The Last Day of 5th Grade...

Can it be true?.......
Is this for real?.......

I can't believe that this is the last day of 5th grade!  I have truly loved every minute....well...maybe not every minute!  But the good minutes have definitely out-weighed the not so good ones infinitely!  I feel so blessed to have been chosen to be your children's teacher for one of their most important years in elementary.  We have worked so hard this year on On Demand Writing....and I really feel that I am sending them on with a fantastic start!  Mrs. Phillips and I have said over and over how wonderful their writing has become throughout the year!  6th grade teachers are going to be amazed by the talents and abilities of this fantastic group!

Thank you so much for all the support throughout the year.  I hope that you have been as pleased as I have been with the way this year has gone.  Each student will continue to hold a special place in my heart for as long as I live.  I am so thankful that God saw fit to bring me home to Kentucky and to lead me to Sedalia this year.  He truly knows what I need far greater than I do!  I know that he has AMAZING things planned for the life of each one of my students and I am so thankful that He allowed me to play a small part in the storybook of their life.  I hope that they will one day look back on this year as one of their favorites.  God is so good to me, and he has blessed me so much.  I know that He has perfect timing and a perfect plan, and I am so glad that I learned at an early age to put my trust and faith in HIM.

Thanks again for an amazing year! 
<3 ~ Miss Brazzell

Our last morning Zumba of the year!

Morning games with Jaron, Shelby, Kassandra, and Wayne

Keontae, Emily, Savannah, and Nicole playing The Game of Life

Sleepy Madeline slept through the movie and the games...love this sweet girl!

Aaron and Koby are stylin' on the last day of 5th grade

Miss Brazzell's Class ~ the sweetest 5th grade in the world!

Miss Brazzell with her favorite 5th grade class.

Have a great summer!!!
I'll miss you!!!!!!

Civil War Presentation

Friday, May 11th, Mrs. McEndree's husband, Shane McEndree, came to talk to the students about the Civil War.  He brought along several artifacts he has collected throughout the years.  He arrived dressed in uniform and the students thought it was amazing!  The kids really enjoyed his presentation and loved getting to see and touch so many artifacts!

Aaron was chosen to participate in a demonstration.

An actual uniform of the Confederate States of America.

Mr. Shane brought several different sizes of canon balls...from very small...all the way to 12 lbs!

Keontae, Keonah, and Savannah participating in a demonstration.

Fort Donelson

On Thursday, May 10th, we took a field trip to historic Fort Donelson in Dover, Tennessee.  The students watched a brief video on the history of the fort and the battle that took place there, toured the museum, toured the grounds, and then toured the historic house where Buckner and Grant met to decide the conditions of the surrender. 

Here are some pictures from our trip.

The view from the cannons on the river.

The students learning about what the cannoneers would've seen coming from the Union Army.

Shelby, Kassandra, and Ashley had a great time!

The students are participating in cannon drills.  Savannah was selected to be the "Powder Monkey".

Learning about the cannons.

 

The park Ranger had a lot of information for the students!

Let Them Eat Pancakes!!!!

Wednesday morning was a very special morning in Miss Brazzell's classroom!  The kids have been working hard all year long and have been very, very successful!  I am so proud of all of their hard work on testing and in On Demand writing.  In order to celebrate such hard work, I decided to make breakfast!  At first, I thought I'd just get donuts and bring them in, easy peasy lemon squeazy.  However, the more I thought about it, the more I decided that I wanted to make it special for them.  So we had pancakes and bacon instead!  I brought my griddle from home and had a few kids watching the bacon while I flipped flapjacks. :)

I think that it was a HUGE success and that the kids had a great morning!  I am so thankful for every one of these helpful, thoughtful, sweet kids!  I have been blessed beyond measure this year! 

Ashley, Madeline, Nicole, and Shelby are really enjoying their breakfast treat!!





Winding Down

As the school year draws to a close, we have a lot of activities going on!  Here's a list of things we are doing in the last five days of school:

May 9th                  AR Reward field trip to the PAC (bring swimsuit and change of clothes)
May 10th                5th Grade field trip to Fort Donelson (bring a sack lunch)
May 11th                Annual trip to Shupe's Nursery and 6th Grade play at GCHS
May 14th                Attendance Reward Movie (3 absences or less) 12:45 in the gym
May 15th                5th Grade lunch at Sedalia Restaurant
May 15th                Splash Day for students who have met 3 out of 4 AR goals
May 15th                The LAST day for students!!!

