5th Grade Happenings

Fifth grade has been a busy place this year. With learning the ropes of how to transition from a fourth grader to a middle school student, and learning the academic skills needed to succeed in this environment, we can truly say we are maturing and responding well to these new expectations.

In science we have tackled the ins and outs of God’s tiniest creatures, the insects. We learned that they might be very small, but they are very complicated in detail, completely fitted for where they were made to live and what they were made to do. From our research to our STEAM creations, from our insect collections to dissecting grasshoppers, we now have a new appreciation for many of these unique creatures.

In social studies we learned about early Native American tribes. The students created their own tribes, while staying true to traditions and customs of tribes found in the same region of North and South America where their tribe would have originated. From our research to designing booklets, from dressing up to bringing props for presentations, we are now more sensitive to the various cultures of many early Native American tribes and why they lived as they did.

In literature class we read the novel, Shiloh. Some major themes in Shiloh include justice, determining what is right or wrong, and the importance of family and friends. Phyllis Reynolds Naylor used her personal experience of finding a skinny, scared dog while taking a walk in West Virginia, to convey the notion that a person's perspective changes when he or she becomes emotionally involved in a problem. We now have more empathy for animal rights and better discernment for being honest, even when it’s hard.