The students have completed their informational paragraphs and pictorial representations of Native
American tribes from regions across the United States. They have created a wonderfully detailed map
located between our classroom and the computer lab. If you have the opportunity to come into school
in the next week or so, I'd encourage you to stop by and see it. You'll be sure to learn something new.
We are now moving into the Age of Exploration. Students will be involved in mapping exercises,
reading from various historical sources, learning to take thoughtful and organized reading notes, and
engaging in skits that recreate scenes from the past. They will learn of Marco Polo's paving the way for
Christopher Columbus' famous voyages to the "New World."
To connect our Meeting of the Three Worlds (Americas, Europe, and Africa), the students will be
taking part in our annual 5th grade Trade Fair. Everyone has been busily making homemade crafts for
their booths. Tuesday, December 15th, is the big day. The students will learn about bartering, and will
apply the economic concepts of supply, demand, scarcity, consumers, producers, natural resources,
human resources, and capital resources.
In addition to our trade fair, all students will take part in the first level of the classroom geography
bee this week. This event is sponsored by the national Geographic Society, and was created to raise
geographic awareness in our nation's schools. There are seven rounds in the classroom bee, and the
top two winners will advance to the school level bee to compete against other 5th graders in Lars
Auditorium on Thursday, January 7th at 8:30 a.m. Everyone is invited. You can have fun at home as a
family by visiting some of the geography websites I have posted on my links page. Other links can be
found on our Central Grade Website.