Gail’s Blog is Back!

Yes, it’s been a long time but my blog is back and there is so much to tell you about. The class has been working very hard in math, literature, writing, science and history.

•  Literature: 
• Finished Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, one of the best written books for young adults there is. We used the author’s writing devices, vocabulary and techniques to model for us and inspire us to grow as writers as well as lovers of  literature.
• Beginning Johnny Tremain tomorrow.
• Students will be picking books to read independently for next book report due mid-May.
• Math:
• Completed units on fractions, decimals, ratio and percent.
• Introduced weekly math enrichment, every Thursday, in class. Students get to work on high level critical thinking problems and puzzles and topics such as exponents, coordinates & graphing, statistics, number theory, tessalations, geometry and more.
• Science:
• Learning about the physics of simple machines. Recently explored properties of incline planes, Archimedes Screw, levers and balaces. Made an Archimeded Screw as well as a levered balance out of K’Nex pieces and conducted various explorations based on measurement and equation to determine how these machines made work easier.
• Learned physics vocabulary such as: the load, the effort, the fulcrum, the load distance, the effort distance, the mechanical advantage.
• Completed 4-day workshop on puberty education
• Completed preliminary activities in our inventions unit. Students have learned about the history of many inventions, the purpose of inventions and how one goes about trying to invent something based on a necessity. Students have conducted surveys and research and are now ready to make their inventions and to determine their targeted market based on their survey.
• History:
• Completed large unit on Early European Settlements in America. Students took notes, worked in study groups, made outlines to prepare for test, wrote four essays, worked on map skills, used compare and contrast format to understand the difference and similarities among the Spanish, French, Dutch and English settlemts. The major concept was to see how America offered either economic opportunity or religious freedom to the early settlers and to understand why these forces were so compelling.
• We also traced the economic reasons for slavery in America and in particularly, in the Southern Colonies. We watched two volumes of Roots, a mini series from the late 1970’s which traces one African American man’s family back to Africa and being kidnapped and sold into slavery. Students got to see the nature of slavery in the early 18th century and see how European and American beliefs rationalized this inhumane situation.
• We have begun the next unit in colonial American history which will emphasize the different economic development of the English colonies due to their geography and social/cultural influences. We will emphasize the ever dividing attitudes towards slavery in the Southern and Northern colonies as well as the ever uniting idea of independence from Great Britain. We will look at the Declaration of Independence and interpret it words and intent.
• Students have been working hard in their reports on a woman in history. It has been a real challenge for many to take notes, to get enough information, and to know what is important and what should be left out. We have begun working on writing an outline for the report. Many students are finding out that they need more information and are having to go back and take more notes. This is a learning process.  Students should be working every night on their outlines. They work in class for a period a day but many need more time to complete the amount required each day.
• Writing:   We finished writing science fiction stories inspired by the movie E.T. Students have used their wonderful imaginations to create amazing stories. Everyone has grown so much as a writer this year. They have illustrated their writing as well and will have a beautiful portfolio to keep forever at the end of 5th grade.

SOME IMPORTANT DATES FOR HISTORY REPORT:

• OUTLINE DUE APRIL 3
• FIRST TYPED DRAFT OF HISTORY REPORT DUE MAY 4
• COVER FOR HISTORY REPORT DUE MAY 5
• TITLE PAGE FOR REPORT DUE MAY 6
• BIBLIOGRAPHY FOR REPORT DUE MAY 7
• COMPLETE CORRECTED FINAL DRAFT DUE MAY 18

SOME IMPORTANT DATES FOR INVENTION PROJECT:

• INVENTION MODEL COMPLETED BY APRIL 29. PHOTO OF INVENTION DUE IN CLASS ON APRIL 29. INVENTION, ITSELF, STAYS HOME UNTIL –JUNE 1.
• INVENTION LOG BOOK ENTRIES NEED TO BE MADE EACH NIGHT YOU WORK ON INVENTION, SIGNED AND DATED BY A WITNESS. LOG BOOK AND ALL ITS COMPONENTS ARE DUE BY APRIL 30, AND HANDED IN THAT DAY.

MILLION DOLLAR PROJECT AND INVENTION POSTER BOARDS WILL BE DONE IN CLASS AND TEACHER WILL SUPPLY MATERIALS.