Civil War Letters

By Maggie and Izzy 5K

The fifth graders wrote letters to family or friends pretending to be in the civil war at a battle of their choice. Many people wrote about the terrible living conditions such as bad food and no sleep. Others asked how life was at home and how the family was faring. After they finished their rough drafts they made paper that looked like it was from that time and place using a special procedure. First, they soaked a piece of paper in water with teabags in it. Then, they used marker to decorate the paper with marks to make it look dirty or bloodstained.  An optional choice was to rip part of the paper. Finally, they hung the papers up to dry and wrote the letters. The teachers then hung them up in the hallway so everybody could see their good work. 

The 5th Grade Transition Picnic

By Gracie F.

On Tuesday, the 5^th graders of Holmes, Whittier, Lincoln, and Hatch schools went to Taylor Park to have a picnic. After we all ate our lunches, the teachers divided us into groups with other schools so we could get to know each other. After we got into groups, we did some activities that helped us learn to work together. Some of the activities were a type of relay race where we would tag someone, they would run to the other side of the field and back, and tag someone else. Then the cycle would happen over again. We did that so next year at Brooks, everyone would know more people because of the people they met at the picnic. Maggie said about the picnic, “It was fun to meet new people. Plus we got cotton candy and popsicles.” Peyton says, “It was fun but I would’ve liked more time to meet new people.”  That was a fun 5^th grade field trip and I hope they continue to do it for the years to come.

The Fun Run

By Maggie F., Peter G., and Izzy L.

 

On Saturday, May 7, over 200 Holmes students ran in the Fun Run. The age range was from kindergarten to eighth grade, and all District 97 studentss were admitted. At Holmes there were trophies for first through tenth place. And anyone who finishes gets a ribbon. They divided students into groups from K-2^nd, 3^rd- 5^th, and 6^th-8^th. This year there were not enough 6^th-8^th graders, so they combined 3^rd -5th and 6^th-8^th graders who ran against each other at 8:00. The at about 8:15, the kindergarten through 2^nd people went, this year the Fun Run had an excellent turnout. Mr. Williams got nearly 270 permission slips. In 3^rd-5^th grades at Holmes, Sam M. got 1^st, John M. got 4^th, and Katie L. got 5^th. The Fun Run is a way to have fun and run.

5th grade mural

By Alex G.

Every year 5th graders create a mural somewhere for school. This year they are doing it on the fence of our earth tub. When the final product is complete it should look a lot brighter and colorful. During the last few weeks of school, Mr. Kristofer and the students will head outside and paint their final product. Hopefully the 5th graders will enjoy doing one of their final art projects at Holmes. Check out the earth tub when they finish.

Mrs. Anderson's Class Movie Project

By Katie L
This year the 3rd graders in Mrs. Anderson’s class did a movie project for one of their research projects. They split up into small groups and got a topic. These topics are wild animals as pets or for profit, wild animals in the city or suburbs, wild animals in the country, and BP Oil Spill damage to animals. After this the 3rd graders got straight to work. After checking out books, looking on websites and filling out research sheets they were ready to start working on their movie presentations. They each had a different view on the topic. It could be a hunter, landowner, and many more views. Here is a clip of their awesome presentation!!

5th Graders Trip to the Robert Crown Center

 Grace S. and Maddie L.

     

     The fifth graders are starting an exciting new unit on the human reproductive system. On Tuesday, April 26th, the 5th Graders made their way to the Robert Crown Center in Hinsdale. The students learned about the reproductive organs and puberty. Students were separated by gender. The girls and boys filed into similar classrooms, where they got to learn about the male and female reproductive organs. They used iRemotes for this program so they could take a pre-test at the beginning to see what they knew and the end to see what they learned. The boys' and girls' programs differed greatly, but they both had the iRemotes and the same basis: the male and female reproductive systems. They learned about their own genders' changes during puberty. Get excited 4th Graders! You'll be going there next year!

Shakespeare plays

by Nathan A.

In Mrs. Kraft’s room we have been working on Shakespeare plays. Each homeroom has their own play. So far we have just been rotating parts. You can have either have a small part, like a side part or a big part like a main character. You can also be part of the stage crew or make the costumes or the artist. It is really fun just doing the play and having a laugh with our friends. Mrs. Manual’s class is doing Taming of the Shrew, Mrs. Peterson’s class is doing Hamlet, Mrs. Kraft’s is doing Comedy of Errors, and Ms. Yigsaw’s class is doing Macbeth.