Solar Energy with Mr. Lobovits

By the end of our three hour science marathon the class had looked into the resources required to make paper, cola, and yes, even gummy bears!  The thinking shifted into high gear when we began to ask if any technology can truly be green.  One student had a green engineer moment when she said (roughly), "If something makes more money that it costs to build and saves more resources than it takes to make it, I think that is a green technology."  We will continue to think like green engineers by analyzing the resources it takes to make technology and the impacts it has on environment in the coming weeks.

Slater Mill

On Wednesday we bravely embarked on our first field trip since the accident.  While waiting for the bus to come, we began reading the Jewish prayer for travellers.  The bus came so quickly, we did not get to finish it, so I paraphrased.  And we were indeed kept safe on this trip!
The trip itself was truly worthwhile from an educational viewpoint.  The students' background knowledge on Samuel Slater, Lyddie, and energy enabled them to make so many important connections from the mill to our classroom studies.  Mr. Lobovits and I continually interjected to help them make those connections.  He asked them why the bed pan was made of metal, and one student said, "Because it is a good thermal conductor."   While I think this is one of the best field trips of the year, it was also reaffirming to hear one student say to another, "This is totally the coolest field trip we've ever done!"  Please ask your child about the water wheel and the machines.

Lyddie and the Industrial Revolution

On Monday, in Reading, we read about Lyddie who is just beginning to question her own freedom.  Readers have been talking about how she's "enslaved" because she's indentured.  Students are amazed to learn that during the Industrial Revolution child labor was the norm, and the paychecks went directly to the parents.  They are becoming very grateful for the freedoms they have as children in 2012.

Upcoming Due Dates

Field Trip Permission: Due Monday 4/30
Factory to Home Assignment: Due Tuesday 5/1
Math Quiz Chapter 10, Section A: Tuesday 5/1
Reader's Letter: Monday 5/7

Poetry in our Souls

Fifth graders have been drinking poetry this week.  We've talked about what it means for a poem to "speak to you."  Each night poets are required to read poetry aloud for at least five minutes.  Each day poets are invited to recite a poem that particular spoke to him/her.  We are keeping track of qualities we notice in poems.
Here's what we've got so far on our list:
Poems we like-
flow, sometimes rhyme, create mental pictures, evoke strong feelings, are sometimes funny or clever, sound pleasant to our ears, might make us think about something in a new way, and might have a strong ending.
Poets are writing different types of poetry and will continue to write poems all through May.

Solar Energy Unit with Mr. Lobovits

This week the students began to explore life in Botswana as part of an integrated unit on solar energy.  They met Lerato, a young child who has to travel daily to collect firewood, and began to think about what it means to have no electricity.  They also encountered the concepts of the engineering design process and life cycle assessment for materials and technologies. 

As part of the integrated science unit students tried to get their minds around the concepts of thermal insulators and thermal conductors.  There were clear signs of progress in students thinking as they started with the suggestion that a "microwave" was a thermal conductor and worked their way to the realization that a frying pan is a good thermal conductor because it "transfers heat quickly."  Several students were even able to explain why an igloo, a glove, and the fur of a bear were all good thermal insulators. 

Lyddie

Our final novel of the year is Lyddie by Katherine Paterson.  This historical fiction book tells the story of Lyddie, a thirteen-year-old girl who is forced to leave her life on the farm to work in a factory in Lowell.  We will be talking about freedom, our theme for the year, throughout the novel.  Today in class we read about Lyddie being forced to work as a maid to pay off a family debt.  Students decided she is "like a slave" and does not have freedom because she does "not get to choose."
We have plenty of extra copies for parents who have the time and/or desire to read along with us- just ask!