I'm very excited to announce that I have been offered, and have accepted a job teaching history at West Ranch High School. While I am sad to leave all the friends I have made at Rio Norte, after eight years I am ready for a new challenge and a new adventure in teaching.
For those families of students travelling on the 2012 East Coast Trip, very little will actually change. I will still be leading our Spring Break trip, as well as our roommate meeting (early February 2012) and pre-departure meeting (late March 2012).
The one difference is obviously I will not be in a classroom on the Rio Norte campus to answer questions. However, I am always a phone call, text message, or e-mail away, and the best way to stay in touch is always through the blog at http://www.IppTrip.com, through Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/IppTrip, or on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/IppTrip.
I hope you are enjoying your summer! Please feel free to contact me at any time if you have questions.
All the best,
Mr. Ippolito
rippolito@gmail.com
call/text: (661) 347-4990
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Thursday, May 5, 2011
37 spots filled in one night!
I got an e-mail from USA Student Travel yesterday morning, and between the on-site registration at the meeting, and online registration that night, we got 37 students signed up on Tuesday--all in one night! I have not contacted USA Student Travel since yesterday morning, but I imagine more registrations have been coming in since then. If you would like your child to travel in 2012, I strongly urge you to register online now to reserve your space. Visit http://www.ipptrip.com and click the "Register Online" tab.
All registrations are handled through the tour company, so I cannot save a space for you. If you have any money-related or insurance-related questions, please contact our account representative, Aaron Mortensen, at (800) 949-0650, ext. 123. The most common question is, "Yikes! How many spaces are left?" Aaron always has the most up-to-date answer.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Unprecedented turnout at tonight's East Coast Trip meeting - spots filling FAST
Wow! We had nearly 100 students and parents in attendance at tonight's East Coast Trip information meeting, and we already took deposit for 25 students tonight (at last year's meeting, we took 3). More parents going home to sign up online. I have a feeling that the trip could fill up by the end of this week (if not sooner).
If you missed tonight's meeting, you have until midnight TONIGHT to register to qualify for the "30-day fully refundable deposit." You can register online NOW by clicking HERE.
I have never had such an overwhelming turnout for a spring information meeting. Thank you to all who attended. Our 2012 spring break trip will be amazing!
Cheers,
Mr. Ippolito
Friday, April 22, 2011
2012 East Coast Trip - Info meeting on Tuesday, May 3, 7:00pm
Come to an information meeting on Tuesday, May 3, at 7:00 p.m. in the
Rio Norte MPR. Space on the trip is limited, and there is a special
incentive exclusively for those who attend this information meeting.
See you there!
Thursday, April 14, 2011
East Coast Trip Reunion - TOMORROW AT LUNCH in D-6
I'm so excited to meet back up with everyone tomorrow at lunch! You'll get your disc full of photos, your 8x10 print of all of us in Times Square in New York City, and your ID card back (if you haven't yet retrieved it from me). I also promised an ice cream sundae bar, but only if we got at least a 90% response on our participant survey. So far we've had 22 participants respond, which is good, but I know we can do even better! Your input is EXTREMELY valuable in helping me shape future trips, and you enjoyed the benefits of feedback from previous students before you.
So, make your voice heard! If you WENT on the trip (student or chaperone), please take a moment to fill out the online survey (it takes less than five minutes, and you can even fill it out on your smartphone or iPod Touch). Parents, please share this link with your child:
Thanks so much, and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!
Mr. Ippolito
Sunday, April 10, 2011
East Coast Trip - Participant Survey
For all those who participated in this year's East Coast Adventure (students and chaperones), I invite you to participate in a quick survey. Parents, please share this link with your son or daughter. It should take less than five minutes to complete.
I really do appreciate honest feedback, as it helps me build my itinerary for future East Coast tours. As a special incentive to participate, if we can get at least 90% of those who went on the tour (that includes chaperones) to complete the survey by this Wednesday, April 13 (coincidentally Wednesday is my birthday, so your completed survey will make a great birthday gift!), I will set up a special ice cream sundae bar for everyone at this Friday's reunion!
