This week in geography we learned about Caribbean island nations like Puerto Rico, Cuba, Haiti, and Jamaica and how they were colonized by European nations, which later brought slaves to the islands to grow crops like sugar. Today, of course, they are meccas for tourists because of their beauty and lovely climate. Because of this there were some great videos created by travel companies that we watched, and everyone agreed that they would like to visit at least one of these islands some day.  We also learned about globalization and the impact it has had on the modern world.

We are working in teams this week to debate the pros and cons of immigration in language arts. As a “news source” we used Newsela for the first time.

In Judaics, we continued our study of Vayigash by finishing projects, including plays and also two storyboard presentations. Fascinating. We ended by thinking about the “blessings” Jacob gives his sons.

This week we started our Classical Composer Presentations. Eleanor B. presents on Saint Hildegard, Lital on Clara Schumann, Gabby on Isabella Leonara, and Toyba on Mendelssohn Bartholdi! We also had a fun performance from Eleanor R. on her Brazilian instrument!

The students are delving further into Mexican folk art in art class. They have learned about the significance of the sun and moon in Mexican art while exploring the difference between geometric and organic shapes.