Let's get ready to RUMBLE!!!!! Err....I mean, REVIEW!!!

TRASHKETBALL!!

I am sure that you are asking yourself, "What in the world is Trashketball?"  It just happens to be one of the best review games I have in my secret stash of all things educational disguised as CRAZY FUN!!!!!!!!!

The premise of the game is this:  The class is divided into teams (as they enter, they are assigned a number 1-4).  I have a Power Point presentation with all kinds of questions loaded in and ready to go for game time.  Today we reviewed Figurative Language - hyperbolas, similes, metaphors, understatements, onomatopoeia, alliteration, and personification.  Each team has a stack of paper and a highlighter with which to write their answer.  A statement or example will pop up on the screen like so:

For all of you overachievers who can actually read what this says, what is this an example of?

Did you write "alliteration" on your paper?

If so, you are correct!!! And your team is awarded one point!

Kassandra, Benjamin, Noah, Cameron, Sidney, and Wayne were working hard to get their answers correct!

If the team is correct, they get to send a representative to the board to award their point and then wad their answer up into a ball and "shoot" it at the trashcan from a 1, 2, or 3 point line.  If their ball makes it in, they are awarded those extra points.  At the end of the game, the team with the most points win!

Let me tell you, shooting a small paper wad into a trash can that is about ten feet away is not as easy as it looks...yet so many of them went for the three point shots every time!  Here's a few photos of their reactions as they were shooting.



Benjamin going in for 1 point....it's GOOD!

Kole shooting for three....nothing but NET! (Or trash bag, in our case!)

Carlie just barely misses! 

Ashlyn celebrating....I think!

It was a great review game and the kids had a blast!  Bring on the K-PREP testing, because I know these kiddos are R-E-A-D-Y!!!!



Getting in a Morning Workout!!



Almost every morning we do some form of physical exercise.  Some days we do basic stretching; extending our torsos, touching our toes, squats, shoulder rolls, yoga, etc.  However, more often than not, we ZUMBA! Zumba has been a passion of mine for about a year and a half.  It was the catalyst for my over 70lb weight loss over the last year...and I'm still going!  Zumba is a fun and easy cardiovascular exercise that began in Brazil and has slowly, but steadily, moved it's way throughout North America and the entire world!  I also run, although I am not quite as good at, or as fond of it as I am Zumba!  Here's the great thing about a Zumba class:  In a high energy class, you can burn anywhere from 500-700 calories in an hour.  That's about double what you could burn riding a bike or walking for an hour.  And running a 12 minute mile, if you ran for an hour, you'd burn around 900 calories.  Let's see, dance for an hour....or try (notice I said try) to run for an hour keeping a 12 minute mile pace.  I'll take dancing any day! 

And the kids LOVE it!  We take 5-10 minutes after calendar math time to do a couple of songs and I guarantee you that it puts them in a better mood, wakes them up, gets them going, and gets them energized for the day.  Some of the routines we do are ones that I do in my class that I have taught them.  Others are from XBox or Wii Zumba games that I have pulled from YouTube.  Another great thing?  All Zumba music (the music that comes from Zumba headquarters) is clean!  Almost any song can be choreographed with a Zumba routine, but I am very careful to make sure that I have viewed the video before we do the song. 

The bottom line?  Exercise is key to leading a healthy lifestyle.Whether you're ten, twenty, forty, eighty or any age in between, there's a perfect Zumba class out there for you!  In fact, if you're reading this...you should check Zumba out!! Send me an email and I'll give you the details!

Happy Exercising!
xoxo
Miss Brazzell's Class

We're baaaaaaaccccccckkkkk....

We are back in the swing of things from Spring Break...and man, are we off and running!  I know that I enjoyed my break and that kids did too, but we are all focused and ready for the coming weeks as we prepare for testing.  Testing will begin three weeks from today!  (I know, I can't believe it either!)

Before we get back to the basics, I wanted to give a shout out to our Spring Break styles!  Lots of the kids came in with new clothes and new haircuts, but I have to say that Shelby's takes the cake!  Her too cute bob with bangs fits perfectly with her spunky personality!  Great look Shelby!  ...now let's get to work!!



