Topsy Turvy Tefillot

In tefillot this week, we tried an experiment: we did our tefillot backwards! First Torah service, then Shacharit and finally Pesukei DeZimrah. It was an interesting experience, and reinforced for us that routine can be really important in helping us find our kavannah; but also, it can be fun to mix things up!

Lashon Quiz Tomorrow!

Lashon Quiz for Eliana's group: new vocabulary words and more practice on past and future tense!

Hebrew Midwives?

In Humash, the students are grappling with the command that Pharaoh gave the midwives to kill all the baby boys. A neat grammatical phrase opens the text up for interpretation: the Torah could be telling us that the midwives were Jews or that they were Egyptian.
We are currently trying to figure out if it matters, and if/why people will naturally look outside of their religion/nationality to help others.

Emotional Darkness

This week in Torah project, the students learned a midrash about the 9th plague, darkness. The Gerer Rebbe taught that darkness was not just physical darkness, but it was also emotional darkness as well. The Egyptians did not treat the Israelites well and turned a blind eye to their suffering. Therefore, God decided to punish them "midah keneged midah," as a consequence for their actions: the Egyptians had to experience being alone and "in the dark."
Students had the opportunity to reflect on how bullying and isolation make others feel.

Returned Student Work

Graded taxation writings and science quizzes will go home with students on Friday, 1/27.

Upcoming Due Dates

Math Quiz- Monday 1/30
God Writing- Tuesday 1/31
Reader's Letter- Wednesday 2/1
Energy Transfer Map- Thursday 2/2
Burning of the Gaspee- Friday 2/3
Important Revolutionary Period Person Project packet- 2/7

Station Two

Students learned about endothermic and exothermic reactions when they completed three parts of station two in our energy unit.

How is the temperature of vinegar affected when combined with baking soda?
How is the temperature of water affected when combined with calcium chloride?
How is iron affected when exposed to oxygen?

Ask your child what he or she learned!

Math

Fifth graders were given a challenge last week.  They were asked to come up with real world problems where one would need to know how to multiply decimals. Then they were asked to try to solve their problems, without asking a parent for help or consulting the Internet.  You see, they hadn't yet been taught about how and why to move the decimal in the product.  On Monday the class was given the task of seeing if they could come up with "the rule" for where the decimal goes in the product.  Just when someone thought he had figured it out, he'd realize that it didn't work for all the problems.  Back to the drawing board!  The type of thinking and the level of persistence taking place in the classroom was impressive.  (I actually thought it was the most exciting math class I've ever witnessed!)  By the end of the class one student thought she'd figured it out, and the class decided to test her rule that night for homework.  On Tuesday the class confirmed they had figured it out; they articulated how proud of themselves they were for going through the process of "discovering" how to do it.  They've spent the rest of the week working on different types of problems that all use multiplication of decimals.  Homework has been flexible (i.e. 10 minutes a night on what you want to work on, challenging yourself).  A student today asked, "Mrs. Woods, can I please have the same homework I had last night?  Because I want to finish."

IRP

Fifth graders began working on a "mini-research project" entitled The Important Revolutionary Period Person Project.  Each fifth grader began by writing their own questions that they hope to find answers to.  Students have two weeks (ten minutes a night) to work on finding out what made the particular person they chose important in this time period.  Students were given websites to search.  In ELA they will learn how to make a bibliography, following MLA format.  Before the February break students will present their findings to the class.  Rubrics and a research packet went home today.

An Important Conversation

This past week, 5th graders engaged in an important conversation about how to treat each other. We acknowledged that it can be hard to be in such a small class of students and that sometimes the students don't treat each other as well as they should. We brainstormed a list of things that we can do to make the rest of our time together amazing, and how we can use these last months before graduation to get to know each other even better.
Kol hakavod to the class for dealing with these issues in such a mensch-lich way!

Upcoming Due Dates

Next Week (exact date TBD: Tue-Thu)- Potential/Kinetic Energy Quiz
January 25- Last day to ask Mrs. Woods for input on reader's letter
January 31- God Writing
February 1- Reader's Letter

Sons and Daughters of Liberty

Join, or Die, that was their original motto.  Today fifth graders created their own mottos, to try to entice colonists to fight with them.  They learned about the Sons & Daughters of Liberty, and then they tried to make their mottos attractive and persuasive.

Adding & Subtracting Decimals

All fifth graders demonstrated their understanding on today's quiz, and quizzes were returned today.  They're not too old for you to post it on the fridge!

Teva Project Passion

Fifth Graders chose to spend recess today working on their Teva Project.  They continued doing so at lunch.  Now that's what I call intrinsic motivation!

Energy Transfer: Station One

Fifth graders discovered today how heat can impact the bounce in a ball.  Ask your fifth grader about how soaking the happy and sad spheres affected the height of their bounces!

