Tales Of A 4-5 Something

I finished my writing project so I got to do some free writing in WW. I wanted to do a rhyming poem about the holidays. I wanted it to be funny but still be a good poem. This is what I came up with. What do you think? It's the last day of school for 2015 Everybody's dressing up in red and green Santa is coming so don't be mean Everyone’s waking up early except the average teen                                                              By Charlie H.

On Tuesday night we had the Barn Dance. We met in our classrooms and had a potluck. We had chili, cornbread, salad, cider, and lots of brownies and cookies. Then we went to the Big Gym. Dudley and Jaqueline Laufman , who are from New Hampshire, and Greg Boardman played fiddles, guitars, and an accordion. Dudley Laufman is really good and he was the caller. He is a National Heritage Fellow and was awarded it in 2009. He is a national treasure! Our parents were invited to come and everyone dressed to look like pioneers from the westward trails. Some of the dances were the Virginia Reel, The Grand March, Paul Jones, and The Ribbon Dance. At the end the Laufmans sang a special song to wish us happy holidays. "I think it was really a good experience. You didn't have to participate but no one sat out, except some of the parents." Jack "It was fun and I would like to do it again." Charlie D. "This was so much fun. I hope 4-5 does it again." Keegan ...

On Thursday, December 3rd we saw a play called The Tempest. It was written by Shakespeare and is a very good play to see. The middle school drama club was the group that performed. We thought that it was fun to watch and they had very good pronunciation of all those tricky words. At some points in the play it was romantic and others it was comedy and funny it was a good balance of funny romantic and mystery. There were three evil characters at first, then they figured out that you really don't need revenge on people that have done nothing but good to you. It was about a woman who was giving people on a ship a hard time. The people were trying to keep the boat from sinking but finally they washed up to shore. The people were the woman's brother, a prince, a king, and a drunk sailor. They were separated along the island. The woman’s daughter was worried about the people that were ship wrecked. Then the daughter met the handsome prince and instantly fell in love with him. Ever...

THE SYMPHONY One day at school our teachers told us we were going on a field trip to the Symphony.There were at least 8 more buses there including ours! It was unbelievable. The Symphony was designed for little children like us. The Maine State Ballet was performing for us and they were performing for the 1st time at the Symphony Alice And Wonderland and the costumes were made by MECA (Maine College Of Art) There was also a opera person singing. There were some pretty silly ballet moves. we learned a fact: there were at least 2,000 seats! It was a exciting trip! ~Vivian Rallis and Olivia Atkins

       Jobs in 4-5           By Shane, Miles, Liam A, and Ian Introduction In 4-5 some people think all we do is have fun,we have fun but there are some jobs that we have to get done. The job chart rotates weekly. Everyone takes their turn with the jobs. These are some of the jobs in 4-5 President Your job as president is to pick 1-2 games to play every week.the second best job is vacation because there is nothing that you have to do and you can just sit back and relax and enjoy the week. It is very fun to be the president. Table washers Table washers wash the the tables in their home station. Usually one person sprays and one person wipes. You would think that table washers is a yucky job. But right afterwards you are teacher's assistant and then you have nothing to worry about. Also no table washing on Wednesday because it's a half day! Compost       C...

In Tim's unit class we are studying geography and building the Oregon trail in Minecraft. We are also learning about where the states are on the map and taking state quizzes. In the quizzes we have to write the name of the states on a blank map. Do you think you could do it? In Minecraft, we have a huge plot of land and we build different landmarks like Chimney Rock after we learn the facts about the landmark. At the end there will be a farm and we will live happily ever after!! By Jack

On Tuesday, November 10th, 4-5 went to the Portland Symphony at Merrill Auditorium. They were playing a Maine version of Alice In Wonderland. First they dressed up as lobsters and started dancing and the symphony started to play. Then Alice met a fisherman and the Lobster Queen. The lobsters danced and the narrator narrated in the background. The narrator was a singer. We were not the only ones there. There were students from all over.  by Charlie L. and Charlie D. 

Family Pachanga is a time when all the Lower School gathers together and sings songs. These are some of the songs: Small World (K-1), The School Bus Song (E.C. original), Dont Be A Litter Bug, Rock Around The Clock, The Popcorn Song, Country Roads, All God's Critters, and a lot of other E.C. originals, which is when an E.C. makes up songs about what they are studying. Family Pachanga is when families get to come to pachanga. Pachanga is a word that means party or joyful gathering, It is kind of like an assembly but we sing A LOT! Each week at Pachanga two 4-5 students from one homestation get to announce. We love Pachanga. Our favorite part is singing with our buddies and getting to see the whole Lower School. But at Family Pachanga we sit with our parents and if we have a younger sibling we sit with them.  Keegan and Iris  

Right now in PE we are doing something called Kinball and Shipwreck. In Kinball the rules are you have to hit the big gigantic pink ball and say OMNIKEN. After you yell OMNIKEN you yell a color. The colors are red, green, yellow, and blue and these are also the teams. Then you hit the ball as hard as you can and the team color you yell will catch the ball. In Shipwreck, Mr. Salway sets up an obstacle course and we have limited resources to get across the obstacle course, it is sort of like islands. We start at a shipwreck and end up on the mainland. These are fun PE games. Seth

Kai and Amanda’s theme class                                 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In Kai and Amanda’s class we are studying local foods of the world. We had to write down where the local food came from and how long it took to get the food from place to place. We looked on our map in the hallway of 4-5 and figured it out. Then we had to draw a picture with our partners and color it in. We also had to write how long it took to get the seaweed there to here. If we were doing seaweed then first we would draw the seaweed in the ocean and draw a farmer picking it then going to the factory and turning it into crispy seaweed then shipping it to the store and having...

