BRIEFLY IN EDUCATION

‘Green Valentine’ Eco-Fest is Saturday

Anneliese’s Schools will hold its Green Valentine Environmental Awareness Festival from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday at the Willowbrook Campus, 20062 Laguna Canyon Road.

Admission is free. There will be no parking available at the campus; attendees must park at the Act V lot at 1900 Laguna Canyon Road and use the free shuttle service.

The fun-filled day will offer organic food ideas, green vendors, solar energy displays and workshops for adults and children. Visitors can enjoy a variety of activities: information-packed talks, garden activities such as making boxes to grow your own salad greens and planting milkweed to attract monarch butterflies, plus face painting and inflatable jumping areas for the younger children.

Local gardening expert Green Gene will speak on “Reducing, Reusing, Recycling and Restoring.” He will also teach a pruning and easy-composting workshop. Certified organic raw-food chef Jaia Lee will speak about eating choices and their impact on the Earth.

The musical lineup on two stages includes local band Soul Food at 11:30 a.m., musician Jason Feddy at noon, Chris Amodeo and Paul McIntyre at 1 p.m., Project Renaissance at 1:45 p.m. and Birdsong and the EcoWonders at 3 p.m.

At 2 p.m., the Pachamama Alliance will sponsor an interactive, multimedia experience, “Awakening the Dreamer, Changing the Dream: Opening our Eyes and Hearts to What’s Really Possible,” facilitated by relational psychologist Jeanne Michele.

At 3:45 p.m., Jeffrey Briar will close the event leading a Laughter Yoga session.

Food and beverages will be offered by several vendors, including La Sirena Grill, Z Pizza restaurants, chef Cathy Lam “” who cooks only with solar power “” and Jaia Lee, serving up raw cacao treats. Topping off the festivities will be a giant Valentine dessert served to all attendees.

The event was organized by Anna Krajec; Liesa Schimmelpfennig, president of SEEDS and program development director at Anneliese’s School; and Elise Higley, the school’s administration director, with a team of volunteers.

“We are creating a movement to inspire and educate our community into taking daily actions that support our health as well as our Earth,” Krajec said.

“We invite the entire community to come celebrate Valentine’s Day in a whole new way: as a Valentine for Mother Earth.”

The Green Valentine Environmental Awareness Festival is presented by SEEDS Art and Education, a nonprofit organization committed to the advancement of children’s education through funding programs in the Arts, Sciences and Humanities. SEEDS supports programs that promote stewardship of the land, such as organic gardening, environmental awareness, and conservation; and programs that foster academic excellence in literacy, math, science and humanities. Call (949) 494-7388 for more information.

Miss Linda offers Camp Rock during Ski Week

No Square Theatre’s Camp Rock is designed to keep kids active during the school district’s midwinter break, Ski Week, Monday through Feb. 20.

Camp Rock is available for five full nine-hour days, 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., as well as full day or half day drop-ins. The week will be full of musical fun for boys and girls age 7 and older, at No Square’s Rehearsal Studio in Legion Hall, 384 Legion St.

Each day has a different theme, from Hannah Montana to the Beatles, and more.

Campers will learn to sing the blues, write their own songs, make music videos and explore basic guitar and piano chords.

Karaoke, hip-hop, rock movies and crafts will keep everyone active.

For more information and registration forms, visit www.nosquare.org or contact Camp Rock Director Miss Linda Haylett at (949) 226-0105 or Classes@nosquare.org.

Lumberyard hosts etiquette classes

The Lumberyard Restaurant will be the host restaurant for the fourth annual Elbows off the Table event, a dining etiquette class for children, March 8.

The goal of the class is to expose young diners to the world of food and eating out, according to sponsors Suzanne Redfearn and Alan Ludloff.

Redfearn and Ludloff started the event four years ago as a way to bridge what they saw as a gap between cotillion and practical etiquette skills that would empower kids with social confidence.

The attendees learn how to greet a hostess, introduce themselves to their dining companions, make conversation, use proper table etiquette and figure out a bill and how to tip, all while enjoying a five-course dinner.

The cost of the event is $60 per diner and there are two sessions. The first is for second- to fifth-graders and the second is for sixth- to eighth-graders. Each session accommodates approximately 30 diners. The class is designed to replicate as authentic a dining experience as possible.

The guests order off a limited menu and confer with their dining companions about which appetizers to choose.

This year’s menu will include Lumberyard favorites such as skillet corn bread, baby back ribs, rotisserie chicken, spaghetti and meatballs, calamari and zucchini planks.

The organizers “promise that the attendees will walk away knowing that slurping is inappropriate, and their hope is that in the future, when they care about appropriateness, the little nuggets learned at Elbows off the Table will still be with them, and they will keep the soup in their mouth and impress their date, or their boss, or their future in-laws with their wonderful manners.”

To register, send a check payable to Lumberyard to: Elbows Off the Table, c/o Suzanne Redfearn, 2282 Glenneyre St., Laguna Beach, CA 92651. Parents are welcome to dine in the restaurant during the session and will receive a 10% discount. Reservations are suggested, by calling (949) 315-7900.