Super Trip to the American Museum of Natural History

                                                                                                                                          11/21/14

Dear Parents,


What an exciting trip we had this week! On Thursday, November 20th, Mr. Berlin and Morah Rivkie took the awesome 5th Grade on the subway to the American Museum of Natural History on 81st street in Manhattan.


The students toured many interesting exhibits: We saw the Biodiversity and Environmental Halls, which offer a vivid and inspiring vision of the spectacular beauty and abundance of life on Earth. We explored the Hall of African Peoples, learning about Africa's cultural heritage from ancient Egypt to more modern times. The hall highlights lifestyles and customs—many of them disappearing—of peoples living in four environments: grasslands, deserts, forests, and river regions. 

The Gardner D. Stout Hall of Asian Peoples—the Museum’s largest cultural hall—showcases some of the finest collections in Asian ethnology in the Western Hemisphere. Some 3,000 artifacts, which represent about 5 percent of the Museum’s considerable holdings, are displayed in the hall. We walked around there as well and studies the way ancient people lived.

Finally, we went to the Hall of North American Mammals to view the stunning dioramas of all the different types of creatures in life-like forms. The students had such a good time that they didn't want to go back to school! Below, please find some pictures of our fantastic excursion....

Best,
Mendel Berlin

Math Class

As we learn math there is a real positive energy flow. The students are excited to learn and to acquire the knowledge. They are motivated to do their work and master the skills being taught. As a reward for completing all their work students are occasionally allowed to shoot some hoops with our classroom basketball.
We are continuing to build the 5th graders math skills.  We have been working on division of multiples of 10. Students know how to divide large numbers by first dividing by the multiples of 10. My goal is for the students to use this skill when solving all types of math examples and problems. So when they in the middle of solving a multi-step problem, and they need to divide a large number by a multiple of 10, they won't get side tracked with a long division example, or make a careless error with an answer with an incorrect number of zeros.
As students work in class I point out to them how they can use these skills we have learned. So when I see a student multiplying 12 x 20, and working it out on his paper- I will stop him and say, well, how else can you do this? 12 x 2, you know is ? and then they realize that they can multiply mentally 12 x 2 = 24   24 x 10 = 240.
Simultaneously, while we are still working  on perfecting the task of long division, we are moving ahead and working on learning new concepts. We began the concept of Order of Operations. I showed the students how if we don't follow a specific order when simplifying numerical expressions, different order of solving can yield different answers, hence the need for a specific order for operations. Students were introduced to My Dear Aunt Sally- PEMDAS. and the correct order to follow when simplifying.
The Test on Monday is not on the complete Chapter 2, but only through lesson 2.5.
Have a wonderful Shabbos.
I look forward to meeting you all at Curriculum Night.
Mrs Neuman

Mishna Mission

Judaic Studies

Dear parents,

I know that the Judaic blog posts are well overdue, and there is so much to share!

Today I will focus on our Mishna developments, using the V’shinantam curriculum.

Over the holidays we spent time focusing on the background of the Mishna, how and why it evolved and why it’s so important. As each holiday approached, we studied Mishnayot relevant to that holiday, with lots of hands on games and activities.

Our goal over this year is to learn the necessary background and skills to appreciate Mishnah and learn it independently.

Enjoy these photos, more coming soon.

Rabbi Dovid Okunov

10/27/14

Hello,



     It is now the last week of October and class is firing on all cylinders. We are finishing the exciting Descriptive Reports, which are due at the end of the week, or Thursday, October 30th. Last week, the students read their reports one-by-one. Topics ranged from narratives about family vacations and excursions, to describing role models, interesting places and gadgets. We learned a lot about these subjects and each other!

   We also learned and defined 22 new vocabulary words that we need to know in general as well as standardized testing later in the year. Today, the class discussed the difference between proper sentences and fragments. We are also finishing Frindle, the popular Andrew Clemens fiction story and will be having a comprehension test and minor book report in the coming week(s).

   In social studies class, we continued exploring Ancient Civilization, with a focus on the Babylonians and Hittites, as well as spending a lesson on the Ancient Greek concept of Democracy and its influence on the United States Constitution and other cultures.

Stay tuned every Monday for more,

Mendel Berlin
5th Grade ELA/Social Studies

Math class

Playing Math Games 

yummy! sukkah candy!

Math Class

We ended the first month of school with a test on Chapter 1. Most of the  students did very well on the test. We all need to remember that the important part is not the grade but what the student has learned. Mistakes made on tests are not a reason to be upset, but an opportunity to see where the student needs extra reinforcement, or sometimes just  a reminder that the student needs to read directions, compute carefully, and check their work over.

At the end of the week, students planned a party and had to compute expenses involved. This was a calculator activity, and also a reality check for most students of how much money it actually costs to make a party! Included in the project was the skills on how to figure out how much of each item they would need for amount of people invited to their party.
This coming week we will be taking Math assessments to be used to plan the curriculum to meet each student's level. Students do not need to study for these assessments, however, it would be  beneficial if students went to sleep on time, so that they are well rested.

The First Month of school in Review:

Time flies! - It is hard for me to believe that we are already starting our second month of school. Fifth grade has been amazing! Students are engaged and participating in class. I am so honored and happy to be able to teach these wonderful students this year for the second time around. In Chumash class, we have been learning about the relationship between Yaakov (Jacob) and his sons, and even more so, the special relationship he had with one of his sons- Yosef (Joseph), his favorite. Yosef is also known as "the dreamer". He had interesting dreams, and was good at dream interpretation. These episodes and the love that his father Yaakov had towards him caused a lot of jealousy between his brothers. As a hands-on activity, the 5th grade girls created a poster or diorama depicting the two dreams that Yosef had. This class has incredible art skills, their projects look beautiful and very creative. (See photos below) In Yahadut class, we are learning about the Jewish holidays, the laws, customs, the reasons and the meaning behind each holiday, and the personal connection each person can make when celebrating these special dates and moments. As Yom Kippur approaches, I would like to share with you a few links, of different things that we do in preparation for this day or on the actual day. The students enjoy coming home and sharing what they've learned with their family. 

