Musical Instruments from the Ishangi Family

By Malik, Christian, Elina

The Ishangi family dancers have lots of instruments to play. The drums have a strong beat. The little kids use the drum sticks to bang on the drums. The adults play hard and fast using drum sticks or their hands. They use animal skins and wood to make their drums. The women carry gourd shakers to different places because it is light. A gourd shaker is a squash that is dried for 6 months. There is a net with beads and when you rub it against the surface it makes a sound. Another instrument is the bells on their feet. Each bell bracelet represents 1 person in their family.

The Ishangi family instruments help play different sounds and beats. Music is very important to the people of Ghana.

What’s Going On Inside Room 22…

Students in Ms. Cristella’s Class have been very busy lately! We are in the midst of an interdisciplinary non-fiction unit. In Science we are learning about the 8 different forms of energy. In studying sound energy, we created our own instruments out of recycleable materials and explored how to create various pitches and tones by changing vibrations. Then, we posed the question, “What would happen if you were deaf?” How could you still “hear” music? We read the biography of Helen Keller and learned some amazing facts about this heroic woman in history! Did you know that Helen taught herself to read and speak German AND French? She loved music because she could “hear” it through the vibrations. Students are now in the process of writing their own non-fiction research reports on the life of Helen Keller. Then, as a follow-up activity, we will simulate “A Day in the Life of Helen Keller” by pairing students up– one as Helen Keller, one as Annie Sullivan. Students will write about their authentic experiences as they venture through the hallways of Morse. Keep checking back for more updates!

Winter Sensory Poems at Ms.Cristella’s Class Blog

In Writing Workshop we have been using revision strategies to enrich our writing. We’ve learned that the phrase “I’m done!” does not actually exist to a writer, because good writers can always go back and make their writing more interesting. We did just that- revised winter poems using writerly devices such as dialogue, sound effects, sensory details, the 5Ws, and strong adjectives. We hope that by reading the final products you can see, hear, smell, taste, and touch all of the wonders of winter!

My Winter Adventures

My Winter Adventures
By Payge

Huge snowmen and snowwomen are being built
by children in the town park.

I hear happy children playing
winter games with best friends
“Take cover!” ZOOM!

Tasting delicious hot cocoa with marshmallows
melting in my mouth. “Mmmmm”
“Mom, what did you put in that?”

Smelling homemade cookies
melted with tiny chocolate chips.
“Delicious! I love these cookies!”

Ice skates on my feet heat my feet.
“shooow shooow”
It feels like I’m dancing on ice.

In the White Winter

In the White Winter
By Jimmy

In winter there are big, roaring blizzards
with swirling winds outside in that freezing air
with snow piling up.

The whistling wind carries people up
in that freezing, icy air.
It brings them up and up into space and
throws them down!
“Bang! Bong! Splat! Crunch!”

Our mom makes amazing hot chocolate
with spectacular marshmallows
Then she’ll say, “Come on in, it’s ready!”

We’ll smell the fresh homemade soup
It will wake us up
So excited!

We’ll touch a big sleigh-
a wild ride down the hill
“Yahooooo!” we’ll yell.

My Winter

My Winter
By Samantha

Striped scarves- yellow and orange
Strips so fuzzy and warm.

T.V. Weathermen says what it is like outside,
“It is going to be freezing outside!”

Hot, steaming matzo ball soup
Matzo balls in my mouth cooling off
So soft… “YUM!”

Fresh enchiladas cheesy and spicy
but delicious!

Warm, hot pellets in my hand
stacked altogether and smooth
“crunch, crunch.”

Wintertime is Here

Wintertime is Here
By Arianna

“Splat!”
A snowball goes whizzing through the air
and into my face
“Crasssh!” COLD!

Blizzard snow flies through the air
into my eyes
“aaaahhhh!”

“Mmmm…”
Hot chocolate goes swimming
through my mouth
into my belly.

“Smell that!”
Chocolate chip cookies
But it smells like vanilla too.

Whoa! Ice skating is hard!
“Kkkkkeeeee, wooosh, boom!”
“Oh no!”