A post by 5th grader Sandy

Today in class I suggested an idea for the "Story of Stuff" project that each of us has to do.  I suggested to have a conversation with your parents and follow all the rules on the rubric.  You would record your conversation and then write it up as your assignment.  It would be better because you wouldn't have to come up with an idea; you would just look at what you had recorded.  My classmates thought that it was a really good idea and that they would use it.

-Sandy

Chumash Connections

We were studying Chumash today, and we learned the section about the midwives who refused to kill the baby boys. God rewarded them by giving them "houses." I asked the students what they thought that meant. Gabe responded by saying, "I don't think this means literal houses. It means metaphorical houses. This is like what we learned in Mishnah, when it said to make a fence around the Torah. We are supposed to protect the Torah and God, and when we do, God protects us. I think that's what this means."
Kol HaKavod, Gabe!

-Eliana

Last Week's Math Quiz

Everyone did very well on last week's quiz.  I called it a "gift" to boost their grades.  The mean was 98, and the median was 100!
We have concrete evidence that math learners understand the mathematic value of decimals!

Colonial Newspaper

Our room was buzzing today with "reporters" working on news stories for their Colonial Newspapers.  From writing about Puritanism, the opening of Touro synagogue, indigo in the Carolinas, and escaped slaves, fifth graders have great ideas!  They will continue working on these after the winter break too.

Taking on the role of a slave in Colonial times

This week each student took on the role of a slave during Colonial times.  Then students went around the room and interviewed each other, learning the details of different slaves' histories and backgrounds before slavery and what being a slave is like.
One student asked at the end, "Why isn't there more?  What happened to this slave?"

Biblical Narratives

Fifth graders handed these in on Monday, and I am thoroughly enjoying reading them.  Their writing is creative and detailed.  The use of similes, metaphors, personification, and alliteration really brings these biblical narratives to life!
This was a joint writing endeavor between Eliana and me: the content is JS and the language is GS.
Hopefully these will be returned to students by the end of the week- if not, by Monday.  Be sure to read your child's amazing work!

Shabbat Shalom- JS Update!

This week we concluded our Chanukah learning. Students debated which was more important and why: Chanukah candles, Shabbat candles or Shabbat kiddush? The Talmud poses the question: If you only had enough money to buy one, which would you buy? Students had a lively conversation about the importance of Shabbat candles and Chanukah candles: If something comes only once a year, is it more important or less important? Ultimately, the Talmud rules that the order of importance is 1. Shabbat candles, 2. Chanukah candles, and 3. Shabbat kiddush. Do you agree with the order?

In Lashon, the students posed their own questions about Chanukah, and then went to the internet to find the answers. They wondered why we get presents on Chanukah, why the Shamash is called a "shamash," how long the battle lasted between the Maccabbes and the Greeks, and why we say the Shehecheyanu blessing only on the first night of the holiday. Students then typed their answers in Hebrew (and learned how to use Davka Writer!) Come check out our class to see their research!

In Chumash, we are learning about the Hebrew Midwives who are ordered by Pharoah to kill all the baby boys. We began discussing the Hebrew ambiguity of the words Meyaldot Ivriyot- does it mean Egyptian women who delivered Hebrew babies or Hebrew women who delivered Hebrew babies? Both are possible, and lead us to think about issues of moral courage: why would someone stand up against the authority to save someone else's life? Do we only stand up for our own community, or do we help save people of a different race, religion, ethnicity? Students will be working on a project next week to deal with these big ideas. 

-Eliana

Stuck in the Harbor

In Social Studies students are creating cartoon strips depicting the scene where the first boatload of Jews arrived in New Amsterdam in 1654.
"It's a really big story how the Jews started in Brazil and ended up in New Amsterdam," said one student.
We've reached the point of Out of Many Waters where we've overlapped with our studies of Colonial America.

