The Giver Interveiws

   We went to different classes to ask them a few questions about a book that the whole grade was (and some of the classes still are) reading. It's called the Giver. The questions we asked were: 1. what part are you up to? 2. what's your favorite part so far and why? 3. who's your favorite character and why? 4. what was the most emotional part for you? 5. what do you think about Sameness?
    
We asked people from our class, and from Ms. Short and Mr. Chris' class too.

      From our class we asked Porter, and he answered, "1. When the twin was released. 2. When Jonas gave Gabriel the sailboat memory. 3. Asher because I like how he is hyper, full of energy, and almost always positive. 4. When Jonas' dad releases the other twin. 5. It's really stupid because what's the point of life if you don't get to make decisions?"
      Then we asked Ellie and she answered, "1. Jonas spends the night with the Giver. 2. Jonas' first time with the Giver. 3. The Giver because he teaches Jonas lessons, and without the Giver, no one would know what to do. 4. Jonas watched the video of the twins release. 5. It's unfair because you can't take away all this stuff."
       Then we interviewed Kaya, and she said, "1. The end. 2. When Jonas figured out that he was going to bring Gabe. 3. Asher because he reminds me of myself, and I'd want his job because you get to have fun all day. 4. When Jonas found out that his dad kills people (releases). 5. It's horrible because they're keeping people from living life."
        When we asked Dylan, he answered, "1. Ending. 2. Probably when the Giver was giving memories of the sled. 3. The Giver because he gives you memories and is the one who made all of this happen. 4. When the Giver gave Jonas the memory of the elephant. 5. It's completely unnatural."
         Then we asked Jonathan. He said, "1. We finished the book. 2. I liked when the Giver revealed that Rosemary was his daughter because it makes the story deeper and shows what the Giver's life was like. 3. Jonas because he's the main character and he wants things to change in the community. 4. When Jonas saw his father releasing the twin. 5. Their intentions were good, but they went a little overboard." 
          When we asked Jessica, and she said, "1. When Gabe and Jonas left the community and went elsewhere. 2. When they met Gabe and when they described Gabe. 3. Gabe because little kids are really cute. 4. When the twin was released. 5. I really don't think it's fair."

  

The interviews now, are from Ms. Short and Mr. Chis' class. 

          We interviewed Taylor, and she answered, "1. The Giver was about to give Jonas a memory of a rainbow. 2. I like the whole book. 3. I like Lily and the Giver because Lily is funny and the Giver is a good character. 4. I don't have an answer. 5. I think it's a very bad thing." 
          Then we asked Ella, and she said, "1. Fiona's hair just changed, and Jonas figured out that he's seeing the color red. 2. Sledding because he was remembering in the past. 3. Lily or the the Giver because she is very funny, but unthoughtful and the Giver s wise. 4. Sameness. 5. I think it is very bad! It's blocking out fun and their different personalities." 
         And finally, when we asked Henry, he said, "1. When the Giver is giving Jonas a memory of a rainbow. 2. when he's told he's going to be the receiver. 3. Jonas and the Giver because Jonas follows the rules a lot which is interesting. The Giver because he's really smart and he's teaching Jonas a lot of stuff he's never known before. 4. When Sameness happened. 5. I think it's disturbing that they're controlling the community."

Thank you for reading!

By: Lindsay and Alyssia 














     

Our Unit 4 Math RAFTS!

Magali & Kaya's RAFT

Bella & Jessica's RAFT
 


Robert & Brendan's RAFT

 

Declan's RAFT

Jackson & Connor's RAFT

Parker's RAFT

Sara, Olivia, Alyssia & Lindsay RAFT Chloe & Ruby's RAFT

Our Latest PSA!

15 PSABetzyAndreaSaraEsti from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Our Latest Math RAFTS!

Our Latest P.S.A.!

15 PSA Markers from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Our Chocolate Sale!

Class Journalists Ruby and Parker reporting: We have gone around the fifth grade asking students chocolate questions... You may be asking, "What do you mean 'chocolate questions?!" Well, we mean ABOUT OUR 5th GRADE CHOCOLATE SALES!!!!

A boy in 5-301, Esteban has sold six boxes. We learned that some of the boxes were sold by his mom at work.  His favorite customer when he is selling the box himself is his sister. Esteban's favorite box is blue because it sells much better than the other ones.

A boy in our class 5-316 named Dylan hadn't sold as many as Esteban, but its all in the fundraising spirit!!! Dylan sold 19 bars and most of them were to the nurses at the doctors office. Dylan's favorite box is the blue box (the one with just chocolate) he likes this box because it called the chocolate sale and that box has just chocolate. Dylan was excited because he saw all of the other fifth graders sell when he was in the lower grades and it looked pretty fun to him.

