Information for the Week...

Here are a few announcements for the week:
  • Remember that Thursday, November 2 is our annual Zoo Trip. Students will ride the bus to the zoo with their kindergarten buddies. Once at the zoo, we will spend some time viewing the animals before heading to one of the buildings for a class.
  • Next week you will get information about two big projects coming up. One project will be our Ellis Island simulation in which students will take on the role of either an Ellis Island processor or an immigrant. Our other big project will be an ecosystem expert project. This project will have three parts. Once part is a the creation of a diorama which will be done primarily at home. The second part will be the creation of a poster. And the third part will be a short paper.
  • The Book Fair starts next week. More information will come home towards the end of the week.
In science, we have completed our terrariums / aquariums. The terrariums / aquariums have been a point of excitement as students quickly come into the room to see any changes that took place over night. For instance, when students came into the class on Monday, their terrariums sprouted a lot of grass. We are looking at biotic and abiotic factors in this environment, and how these factors help each other out. As these factors have time to equalize, we will start adding more life into the aquariums. On Wednesday we will add pond snails to see how they effect the aquarium.

In social studies, we are having a wonderful discussion of the Gilded Age / Progressive Era. These two periods mark a time when great wealth dominated the country at the expense of the large immigration work force, and through the Progressive Era, change happened in the workplace including improved working conditions in the factories and the abolition of child labor. One of best ways to get a feeling of this period in time is watching the History Channel's "The Men Who Built America." The series does an excellent job of presenting the good and bad side of some of the wealthiest and most influential Americans such as Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, Carnegie, J.P. Morgan, Edison, and Henry Ford. For more information on the series, here is a link. We will complete this unit with our simulation of Ellis Island. Students will simulate the Ellis Island experience. Some students will play the role of Ellis Island processors, and the rest will play the role of immigrants. Students will get an identity to research. They will then play that character during the simulation, including dressing up for their role (they can choose not to but it adds to the authenticity). Processors must do their job to determine who should stay in America or who should be sent back. Once I have an exact date parents are invited to this event.

Well ... I'm going to try to get back to Halloween so I'll add more later.


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