Renewable versus Non-renewable resources

As students wrestle with their understanding of these two terms, questions are common!  There were several a-ha moments in class today.  One student used the example of a young tree being renewable, if sound practices are used to plant more trees, while a 500-year-old Redwood tree is not renewable.  This link was sent to students to help deepen their understanding.
http://www.eco-pros.com/renewableresources.htm

Biblical Narratives

Students are busy revising this joint JS & GS writing assignment.  Their writing is coming to life with the use of similes, metaphors, and alliteration.  I can't wait to read the finished products!
-Mrs. Woods 

Happy Chanukah: JS Update

Happy Chanukah!
What a fun week we have been having in learning about Chanukah! In Lashon, we had a chance to review to the berachot for the holiday and sing some of our favorite songs. The 5th graders will be leading the school in a Chanukah classic, Mi Yimalel (in a round!) at the morning assembly on Monday morning, so if you are dropping your child off, please consider staying for a few extra minutes to hear them sing! We will be lighting Chanukah candles as a whole school, which is also a lovely experience, if you haven't seen it yet. We are also working on answering the questions that the students generated about Chanukah: why do we spin the dreidel, why do we get presents, how long was the battle, etc. Students are learning to type in Hebrew, and will be presenting their findings to the class.
This week also marked Kaf Tet Be'November, the anniversary of the U.N. vote on the Partition Plan on November 29, 1947. This was the first time that the world recognized the Jewish right to a homeland, and began the journey towards Israeli statehood. The students learned about this in Lashon- and were able to talk about complex concepts in Hebrew!! Jessica wondered, "Why did the Palestinians claim the land as their home- doesn't it belong to the Jews?" And so we realized that though Israel has been around for 63 years, we still haven't solved the most basic questions of land and freedom. Let's hope the new year brings some more answer and some more peace to the area.
5th graders are learning about Chanukah in the Talmud, and spent time working be'hevruta (in pairs) to read and understand what the Talmud says about where to place your Chanukiah and why. We will be discussing the big idea of publicizing the miracle- why do Jews need to show their Jewish pride outwardly? Why isn't it enough to just light a Chanukiah in your house and not tell anyone else about it? Stay tuned- we should have some pretty lively discussions!
Eliana

Reading Groups

We are trying out reading groups in class, instead of reading as a whole class.  This will allow for more individualized instruction and reading time.  We are continuing to read Out of Many Waters.

New Unit in Math: Fractions

We began our next chapter in the fifth grade Singapore Math book yesterday.  We reviewed students' prior understanding of fractions.  This month we'll be working with fractions in new ways!

Story of Stuff

Fifth graders viewed the online movie "The Story of Stuff" yesterday.  We are using this as a jumping off point to synthesize our understandings of healthy ecosystems, food webs, and waste.  Fifth graders will choose from one of four assignments to work on, and will incorporate a lot of science vocabulary and concepts into their writing.  This is a chance for them to show off their thinking!

Math Tests Returned

Our first math test, using Singapore Math, will be returned today, Monday.  Please check in with your child about his/her test.  Tonight's homework is to spend ten minutes working on test corrections.

Touro Synagogue

Last week we ventured to Newport to visit Touro Synagogue.  There was a wonderful moment when a student asked, "Wait, are we here for Social Studies or for Reading?"  I always love when the work we're doing feels genuinely integrated.  In our current class novel, Out of Many Waters, students learned about the Spanish and Portuguese Inquisition, as the protagonist Isobel is a victim of the Inquisition.  They were shocked to learn that the history of Touro dates back to the same time.  Although our novel is historical fiction, it's incredible for students to understand the actual history behind the text.
The entire class was very well-behaved and asked impressive questions.  We talked about how Rhode Island was the prime location for religious freedom and what the Jewish community did in Newport to create a community.
Please be sure to ask your child about this amazing field trip!

