Count Down Till Fun!!!

Dr. Seuss' The Lorax - Official Trailer | HD

News This Fall

Greetings everyone.  I hope you fall at your new or old school is going well.  I am excited about this year in so many ways.  I have seen a few pictures of the new FA building, and things look spectacular.  I hope I can visit soon to see the new features of the new look FA.

For all of my friends that have moved on to another school, I hope things are going well.  I hope your transition to a new place is as smooth and wonderful as my transition to going back to school has been.

I am happy to let you all know that I am working in Boston now at a small charter school called "Academy of the Pacific Rim".  I know that I always said I enjoyed 5th grade the most, but this new sixth grade that I am working with is phenomenal.  I have 78 students in my class broken up into three sections.  I am just teaching math to my new students.  Don't worry I have not forced them to solve magic squares yet.  They focus on students being able to achieve their full potential.

The mission is to empower urban students of all racial and ethnic backgrounds 

to achieve their full intellectual and social potential by combining 

the best of the East - high standards, discipline and character education - 

with the best of the West - a commitment to individualism, creativity and diversity.

KAIZEN and GAMBATTE are Japanese words that describe the essence of our culture. The short version is that

we work hard, together, and we are always looking for improvement.

Kaizen is a Japanese principle meaning continual improvement of ourselves and our community. We engage in daily rituals and routines that help us grow as individuals and as a community.

Gambatte is a Japanese word meaning “persist and never give up.” It is our belief that our success is based on our effort, not on luck.

If something really great has happend to you this fall let us know.  We can keep our classroom blog running for as long as you all would like.  See you all soon, and talk to you all sooner.

Best- 

Mr. C

Traveling WEST!!!

In August I was lucky enough to travel with my younger brother to California.  We decided that we would drive across the country.  In the fall my brother will be attending UCLA for architecture.  We packed his Toyota CRv to the brim.  So many great things to see along the way.

We Drove down the Delaware Water Gap. There we saw downed trees, and a couple of downed movers in their crushed Budget rental van & trailer.  There really was not much to write about from Connecticut to Ohio.  DWG was the big event of this section of our trip.

We left Ohio on our second day of traveling.  Nothing much would happen until we arrived in Chicago the next day.

 A visit to our aunt and uncle in Chicago was worth the three days we spent there.  We went to see the bean in the park. (picture on the right) We also sampled some of the best deep dish pizza Chi Town had to offer.  The second day in Chicago, we spent some time down by the Old Town Music School. We visited a guitar shop my uncle has been going to for years.

They had so many instruments in the store. I got a chance to try some of their hand carved Ukes and my brother played a 1930s Martin acoustic. It was terrific. Our next destination on thsi trip was Minnesota.If you are wondering there are not nearly as many cows in Wisconsin as previously thought.  Corn and Soy for miles and miles is all we saw in Wisconsin.






This is the dinner that was waiting for us when we  arrived in Minnesota.  Our cousin lives in Minnesota in a small town just over the Wisconsin boarder.  It was really nice to see her.  We don't get that many chances to see our relatives that live on the western part of the USA.

The next two days of our trip would prove to eb the most grueling.  The Dakotahs were barren and desolate, and if it wasn't for the giant carved mountains we might not have bothered with them.  We did get the chance to see Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse which left me speechless.  Rushmore was too crowded to stop so we took pictures from the roadside, and ventured around the state park in other areas.  Crazy horse is not even close to completion so my brother and I took a few snap shots from the entrance, and then headed out on our way to Colorado.

The trip was pretty amazing.  We made stops in Denver, CO as well as Las Vegas, NV.  With so much to see we forgot to take photos after leaving South Dakotah.   The trip was a great experience.  I am going to miss my brother while he is living out in California, but getting the chance to travel with him across the United States was an awesome opportunity.

I hope everyone else enjoyed their summer as much as I have.

Italy By: Mr. Church

This past June as most of you already know, I took a trip to Italy.  I have a few pictures of things I saw while I was there.  This will be the only picture of pizza I share.  We all know what pizza looks like, but this gem was a fresh pizza made right in front of my table with fresh mozzarella and goat cheese.  It was the first thing I ate after arriving in Italy on the 7th of June.  The weather was phenomenal, and the food was spectacular.  The pasta and pizza was nothing like I have ever tasted before.  This was sure to be a magnificent two weeks.

 Our first destination on our travels brought us to the ruins of Pompei.  The tour guide, Fernando, was so knowledgable of the ruins and the civilization that lived there before the volcano erupted.  He helped to dispel many of the myths that surround Pompei.  One of the most common myths revolves around the plaster shapes that were created from open space beneath the ash that fell on the city.  The early archeologists did not find anything organic below the ash that fell on Pompei.  In fact it was not until many years after Pompei was discovered that an archeologist stopped all digging at the site, to look for and locate the empty spaces that existed in the ash.  These empty spaces were then slowly filled with a plaster to create the reliefs that have been highly publicized in national magazines.

