Is History Truly Alive?

As we get more and more involved in Social Studies, understanding how and when events began, and the cause and effect of ideas is vital. (Very important). Today, as we celebrate Freedom Week, we will look at some interesting events and ideas that make up the very fabric of our country. We will start with our country's pledge. 


Create a new post titled: My Country Tis of Who? Then, begin your post by typing the Pledge of Allegiance. See how much of it you know without reciting it aloud with the class.


Second, listen to this recording of the pledge being recited then go back to your version and make any corrections. 

Podcast Powered By Podbean
Next, look up the vocabulary in the Pledge and find out what they mean. (Ex: pledge, allegiance, republic, indivisible, liberty, justice) 

example: 


Pledge - ........


Allegiance - ....... 




After you finish the vocabulary write why you think The Pledge of Allegiance is important to Americans, then write why the Pledge is important to you.


lastly, you and your team will research on the Internet various national celebrations such as Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Constitution Day, Columbus Day, and Veterans Day. You will work in groups to research one holiday so you can report out and share your findings with the class later. As a group, you will find information regarding: 1. Why the holiday is important/celebrated, 2. Its origins/history (meaning when and how it began). Finally you will then work with the group to create a poster that explains the national celebration with the information you found along with an illustration that depicts the significance (importance). You will do this as a Glog. 


I know this seems like a ton of work, but you are a great group when you are on task, so let's step it up a notch and show what we can do.


Happy blogging!

Tuesday, September 13 CNN Student News Response

In what specific ways do you think that the media could be used to help promote literacy?

*

*

What are some of the main points in President Obama's job creation proposal? What parts of the plan do you think might appeal to Republicans in Congress? Why? What parts do you think might appeal to Democrats? Why? What is your opinion of the president's proposal? In your opinion, should government play a role in job creation? Explain.

*

*

If you could ask a question at a presidential debate, what would you ask and why? What issues would you like to see presidential candidates address?

*

*

Do you think that the iPad program seen in the report could increase students reading and math scores? Why or why not? How is technology used in lessons at your school, if at all? What do you think might be the potential advantages and disadvantages of using technology in classrooms?

*

*

CNN Student News...What Do You Think?

Media is a wonderful way to bring about student discussion in the class. CNN Student news will be used on a daily/weekly basis in hopes to create elaborate conversations about real-life topics. take a look at today's video and answer the following questions.

My First Blogging Experience

The term blog originated from the blend of the term “web log”.

Nowadays blogs compete with mainstream media in delivering news and information.  Important events, war coverage and celebrity deaths are often reported quicker and more accurately on blogs and Twitter than traditional news service.

Well, welcome to the life of a blogger; recording every event, idea, critical thought and so on and so forth. The opportunity to publicly express yourself will be developed throughout this year as you venture into new territories such as blogging. Don't get frustrated in the beginning as you are just learning, however, pay attention to my blog and follow your classmate's blog and you will soon develop your own voice.

Your blogging assignments will be posted on our class blog and you will then be required to respond to the assignment by creating a new post on our own blog. Please remember to cut and past the actually question, direction or activity to your blog first prior to responding. We will talk more about that as we tread along. However, for your first blog post, respond to the following question:

Having never written a blog before, how do you feel about this opportunity? What are some of your fears about tackling such a project? What do you think you will enjoy the most? What do you think you will enjoy the least?

Title your post: My First Blogging Experience

Have fun and happy blogging!

The Civil War...Not So Civil

As we continue our discussion regarding the Civil War, watch the following video and think about the necessity of this war. The Union was being divided with the issue of Slavery at the forefront and economic gain underneath. However, do you think that the war did more good for our nation than bad. Leave a comment telling me your thoughts about what you have learned about the Civil War and rather or not you believe that it had to happen. After watching the video, create a new post writing a letter as if you were actually fighting in the war and you want to tell your family about it. Use your text book pages 498 - 503 as reference to what life was like during this crucial time in our Country. Title your post: Civil War Letter. Your post must include information from both the text and the video that you will watch in a moment. Have fun learning!

Using Garage Band in the class...

During our Science rotations to prepare for TAKS, students were required write a song to demonstrate mastery in any of the 4 objectives. Groups were made up of 4 to 5 students and they collaborated to come up with lyrics that would fit a popular instrumental track. The students used GarageBand™ to record, edit and mix each song and then exported the project as an mp3.

Out of the 24 songs, 5 were voted on as the top songs. Now it's time for the people of the 5th grade to have a voice. Please listen to each track and decide on which one you like best.

Fireflies Adaptation

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Dynamite Energy

Podcast Powered By Podbean

I Whip My Oxygen Around

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Party Like An Inherited Traits Star

Podcast Powered By Podbean

Energy Fireworks

Podcast Powered By Podbean

After listening, please vote for the song you like the best. You have until 10:00 pm cst to cast your vote and vote as often as you like. The winner will be announced Tuesday, May 24.

End of the Year Awards

So long, farewell, it's time to say goodbye...well, almost. However, as an annual tradition, the Smittie's K.I.D.S. Choice Awards will take place on June 1, 2011. To determine the winner of each award, it is up to you, yes you the people will decide who gets what award. You can also vote at Smittie Project Wiki and click on student polls.