Reader's Letter Reminder

Due Thursday
I'll be happy to look at these ahead of time. 
Fifth graders should spend ten to fifteen minutes a night this week writing these.
Happy writing!
-Mrs. Woods

K'en L'Av"i, Bricks and Mortar, and Bride Swapping

In 5th Grade JS, we have had quite a week! In fact, it's been quite a 2 weeks! In Lashon, we have been learning about Eliezer ben Yehuda, the father of the modern Hebrew Language. Last week, we held a debate between Eliezer ben Yheuda, who argued that Hebrew should become an everyday language, and the Charedim, who believed that Hebrew should be preserved as a holy language, and therefore only used for prayers and Torah study. Rabbi Seltzer joined us as the judge, and though both teams made very convincing arguments, ultimately, the judge ruled in favor of Av"i (Eliezer ben Yehuda). This week, we are sharing our knowledge with the rest of the school by presenting a biography of ben Yehuda through skits at the Fridat Assembly. We have been working very hard on learning about one of our modern Jewish heroes, and I am so proud of all the students have accomplished!
In Chumash, we contniue to watch the enslavement of the Jewish people. We have learned more details about slavery that students can incorporate into their Biblical Narratives, like the bricks and mortar that slaves needed to create and the fact that their numbers continued to increase despite harsh physical labor. Students have been raising great questions about this story: How is it that the slaves became enslaved? How did fear play in to dehumanizing the other? How are modern examples of slavery similar to the Biblical one that we are learning about? Fabulous questions from fabulous students!
Miss Weiss taught the students Torah project this week, and students had the opportunity to learn about Lavan's trickery. As always, they had to write a commentary about this parashah. In the words of Jacob Hammarstrom, "the big idea of this parsha is 'midah k'neged midah'- what goes around comes around." Yakkov deceived his father, so he had some deception coming back at him. Let's try to act in ways that we remember what goes around comes around, and that hopefully we will all be getting lots of kindness int he coming week.
Shabbat Shalom!
Eliana 

Toxic Waste Experiment

How does toxic waste affect ground water?
That was our focus question, which fifth graders wrote, in the scientific notebook style, in their meaning making journals.  We made models, simulating the aquifer layers with clear pebbles, then molding clay and moistened sand for groundwater.  Red food coloring was our "toxic waste."  Students wrote and articulated their predictions, claims, and evidence.
Our young scientists were amazed to see the process unfold!

"It's really hard to hook the reader." -5th grader

Fifth grade writers handed in their first polished piece of writing for the year: their personal narratives.  Students completed self-assessments today and wrote reflections about the writing process.  We specifically spent a long time editing and revising so they can learn to focus on that important step in the process.  Below are a couple of quotes from students around the question of what they learned about themselves as writers or about the writing process.  What an exciting informal assessment!  I think it's so important for fifth graders to have time to think about how they think and learn.  It would serve all of us well, actually!
Today was thrilling for me as a classroom teacher.  I consciously planned to incorporate time for reflections on learning this year, and so to have students articulate these important big ideas about writing, through their own experiences, that I'd hoped they'd implicitly realize by the end of the year exemplifies one (of many )aspect(s) I love about teaching.. 

"I learned that when you just type it up, it's not done.  You have to revise and edit it."

"What I learned about myself,... about my writing,... well it really sounds twice as good if you revise it."

"I realized that when I think I'm done, I'm not done.  Every time I thought I was done, I just kept revising and revising, and now I just really am so happy with it."

Food Web

We enacted a food web, using organisms that live in the Narragansett Bay.  Each student represented a certain organism and touched hands with anyone who represented something it eats or is eaten by.  Then we introduced different scenarios that would impact one organism, and then have ripple effects on the whole eco-system.  Students then worked on their own definitions of a food web and listed characterise of an eco-system.  Several fifth graders connected this concept to the greater field of systems thinking, which we touched upon at the start of the school year.

Mark Baker

Yesterday's opening talk given by Mark Baker, head of Gann Academy in the Boston area, left me thinking about how I can and should be using the constructivist model even more in the classroom:
Interested in learning more?  Here's a link to Mark's PowerPoint:
http://sites.google.com/a/pardes.org.il/pardes-educators-alumni-support-project-fall-retreat/retreat-schedule/plenary-session

As this conference, there are alumni from DeLeT and the Pardes educator program, of which Eliana is an alum.  Well, every Pardes alum I've met here has told me that I'm the luckiest teacher in the world to have Eliana as a co-teacher.
Indeed, it is true!