One of the most remarkable things we discovered while in Pompei was their ingenuity and progress.  The city of pompei developed and perfected many of the traditional things we can observer in many metropolitan cities around the world like: subway and rail line tracks, citywide sewer systems, and street systems.  Pompei was by far the most incredible thing we had seen so far.  Monte Vesuvio is still considered a active volcano today.  The heat and dry temperature in the Bay of Naples is un-real.

 Our next destination would be the city of Naples and a boat trip to the island of Capri.  On our way to Naples we pulled our tour bus over to get a view of the coat line we had been warned about.  The site was breath taking.  From this small two lane road we got out to take in this thing of beauty.

Although we took the chairlift to the top of the island, I have no photos to show for it.  The battery died on the ferry ride over to the island.  The memories of this beautiful island will be all I have to remember Capri.

The fourth day on our tour was just for traveling.  We had a long ride ahead of us.  From  the city of Naples we would make our way north to Florence stopping in Tuscany to visit a second century castle that is today, a private vineyard.  Once in Florence we spent our afternoon visiting the main square.  Leonardo and Donatello were there, but apparently they were not the Ninja Turtles that I had expected. A warm meal at my Aunt and Uncles house in Florence was just the remedy we needed for the journey we had planned for tomorrow.

The three buildings in the picture to the left are all part of the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore in Florence.  The red dome in the background of the picture is called the "Duomo".  It literaly means dome.  This structure was something we had been waiting for since we left the Island of Capri.  Atop the "Duomo" you could see a three hundred and sixty degree view of Florence.  The 463 steps to it's peak are well worth the heat and exhaustion you will feel upon reaching it. This was the view from one fo the four sections of its balcony on the top of the dome. I seem to be repeating myself, but the word "Breath Taking" just seems to fit perfectly.

The next stop on this tour took us to Verona.  While in Verona we spent time at the house of the Guilietta Capulet.  Verona's most infamous family.  Although we never saw Romeo his hold on Juliet is strong to this day.  Hundreds of tourists, including the group I was in, rubbed the statue of Guilietta to receive good luck.  Along with the house of Guilietta, Verona is home to four landmarks that determine the worth of a man.  There is a whale rib bone that has been suspended above a main street for more  than 1000 years.  The legend behind the bone is something like this: " The bone will not fall down until the moment, that a person walks under it, who never told a lie. Kings and popes have walked beneath the bone with nothing happening"(a local from Verona).  It seems that you would live a long and healthy life if you tell fibs more than tell the truth.  Death from a 1000 year whale bone seems not worth it for telling the truth.

Venice was the next stop on our tour.  We stayed outside the city, and took public transportation into the transportation outside the floating city of Venice.  Out water taxi took the whole tour to, Piazza San Marco, the main square in Venice.  A glass blowing tour and a architectural tour let us gave many of the group members free time to walk around the city, and see the many different sites.  After a thrilling gondella ride with our Gondolier "Mario" was crazy.  A group dinner at a local trattoria let us sample some fo the local wine and cuisine of Venice.

The only drawback that I noticed was the amount of illegal vendors trying to peddle their wares on the streets.  This might been the only crummy thing we encountered on our tour.  I don't think that any of that could ruin what we have seen thus far.

 The last day of our tour landed us back in Rome. Our morning began with a visit to the Roman Colosseum, and our tour guide Pedro.  The colosseum was gigantic.  There are artifacts and pieces of artwork in display around the outer ring of the colosseum.

The Colosseum has been repaired many times, and you can see the different time periods that it was fixed.  I can not believe the brutality that this arena has seen.  It was remarkable the design and building of the colosseum.

Following our guide around the colosseum we traveled to the Roman Forum. This plaza was surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space, originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, or simply the Forum.  Within the Forum was the burial ground for Caesar.


One of the last stops on our tour of Italy was the Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi or "Fountain of the Four Rivers", located in the urban square of the Piazza Navona. It was designed in 1651 by Gianlorenzo Bernini, for Pope Innocent X whose family palace, faced onto the piazza as did the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone of which Innocent was the sponsor.

The base of the fountain is a basin from the centre of which travertine rocks rise to support four river gods and above them, an ancient Egyptian obelisk surmounted with the Pamphili family emblem of a dove with an olive twig. Collectively, they represent four major rivers of the four continents through which papal authority had spread: the Nile representing Africa, the Danube representing Europe, the Ganges representing Asia, and the Plate representing the Americas.

Italy was truly amazing.  I think in total I took over 2400 pictures.  There are so many pictures, that it was hard to choose a few to help me describe my adventure.  I hope these let you know a little bit about what Italy is like.

These are pictures i found on breadwig.com!

cool pics!

