Red Oak School District



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WASHINGTON INTERMEDIATE NEWSLETTER

Reading on the Square!!!!

On Friday, April 17, 2009, the 4th and 5th grade went to Fountain Square to celebrate National Library Week. There we read to parents, grandmas, and other relatives. Four students from 5-4 and two people from 5-2 read to senior citizens who came from local care centers. From 5-4, the readers were Sydnee Esaias, Carson Poe, Dylan Graber, and Murphy Porter. And from 5-2 they were Bailey Bruce and Eric Roberts. We all walked down to the park at 11:30, and we were served a sack lunch, but some brought their own lunch. Everyone brought their own book. The cause was to raise enough money to buy one brick to support the new Red Oak Library. But we raised enough to buy three bricks! How much money? We raised around $315 !! Wow! We will have one brick from the 4th grade, another from the fifth, and the other from the community. We walked back at 12:30. We had a lot of fun!!!! Thank you, Mrs. Burnison, for organizing the day!

Sydnee Esaisas & Carson Poe

Where did the year go? - During an assembly this final week of school, I will ask the 5th grade students to reflect on what they have accomplished this year and during their time at Washington Intermediate. I will then ask them what they have left to accomplish before our next school year. As they continue to think… ( …I will share with you some of my areas of focus for WIS before we start again next school year.

A. Increase focus on math by extending our weekly math lab; creating a schedule to allow students to move into skill focused groups four days a week.

B. Using some of the general concepts from the new Iowa Core Curriculum, create an engaging, challenging and meaningful literacy ‘lab’ for students that prepare each student for success in life.

C. Continue focus on our three key character traits: responsibility, respect and caring. I want to foster a school and community environment to help students understand that true success in life can only happen if they consistently strive to serve and care for others, take on leadership roles, be responsible and demonstrate self-discipline.

Year End Celebration - Many of our students have been working hard all year long and are often not recognized on a daily basis for their dedication to their studies and for their consistent responsible behavior. On Wednesday, May 27th, we will be having our year end celebration and awards assembly. This will start at 8:45 am in the gym and last at least 45 minutes. Parents, grandparents and family friends are welcome and encouraged to attend!

ITBS Results – It has been fun watching the students grow this year - academically, emotionally and physically. Of those three, we only have to report our students’ academic progress. We do have much to celebrate here too! Looking at the ‘Big Three’ ITBS testing areas, all of our students showed growth from last year to this year in at least one area. When looking at each area for our Washington students who were in our district last spring to this spring:

Reading: 121 of 160 proficient = 75.6% (nearly 3% higher than last year)

Math: 114 of 161 proficient = 70.8% (nearly the same as last year)

Science: 126 of 160 proficient = 78.8% (exactly 3% lower than last year)

May/June 2009 Calendar

Shown at the National Art Convention in Minneapolis, MN

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Artwork by Dru Hollingsworth

25th Memorial Day

27th Last Day of School – 2 hr early out –End of 4th QT/2nd Sem

27th Last day teacher request accepted (see handbook)

28th Teacher Inservice Day

Summer School

May 27 – Letters mailed out

July 22 – August 7

Registration for 2009-10

Aug 6

Pictures have been edited and brightened for parent and student use! Make a personalized card on your computer for a friend.

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Next year the news will be on-line. Check out stories directly from your youth’s classroom and Washington Intermediate. This move will enable the school to save printing cost.

From the Desk of Mr. Doug Barry:

Volume 5 Last Issue

Senior Center On Wednesday, April 29, twenty 5th grade students from Washington Intermediate got to sing to senior citizens at the Red Oak Senior Citizen Center. Some of the songs were: ‘This Train,” “I Love the Mountains.” “Casey Jones,” and ” Listen to the Rain.” Murphy Porter gave a presentation on the death of Casey Jones before we sang the song, and Eric Roberts led the audience with “Listen to the Rain.” The students who sang were Sydnee Esaias, Murphy Porter, Carson Poe, Hannah Akers, Maysen Havener, Eric Roberts, Paydon Whitehill, Alexa Rensch, Jessie Houston, Breann Berkey, Leatha Bennett, Jessa Davis, Quinn Sheldon, Dakota Girouex, Ethan Hewett, Megan Sands Julia Hacker, Jesse Taylor, Hannah Shelters, and Abby Kates.

By: Maysen Havener & Hannah Akers

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Iowa Day – A Pioneer’s Adventure

at the Red Oak History Center

for WIS Fourth Graders

Phone Translator

By Parker Wagaman, 5th grader, Young Writer’s Workshop

My invention is a phone translator. No need for Rosetta Stone with the phone translator. You can talk to people all around the world without having any problems understanding what they are saying. This is one of the only phones that has this capability. It is easy to use too. This phone can bring advantages to the business world as well as the small family consumer.

