Read aloud Conversations

We are reading One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia, which about 3 black young ladies who go visit their mother in California in 1968. 

There is so much to discuss in this text and in life.  Some of the questions that came up were:

Who were the black panthers?
Who made the decision to make black people into slaves? 
Who/why did the idea ever come up that one type of person was better than another?
Why do we say "People of color" rather than colored? Is "African American" an appropriate term to refer to describing all people with black skin?
What is white privilege?
Does racism still exist today even though there is no slavery?


These conversations led to questions about labeling/judging people by gender, size, and age...
I was impressed with the thinking that has been done, and I hope these conversations continue at home.  Our kids are trying so hard to be respectful!  I am so proud of them.

Craft supplies Needed-- any of these laying around your house?

Holiday Craft Supplies needed!

Size 1 snaps--lots of them!

Ball jar lids

Tooth picks

Twine

felt--black, red, green, gold, brown
thin ribbon

Narrative Publishing Party!

What a great celebration!  Thank you for bringing in snacks!

Publishing party!

We are publishing our narratives in hardcover books!  The kids had so much fun with this project!  We will have a celebration next Wednesday.  Can you bring in peanut free snacks for the party?

Congratulations!

 Regis, Lauren, Ben, and Ayden's poems about winter will be performed on stage at the Black Box Theater next month!  Several poems were submitted to the Winter Tales competition through  the Young Writer's Project, and we got four Mountaineer winners!  So proud of them!

Fall Fun!

A little gardening and making apple chips!

Apples Needed

Happy Fall!  We have decided to make apple chips on Thursday!  We currently have 2 dehydrators to use in the classroom, but we need apples! If you can donate apples to the class, please bring them in tomorrow, Wednesday!🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎🍎

Fall gardening!

These six students volunteered their time to help plant bushes at the front of Fleming School!  Thank you!!!

Do you know how much I love teaching poetry? TONS!!!!!!

Check out these three poems by Mountaineer fifth graders!

School Music

By:Mary Moyer

Inspired by:Arnold Adoff

This School:

TAP

TAP

TAP

Scribble

Scribble

Noises from the school

Flip go the pages

S-C-R-E-E-C-H-I-N-G

Sneakers STOMP

STOMP

STOMP

Down the stairs

Children drink from a bottle

T I T

W S

Glug glug glug

Then go back to work

School Music.

Push Yourself

By:Evander Mosley

I feel good

I am ready for my basketball workout

Today it starts off easy

30 minutes later

I feel weak

And sick

But I need to push myself

And every time someone passes me

I go a little bit faster

Because if he can do it

I can do it

Fire music

By Regis Houlier

inspired by Arnold Adoff

This fire:

The always

Noise of

Crackle

Crash

Spark

And the chirps

Of crickets

And the bright colors of

Red

    Orange

              Yellow

And sometimes blue

Being sent up into the air

D- i -s -a -p -p -e -a -r -i -n -g

Into smoke,

And the smell of burning

Pine .

With the

Always noise of this campfire

Fire music  

Conference Time!

Conferences start this week!  Your yellow confirmation went home today, and the date and time is written in your child's planner!  Looking forward to seeing you all!

The following photos were taken this morning as kids were writing letters to their parents and playing a game with our student teacher, Miss Annie!

Fort Day!

Recess!

Mountaineer Students Practice Power Poses!

What is a power pose?   A sitting or standing position that increases confidence and lessens stress! Ask the kids, and they should be able to tell you all about it!

Hard at work on self portraits!