Back... to the future!

Hi Everyone!

                i watched back to the future!  it was a great movie with lots of action.
the main story line is that a boy and his friend doc, who is about sixty and is a
mad scientist, travel to the past in doc's time machine,  witch is a old car.  There
the boy meets his mom, and she falls in love with him.  He has to make it so his mom
falls in love with his dad, be fore he fades out of the world.

               Here is a picture of doc's flying time machine train in the third moovie:

Here is doc:

Here is the boy, Marty:

Here is Marty's mom when she is young:

Here is Marty's dad when he is young. he is in a tree.

Here is Biff Tannen the bully:

Here is the future Biff:

Past Biff (wild west)





Have a happy summer!  



-Daniel

Chewonki

Hi everyone!

       As some of you know, i am going to Chewonki on the 28th Some activities are

FARMING
SWIMMING
WOODSHOP
WOODCRAFT
ART
POTTERY


We have fun.

See ya!     Daniel

This is my dog!

he is soooooo  cute!

Summer

Hi guys,

How are your summers going. mine has been good. I just went go-kart racing so maybe ill post pictures of that. other than that i just hanging at home and riding my bike. i was going to go to a pawsoxs game tonight but it was canceled.

See Ya -Owen

Dear mr.church I hope you are enjoying your time in Italy please post pictures

Hi everyone

Hi everyone!

           

            How are your summers so far?  Mine is great!  I am going to camp on the 28^th ,  so can all of you send your street address and zip code to odducttape@ymail.com   so I can write you guys when I am at camp.   Also I will post pictures of all that I have done at the end of the summer. 

                                 Best regards,                              - Daniel

5K Visitors!

5000 Views congratulations everyone!

You have all done such a great job preparing stories and taking photos this year to contribute to our wonderful blog.  Don't forget this blog is here for us to share things that have happened.  The Blog will continue as long as we all continue to add to it!!!

Fifth Grade Poem By: Mrs. V & Ms. T.

There once was a class at F.A.

Who was dynamite in every single way

We will miss you for sure

When you head for the door

But remember you're a stone throw away!

There are so many highlight we know

From camping to Boston, did we go.

Gender meetings were hard

Lemon hands were bizarre

But the Wax Museum surely stole the show!

Sadly some people must go

This will be hard, we know

Jake and Ty off to Pheonix

This will definitely require some Kleenex

Anitra to a new city

This certainly is a pity

Ethan's not going too far

We can still reach him by car

Alex is off to a school

That he knows is so cool

Mt. Church will be missed

There are too many things to list

From painting to lax

Taking fun to the MAX

Mr. Church we wish you success

With what is next

So, now our year must end

Summer is just around the bend

Remember us, dear

Hold the departing kids near

Off we send you, forever our friends.

Book Talks

Keep checking the blog this summer for your published book talk.  I have edited 5 of the book talks so far, and look to finish the last of them upon my return from Europe!

Great Job 5B on Jolly Ranchers

Choose 2 toppings for our Pizza Extravaganza on Monday

MEATS: Pepperoni - Bacon - Ham - Meatball - Sausage -Hamburger - Linguica - Chicken
VEGGIES: Green or Red Peppers - Garlic - Onions -   Mushrooms - Broccoli - Tomato -  Baby Spinach - Pineapple - Basil - Banana Peppers - Olives

Natalie Babbitt

Good Afternoon Friends-

Today you have to answer a few questions about our visitor.  You need to answer your questions in the black and white composition notebook.  Mrs. Babbitt spoke about parts of stories as well as what what she enjoyed about them.

What was one question you remember from you larger Literature Circle groups at today's Authors Tea?

If you could change one thing about the book you read what would it be?

What did you enjoy the most about your book?

We will discuss these questions and more tomorrow in class.

-Mr. Church

Natalie Babitt By: Clara

We just finished our classroom lit. circles focusing on books written by children's author Natalie Babbitt. The three choices were Kneeknock Rise, Tuck Everlasting, & Search for Delicious. Everyone loved the chance to break into smaller groups to discuss the books.  Finishing these books meant something special because the author is going to be visiting our school.

The Search For Delicious, is about a boy named Gaylen who goes on a quest to find a 900-year-old creature. Tuck Everlasting, is about the a girl named Winnie Foster who gets captured. Kneeknock Rise, is about a boy who visits his relatives and learns of a scary beast that lives in the mountains. 

The fifth grade teachers have organized an event through Miss Foley-Marsello, to have Natalie Babbitt come and talk to the whole 5^th grade. On Tuesday, May 24th Mrs. Babbitt will visit our grade to discuss these books and other in more detail. It will be very exciting to have the opportunity to meet this author after reading many of her books.  It will be very special for each literature group to get more insight into characters, conflicts, and plot since we have completed out literature circle books.