Curiosity Cafe

           Curiosity Cafe                  
     Curiosity cafe is a time when kids get to be curios about something for example sharks or zebras or any thing.  It is something that kids get to do if they have completed their homework.  My class room, 5M, does it at about 12:10.  A few things you can do during Curiosity Cafe are IQ puzzles like,  Kanoodle and IQ fit which are both very fun.  You can also choose to create art or try out the squiggle of the week.  Ms. McMillion draws a partial doodle and then we get to see what we can draw using the doodle.  One doodle looked like half of a broken heart to me.  For the Science part of Curiosity Cafe you can look through a microscope to see what a honey bee's leg looks like or even a cats hair or you can experiment with batteries and light bulbs to figure out how to light them up.  Now we are going to talk about the electronic part of Curiosity Cafe.  In the electronic section we each have our own days to be on the computers.  You can go on edmodo, Brainpop, Time for Kids, or you can research a topic in which you are interested.  The last thing I am going to talk about is the Warm and Fuzzies - that is where you write a compliment to someone in the class, for example, if I wrote a compliment to Kennedy I would say something like, "This week, Kennedy was always ready and prepared and was the first person to put her stuff away and sit quietly." That is a little bit about  Curiosity Cafe.     The End
                           By,
                              Lauren

Hat Looms

Hat Looms
By Jake   
Hat Looms are circles with pegs sticking out. Once you rap yarn around the loom twice you take the bottom one and pull it over right to left.
    Mrs. Hayden taught a few kids during art and it started catching on. Some students have finished hats and wear them to school. We also give some to charities. You can buy hat looms and yarn at Micheals.
    Jackson says, he thinks they're nice because it calms people and gives a new hobby to people. He thinks the idea to donate hats to charities is a very good idea and is a great cause.
    Matthew says, we should not only give the charities hats but give that hat looms and yarn so they can make hats for them selves too.
    Ryan says, Hat looms are very fun to make and they also bring out a good skill for life. It will be a good idea because needy people feel joy and happiness.

2nd Semester Events

         2nd Semester Events  
written by Joey
       
       Is anyone else excited for events this semester? Well if your not read this and you will be. Coming up on January 16th we have a Hidden Valley ski trip. I am super excited to go with friends on the lift. On the 15th we have Claymo and speaking of Claymo, the 2014 field day is coming up this May when we get to be the leaders. I am excited to be a leader and I bet you are to. Usually every one or two months we have assembly. The science fair is also in a few months from now so get ready cause I am planning on doing it this year. Kids are signing up rapidly for clubs and activities.
   
      Ok this one is going to grab your attention. The lip sync is coming up soon. I am not in it but for all of you who are in to it I think it will be very fun. And for the fifth grade year and final year we have our first real graduation. everyone in the grade will be graduating this year. We will be graduating on our last day of school. So get excited for this year's second semester. 

CLAYMO Blankets

by: Jojo

On Wednesday, December 11th the kids K-5 made blankets for unlucky kids at a hospital, who deserve the warmth of a blanket.

    The K-4 kids made “Happy Holiday!” and “We’re thinking of you” cards for many kids at the hospital while the kids of 5th grade started the blanket out. The teachers cut off the corners of two sheets of fleece in a square shape. The 5th graders safely used scissors to cut the fleece two fingers wide down to the marks the teachers made. The other kids would tie the two strips of fleece into double knots. In the end, it looked AWESOME!

The blankets were washed and given to the kids at the hospital. Let me tell you, there are some happy kids at the hospital right now!    

Calendar Math

By Franklin
    Almost every morning we  do calendar math which teaches us about patterns.  On each day of the month there is some kind of shape that is a certain color based on the properties of the shape or the number of the month.  We examine the calendar and we decide what the next shape will be based on the pattern.  Last month the dates also taught us about composite, prime and square numbers and how to make arrays to a certain number.  Students record their thinking in their math notebook.  Then when we are done writing in our notebooks some kids share their thoughts to the class.

Backetball in P.E.

Basketball in P.E

    Before winter break, in gym we had been playing basketball. We would dribble around and shoot a lot, and sometimes we would play different games, like on the bubble. Only 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade is doing this activity. We are trying to improve our shooting and dribbling skills. Sometimes, we will play a game called hot spot. We split into groups of two and we all shoot from different spots in the gym, and if you make a shot you get a polyspot for your team. For every game we play, we split into smaller groups so we get more practicing and playing time. Everyone loves playing games and they are getting better and better at basketball every day.

By Regan

Leopards

Leopards {my non-fiction book.}

My non-fiction book is about the Leopard,and here are some things to learn about this climbing killer:Leopard hunting abilities and Leopard anatomy.

Leopard Hunting Abilities

      While Lions, Cheetahs, Hyenas and Baboons attack prey on the ground, Leopards usually attack from a high vantage point, jumping off trees and using gravity to hit prey with a force of 3400 pounds. Leopards can hunt on the ground, and they hide in tall bushes and sprints towards it’s prey at a speed of 35 miles an hour. Once caught, razor-sharp 2-inch claws and fearsome 3-inch teeth kill the prey with a quick bite to the neck.

