458 miles, so they are pretty far behind!

The leading grades are Second grade with 6,931 miles, Third grade with 4,499 miles, and Fifth grade with 3,740 miles.  Keep it up students, you are in the home stretch!

                                           ¡Bem-vindo ao Brasil!

Bem-vindo ao Brasil is how to say “Welcome to Brazil” in Portuguese which is the official language of the country.  The country of Brazil (located on the continent South America) is the 5th largest nation in the world!  Hopefully since Brazil is so large, it will give everyone else some time to catch up to the students.  Brazil shares a boarder with every country in South America except for two.  Can you name those two countries?

Not only is Brazil gigantic, it is also home to the largest jungle, the Amazon Rainforest.  One of the largest snakes in the world, the anaconda, can be found lurking in the Amazon River.  Pictures of the Amazon Rainforest sure looks pretty in pictures, but if you visit be sure to bring your bug spray.  There are around 2,500,000 different species of insects that live in the Amazon Rainforest!!

The teachers are still trying to catch up to the students!  They are in the Northern Territory of Australia, so they are still pretty far behind.  However, with how hard they are working, there is still a chance that they can catch up to the students!  Still in the lead is Ms. Collins, followed by Mr. Caratachea, and in third place is Mrs. Guinther.

To learn more about Brazil, and to find the answer to the question asked in the first paragraph visit this website http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/places/find/brazil/.  *Remember the question was: Which two South American countries does Brazil NOT share a boarder with?

WOW! Students have left the continental United States. They are now in Australia with 3,967 miles! Fifth grade has stepped into the lead with 1,088 miles. Fourth grade is a close second place. Second grade is on their heels. Can’t wait to see what happens next week. Mrs. Guinther remains in first, Ms. Collins in second, but Mrs. Rama has taken over third place. Teachers are now in Mississippi with 739 miles.

Here are some facts about Mississippi.

Learn more about people and places in Australia or one their famous animal friends.

Question to second grade: Can you tell me what are the seven continents? Bonus: What about the five oceans?

For students, the 4th grade is leading the way with 738 miles posted. 5th and 2nd grade are close behind. For teachers, Mrs. Guinther has the most miles at 61.5. Ms. Collins and Ms. Szakal are next.

Students are in Oklahoma with 1251 miles. Teachers are in Tennessee with 418 miles.

Check out more about Oklahoma by clicking here.

Learn more about Tennessee by clicking here.

Question to Fourth grade: What are the 5 states that border Virginia? Which team is currently located there?

Today was the kick off for the Virtual World Race at our school. Students started the morning by walking to school, which was part of International Walk to School Day. Find out more about it by clicking here: http://www.walktoschool.org/

All images below by Tom Saunders from the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Crestview students leading the way

Tuckahoe Middle School Band livens up the morning

First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell and our mascot Big Red

Virginia Secretary of Health Dr. Bill Hazel, State Health Commissioner Dr. Karen Remley, First Lady of Virginia Maureen McDonnell, and VFHY Executive Director Marty Kilgore support International Walk to School Day

Big Red and students

Principal Karen Rawlyk address walk participants

International Walk to School Day was sponsored by Virginia Foundation for Healthy Youth, Prevention Connections, Henrico County Public Schools and Virginia Department of Transportation.