The phone translator is one pound. It boasts a nine inch square screen that offers twelve different languages. No need for chargers anymore. The phone translator is solar powered. The translator phone is equipped with high definition video, high definition camera, internet access, and high definition television.

The phone translator is as easy to use as a regular phone. A five year old child could use this product without any trouble what-so-ever. You simply push the translator button to turn on the translator and speak normally.

No problems starting a business in Japan, Mexico or even Italy. This could be a real advantage to economists. In the business world, communicating with people of other cultures can cause problems. With the Phone Translator, just call them. They can understand you and you can understand them. This product could single handedly change the world economy.

It is perfect for family members in other countries too. Do you have a European cousin? No problem, with the phone translator. When you talk to them they can hear you and you can hear them. What’s more, they can understand what you are saying. You can keep in communication much easier with relatives that you couldn’t talk to before without an interpreter.

The phone translator will make it easier to talk to people all around the world without having any problems understanding what they are saying. With its ease of use, this phone can bring advantages to the business world as well as the small family consumer.

Keyboarding Project

In 5th grade keyboarding, we did a Power Point about the Oregon Trail. We had to look up places we were assigned, for example, Chimney Rock or Independence Rock. We will be presenting our presentation at a Monday afternoon assembly for the fifth grade. Mrs. Erickson was our teacher for keyboarding, and she was a good teacher.

By Keatis Kunze & Barrett Wegman

My Vacations

By Darian Tarbox, 5th grader, Young Writer’s Conference

I went to South Dakota. It was beautiful. There were trees and beautiful animals. I went on a hike. It was so fun! I would go there any time again.

We stayed in a hotel in South Dakota, it was amazing. Another time I went to California. We went into the woods and found a bear. We saw a unique looking bird. It had a big beak and a small body.

When I went to Hawaii it was 76 degrees the entire time. I got see a real volcano erupt, and I got to see the pro bowl for football. It was so cool!

I’ve visited a lot of places, but the funniest one of all was when my family and I went to Tampa Bay Florida. I got to see my favorite football team play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They beat the Vikings 24-17. It was so cool! I got to visit a lot of places there. There were about 300 palm trees! There were beaches, and I got to go to their zoo! My family rented a car while we were there, it was a Mustang GT. It was so cool! They have this place called Disney Land! It was so spectacular!

The Adventures of Josh, Casey, and Gabby

By Murphy Porter

Casey was a brother who desperately tried to keep up with his homework, and there was also a sister named Gabby who had no trouble keeping her grades up.

One day, as Gabby was walking home from school, she found a shiny, metal object that looked like a backpack. So, of course, she picked it up and brought it home with her. When she got there she yelled, “Casey! Casey! Look what I found!”

“What?” asked Casey.

“What is it?” Gabby asked him.

“It looks like the teleporter thing our Uncle Jesse tried to make. He was hoping to invent a way to transport people to any destination instantly. Where’d you find it?” wondered Casey.

“Over on Miller Avenue. Isn’t that where he used to live before he moved away?” asked Gabby.

“I think so,” replied Casey. The one thing they didn’t know was that their lives were going to change forever.

“Can we test it out?” Gabby asked excitedly.

“Before we turn it on, I need to call Josh. We may need some backup,” Casey explained.

Before Josh had arrived, Gabby was so excited; she might have jumped out of her pants. Now she was having second thoughts. They turned it on, and it started running.

“Here we gooooo!” said Casey.

“What happened?”Josh asked.

“It appears you got sucked in with us,” replied Casey.

“Where are we?” wondered Gabby.

“According to my GPS,” said Casey, “we’re in the Amazon Rain Forest.”

Just then, Josh asked a good question. “We had the teleporter when we got here,” he started, “but now we don’t. Where’d it go?”

None of them could give an answer.

After half an hour of looking, Gabby spotted it. “There it is! In the river!” The only problem was how to get it.

“I just remembered, my backpack has a built in propeller!” said Casey joyfully.

Three minutes later, he was hovering above the surface of the water. “Got it!” he yelled. “Now to go home.” At least, they thought they were going home.

All of a sudden, it got very, very cold. There was also ice everywhere.

“Great, now where are we?” Josh asked.

“My GPS says we’re in Antarctica,” said Casey.

“I’m hungry! I’m hungry!”Gabby complained.

“I think I’ve got a Snickers bar in my pocket,” said Josh.