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/564247/jewish/What-is-Tashlich.htm http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/4442/jewish/Erev-Yom-Kippur.htm

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/4441/jewish/Kaparot.htm

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/177886/jewish/What-is-Yom-Kippur.htm http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/418982/jewish/The-Unetaneh-Tokef-Prayer.htm

http://www.chabad.org/holidays/JewishNewYear/template_cdo/aid/735449/jewish/Yom-Kippur-in-a-Minute.htm

May we all be blessed with a shana tova, a gmar chatima tova, a year of success, health, nachas, and only good things! Morah Rivkie

Tashlich Trip

The girls went to the bay to do tashlich!

5th Grade News for The Last Week of September

  Hello All,                                                                                                                             9/29/14


     As we came back from Rosh Hashanah "vacation," things started heating up in our classroom learning! On Monday, we spoke about Descriptive Writing: how to do write effectively and grab the readers' interest. Students are excitedly planning their topics, to be presented in front of the class during the week of October 20th-23rd.
     As always, we continue reading in our class. We have completed six chapters, or almost half of the fun and lively fiction book, Frindle. We expect to finish reading it by the end of the month and write a book review about Andrew Clements' popular tale.

     In social studies class, students are gearing up to present their findings about ancient civilizations. The students were interested in learning (and teaching their classmates) about the defense, army, citizen rights, education, business and technology of such countries as Ancient Greece, Rome, India, and Israel. It is important that the students use their OWN words when talking about their research, as we discussed in class.

   Stay tuned every Monday to find out more about the 5th Grade English and Social Studies Events and activities.

   Best Wishes for a Sweet New Year,
    M.Berlin

Math Class - Week #2

Dear Parents,
We continued with the topic of Whole Numbers in chapter 1 in Math this week, and are almost finished the chapter. We compared numbers to 10,000,000, and learned how to identify and continue number patterns. We rounded numbers and discussed the difference between rounding and estimating. Students practiced rounding numbers in order to get the estimated sums and differences.
Students enjoyed using cards for learning, in class, this week.  Some students were practicing their multiplication facts, others were comparing positive and negative integers.
Some students were introduced to the idea of algebra and using a variable in a mathematical equation. They also worked on solving some challenging word problems, using the bar modeling method- the method used by our Math Program- Math In Focus, Singapore Math.
Wishing all the Mazel parents and your families a Shana Tova Umesuka!
Mrs. Neuman

Math Class #1

We have completed our first full week of school.  It was a real exciting and successful week!
We began our week by creating a math project called "The Math In Me". Students shared numerical facts about themselves, in mathematical equations, and created beautiful projects that are displayed in the 4th floor hallway. It was  invigorating for me to see how all the students were all   engaged as they made up mathematical expressions to equal the facts they were expressing. They enjoyed the projects and were proud to see their projects hanging in the hallway.
As they worked on the projects they also learned how to follow directions, how to plan first, to check their work,to work independently, to ask for help when necessary, to work quietly, and to put away their supplies when done.
Thank you parents for helping your children bring in pictures of themselves.
We begin our math class by filling in a chart counting what number day of the school year it is, and writing the day as a fraction of 100, a percent, and if the number is prime or composite.

After our exciting introduction to the world of numbers we began learning the first chapter in our math book- Whole Numbers.
We split into 3 math groups so each student can learn at their level and pace.
We covered: reading and writing numbers up to the millions in standard form, word form and expanded form. Most of the students, after a quick review, remembered the place value from previous years and were able to identify  the value of each digit in a number up to the millions place.
Students spun a 10 sided die, and used the digit they spun to create a number with that digit in a specified place value.
Other students found all the prime numbers through 100. They wrote these  numbers on bananas and we hung them on our palm tree in the back of the class room- The message of the tree is "Go Bananas for Math!"
Looking forward to the coming week:
1. We are going to be introducing a behavior modification system where students can earn dollars for doing their work, proper behavior, being on time, having all their work and supplies and being organized.
2. We are going to be having quizzes on multiplication facts. The purpose is to increase the students' fluency of the multiplication table.
3. Please make sure your child has the following supplies daily:
   A) Binder- can be the same binder used for other subjects with a divider for Math.
   B) Math Journal-composition notebook
   C) Pencil Case with pencils, markers, scissors, glue, eraser, color pencils,
   D) 12inch ruler
I am looking forward to another exciting week of math!!

First Week of School

   Dear 5th Grade Parents,

     What an amazing first (full) week we've had in English/Social Studies class!

      We started our first fiction book, Frindle, and everyone is excited to read and discuss the popular Andrew Clemens work next week. We also wrote a letter to someone in school after we practiced brainstorming and drafting in class IN GROUPS!

      We made headway in our first two projects: In English, the class will be writing about a special person, place, event or product. Over the weekend, students will have the unenviable task of choosing just three potential topics and next week each student will meet with me to finalize ONE topic.

    Social Studies class has been given a team assignment: to explore the various aspects of life in ancient civilizations. Stay tuned for updates on this awesome project and pictures of it in action!

   As always, feel free to contact me at (718) 675-9370 or mendelberlin@gmail.com should any questions or comments arise.

   Thanks!
             
  Mendel Berlin