A Week of Firsts

What an exciting week it has been in 5th grade JS! We have had many firsts this week: our first official Mishnah lesson, our first official Chumash lesson, our first time using our Lashon book and a first time Torah reader- WOW!
In Mishnah we starting discovering what a Mishnah actually is. Students looked through copies of the Mishanh and discovered that it is written all in Hebrew, that there is a lot of commentary written about it, and that it covers many different topics, including agriculture, women's issues (like marriage and divorce), and damages (personal injury law). They still have many questions about Mishnah: when was it written, how is it organzied, and when can we start learning it?? The answers will come next Wednesday- stay tuned!
In Chumash, we started discussing why God tells Avraham that many years from now, his descendants will be slaves in Egypt. Many of us (including me!) were troubled by this statement- why would God tell Avraham such terrible news? And why do the Jews have to be slaves at all? We had many different and thoughtful answers: maybe God wanted the Jewish people to feel empathy for other oppressed peoples, so we had to go through it ourselves; maybe we are being punished for something we did; maybe it is the only way to truly appreciate freedom. I look forward to hearing how these theories develop as we continue to learn the story of Shmot.
In Lashon this week, we have started to learn about Eliezer ben Yehuda, the father of modern Hebrew. We have learned that it wasn't so easy to get people to start speaking Hebrew again in the 1880's, and Ben Yehuda had to work very hard to convince people that Hebrew should be the language of the Jews. To understand his plight, we are working on a debate between Eliezer ben Yehuda, who believed that Hebrew should become the national language for the Jewish people, and the Haredim, who believed that Hebrew was a sacred language and should not be profaned by every day use. The arguments will commence next week- I look forward to finding out who will win!
Finally, kol hakavod to Inbal for reading Torah for the very first time this week- she practied for a long time, put in a lot of effort, and the result was amazing: she sang her part so beautifully! We are happy to welcome Inbal in to our community of Torah readers, and can't wait to hear her read again.
Shabbat Shalom,
Eliana

Singapore Math

In fifth grade we're "trying out" Singapore Math.  I'm really excited about it, and the students are too!  I will be keeping you posted.  We'll follow Singapore Math for a unit on multiplication.  It has a strong emphasis on conceptual understanding.

"Trust your brain more than the calculator," said Kevin

"Calculators aren't always faster."

"Calculators are faster for subtraction problems."

The above "big idea statements" were said after partners had math races, with one using pencil and paper, and the other, a calculator.

This was the first lesson on our new unit in Singapore Math, on multiplication.

Mrs. Woods will be out on Thursday and Friday

I'm flying to MD for a joint DeLeT/Pardes alumni conference Thursday morning.  In addition to teaching fifth grade, I am also one of three DeLeT alumni on the leadership cabinet for the DeLeT Alumni Network, so I'll be leading a couple of workshops and even giving a speech!  I'll also be giving a presentation on parent-teacher partnerships.  And I'll have the opportunity to learn from other day school teachers.
Here's a link:
http://www.deletalumni.org/2010-alumni-conference/schedule/
Miss Weiss will be lead teaching in general studies on Thursday and Friday.  I feel confident in her strengths as a beginning teacher, and I'm sure the students' minds will be stimulated by the dynamic lessons she has planned.  I'll be back at JCDSRI on Monday.
B'Shalom,
Mrs. Woods

Readers' Letters and Future Due Dates

The first readers' letters were returned on Friday.  They were excellent!  Fifth graders have five readers' letters left.  Readers' letters will be collected on the following six dates. This means that fifth graders can choose which five dates they will hand in their letters.
November 18th
December 17th
January 20th
February 15th
March 28th
May 2nd

Something Upstairs Field Trip

Returning to school on the RIPTA, a woman on the bus commented on how well behaved the class was.  She was so impressed.  Fifth grade rocks!  There will be more field trips in our future, especially given how well they behaved and how engaged they were with the work.
We are attempting to write a quest for others to follow.  Our quest will give directional clues and information about the text and historical architecture.  Our hope is that our quest will be published, in the form of a link, so that those visiting Providence can have a unique interaction with colonial history.
Tonight I created a class wiki for students to post the clues they wrote on our walking tour.  We'll be able to use our wiki for many more things going forward.
Stay tuned for developments!