“It’s a seal!” said Gabby with a mouthful of candy as she pointed with delight at the water’s edge from where she sat about twenty yards away. Sure enough, there it was, a big, black and white spotted seal dozing in the sun where the light was gleaming like a crown.

“What’s that thing on its head?” asked Josh.

“I think it’s the teleporter,” Casey squinted.

“Let’s hope so because I’m so cold, I feel like a block of ice,” said Gabby. They surrounded the seal. It was the teleporter which they tried to get off by unstrapping it.

After they got it off, Casey tried to start it up. It looked like he was trying to start up a lawnmower. It took a few tries, but it finally started running.

“Now, let’s go home,” said Josh. The seconds felt like hours when they were on their way home.

That night, they all slept so soundly, it was as though they were all dead

When they woke up, they could smell the aroma of the bacon, eggs, melted cheese, and the ham in their omelets waiting for them.

“My favorite!” Casey said tasting his omelets. They were so delicious!

After breakfast, Josh said, “Wow, I can’t believe we actually went to South America and Antarctica. That’s a once in a lifetime opportunity,” he said.

“Yes, it is,” said Casey. “Yes, it is. Now let’s put XLR8 (that is what they decided to call the teleporter) away for good.”

Iowa Day Photos

Pie Tin Pictures By Christian Horn

In the olden days people made pies with tin plates. After a while, the tin would rust so eventually people made pictures out of the old pie tins. They then hung them on the walls for decoration. On Iowa Day, we took aluminum pie tins, a hammer, and a nail and were given designs. Some of the designs included the state of Iowa, a teddy bear, a heart, and a butterfly. With the designs we made a pie tin picture. It was fun and Iowa Day was a blast!!

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Iowa Day Adventures continue…

Music Program

On April 27, 2009, the 5th graders had their music program at the R.O. Middle School. Here are some of the songs they sang: “Listen to the Rain”, “Casey Jones”, “Birch Tree”, “I Love the Mountains”, This Train”, and “Little Wheel.” On their recorders, they played “Lullaby” and “When the Saints Go Marching In.” They performed an American folk dance as well. Murphy Porter and Dylan Graber gave a short report on Casey Jones, and Brenna Craig and Bailey Bruce talked about the Underground Railroad. Eric Roberts led the audience in “Listen to the Rain.”

By Dylan Graber and Murphy Porter

Candles and Cabin Life By Zach Irvin, Nikki Yeager, Carly Crouse, and Emma Ross

In pioneer times there was no electricity so candles were a huge need. The women made them as the girls watched and learned. The next station was the log cabin. It was originally from Elliot, but after a lot of moving it came to Red Oak. It is very old so it had a lot of fixing to do after the move. In fact a small table is still there from the pioneer times!

Kids our age at the time would have had a huge responsibility. The boys learned to chop wood at the age of four, feed the animals, turn hay, and many more. The girls learned to make candles, sew, knit, and sometimes cook. During free time, the kids and friends sometimes played games like marbles or jacks. Another fun activity was to fly kites and make pictures for the walls. They nailed holes in pie tins for their decoration in their house. They usually have six or more people in a house. We learned a lot at Iowa Day!

There`s A Talking Sandwich in my Basement

Cassie Vrabel, 5th Grade, Young Writer’s Conference

One day a boy named Brian came down to see his dad. His dad is a scientist who wanted to make history of making things come alive. Brian`s dad took a lunch break at 12:00 sharp. Brian found a sandwich on the table in the basement, he took a bite and heard a moan “who`s there?” called Brian. Then he heard it again, he took the sandwich out of his mouth and gasped. He saw arms legs and feet! “Hi, my name is George”. Hold up here! To make this story short, they became friends and all that sappy stuff. But the night after they met, Brian`s dad made a talking orange named Bob and rolled across the table and George was right there when Bob rolled over him. There was ham, lettuce and mayo all over Bob. All that was left of George was a piece of lettuce and Swiss cheese.

P.S George was a good sandwich.

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Reading on the Square!!!!

On Friday, April 17, 2009, the 4th and 5th grade went to Fountain Square to celebrate National Library Week. There we read to parents, grandmas, and other relatives. Four students from 5-4 and two people from 5-2 read to senior citizens who came from local care centers. From 5-4, the readers were Sydnee Esaias, Carson Poe, Dylan Graber, and Murphy Porter. And from 5-2 they were Bailey Bruce and Eric Roberts. We all walked down to the park at 11:30, and we were served a sack lunch, but some brought their own lunch. Everyone brought their own book. The cause was to raise enough money to buy one brick to support the new Red Oak Library. But we raised enough to buy three bricks! How much money? We raised around $315 !! Wow! We will have one brick for the 4th grade, another for the fifth, and the other for the community. We walked back at 12:30. We had a lot of fun!!!! Thank you, Mrs. Burnison, for organizing the day!