Web Quest

Oregon Trail Web Quest

1.  What is the name of the wagon pioneers used?

                http://www.oregon.com/history/oregon_trail/trivia

2.  What animal was used to pull most of the wagons?  Why?

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Power.html

3.  Find out what the settlers took with them.  Write down 1 animal, 1 piece of equipment, 1 weapon,
     and 1 type of food. 

                http://www.ci.tumwater.wa.us/researchOTpg4.htm

4.  How did most of the pioneers travel to Oregon?

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Introduction.html

5.  What was the biggest problem on the Oregon Trail?  Write down the name of a common disease.

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Hardships.html

6.  Where is Independence Rock (what state)? 

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Sites.html

7.  What did the emigrants do here?

                http://www.america101.us/trail/IndyRock.html

8.  Learn about the Native Americans.  What were most encounters with the Native Americans?

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Native.html

9.  What animal is famous in the West?  Name two things the emigrants did because of this animal.

                http://www.america101.us/trail/buffalo.html

10. What animal started a war, and how?

                http://www.america101.us/trail/cow.html

11. Find out about different places on the Oregon Trail.  Write down:  two places, their location, and
       why they are important.

                http://www.america101.us/trail/Sites.html

12. What would women use to cook along the trail?  Name the most common things cooked.

                http://www.ci.tumwater.wa.us/researchpioneerrecipe.htm

Play-Doh Economics

Teaching Economics has always been a part of 5th grade Core Curriculum.  This year, we are teaching Economics using a familiar and fun tool - Play-Doh!  The kids will learn a new topic every couple of days and then get to use the Play-Doh to model what they have learned.

Today, our Economics lesson was on goods and services.  We talked about how "goods" are tangible products that are manufactured and then sold to consumers (us).  We discussed how all great business ideas start out as small projects, usually made in someones home.  For example, Blake Mycoskie, founder of TOMS shoes, created his business after taking a trip to Argentina 2006 and seeing the masses of children without shoes.  In Argentina, in order to attend school, children must have a full uniform, including shoes.  Without an education the children would never have the opportunity to grow out of the poverty they were being raised in.  Mycoskie noticed that so many children had everything they needed except a pair of shoes.  He returned to the states with the desire to help those children.  He began to manufacture simple, man-made shoes, and offered that for every pair sold, the company would donate one to a child in need.  In his first year of business, Mycoskie sold 10,000 pair of shoes.  In September of 2010, he gave his 1,000,000th pair of shoes.  Talk about a small business that really found it's market!  Tom's shoes retail for around $50, and while I can guarantee that Mycoskie is making a profit, he is an example of a "good" and a "service". 

We spent the rest of our lesson discussing service industries.  For example - teaching is a service industry!  The kids seemed awfully surprised - but I am reminded every day!  And I love what I do! Most people who work in a service industry enjoy their work - or they wouldn't (or shouldn't) do it!  I had the kids use their Play-doh to create a sculpture of a person within the service industry.  I just had to share a couple of them with you - although they were all really great!

Jaron created a Secret Service agent, complete with handcuffs!  This SSA helps protect important people, like President Obama, from harm.



Madison created an EMT, Emergency Medical Technician.  This EMT has been called to the scene of an accident where our Play-doh man has sustained severe injuries and is bleeding Play-doh blood quite profusely!  What a great sculpture!  Madison's dad is an EMT...and obviously her hero! 

We are all looking forward to the next few weeks of Play-doh economics.  Ask your kids what they are learning on a daily basis and you just may be surprised!  



Happy Birthday Lucas S.!!!!

Happy Birthday to you!!

We celebrated Lucas S.'s birthday today!  His actual birthday was Saturday, and we were supposed to celebrate it on Friday afternoon during snack break and Dr. Seuss reading time.  However, instead of reading Dr. Seuss books and celebrating birthdays, we were crouched in the hallway in full tornado drill mode for the last forty minutes of the school day.  Luckily the storms passed by us and we were able to load the buses as normal!  Because of the delay - we celebrated Lucas' birthday this afternoon and made and ate pink snow from Dr. Seuss' "The Cat in the Hat Comes Back".  All in all, it was a great Monday!

February Student of the Month ~ HONESTY

Congratulations Shelby Turner!!!

Shelby is Miss Brazzell's SoM for February.  The character trait for February was honesty.  Shelby is always quick to tell me the truth, no matter what I ask her.  To be honest, I could have named any one of my sweet 19 kiddos for this characteristic!  I have a pretty amazing, pretty honest bunch.  