Another amazing day at Teva

It was a full and fabulous day.  I just returned from making all-natural lip balms with the girls.  I only have time to jot down a few inspirational quotes I overheard today before meeting them at the campfire.

"You know what I love about this place?  It's the only camp with great food," shared Micah, while eating broccoli and tofu stir-fry!
"Maybe the space to fill is our purpose in life," said Natalie, while engaging in a text study about the after the meal blessing for God creating numerous souls with flaws.

"We all rock, like JCDS," said Kevin, as he and the rest of the JCDSRI boys ventured out on a night hike, along with Manhattan Schechter sixth graders.

"I feel good when I'm doing something I love, like being with my friends or family, or spending time outside," said Jessica, before making lip balm.

Sandy talked about when she feels like herself and said about her friends, that "they let me be who I am.  They make me feel really confident.

We look forward to seeing you tomorrow.  Your children will be ready for an early bedtime, and if they are generally carnivorous, a meat meal would be welcome.

I am so inspired by these fifth graders!

Teva Update

Students slept soundly.  Lights out were at ten, and I woke students up just before 7AM.  Everyone slept through the night and all were impressed by how cozy their sleeping bags are!  This morning's tefillah was creative and special- be sure to ask them about it!  Fifth graders all earned their first Teva bead today, the "awareness" bead.  They were skillful and aware of their surroundings on their all-day hike today with Rachel, their Morah Dereck. 
The weather is spectacular, the ruach is high, and they are all learning a lot! 
At the moment they are in the midst
of a prey-predator game, where they are taking on different animal roles, thus enacting the food chain.
Laila Tov!

Profound Words on Day Two at Teva

Jessica, last night, walking back to the bunk after the campfire: I've never been more excited to go to sleep.

Sandy, upon returning from day-long hike today: All of the things that are beautiful are God's creations.

Inbal, also after the hike: Rachel asked us why we would want to go hiking and I said to see God's artwork.

Ma Gadlu

Last night, all Teva students were gathered around the campfire.  JCDS students led everyone in song, teaching them the tune they learned last year with Eliana and me in tefillah, which they sang at our community Shabbat service.  The Teva educators were awed by this tune.  Our students sounded beautiful!  I was beaming with pride.  It felt very full-circle-ish, as this was a tune I had learned when I was a DeLeT intern, nine years ago.

First Day at Teva

What a full & fabulous first day!
As I type this the class is on a night hike with Rachel, their energetic Morah Dereck (Teacher of the Path).
Highlights from today include: going on their 1st nature hike; receiving their Shomreai Adamah (Guardians of the Earth) nature journals; learning new Hebrew songs connected to environmentalism; ceremoniously weighing psolet (food waste) after each meal; meeting other kids from Jewish Day Schools; and having a bit of downtime at the bunks: we had fun playing Bananagrams, which Micah brought.  Natalie tried to beat me at Shesh Besh (Backgammon).
Everyone has been so well-behaved today and filled with ruach (spirit) for JCDS.  It is such an honor to be with them! 
Thank you to Laura for driving today; everyone was great on the drive, which took about three hours.
And everyone ate very healthy meals today!  They loved the butterbut squash soup, which was made from squash grown here.
Laila Tov!