Thanks!
Mr. Ippolito
East Coast Trip PARENT Survey
Dear East Coast trip PARENT,
OK, now it's your turn. Would you please take a moment to fill out this parent survey? Again, just like the student survey, it should take no more than about five minutes to complete. You can find the link here:
Thank you so much for taking the time to complete the survey.
Warmest regards,
Mr. Ippolito
East Coast Trip reunion - Friday, 4/15
Hey East Coast trippers!
By now I hope everyone who traveled with us last week is well-rested and recovered after our very fun (but tiring) week on the East Coast. We are going to have one final gathering this Friday, 4/15, at lunch, in Room D-6. We'll watch a little slideshow I'm putting together, I'll give you a disc with over 1,000 photos on it from the trip, and I'll also give you back your ID card (you can always come by and pick it up from me if you need it earlier).
I want to say a big thank you to my five fellow chaperones: Miss Bretthauer (Zambezi teacher), Ms. Bretthauer (Miss Bretthauer's mom), Mr. Costanzo, Mr. Hamilton, and the lovely Mrs. Ippolito. They did a great job helping me to keep our kids safe, handling meds, taking roll, doing bed checks, and so much more. The trip would not have gone so smoothly without their help and vigilance. Thank you to all the supportive parents back home who checked in with their kids and reminded them to make good choices. Finally, thank you to our students who made this such a fun experience for all of us.
Warmest regards,
Mr. Ippolito
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Parent help to unload luggage
It's going to be close to 2:00am Eastern Time by the time we arrive at Rio. If we have a few strong parents who are willing to help unload baggage, I'd sure appreciate it. Mr Costanzo, Mr Hamilton, all the big boys, and I loaded it all up. Now we'd love your help to unload. Currently at the 405-110 split in Carson.
Leaving Long Beach Airport
I'm estimating an arrival to Rio Norte at 10:50pm. I will provide updates as we head back home. Please keep the red curb clear for the bus and if the parking lot lights are out, please turn your headlights on so we can all get unloaded safely.
See you soon!
Just landed
Strong headwinds made for a longer flight. Should be leaving airport and headed home about 9:15. Back in Valencia around 10:15.
Just finished Mount Vernon; lunch now
Lunch at Pentagon City Mall. After this, quick stop at Iwo Jima, then Smithsonians, followed by the airport.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
East Coast Trip - Day 5 photos (lots of photos tonight!)
My wife and I took over 500 photos today. It was a full day in DC, and a GREAT day for beautiful pictures! It's pretty late, so if you are checking photos tonight, you might have to check back, as I am uploading 129 of these photos that I think are representative of our day today. The album is here (and again, it's not complete until it has the full 129 photos in there):
https://picasaweb.google.com/rippolito/ECT2011Day5?authkey=Gv1sRgCJ-1p7LKxvrY6QE&feat=directlink
Of course, you will get ALL the photos Mrs. Ippolito and I take when I burn you a DVD next week. I will hand those out next Friday. Tomorrow's our last day! See you tomorrow night back at Rio Norte!
Cheers,
Mr. Ippolito
Mr. Ippolito
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
East Coast Trip - Day 4 photos now online
Here are some selections from our day. We began our day in Philadelphia and we did Independence Hall. From there we spent a good deal of time in the bus today. We had lunch in Gettysburg, followed by a visit to the Gettysburg National Cemetery (site of the Gettysbrug Address), and then a battlefield tour.
After Gettysburg, we got back on the highway and drove into DC, where we first ate dinner at Phillps Flagship seafood buffet, and we finished the day by seeing the show "Liberty Smith" at historic Ford's Theatre. Tomorrow we have a full day in DC, including the wreath-laying at Arlington National Cemetery. Stay tuned tomorrow for more amazing tour experiences!
