Plimoth Rocks!!!

Welcome to Chickering Reports first radio podcast. We will be sharing some information about Plimoth Plantation, we were inspired by the third grade’s field trip. The following is what you’ll be hearing:
– Introduction
– Third Grade Interviews
– Who were the Pilgrims?
– Who are the Wampanoag?
– Jokes

Plimoth Radio Podcast

Thank you for listening to our radio podcast!

Created by Alex, Virginia, and Winnie

Resources:
Plimoth Plantation
[http://plimoth.org/ ] 5 Dec 2009.
You are the Historian: Investigating the First Thanksging
[ http://www.plimoth.org/education/olc/index_js2.html ] 5 Dec. 2009.
The World Book Dictionary. Chicago: World Book, Inc., 2001.
Riddles:
Ancestry.com [ http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~homespun/triddles.html ] 20 Jan 2010.
Music:
Greenday

Poetry Slam!

http://www.poetryguy.com/about.php     1 April 2010

http://www.poetryguy.com/about.php 1 April 2010

PoetrySlam

In November, Ted Scheu was our Poet in Residence.  First, he met with the whole fourth grade, where he shared his poems and told us how he finds his inspiration for his poetry . Mr. Scheu met with each fourth grade class individually.  He showed us examples of poems by kids from other schools.  Then, he explained what similes were and told us we were going to use them in poems.  He handed out mirrors to each student.  Looking at the different parts of our face,he wanted us to write a poem using similes.  For example, my nose is like an Olympic ski jump.  The next day, he came to us and had us write poems about a place that is special to us.  The third time he came to us , we wrote noun-verb poems about any subject we wanted.  At the end of his visit, he met with the whole grade again.  Eight students from each fourth grade class shared their poems.  Mr. Scheu taught us a lot.  It was a great experience!

Ted Scheu is a poet. He has written over a 1000 poems and he never wants to stop writing.  He has a kid’s heart but on the outside a grown-up’s body.  He gets ideas from his memories, especially of when he was a kid, in fact, he considers himself  “a fourth grader with glasses and gray hair”.  He feels that poems are a great way to share one’s feelings.  When he writes poems, he likes to end the poem with something funny.

The authors have recorded their poems.  The Fourth Grade Chickering Reporters added some sound effects, when appropriate.  We hope you enjoy our poems.

http://www.poetryguy.com/

http://www.poetryguy.com/

Podcast of poems by some students in Mrs. Haggett’s and Mr. Wadness’ classes:
FinishedPoems-WADNESS

Poems by some students in Mrs. McLaughlin’s class:
POETRY-MCLAUGHLIN

Poetry by students in Mrs. Atkinson’s class:
ATKINSON-POEMS

We want to thank Ted Scheu for allowing us to use these two photographs from his wonderful website:
< http://www.poetryguy.com/index.php >;
for sharing his poetry with us and inspiring us to become poets.

Reported by: Caroline, Elizabeth E., Grace, Katie, KB, Madison, Maggie, Laura, Melanie, and Josie

Skimmer Regatta

The latest 5th grade science unit is Force and Motion. To assist the students in understanding this science unit, the students, in groups, are designing fronts .and backs of skimmers plus sail designs.  A skimmer is a rectangular shape made from folder paper.  You must have these attributes:

Skimmer Regatta Trophy

Skimmer Regatta Trophy

.  a sail
.  a front at least 9 centemeters out and
.  a back  optional.
Next, we put our skimmer through several tests where we test each design feature separately:
1. We test the airflow by using either long bursts of air or short bursts of air, either to the inside front or to the outside back of the skimmer only.
2. We test the surface [lubricant] that we want our skimmer to glide across. The reason we do this is to see which one creates the most drag and to eliminate that one. The one that creates the least amount of friction we will use. The surfaces [lubricants] that we can choose from include wax paper, aluminum foil, and release aluminum foil.
3. We design two fronts and two backs. We tested them all on the chosen lubricant (a lubricant is a way to reduce the amount of friction generated when a material rubs against another material).
4. Then, we take each of our successful design attributes and add them, test them together, adjusting where needed; making a unique skimmer.
5. We have a class race to see who’s skimmer is the best.
6.  Finally, all grade 5 classrooms get together to do a regatta to see overall, in the grade, whose skimmer travels the farthest distance.
This year we designed and created a trophy to be given to the winner of the regatta.
The grade level regatta took place on 3/30/10.  The 5 classroom teams had 3 trials each.  We averaged the times of the 3 trials for each classroom.  The two classrooms with the highest average moved on to the final regatta.  The two classrooms were Ms Varley’s and Mrs. Chiavarini’s.  The winner of the grade level Skimmer Regatta was . . . MRS. CHIAVARINI’S CLASS!!!!!

Reported by: Annie, Alice, Julia, and Jacquelyn