Young Engineers!

With the help of our third grade science buddies, my fifth grade students recreated the Mars Pathfinder. They didn't have all the advancements of technology on their side. They did have a cereal box, a couple balloons, an egg, some string, and a parachute made of newspaper. They did a great job constructing the Pathfinder and getting the egg (i.e. the Mars rover) to the ground safely!

And the Winner Is...

Right before the Thanksgiving holiday we held our classroom Tropicana Speech Contest. My students did an excellent job writing and presenting their work. The first place prize went to E.J. Haben and her speech on being a junk food junkie. Maggie Harbin took home the second place prize on ways to embarrass your parents, and Mia Pesta snatched the third place prize with a speech about how kids can deceivingly clean their rooms. Congrats girls!!

Our Very Own Vocabulary Parade!

In honor of the clever children's book Miss Alaineus by Debra Frasier, our class had our very own Vocabulary Parade on Friday. Students chose one of our fall vocabulary word to make a creative costume out of. We had a great time with it! Students chose words like nucleus, photosynthesis, ecosystem, juggle, spirit, energy, and much more! Check out the book and you will always remember the difference between Miss Alaineus and miscellaneous!

Squanto's Suggestions

On Thursday we followed Squanto's suggestions to the pilgrims to use the fish that they caught from the nearby rivers and oceans as fertilzers for their crops. Squanto and other Native Americans played a pivitol role in the survival of the pilgrims. We tried this tip out in our own classroom. Each student planted corn with fish, and some without. We will be charting the growth of the two over the next week or so. We are crossing our fingers that the Gilchrist cat doesn't make another visit to our "crops" over the Thanksgiving holidays.

Our Trip to the Tallahassee Museum

Today we loaded up and headed to a capital city favorite, the Tallahassee Museum (more commonly called the Jr. Museum). Despite the chilly temperatures, we had a great day surrounded by north Florida nature. The bears were curled up to keep warm, the panthers were lounging about, and the turkeys looked frightened for their lives with the holidays looming around the corner! Ms. Sandy taught our class about about the Earth's waters and we even took the nets down to the lake and gathered wetland organisms. We had a great day in our own community! If you haven't taken a family trip to the Tallahassee Museum, it is a fabulous way to get out and explore the great outdoors!

From Trash to Critters

In celebration of America Recycles Day we made creative critters out recyclable items in our classroom. The kids got really crafty and we even had to pull out the hot glue gun! We hope that each of you recycle at home and at work! Here are some benefits of recycling published by the U.S. EPA:

Benefits of Recycling
Recycling protects and expands U.S. manufacturing jobs and increases U.S. competitiveness.
Recycling reduces the need for landfilling and incineration.
Recycling prevents pollution caused by the manufacturing of products from virgin materials.
Recycling saves energy.
Recycling decreases emissions of greenhouse gases that contribute to global climate change.
Recycling conserves natural resources such as timber, water, and minerals.
Recycling helps sustain the environment for future generations.

So remember the next time you go to throw something away, can you find another use for it??

What Books Do for Us...

We are reading a book right now called Listen. It has been chosen as a Sunshine State Award winning book. It has a great message about the relationship between humans and animals. As I read aloud to the class about a adolescent girl who is trying to tame a wild dog, not because she wants a pet, but because she wants a friend, I realize that is true for most of us. Our pets are one of our closest friends. My dog, Sis, is a great walking companion. Although she has very short legs compared to me, she tries hard to keep up. She brings a smile to my face, and is just down right cute!

I hope that you have an animal in your life that brings laughter into your life! Take time to cuddle up with your pet, and read a good book! Practice makes us better readers!!