January 8, 2016

This Week:

Students came back from vacation rested, ready, and full of excitement!

Leaving  Mesopotamia, we have begun learning about the Israelites, and how their culture introduced new ideas which had a lasting influence on the world around them. Then we will do the same for the Phoenicians and the Lydians next week.

One challenging part of fifth grade social studies is having students read historical articles, helping them find main ideas, and supporting details. Then write a summary of the event using their own words supported by details from the reading.

Students were provided an organizer which they worked on in class which they will use to improve their Summary which they are writing on the Israelite STEM sheet. This was a class activity which is NOW A HOMEWORK ACTIVITY. 
The summary will be due Monday Jan. 11 for A groups and Tuesday Jan. 12 for B groups.


FINAL POSTER ACTIVITY:   UPDATE
Students made great progress on their Mesopotamia posters!  With all the activities preceding the holiday break students still needed time to complete them. We worked on them in class Monday and Tuesday. Then sent them home with students to be completed at home.
POSTER DUE DATE: Monday Jan. 11 for A groups and Tuesday Jan. 12 for B groups.

Up-Coming Events:
Some of our activities planned for next week:

• Students will be comparing and contrasting the Code of Hammurabi with the Ten Commandments. Then follow through with a written comparison of those documents. 
• Students will be making a newspaper page emphasizing the contributions of the Lydians and the Phoenicians.

Vogel's Corner:

As we begin this unit, students are reminded that the United States from its beginnings has been a place where people have come to for religious freedom. We learned about how the Constitution defends this right, and spoke about how other cultures have not enjoyed the same freedoms and how lucky we are to live in this country.  

IS THERE A TIME FOR EXTRA HELP?
When possible, the fifth grade staff has made our rooms available to students looking for an opportunity to work on assignments during our shared lunch period. Students can find Mr. Vogel in his room on most B days.