Young Writers Conference

The Young Writers Conference at Lamoni was really fun! Both fourth and fifth graders got on the bus. When we got to Graceland University, we went to the auditorium for a welcome. Then we split for our sessions. I went to the Radio Broadcasting Building to talk about how to make a news story smooth and fast. Then we had lunch and went to our second session that was in the gym where we shared our stories. Then we went to our third session, I had Writing and Stamping. It was really fun! We all met in the auditorium for the guest author. Then we left to get on the bus to go home. Lamoni was awesome! I would like to go to Graceland University when I go to college. It was really fun!

By Cassie Vrabel

WIS Roller Skating Party

On Saturday, April 25,th there was a roller skating party at Porters Lake sponsored by The Optimist Club. The fourth and fifth grades were invited. There were free hotdogs. Otherwise, you could buy drinks and snacks. They supplied the roller skates, and you could go up and ask for a song sheet. Then you could pick out a song. They had games like the Limbo. By Jordyn Cornelison

Chocolate

Megan Sands, 5th grader, Young Writer’s Conference

Hershey milk and dark chocolate treat is a ticket to paradise. If I could make a new chocolate it would be Jumbo Chocolate Ball. It would be solid milk chocolate on the outside and melted milk chocolate in the middle. It would be round like a ball. When you bite into it you would be in heaven. When I get home from a rough day at school, I would eat one to calm me down. I would bring some to school for my teachers. My mom and sister would eat them all up in five minutes. They would love my big treat.

Dark chocolate has been proven to have many health benefits. It’s better for your heart. If I could make a new dark chocolate bar it would be Grammy’s Famous Dark Chocolate. It would be called this because my Grandma Terri Smith loves dark chocolate. When she eats it she’s always happy. Every time I see dark chocolate I think of her. This just isn’t just popular it’s good for you. If I liked dark chocolate I would be eating some right now. There is more to dark chocolate than just taste.

In order to sell my creations I will need a package. My package would be gold with big letters saying, Jumbo Chocolate Ball and Grammy’s Famous Dark Chocolate with a picture on it. It would be wicked. Every time you would look at it you would get a smile on your face. All over the world people would smile at the package. If you call now you will get two whole boxes of chocolate with a smiley package. You won’t forget my package!

Everyone would love my big treats. It would be magnificent to have a new treat in the world. I would be famous in Rome, Nevada, and Iowa. I would be a hit everywhere. We couldn’t live without some delicious chocolate.

Butterflies

By Johnathan Ernst

There are more than 1,000 different types of butterflies in the world. The Western Pygmy blue butterfly is blue and is the smallest butterfly in the world. Queen Alexandra butterflies are brown and pale and are the largest butterflies in the world. Leaf butterflies wings look like real least so it can hide from predators.

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Tornados!

By Jackson Welter

You hear the rain banging on the window and thunder making a big roar, a tornado may be forming. A tornado starts from a severe thunderstorm. It forms with warm air from the Gulf of Mexico and cold air from the Rocky Mountains. After a tornado forms and touches the ground it will get its color from the mud, dirt, or debris it picks up.

Once a tornado forms, the more cold and warm air it gets the faster and deadlier it can be. Tornados have five different strengths all measured by wind speed. The strengths of a tornado can be a F1, F2, F3, F4, or F5. F1 tornados start at 78 miles per hour and can reach up to 318 miles per hour in an F5 tornado.

Ocean Life

By Zach Irvin

Ocean life is strange and mysterious. Even though 74% of Earth is water, it is hard to explore. Scientists believe ocean life is as old as earth itself. Some sea animals are centimeters long while others can be up to 104 feet long.

Predators lurk everywhere in the ocean. Strategies they use are staying in groups, blending in with their environment, or camouflaging in and waiting for a good meal. The most well known predator is the Great White Shark. With its razor sharp teeth it can and will destroy its prey. It has no main predators but is known for sometimes attacking humans and small boats.

Smart Animals

By Sarah Behrens

Pigs are very smart. Pigs have a very high IQ, which shows how intelligent something is. Pigs are as smart as a three year old toddler. You can teach a pig many different tricks.

Dolphins are also very smart. They are as intelligent as a three year old toddler. Dolphins perform all over the world with tricks they have learned. Dolphins are so smart; there are even stories of them helping swimmers from shark attacks.

