We will be placing an order soon for GATE T-Shirts!  The shirts will be black with white print. Shirts are $6.25/ All students will have the opportunity to pick up an order form in class this week.  Or, you may DOWNLOAD the order form here.  Please have ALL shirt orders to Mrs. Venosdale by Friday, February 5, 2010.

This morning, GATE6 students gathered to talk about the earthquake that occurred in Haiti.    Students decided that we could work together to DO SOMETHING for this country in need.  After we checked out Haiti’s location on Google Earth, we realized it was smaller compared to our own country, but the need is certainly GREAT.    Students immediately began brainstorming ideas.   We needed posters to hang in the halls.  We needed a short speech to read on the morning announcements.  We could work together, collecting donations.   Our plan is simple:  we would cut out hundreds of small red hearts.  Students will work in teams to provide hearts to anyone who stops by the table in the mornings to give a donation.  The hearts will be hung in the halls of our school to show our support for Haiti.  We are sure about one thing: no donation is too small.  Every penny will count in Haiti!

A 6th grade student created this video to show the need to help:  Hearts For Haiti

Another 6th grade student designed a website for the project!

If you would like to help with our project, stop by our table before Morning Announcements to make a donation.  You will receive a heart to hang in our Intermediate School’s hallway.  Following the collection, all proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross for Haiti.

The project will run from Monday, January 25 to Friday, February 12, 2010!   Thank you for your support!

If YOUR school would like to join in this project, check out our project blog at: http://classroomheartsforhaiti.blogspot.com/ We would love to recieve a picture of your school’s wall filled with Hearts for Haiti!  Please check it out!

Taking a break from studying Mars to play Banangrams!

Fifth grade GATE is off and running on a study of architecture, engineering, and design in our skyscraper unit.    We’re going to be building our own Spaghetti Skyscrapers,  researching the difference between “architecture” and “engineering” and even writing some poetry about skyscrapers.  Today, we started brainstorming with some similes… A skyscraper is like….

…a heart because it beats with the words of awestruck tourists.

…a drum, for it moves with the rhythm of the earthquake.

…a giraffe because it stretches and reaches above everything else.

…a GATE5 student, for it reaches and stretches above all else to touch the sky!

(–Written by GATE5 Students and Mrs. Venosdale)

Fourth Grade GATE students are working together to find out how our lives compare with the lives of those living in Ancient Greece. Did you know that men got their haircut in Barber Shops back in Greece? We learned this today and students created an original song to perform to teach the class about an aspect of life in Ancient Greece! We learned about storytelling, hairstyles, clothing, the Olympics, and even foods!

Are you studying Ancient Greece or want to learn more? Check out this site: http://www.mystery-productions.info/hyper/Hypermedia_2003/Miller/AM_hypermedia/Artifact/

If you were going to travel to Mars, what would you wear?  3rd graders figured it out!  You would need a suit for warmth, protection from sharp rocks, and something to help you with the gravity situation since Mars’ has only half the gravity that earth does!

This red planet is fascinating!  We look forward to building a space station in the coming weeks!

We’re off to Ancient Greece this week..

Webquest: http://www.teachnet.ie/stpats2004/ancientgreece/task.html

Daily Life in Ancient Greece
This is an easy-to-read resource on daily activities of the ancient Greeks. Includes classroom activities structured as events in the Olympic games, lesson plans, and descriptions of the cultures of different Greek city-states. NOTE: The site does include some broken external links. NOTE: This site contains ads.

BBC: Ancient Greece: Athens
This site for kids has information about Athens, Olympia, Corinth, as well as a glossary, a timeline, and more. Click on “Resources” for a link to the British Museum ancient Greek collections (through Children’s Compass, a virtual tour and instruction guide), sample writing and audio recordings, printable question sheets, maps, and art images. NOTE: The Talk link leads to a message board.

Enchanted Learning: Map of Greece
Print out a map of Greece. This page also has a link to the country’s flag, a printout of the Greek alphabet, and a map quiz.