Here is a Leopard killing it’s prey:

Leopard anatomy

        Although the Leopard is the smallest type of big cat, pound for pound, the Leopard is stronger than a Lion or Tiger. This explains why Leopards can carry animals 4 times it’s own weight  up a 30-foot tree in less than ten seconds, while Lions and Tigers can only carry animals smaller than themselves. A relative of the Leopard, the Clouded leopard may become the next Saber-Tooth, due to its house cat sized body but 4-inch long teeth. The Leopard uses it’s tail for balance in a tree, while a Lion or Tiger would lose balance up there in no time.

Here is a leopard skeleton:

 

By Joseph

World Hunger

World Hunger

Every year millions of people starve. Is there something local people in our community can do? Well, yes there are some things people can do in our community.People can help by growing gardens, donate money or your time to food banks, or to homeless shelters or relief efforts.

    If you want to help by growing a garden you can grow extra fruits and vegetables to donate to a food bank or the homeless.A  good idea to brighten someones day is to take a new warm pair of socks in the winter and then stuff them with snacks or fruits and vegetables.Then you can hand them out to the homeless or needy.You can also assemble a meal bags which could include fruits, vegetable, and or other things that Do Not have to be refrigerated.Then after you assemble one you can send them to a food bank or distribution service.

    You can also help by working at a food bank or community service center that helps the needy.In the St. Louis area there are many food distribution places/food banks, and homeless/refugee centers.You could volunteer your time to help pack meals or you could help homeless people by giving them something to eat/drink or by just brightening up their day.You could also help by donating money to homeless shelters/refugee centers or food distribution services/food banks.

    You can also help relief efforts by donating money or time to relief efforts.You can volunteer your time by going to places that have or are being affected by hunger.You can help doctors administer aid or you can help by running a food depot where you distribute food from.You can even help people plant gardens or help them plant crops of which will not be affected by drought or lack of nutrients.You can also help by teaching people how to plant gardens.One way you could help also is learn how to plant a garden and then teach those people who are needing to learn how to get money to buy food or how to grow food so they don’t starve.

    These are some ways that you can help end local hunger.

By Jackson

Non-Fiction - Smilodon Fatalis

During our non-fiction unit Joseph has studied the following animal and he wanted to teach you about it.

Smilodon Fatalis 

 

 

          Imagine a lion that has drank steroids. That would be the Smilodon. One of the most ferocious cats that ever lived, those 6-inch long teeth were impressive. Despite their ferocious teeth, these were fragile, and would break easily if they hit solid bone. So how did the monster cat kill it’s prey? The answer is power. Even though it was a cat, it’s behavior and anatomy is more like a bear than a cat. A slow runner, it could only muster about 25 miles an hour. The reason? The Saber Tooth only hunted very large prey, which meant they were slow but incredibly strong. The Saber Tooth had to be incredibly strong like it’s prey, perhaps even stronger. This hunting technique meant that Smilodon would sneak up on it’s prey,chase it for a short time, then wrestle it to the ground. this would enable the saber teeth to do the killing while the prey was held still, so that the saber tooth would not break it’s teeth when biting prey. 

Struggling prey is much harder for the saber teeth to come into play effectively than still prey. It was hard to keep down thrashing prey, but once they were used properly, saber teeth became one of the most efficient killing tools nature has ever produced.      

       With the element of surprise and massive chest muscles, even the largest mammoths would fall victim to smilodon. With such power, and a rich variety of prey, Saber Tooths enjoyed a menu of: Mammoths, Mastodons,{a cousin of Mammoths.} Bison, horse, rhino, sloth, terror bird, and sometimes, their own kind.

        But Smilodon did not have this bountiful supply of food all to itself. As the prey began to get larger, so did the predators. The Dire Wolf, a cousin of the Gray Wolf, was the largest wolf that ever lived, about twice the size of the Gray. It also had very powerful jaws, able to crack open bones to get at the nutritious marrow inside.

         The Short Faced Bear, relative of today's grizzly, is six feet tall at the shoulder and when it rears up, it’s 11 feet. Even the largest wolf packs or the strongest Saber Tooths cannot stand up to the top predator of the Pleistocene Epoch.

          These seemingly unstoppable beasts ruled North America for almost 5 million years, but it was the sheer size of the Megafauna that sealed their fate. As the climate became hotter, Grasslands disappeared and the forests arrived. The large plant-eaters, unable to adapt, soon vanished and soon the Predators, to slow to catch small, nimble prey, went extinct. As time went on, other, smaller animals dominated the earth, but there has never been more giants than in the time of the Megafauna.   

By Joseph

The Holiday Sing

The Holiday Sing at Glenridge

    Every year Glenridge has an annual Holiday sing. That is where every grade sings one Christmas song. All parents can come watch and anyone else is welcome. The fourth and fifth graders who are in a chorus group sing multiple songs, some Christmas songs and some Hanukah songs. Not every fourth and fifth grader has to join. If they don’t, they don’t sing any songs, they just watch. Then, some teachers who were chosen will all dress up as reindeer and everyone will sing “Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer”.

    Mrs. Spann will give a speech about peace and then some fifth grade students will bring out that year’s peace ball from November, the month of peace. Then we will all, parents, students and teachers, sing the peace song. That will end the holiday sing. 

By Regan