Strange Looking Creatures

By Lauren Thurman

There are many different strange looking creatures in the sea. The Fang Tooth Fish’s eyes look like it has been pushed in. The Angler Fish has lights on their fins called luminescence. The Deep Sea Hatchet Fish has eyes that look like gold balls.

Mediums

By Braden Palmer

There are many things mediums can do to find out more about ghosts. People who can talk to ghosts are mediums. Mediums can find out where ghosts are. Mediums also say they can see the ghost. Finally, mediums can share what they find out with families.

Sharks

By Tristan Piper

There are over 350 species of sharks in the world. One shark is the Great White Shark which got its name from the white spot on its belly. Another one is the Hammer Head Shark. He got his name because his head is shaped like a hammer. The final shark is the Tiger Shark who got his name from his stripes like a tiger.

Storms

By Christian Horn

All major storms have winds. Blizzards are snowstorms with freezing winds. Hurricanes are storms that form over water with winds from 74miles per hour to any speed. Tornadoes are storms that form almost anywhere. Their winds can whirl around at speeds of up to 300 miles per hour.

The winds can also be very destructive. Blizzard winds are not as destructive, but they can bury anything in their path. Hurricane winds can topple trees, destroy homes, cause major flooding, and cause havoc. Winds from a tornado can crush homes, topple train cars, shove cars off the road, and also start havoc.

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[pic]A couple of cow pokes made their way to the big city of Red Oak.

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Preparing for the Oregon Trail…

They packed their bags(lunches), hitched up the horses, climbed onto their wagons(got on the big yellow school bus) to walk and ride on the Oregon Trail…well at least for one day, May 4, 2009. These lucky pioneers had wonderful weather to experience the past.

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Baby Dolphins

By Caleb Demanett

A baby dolphin never leaves its mother. When the baby is born it is nursed by its mother for half a year. During that time it hardly leaves its mother’s side. In fact the father rarely helps out with the baby dolphin.

Frogs

By Georgia Havener

There are many different types of frogs. The Bull Frog has eyes they are dark green most of the time. Tree Frogs are hard to see because they are so small and hard to see. Poison Dart Frogs have deadly skin and can camouflage themselves to blend in with their surroundings.

Types of Butterflies

By Nikki Yeager

There are many butterflies with bright, colorful wings. The Monarch’s wing is orange black and white. The Blue Morphos have pretty blue on their wings. The Swallowtail has white and black on their wings. All butterflies are pretty cool because of the way they look.

Shark Eating Habits

By Michael Gomez

Sharks can eat their food in different ways. Sharks can go up to 50 miles per hour to catch their prey. If a shark eats a big meal it does not have to eat for up to two months. Sharks can go to the bottom of the sea to catch their prey.

Sharks

By Garth Stacey

Sharks have many strange ways of catching and eating their prey. The Tiger Shark catches and kills its prey by hitting it with its tail and stunning it. The Great White Shark eats 65 pounds of fish and can go nearly 45 days without eating again. Finally, the Hammerhead Shark can stun its prey by hitting it with its head.

Spiders

By Juston Spanel

Spiders eat many different things. The Jumping Spider will only eat small insects. The Tarantula Spider eats a lot more though, like insects, lizards, frogs, small birds, and snakes. Finally, the wolf spider eats animals and small insects likes locusts and beetles.

Snakes

By Shaely Nowels

There are many types of snakes in the world. One is the sidewinder, it moves side to side. Another is the Cobra which is a big and poisonous snake. A third snake is the Diamond Back which hides under rocks to catch its prey.

Wolf Communication

By Cris Williams

Wolves communicate in many different ways and for different reasons. Wolves howl so they can find one another. Howling is like a phone call. Howling also helps wolf packs stay together.

Manatee’s Survival

By Carly Crouse

There are only about 9,000 manatees left in the world. Manatees are getting sick from all of the pollution humans have caused. The water where they live is very dirty because we are dumping trash and very bad chemicals into it. Sometimes if manatees live in rivers and canals they have to go to the ocean just to find food that is cleaner to eat.

Volcanoes

By Marissa Homan

There are different things that volcanoes can do to people and places. A large eruption can destroy an entire city and even change the weather. Volcanoes have also killed hundreds of people. Volcanoes also don’t only destroy places; they can also create new land for earth.

Sea Stars

By Emma Ross

There are three different names for Sea Stars. The first is the Cushion Sea Star which got its name from its puffy shape just like a cushion. Next, the Orange Sea Star, blends in well with other coral so it is hidden from predators. Finally, the Knobby Sea Star likes to sleep on bumpy coral and can be mean to other animals.

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