As you can see here down below is class 5-316's chart of the percentage that we have sold (its not updated so we have a lot more than just twenty percent.) We are not doing so bad in chocolate sales, we are in third place,out of six classes. Here are the scores: Class 5-301= 32%, 5-302= 18%, 5-306=5%, 5-307= 21%, 5-309= 17%, and our class 5-316= 20%. those are the(non-updated) scores of the chocolate sales...and now onto more interviews!!!! 

Abby, a girl in 5-302, has sold so far 58 chocolates and going on to her next box. She says that her favorite costumer is her parents because they have bought the most. Her favorite  box is the blue one because she does not like the gummy bears and chocolate raisins.

Damien, a boy in 5-306, has sold so far 1 1/2 boxes. His favorite customer is himself because he has bought a lot. His favorite box is the blue one because that is the only one he has sold so far. He said, "I am happy now that i am a fifth grader because i am one of the bigger kids now." Bigger kid = bigger chocolate sales!

Another person interviewed was Kenny ,he has sold 6 or 7 boxes!!! His favorite customers are the people at his mom's job. His favorite box is the red one because of the gummy bears. Kenny also said that he was excited because he got to unleash his inner awesomeness. (really "humble" am I right)

The last person interviewed was Aya, she sold 5 boxes, to her neighbor and her Grammy. Her favorite box is the green one because, the chocolate in that box sells for more money, and when things are more expensive people think that those things are better. Aya was excited because she liked selling "stuff". 

For those of you who are reading this and are not in fifth grade we hope that you enjoyed this article and we wish you luck when the year comes that you will be selling chocolate as well.
   -Parker and Ruby (class journalists) <3


 

Robert's Super Bowl prediction was the closest!

The New England Patriots beat the Seattle Seahawks in Super Bowl XLIX!

The score was 28-24. Not only was Robert the closest, his prediction of New England winning by 4 points was accurate!

Our New Round of RAFTs!

5-316's RAFT's have come so far. Our reading/writing/Social Studies integrated units were extended with great creativity. Check out our videos:










Jake made a Transcontinental locomotive... that runs!

And check out the pictures of our boardgames!

Our Latest P.S.A.

15 PSALindsaySofiaJonathanDeclan from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

5-316's culture!!!

    I asked some kids about the different types of culture they had. First I interviewed Robert. "Are you part of any culture?" I asked him. "Yes, I am 1\2 Italian and 1\4 Polish," He answered. "Do you do any traditions related to that culture?" I said. "Every Sunday my family eats macaroni, an Italian tradition." I asked the final     question, "do you have any item or article of clothing?" "Yeah, an Italian soccer jersey." 

   Next person was Betzy. She was 1\2 Spanish and she celebrated 3 kings day. She also had a special scarf that was used to carry a baby. I found that part very interesting. I never knew that about her! 

   Finally came Porter. He was German! Wow i never knew that. Every year, a couple days before Christmas, he would string popcorn on a chain and then ONLY then he could open presents.

  I had a lot of fun learning about everybody's different culture hope you enjoyed too.

           -Ellie

 

 

5-316's First Public Service Announcement

15 PSA-EggSalad from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Shrek Junior, The Musical

By Brendan, Sara, and Riley

(Brendan) The fifth grade is putting on a musical like they have done every year. Every year kids get super thrilled to be in the play. On the other hand, the people who auditioned and didn't get the part were very upset. The musical is about an ogre and a donkey who have to save a princess with obstacles such as a evil ruler, a deadly dragon and knights around every corner. 

What I have to say to the people who were upset is there are many great parts in the ensemble too, such as Duloc performers, Trees, Fairy tale creatures and more!!!! I am thrilled to be in this musical and to even have this musical happen. This Musical is going to be epic no matter what! So if you are in the main cast or ensemble, have fun in this musical. TO ALL READERS COME AND SEE SHREK JUNIOR THE MUSICAL IN LATE MAY !!!! 

(Sara) The play is going to be very fun for the main cast and the ensemble, as Brenden said. I think here are many great parts for everyone. I think everyone who auditioned did a wonderful job. People who got upset about the musical shouldn't because the ensemble is great too. If you are upset just jump up and down and scream "I am so happy I am in the ensemble!!!!" That will make you feel better about it. I think this musical will be a blast. I just wonder how they will make the child who plays Shrek look green and have those little pointy ears.
Now to all the main cast children I think you are going to do great no matter what part you get. The main cast will have lots of singing so you should practice your voice and sing all the songs. I am happy I got in the ensemble. I didn't even audition. Everyone please come see Shrek the musical. I bet all the students will have worked so hard so please come as their reward for working hard. Now to the students work hard. as Brendan said. TO ALL READERS COME AND SEE SHREK JUNIOR THE MUSICAL IN LATE MAY!!!!"

(Riley) The play should have equal parts. If there are some parts bigger than others, that would be ok. It's just that there should not be any auditions. It should not be called the "main cast." What you get is what you get. The main cast has only 33 parts and there are 150 kids in the grade. Some of my fellow peers and me think it should not be a musical. It should focus on acting and not singing! And we strongly believe that statement. Brendan and Sara have the good side of the argument and I have the bad side of the argument. Overall, I do not think it is fair.