Judaic Studies and Lashon

What an exciting beginning of the year it has been in Kita Heh (5th grade)! Our 5th graders have already learned so much in Judaic Studies and in Lashon.
In JS, the 5th graders have started learning about our year-long project, the Torah Project. They have designed templates that they will use every week, have learned how to navigate through an all Hebrew Tanakh and even had a quiz on which they all demonstrated how well they have learned to find the perek (chapter) and pasuk (verse) for the beginning of each parashah (portion). We have learned our first 2 parshiyot together: VeZot HaBeracha, the last parashah in the Torah, and Bereshit, the first parashah. What a fitting way to learn the central message of Simchat Torah- that we never stop learning Torah, and that as soon as we finish reading it through, we begin all over again. I look forward to hearing how the 5th graders will make the parshiyot their own, and I encourage you to ask them about the commentaries they are writing- it is a weekly assignment, and each one different!
In Lashon, we have spent the first month feeling comfortable speaking Hebrew, learning about the holidays that come in the month of Tishrei, and learning a few songs in Hebrew. 5th graders are encouraged to speak Hebrew every day, and we are adding new words to their vocabulary lists every week. Please ask your child about the songs we have been learning- they are really catchy- I wouldn't be surprised to hear that they come home singing those songs!
It has been such a positive beginning to the year with such a special group of students- I can't wait to see what next month brings!
B'Shalom, Eliana

One Million

Last Tuesday math learners attempted to count to one million.  The goal was for students to gain an understanding of just how great a number one million is.  Before we began, students shared their thoughts on the value of one million.  They have heard about millions of dollars being spent and millions of people living in cities.  Could we possibly count to one million, using place value blocks?
The class exhibited impressive teamwork skills in how they organized themselves and the blocks.  After about fifteen minutes they had exhausted our school's supply of place value blocks.  They had reached 50,000 and realized what twenty times this would look like.  Suddenly, a million took on new meaning.

"Before we did this, I thought a million wasn't a lot, but now I think one million is bigger than I imagined."
- Gabe

"A million is now like the biggest number in the world." -Natalie

As we we work our way toward the billions place value, students have a deeper understanding of the value of numbers.

"Order in the Class"

On September 13th fifth graders began articulating what our class rules should be, with Eliana, Mrs. Woods, and Miss Weiss present.  In fifth grade it is important that the rules are student generated to ensure that the stakeholders, that the players in our class kehilla, are a large part of establishing their own culture.  The conversation continued on September 22nd with Mrs. Woods and Miss Weiss.  Kol Hakavod to fifth graders for their tremendous effort in sussing out what rules they feel are most important, and what those rules really mean.  The quality of the discussion was high as students at times spoke eloquently without the need for hand raising.  A true academic discussion centrals around a single question and a collaborative effort to answer it, and they exemplified this!  It is our belief that waiting until we have spent some time together to make the rules allows for students to feel more comfortable and to be more capable to voice their thoughts  about rules that will enable our learning community to be the most effective.  Below are the rules the class came up with together.  In the near future they will handwrite these on a large sign for the classroom. 

Order in the Class

Listen

Follow directions

Do what you’re told

Pay attention

Ask questions

Raise your hand

Look at the person who is talking

Focus on the person who is talking

Be silent when someone speaks over the intercom

Be Kind

Treat each other nicely

Be fair

Be inclusive

Be or act respectful

Be Safe

      Be aware of your surroundings

                  Walk carefully (No running)

                  Be responsible in the garden

                  Keep your hands to yourself

Stay Focused on Your Work

                  Use time wisely

                  Be productive

                  Remember Important Steps

Learn to the Max!

                  Put in your best effort

                  Keep trying

                  Word hard

                  Is the jar half full or half empty?

           

Try to Have Fun!

                   Have Ruach

                   Be positive

                   Be excited

Iced Mint Tea

We had so much fun picking mint from the school garden today!   We used math and science skills to harvest the mint and to make the tea.  The ingredients were simply: garden fresh mint, sugar, and water.  I believe the net profit was about $80.  Kol Hakavod to the fifth graders for taking the initiative and rocking today!  They were excellent role models to the rest of the school.
In guided reading, we started the second chapter of Something Upstairs today.  In math, we learned about and made bar graphs.  And in social studies, we defined colony, discussed reasons for coming to the New World, and students began writing persuasive letters, which are due on Friday. 
Most importantly, together with Eliana and Mrs. Woods, we began making our class rules for the year.  There was a big discussion about listening- what it means, what it looks like, and why it's important.

Problem Solving, Friday Letter, & Shanah Tovah!