VALENTINE PARTY

Our Valentine's Day Party has been changed to Monday, February 13th, at 1:30 p.m.

Due to a scheduling conflict with Sedalia Singers practice, we will have our Valentine's Day party on Monday instead of Tuesday.  If you signed up to bring treats, please send them in on Monday.  Also, if your child was going to make a Valentine's box, it needs to be brought in on Monday as well.  Remember, the kids don't have to bring in Valentines, but if they do, they need to bring in one for everyone.  I will bring in a small treat for the kids on Tuesday :) 

Have a great weekend!!

Miss Brazzell

Student of the Month

This month's Student of the Month.......ASHLEY M.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our SoM characteristic was "Fairness".  Ashley's classmates agree that she is always fair and kind!

Congratulations Ashley!!

I'M A RACER AND I KNOW IT!!!

Today was a phenomenal day to be a Sedalia Lion and a Murray State Racer! 

It was "Blue and Gold" day across campus here at Sedalia in support of our hometown favorites - the UNDEFEATED - Murray State Racers!  Our pre-school through 6th grade were decked out in their Murray State gear or their blue and gold to cheer on our Racers in their game this Saturday night.  As a special treat, six members of the MSU cheer squad, including Mrs. Howard's son, Heath, came out to Sedalia to help us cheer on the nations only Division 1 undefeated ball team.  However....they didn't come alone...they brought two special friends with them!  Isaiah Canaan and Jewaun Long!  Talk about an explosion of Racer Fever! 

Canaan and Long both took time out of their busy schedules to come to Sedalia and talk to our kids about the importance of following their dreams and believing in themselves.  They talked to the students about how important it is to stay in school and stay focused on doing your best in all areas of your life.  They did a great job motivating our kids to reach for the sky!  And, of course, they spent a little time showing off their many amazing skills on the court.  It was a great day and we were all so blessed and grateful to be a part of it!

Even though I didn't graduate from Murray, I love our hometown school and am definitely "a Racer and I know it"!!

Take a look at some of the pictures from our pep rally this morning!

 Give me an "R"!!!

Jewaun Long talking to the kids about the importance of doing well in school.

 The cheerleaders - showing what they do best...GO RACERS!!

 Isaiah Canaan and Jewaun Long

 R-A-C-E-R-S....RACERS!

 The kids LOVED it!

 Landon and Jewaun playing one-on-one!

 Canaan waiting for the crowd to cheer him on!

 Shooting from the knee? Oh no he didn't!!

Canaan going in for the dunk!



Sad Day in 5th Grade!!

It has been a sad week for us...our beloved goldfish, Sushi (yes, my kids have a twisted sense of humor!), passed away over the weekend.  He was a fantastic pet and friend.  He swam and swam and always seemed happy to see us every day.  He had a very healthy appetite and typically was fine when left with a clean bowl and food for the weekend.  We wanted to give him the appropriate burial at "sea" so he could swim off with his other fishy friends.  A few of the students said some kind words and then, my fearless Nicole, bravely sent Sushi on his way to the big fishbowl in the sky. 

We are not currently looking to replace Sushi, as our two Hissing Cockroaches are still alive and well.  And despite the children's urging, my complete disgust for all things hamster/gerbil related prohibits us from taking ownership of a guinea pig or any of its fine relatives.  I apologize to all rodent lovers, but they completely creep me out.  I would rather have a lizard or snake! 

We loved our sweet Sushi and will remember him fondly.

Sushi
2011-2012

100th Day of School!!!

Wow!  Can you believe that it is the 100th day of school already?!  Neither can we!

In order to celebrate our 100th day of school, we decided on the theme "100 Ways to Stay Fit".  The kids dressed in 1980s workout gear and have been practicing their Zumba routines all morning! We are learning about healthy eating and healthy lifestyles, and will wrap up our day with fresh fruit smoothie snacks.  We are all looking forward to a healthy and happy 2012!

Check out some of our amazing pictures!

 We LOVE celebrating our 100th day with smoothies and "100" cookies!

CONTEST WINNERS
Shelby - best costume (girls)
Cameron and Wayne - best costume (tie - boys)

 Miss Brazzell's Bodacious 5th Grade!!

 Nicole, Madeline, and Addie working their 80s style!

 Kassandra and Shelby showed out for our "100 Ways to Stay Fit - 80s Style" celebration!

Wayne and Cameron were not to be outdone by the girls!  Way to go guys!