Responsible Fifth Graders

Fifth graders have been given the privilege of walking themselves to specialties, instead of walking in a line with a teacher.  This is to help them transition to middle school.  Our first week was a huge success!  Several JCDSRI teachers gave positive feedback about the fifth graders walking calmly and taking this privilege seriously.

Midah of the Month

In class today, we discussed our midah, "Lo Levayesh." I shared with the students the famous Jewish text: "Anyone who embarrasses their friend, it is as if they have spilled blood (murdered them)." We had an in-depth discussion about why the rabbis made such a hyperbolic statement.

Maya remarked: The rabbis exaggerated things because they knew that people miss the mark. The rabbis hold us to very high standards because they want us to try even harder to do our best.

We then discussed, who is a rabbi?
Alec responded: A "rabbi" could be anyone who holds you to a high standard, like a parent.
Emma added: "Or a friend."

How is energy transformed into thermal energy?

In today's science class students learned that all energy can be categorized as potential or kinetic.  The class jumped in surprise when Mrs. Woods stood on a chair and dropped a book!  In another demonstration there were two cups of sand, one that was almost full and one that was about one third full.  After taking their temperatures, each cup was shaken for five minutes.  Students hypothesized on what they thought would happen.  Some were pleased to see their predictions made scientific sense: the temperature of the sand in the cup that was only one third full increased more than the other because the sand had more room to move.  Students learned that motion can be transferred to thermal energy (heat).  Indeed, they all said they feel hot and sweaty after gym!

Math Quiz

Fifth Graders rocked their math quiz today!  They demonstrated their understanding of decimals.  This is the first math grade for the second semester- what a way to start the new term! 

Taxes

On Tuesday, the fifth graders grappled with taxes, one of the primary issues of the Revolutionary war.  They wondered why we spend taxes on things we don't need, only to discover that even with things they thought were useless somebody needed them.   They also had a chance to look at an actual w-2 form and see how present day Americans have to pay taxes on their income.
-Ethan

Humash

Students have been thinking about what makes a hero in our study of Humash: could a midwife be considered a hero?
Also, they have been paying specific attention to the repeating words of "child" and "live," and making predictions about how these ideas will impact our story.

Zimriyah Dance

5th Graders have begun choreographing their own dance for the Zimriyah. They chose the song "Shalom Salaam Peace" by the Israeli band, Hadag Nachash. They will definitely bring their own funky style to this jazzy, Israeli hip-hop song!

Lashon Update

I live, I lived, and now... I WILL live!
Kol hakavod to Eliana's Lashon class for beginning to tackle the future tense. The students are ready to take on the challenge!

Next Lashon Quiz: Friday January 13

Quiz Dates for Next Week

There will be a quiz on decimals on Wednesday, January 11th, and there will be a Lashon quiz on Friday, January 13th.

Triangle Trade

Fifth graders did a simulation of the triangle trade in class today.  Understanding why molasses was so important to the colonists will help learners understand why the Molasses Act was so infuriating.  In response to the question of what the experience made students think about, Leah wrote, "All the king had to do was sit an get money."  Students were flabbergasted to see how much the king earned in taxes.

Writing about God

Students spent today's writing block taking their brains and hearts and splattering them onto the page.  It's amazing to see how unique each student's piece is: from poems to expository pieces, the range in ideas and styles reflects their complex and varied views on God.  Writing about God is difficult, and students are practicing the skill of writing about a complicated topic. 
After today's writing block, Yoni said, "Writing was pouring out of my pencil."

Returned Work

Graded Readers' Letters and Colonial News Stories were returned today.

Future Readers' Letters Due Dates

Readers have three letters to complete by May 1st.  I've given students the following FOUR due dates so that students can manage their own time:

February 1st
March 1st
April 2nd
May 1st

This means each student can choose not to hand in a letter on one of the dates.  It's possible for a student to choose the first three due dates or any three.  I highly suggest no one skip the first due date, but each student can make his/her own choice.

I will be happy to look at and make suggested edits on drafts of letters, but they must be handed to me at least one week prior to a due date.

New Year, New Units

It was so exciting to all be back together today.  We began four new units/projects today.  In Social Studies we started our American Revolution Unit.  Students brainstormed and listed what they think they know and what they hope to learn.  I started reading My Brother Sam is Dead, an historical fiction novel set during that time period, aloud to the class.  During this unit students will have a mini-research project.  One of the big ideas we will focus on is there are many events that lead to a revolution.  We will also talk a lot about why people feel freedom is worth dying for.  In Math we started decimals.  Any way you can point out your real use of decimals to your fifth grader would be great!  Writers began a month long writing assignment: their thoughts/feelings/beliefs about God.  This is a very powerful writing piece, and there is intentionally no rubric for this assignment.  In Reading we talked about how literature circles will work for our next novel, The Word Eater by Mary Amato.  Stay tuned for much more!