Here's the professional print from our Times Square photo
This photo turned out great! Your child will get a print of this included as part of your tour package.
 |
| Photo by www.groupphotos.com |
Rainy drive to Gettysburg
We've enjoyed beautiful weather so far, but today we're getting rained on. Fortunately we're on the bus for much of today, so if we're going to have one rainy day, today's a good one. :-) 
Tummy trouble
We had a couple kids get sick to their stomach last night and this morning. Some were blaming it on the salmon last night (which was delicious by the way, and an unlikely culprit), I still think it's the excessive sugar, sweets, sodas, and fatty foods a few kids continue to eat despite repeated warnings to avoid these foods. It may also be a little stomach bug. Whatever the cause, please join the chaperones in helping encourage your child to wash hands with soap and water, please encourage them to drink plenty of water, and ease up on the junk food. Most kids are doing fine and feeling healthy, but this is good advice for ALL kids. We'll be on the road to Gettysburg about 11:00am (8:00 Pacific time) so that's a great time to call or text your child. Thanks again for all your support.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Day 3 photos now online
Just a limited number of photos tonight, and I'm foregoing the captioning so I can get some sleep. Tomorrow, off to Gettysburg and then Washington, DC!
A quick selection of today's photos here:
Late night tonight
We are having a fabulous trip, and we have some amazing kids who are being polite, respectful, and who I believe are getting so much out of the places we're seeing and the experiences we are having. I'm finally sitting down with my computer after a long night of dealing with just a couple of student issues (don't worry, I've already been in contact with parents throughout the night tonight, so if you didn't get a phone call, that means all is well with your child). :-)
Therefore, the photos will be a quicker re-cap tonight. Again, as I mentioned before, at the end of next week, each child who has gone on the trip will get a burned DVD copy of every photo that my wife and I have taken (about 1,000 photos total). And I'm continuing to do my best to post updates throughout the day.
Stay tuned. I'm compiling photos now and am hoping to be finished soon.
All the best,
Mr. ippolito
Dinner selections
Baked ziti, chicken parmigiano, and salmon scampi. Surprisingly, lots of kids picking the salmon tonight. :-)
Love this restaurant!
Love this restaurant!
Breakfast sandwich on a real New York bagel
Kids have lots of breakfast options this morning, as they can choose from three different places.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
East Coast Trip - More Day 2 photos
These are mine. Have a good night, and stay tuned for more fun tomorrow. Central Park in the morning, then off to Philadelphia! https://picasaweb.google.com/rippolito/EastCoastTripDay2MrIppolitoSCamera?authkey=Gv1sRgCNXf7Nys-Y_OOQ&feat=directlink
East Coast Trip - Day 2 photos now online
Here is today from my wife's camera. In about another 30 minutes, I will post the day from my camera. Great day today! Another very tiring day, but we've seen and done many things. Enjoy the pics, and keep a look out for more.
Finally back in the hotel! Early wake-up tomorrow.
Bed checks at 10:15 EDT, then up at 6:00 am tomorrow for Central Park. Photos posted within about an hour.
Top of the Rock was crowded!
Whew! Everyone had the same idea as we did! Lots of folks enjoying the beautiful view tonight. Next stop: Times Square for our group photo.
This show is amazing so far!
We're done with the first act of Memphis. Amazing so far! Dinner after at Cucina and Co. back in Rockefeller Plaza.
Shopping in midtown Manhattan
Mrs Ippolito and Miss Bretthauer took a group of girls to go "power shop" at H&M and Juicy. Mr Costanzo, Mr Hamilton, and I headed north to 58th street and 5th Ave for the Apple Store and FAO Schwarz. After this, lunch in Grand Central Terminal.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Day 1 photos now online
Day 1 photos are now online. We had a great, and exhausting, day in New York City. You can check out the photos here:
It's late, and it's time for bed. More updates throughout the day tomorrow!
All the best,
Mr. Ippolito
One World Trade Center is now 50 stories high
It's amazing how fast the construction has gone in the past year. So moving to see the progress being made. 
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