Yesterday students had to figure out the correct order of and explanations for the problem solving steps in math.  Each student had a card with words on it, either the name of the step or the description of a step.  They put themselves in the right order after careful group discussion, and we talked about each person's role in the process.

On Friday students wrote their first Friday letter.  They will write one every Friday.  This letter is meant for parents and should be read and signed each week.  Parents might even decide to write back!

Happy New Year to all!  Next week we will make our official class rules.

Something Upstairs

We started our first novel of the year today, Avi's Something Upstairs, a historical fiction novel set in Colonial times in Providence, RI.  This novel connects to the Colonial America unit we're about to embark on in Social Studies and to our theme of freedom.  Readers talked about the various ways in which reading is thinking.  Using sticky notes we will practice active reading by marking up the text.  We found a few new words in the prologue, which we recorded to later use as spelling words.  Everyone agreed the prologue left us in suspense, although there was some disagreement as to whether the prologue is true. 
Parents who want to read the novel can- just ask me for a copy. 
Eliana and I agreed that students should spend  five to ten minutes learning something about the mid-east peace talks, which began today.  Watching this video might be worthwhile: http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/09/02/mideast.peace.talks/index.html

Systems Thinking

Fifth graders started thinking in systems today!  Systems thinking is a holistic approach to looking at the world; instead of simply looking at isolated parts, we look at the whole.  Students had fun trying to figure out what to do with various words written on index cards.  Some of the words were: children, pencils, Vicky, website.  Together they agreed all these words belong in a school, and if you take one away, the whole system isn't as strong.  Sandy's big idea statement about this was:  Every part is needed for the system to work.  Out in the garden students looked to see what systems they could find.  We started with the life-cycle of a plant and ended with the lumber industry, as the raised bed frames are made from wood!  We will use this type of thinking in many of our content areas throughout this year.  In the near future, this will apply to our study of ecosystems.  We ended our day by bundling mint we picked, to dry in the classroom.  Today we were all so grateful for our AC!

Different Genres, Big Ideas, and Graphs

Fifth graders chose genres for their reader's letters books today. Over the course of the school year, students will read (at least) six books from six different genres, and then write a letter about the book.  I read Pezzettino, a Leo Lionni story, and we discussed possible big ideas.  The greater conversation was about the nature of a big idea within a text.  We'll be talking and thinking about big ideas in texts A LOT this month.  Our first math unit of the year is on graphs.  Jessica had a great definition we all liked: Graphs are a way of organizing information (or data).  Think about what information you would want to put on a graph.

First Day

It was wonderful to have the fifth graders start their year!  We practiced active listening with Eliana, Mrs. Woods, & Miss Weiss by interviewing each other and then introducing a classmate.  Then students were "quizzed" to see how well they listened to each other.
Some of the many highlights of our first day together include: writing our hopes and dreams for the academic year (and illustrating and sharing these), a hevruta (partner) text study about the importance of asking questions, deciding how to define math to an alien and what students need for a "mathitude", and observing, picking, and being in the school garden.  
All 5th graders went home with something they picked in the garden.  Hopefully these foods will be eaten!  A couple of noteworthy quotes from students today: Math is a form of thinking; Math is a way to understand the world around us.
Tomorrow morning the hopes and dreams will be posted on a bulletin board in class- do come and take a look!
I look forward to day 2!

Sneak Peak

It was so much fun to have smiling fifth graders in the classroom this morning!  Students who came by to see their new room had fun choosing their lockers, trying out our new bean bag (which was thoughtfully purchased- it's made of organic cotton- as a gift by last year's graduates), and catching up with one another.  We're looking forward to offically starting school on Monday!

Comfort Zone

Today was Eliana and my first official day back.  We loved catching up with the other teachers and learning with them too.  One topic that particularly interested us was the idea of comfort zones, in terms of learning.  We talked and thought about when the ultimate learning takes place.  For me, it is often when I am pushed outside of my comfort zone.  I'm sure we will continue to think about this and that it will help to deepen our thinking about teaching 5th grade.