Reading Groups

We have started levelled reading groups as part of our reading programme, and 5B students now spend every other morning reading and discussing novels within their gorups. Eagh group is reading a different novel, and students are working hard at confidence building, speech, discussion and reflection skills.
Students can choose to sit anywhere they like in their groups; hence one group who have chosen to sit under their work-tables!



“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Healthy Habits Breakfast & Read In

Last week was 'Healthy Habits Week' and to end the week, 5B decided to host a 'Perfect Breakfast' buffet in the classroom before the special 'Read In' programme.
The food was wonderful and almost everyone brought very yummy food in to share!
Each table set up their own buffet and produced menus and place cards and then we all sat down and shared a wonderful feast together!
This was followed by a grand showing of the new movie 'Up' in the theatre along with all the other Lower school students, then a whole day was devoted to the joys of reading in the classroom.
The day ended with our bi-annual read-in, where students visit four different classrooms to listen to short stories read aloud by different teachers.
We all had a wonderful day!

“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

The Best Part Of Me

As part of a Language Arts unit, students have been busy practising using 'The Writing Process' by recreating a book of poems entitled 'The Best Part Of Me'. (Based on a book by the same name by Wendy Ewald).

In the prewriting process, students chose a part of their body that they felt was beautiful/fascinating/interesting or simply the 'best' part of them and have been drafting, redrafting, editing, proofreading and publishing poems to go alongside a photograph of their 'favourite' part of them.

I will post a slide show of the final published work when we complete it next week. The photo above is a collage of all the 'best parts' of 5B!


“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Students Use Quills & Scrolls in Ella Enchanted

As part of our Ella Enchanted novel work, students tried their hands at staining paper using tea and coffee; burning the edges of the paper to make it more 'aged' and then, using quills (kebab sticks) and ink pots, the students had a go at writing a letter on their scrolls the old fashioned way!
You should have heard the complaints!
"It's too hard!";
"The scratching noise is stressing me out!";
"I have to re-dip the quill every single letter!";
"I'm making such a mess - the ink is blotting everywhere!";
"I'm never going to finish!"

Well, the students did finish eventually, and I really think they got a sense of just how lucky they are to have the pens they have today! Students actually produced some very beautiful scrolls, all letters as if they were Ella herself, to the very clumsy and air-headed fairy, Lucinda, in order to beseech her to remove the curse of obedience from her soul.

We completed the activity by sealing the scrolls in the traditional way with melted candle wax (which we had to do outside as we were scared we would set the fire alarms off!) and coins for the imprints on the seals.
I will attach a photo of the final results tomorrow.

I do hope the students will remember this lesson. I think they learnt a lot!


“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Sewing Class!

Whilst reading our class novel, "Ella Enchanted", I was surprised to discover that only two out of the 16 students in the class had ever tried their hand at sewing before. As the novel is set in Medieval Times, with some emphasis on Medieval tapestries, magical rugs, as well as Ella having to learn embroidery, I thought I should get the students learning how to sew!
I was soooooo impressed with their first efforts! We didn't use material, or needles, but I hole-punched hundreds of holes in paper, gave them a choice of coloured yarns, showed them how to 'thread' a paperclip and then set them off designing their own creation!
I think Da Sol's palm tree, Michelle's Glass Slipper and Jaya's steam boat deserve an honourable mention - they are particularly good for first timers!



“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Listening to 'A Wrinkle In Time'

“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Sugar Fest!

“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Proud of their Creations

“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Ella Enchanted Cakes - The Prep!

As part of an introduction to our new class novel - "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine, the students took on the role of chefs and created amazingly colourful (and very sugary sweet!) castle cakes. The book is set in Medieval times and so after researching castles and all things enchanted, I thought this would be a really fun activity to do, as well as a yummy treat to end the day with!

Ella Enchanted is an exciting and thrilling novel about Ella of Frell, a cursed girl at birth that has to obey every single command that she receives. It is a similar, but more gripping story than the old fairy tale of Cinderella.
Ella thrives in adventures with ogres, gnomes, elves, her wicked family, and Lucinda the fairy, who laid the curse of obedience on her in the first place. Overcoming all the hard tasks, she manages to break and lift her curse once and for all. She finally finds the blessing in the simple key of true love.

Above are collages of the students hard at work, their wonderful creations and then a great photo of the kids eating their castles whilst being read aloud to by our wonderful Headmaster, Mr. Cook! What a fun day we had!


“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown

Laments From ‘Holes’

I am so excited to be able to share with you the wonderful poems 5B wrote this week. I am working on finding better ways to publish their work, but here is our very first go! Enjoy!

Laments From ‘Holes’

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Visit With An Author A Complete Success!

5B and 5R were truly privileged today to have had a visit from famous Dutch children's author, Corien Oranje.

http://www.corienoranje.nl/

Mrs. Oranje, suitcase in hand carrying a whole array of writing tips in the form of objects, presented us with an inspiring and engaging workshop, telling us about her life as an author. She wowed us with some of the premises of the stories she'd written, about the writing and editing process, how she comes up with ideas, and what it’s like to be an author.

We were all fascinated with her real-life experiences, like her visits to prisons and disaster areas (Aceh after the Tsunami) and how she uses simple devices like newspaper articles to get ideas for amazing stories. She did such a great job at explaining where and how she gets her inspiration for her stories and she was definitely able to provide valuable inspiration for the students, as not only did they line up for autographs, they talked enthusiastically about children's stories for much of the day after her visit. We hope Mrs Oranje might be able to come back and work with us again soon.

Thank you, Corien Oranje! Your visit was absolutely thrilling - the children enjoyed your visit so much. Even I am now inspired to go away and write a book myself! (If only I could find some time!)

Time with Mr. Cook

At the end of Day 3 each week, 5B are lucky enough to have a regular friendly visitor to the classroom -Mr Cook, our Headmaster. We all sit in the reading corner, and Mr Cook reads aloud to us from Madeleine L'Engle's famous novel, 'A Wrinkle In Time'.

'A Wrinkle in Time' is the story of Meg Murry, a high-school-aged girl who is transported on an adventure through time and space with her younger brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin O'Keefe to rescue her father, a gifted scientist, from the evil forces that hold him prisoner on another planet.

What a great way to end the day!

“Shoot for the moon! Even if you miss you will land among the stars!”-Les Brown