A State ABC Book of Pennsylvania

As part of 5th grade Social Studies, each student had to work on a state ABC book. They were not allowed to pick any of the big states (size wise) like Texas, California etc. Hrishika immediately picked Pennsylvania, since her Aunt is from there. The illustrations were required to be hand drawn. They could not be printed. She did a beautiful job of the illustrations.

Spring Concert

This year Hrishika took part in her school band. As part of the beginner band, she chose to play flute. So her dad purchased her a new flute. It was quite expensive. I never knew that flutes were so expensive. Anyways, she put it to great use. Mrs. Kolber was their music teacher. She did a wonderful job of teaching them.

At the end of the school year we got to enjoy a concert by the Evergreen Elementary Music students comprising of students from Matsumoto and Evergreen schools. The beginning bands performed a total of 13 songs followed by 10 songs by the intermediate band. Though some of the songs chosen were quite simple, they did a superb job. It was melodious. Here's the list of songs we enjoyed.

Continental Math League : 5th Grade

Hrishika's school participated in the Continental Math League (CML) this year. They meet 5 times a year and are given 6 questions per meet. The top 6 scores from each of these meets are entered online at the CML website. At the end of the year the two contestants with the highest scores are awarded a medal and a certificate. This year Hrishika was one of the two toppers in the Continental Math League from her team. She was awarded a certificate and medal.

Art Adventure : Story by Hrishika

For her 5th grade writing prompt Hrishika had to write a fictional story. Click on the picture frame below to enter her "Art Adventure".

Speech : 5th Grade

This year the topic for the 5th grade speech was "Do the right thing". The speech had to be limited to 320 words maximum. Hrishika was one of the seven students chosen for the school level. Here's what she came up with ......

Have you ever done a helpful deed and then have that warm feeling of happiness bubbling up inside of you? By doing the right thing at all times, that feeling will constantly be flowing through you, embedding serenity in your mind. To me, Martin Luther King Jr.’s quote means, be understanding, do the right thing even if no one is watching, and be eco-friendly.

You should understand that everyone has their own point of view. If you have a disagreement, instead of quarreling, you should listen to the other person’s thoughts. Who knows, you might even agree with them. If you still disagree, try to make a compromise.

Doing the right thing when others aren’t there implies just as much as doing the right thing when in a disagreement with others. When others aren’t there, the idea of doing the right thing can easily falter. For example, if you were walking on an empty street and saw a purse, what would you do? By giving it back to the owner whose hard earned money it is, you will show how trustworthy and dependable you truly are.

Being eco-friendly is another way to show how you can do the right thing. We can pick up litter, save energy, recycle, and much more to show how much we care about our planet, and how thankful we are for what it’s giving us.

When I think about Martin Luther King Jr.’s quote, I personally think: be tolerant, do the right thing even if no one is watching, and be eco-friendly. We have the power to make the Earth as beautiful, wonderful and breathtaking as it truly is. All we have to do is the right thing. If we all set our goal to doing the right thing, we will find everything we ever wanted, since it will fill us with the pleasure to know we are helping everyone, everything, and the Earth.

Global Warming Report : 5th Grade

Hrishika chose to work on "Global Warming" for her Earth Sciences project this year. She spent several days researching on the subject and wrote, edited and typed it all by herself. She also had to make a PowerPoint presentation for her class and give a quiz. She scored a perfect 100% on her report which got her an A+. Click on the cover page below to read her report.

Here's are the links to her PowerPoint presentation and quiz:

Global Warming Presentation by Hrishika

Global Warming Quiz by Hrishika

Since working on the report, she is putting more emphasis on being GREEN!!!

Walden West : Field Trip 5th Grade

This year one the highlights of being in 5th grade is going on a week long trip to Walden West. From the perspective of a student, it is the most anticipated and awaited field trip and from the perspective of a parent this is a very dreaded field trip. That's because, for the first time there are no parent volunteers and the children are away for the whole week. Parents are not allowed to visit unless it is an emergency. Also as a parent I was concerned about the 2 minute long showers, where they have to shampoo their hair every day.

The children on the other hand just couldn't wait to get started. I remember my daughter was so excited the day before the trip, that she was finding it hard to fall asleep. Still she was up very early the next morning and got ready for the week long trip. I can see why children are so excited, they got to do such fun stuff on each and every day. Their days' were jam packed with fun stuff like going on hikes, singing and dancing around camp fires, fun games and bunch of other stuff. Basically it was a 5 day long sleepover party with no parent in sight. Who could blame them.

Upon return she told me it was the most fun field trip ever! Here are some stuff they collected during their nature hikes.