I have some tips you can use for next year: To not have a main cast, to have no singing, to have equal parts. Now that is what my classmates and I have to say about this play. We can disagree, but I do hope you come to see the play either way!!!!!

Reflections on the Ballroom Peformance

By Ruby & Parker

After the Ballroom Dance show on Friday the 5^th of December2014, the two class journalists, Parker and Ruby, separated and went off to all of the fifth grade classrooms, in the fifth grade classrooms were children who demonstrated and spoke at the show. The journalists had three questions:  1. Were you nervous to be up there by yourself (or with a partner) and how did it feel to gat picked? 2. How long did it take you to find something to wear? And 3. What are you favorite ballroom dances?

The first person interviewed was Ella from class 302: “I was definitely nervous to speak because I usually don’t speak in front of people, and because of that I don’t get picked for special things like that, so it felt really great! To get dressed it took me about 15 minuets. And my favorite dance is definitely the Merengue.”

The next person interviewed was Marianna. “I felt a little nervous when dancing but then I was okay, and I was totally embarrassed because there was a lot of people right there. It took me a while, like four days to find the perfect outfit. My favorite dance is probably the swing.”

After a few more interviews, we came across two negative reviews. First there was Emmanuel. “ I am very shy so it felt terrible because I extremely dislike speaking in front of crowds. I hate it so much that I let someone else read my story. It took me 10 seconds because I did not care what I was wearing. I do not have a favorite dance but if I were to pick I would pick the "Swango" (swing/tango).

The next negative interview was Luca. “Honestly, I did not care and it took me two minutes to get dressed. And my favorite dance is the salsa.” 

One of the last interviews was for a pair of demonstrators, Alma and Sligo they demonstrated the Fox Trot. This is what Alma had to say: “I was kind of nervous and my stomach was swirling in circles. I felt overjoyed to perform. It took me fifteen minutes and thirty-seven seconds to get dressed. And my favorite dance is the Merengue.“ And now on to Sligo. “It was nice to dance again. I was slightly nervous. It took me five minuets and tem seconds to get dressed. And my favorite dance s also the Merengue.”

The last interview was another pair of demonstrators Zoe and Jack. This is what Zoe had to say. “ I was surprised and proud at the same time. I was nervous because I spin to fast. It took me ten minuets to find something to wear. I favorite dance is The Swing.” And now on to Jack: “when I got picked I felt happy and nervous and I don’t know how to explain it. It also took me ten minutes. And my favorite dance is the ‘Salsa’ (swing\ salsa).”  Anyway, as you see there were two perspectives about this dance, some felt so HAPPY!! And some just didn’t care.

Class Journalists Report on "Turkey Raffle"

Ms. Biedermen’s class had won the last raffle for Halloween. This made me determined to win the turkey raffle. It had just been announced and the prize was clearly strange, a turkey. This had everyone confused, so I as class journalist ( Sasha is my partner )started a survey/interview. My boss (Ms.Zacconi ) had said to find opinion. Well guess what, I did.

    

Stella Brown from the class that one the last raffle says its ok to have a turkey for our school’s thanksgiving raffle. But when I told her how turkeys are treated and bred, the expression on her face was beyond imagining.

      

“Well…” she said. She really thought about it for a while. “I think its okay but only because it’s traditional.  We are carrying that tradition and that’s fine with me.” During the interview Stella also mentioned that having turkey on thanksgiving is very special to her and her family and that the tradition.

Not everyone thinks the Turkey raffle is a good idea. Kaya of 5-316 thinks that the treatment of Turkeys is inhumane and cruel. “It’s cruel to kill for pleasure of humans” Kaya says “ Imagine a killing a turkey killing and eating a human for Thanksgiving.” Despite her feelings on the rights of Turkeys Kaya does not refer to herself as Vegetarian, Vegan, Raw Vegan, or Fruitarian.

Jackson, another 5-316 student spoke out against Turkey living conditions.“I’d raise them free range and kill them when they’re old.” Jackson says. “Cows are raised that way so it’s not like it’s impossible.”

      

We’re proud to say that not only is PS58 carrying the meat tradition, but there are also baskets being raffled of as prizes. Some baskets include toys, cookery, and large Christmas decorations.

It is true that Turkeys are housed in terrible shacks and abused but many think that until the movement grows strong enough the horrors will carry on. Though it is only school event the Turkey Raffle will help decide just that.

Our R.A.F.T.s Rundown

Take a look at a selection of our Reading RAFTs!
RAFT Wonder - Small from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Jake-Jackson Reading RAFT from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Riley Parker RAFT from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Reading RAFT - Brendan and Robert from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Ellie RAFT from Ms. Z on Vimeo.

Chloe and Sara-Raft from Ms. Z on Vimeo.