I did this drawing last night on November 4th 2015. I named the lady in drawing son because when I was drawing her I was thinking of making her a sun goddess and the snake is her humble familiar who helps her watch over the world. Every day he (the snake) sheds his skin and his shed skin becomes the new sun every morning. They both have red eyes to show that they have a special connection that most people don't have with other animals. I love to draw and art is one of my favorite passions and I really hope you liked the drawing!           -Isabella                                                                 ...

Currently, 4-5 students are participating in an in-depth study of United States history and the westward movement of people in the 1800’s. This study has multiple components. Students will explore the experience of emigrants on the Oregon Trail. They will learn why families desired resettlement, and will explore the obstacles the overlanders faced as they navigated treacherous land formations and inclement weather. Simultaneously, students will study United States geography, looking at the land then and now through the lens of both physical and political geography. Another aspect of our 4-5 study will focus on the experience of indigenous peoples in western regions. Students will consider the impact of events on the experience of native communities during this time period. We will also explore the ecological impact of this resettlement through research on animals native to the region. Students will learn ecological vocabulary and investigate the concept of the interdependence of spe...

We made a survey for favorite foods. Our idea came from a survey that second grade students did in Cape Elizabeth. They wanted to know people's favorite candy. They got over 700 responses from many states and schools. We just finished a Local Food Unit so we decided to make. We also wanted to know how make a survey on Google Forms. We are really excited to see your responses. Keegan and Ivy Take the survey! UPDATE 11/19/15: Here are the results. Thank you for taking our survey!

In 4-5 we read My Side of the Mountain . It’s about a boy named Sam, and he ran away from home to go live in the wilderness. He made himself a home by hollowing out a tree. It was really cool ! After a couple weeks he got a little lonely all by himself! When the hunters shoot a deer, Sam takes it right away or hides it. Then he eats the deer meat  and makes clothes out of the skin. Reading this book was part of our Local Food Study because Sam had to either hunt or pick foods from the forest that were especially local. My Side of the Mountain is a very interesting and exciting book. I want to read it again. by Lucy

This year we read Seedfolks by Paul Fleischman. It was a book about a poorer neighborhood that didn't have lots of connections with each other in Cleveland, Ohio. A girl planted Lima bean seeds, then lots of people started planting vegetables and fruits and it turned into a big community garden. The book talked about each character and how they joined the garden in separate chapters. Some of our favorites were Royce who was a strong guy that was hired to protect the garden from people who might want to steal the fruits and vegetables. Another one was Curtis who was a big strong guy who planted tomatoes so his ex-girlfriend, Latisha, could see them and want to date him again. Part of the book we liked was that in every chapter there were new friends getting made and more neighbors joining the garden. By Connor F and Charles H

We had Open House on Thursday night. Our families came in and we showed them our work. We did our attribute trains and read our Lit book. We showed people our food memoirs and a lot of things from our unit class. Rikki, Chris, and Elicia were there too. Parents liked seeing the work and some wished they were in 4th or 5th grade. It was a fun night. Here are some 6 word memoirs: We Lo ve Beal's ice cream a lot.  I like riding horses out west.  Empanadas are fun to make together.  Mom made bad fish, oh yuck! Here are some links from Chris for music: Kusimama: http://www.jwpepper.com/ 10296741.item#.VemRBOkxEXU Winter Wonders: http://www.jwpepper.com/ Winter-Wonders/10028992.item#. VeiwlukxEXU El Condor: http://www.jwpepper.com/ 10204629.item#.Vei1u-kxEXU Like a Mighty Stream: http://www.jwpepper.com/Like- a-Mighty-Stream/3296955.item#. Vei1kekxEXU

WHAT WE DO AT RECESS   BY IAN CAMPBELL At recess, we love to play two-touch football. Sometimes, if there's a very small amount of people, we play with blockers and rushers. Not always do we get passed to, but it's still fun! We have just added a new play area. If you ever come in from the side gate, there is a large sandbox. That’s where we're now allowed to play! We like to play tag, “cook” in the upper sandbox kitchen, and more than half  of the people in 4-5 like to play football! "I like to play soccer and football at recess," says Basil DiBenedetto. "I like to play football at recess because I like sports," says Colin Smith-Hoops. "I like to play sports and hang out with my friends," says Yen Wilson. "I think the upper play space is cool,” says Liam Mahar. A Lot of people like to play tag, and watch football.

   http://www.sunflowerfarm.info/

On Thursday, October 8th 4-5 took a trip to Sunflower Farm. We saw awesome animals like goats, pigs, and dogs. They all were very nice and kind to each and every one of us! We liked to hang out with them and feed them grass and hay. It was cool seeing all of the goats, they said they had about 26 of them! We got to go into the pen and pet the goats and we got to choose one to examine and learn about. We then wrote a short note to a goat, aka  some info about the goat we learned about.  We also went into their kitchen and we watched Hope, the farmer, do the first step to make cheese. It was cool to watch and it smelled really bad but it was still fun! After that we went outside and got to taste some of their goat cheese with crackers. They were super yummy. We also got to try some caramel. It was super good, but instead of crackers we had vanilla cookies. It was amazing and we thought it was awesome that they could make all of that homemade and fresh. All in all it was a supe...