5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Blast Off!

In fifth grade, we have been studying space. We are learning space vocabulary such as astronaut, weightlessness, and Star Trek. We have been having heated debates about such topics as “Is Pluto really a planet?” and “How many planets are there in our solar system?” We have also been designing our own aliens and Planet Earth Space Capsule. My fifth graders have a very good command of English and for the most part, are able to understand and make themselves understood. So, we are really able to do some fun things.

Last week, I decided it would be fun to try our hands at “being” astronauts. So, I set up three different stations, each one a simulation of what it would be like to be an astronaut. The first station was how it would feel to be an astronaut sitting in the space ship, waiting for hours (sometimes as many as seven or more) to blast off. To accomplish this, we took the classroom chairs and sat them down with the backs on the ground. My students had to take turns sitting on them for 10 minutes at a time. It didn’t take long for them to complain that their legs hurt. And I let them know that to be an astronaut they would have to sit like that for a really long time.

The second station was what is like to sleep in space. I had them wrap a scarf around their eyes, stand against the wall and fold their arms across their chests. Astronauts sleep this way because there is limited room and they have to cross their arms so they don’t float up as they sleep.

The final (and my favorite) was what it is like to wear a space suit. I brought in three of my sweaters (white, black and purple), my heavy wool coat and two pairs of gloves. The students had to put on all three sweaters, the coat and finally the gloves. Miso (pronounced Misho), one of my boys, started modeling in my sweaters, doing a very nice cat walk impersonation of a model. The last task was to get out their exercise books, open it up and write, “My name is…” This was to help them realize how difficult it is for astronauts to do repair work on a space ship. We had a grand, somewhat chaotic, but definitely bonding time.

This week, we are completing our Planet Earth Space Capsules. We are designing them so that the aliens would know what Earth is like. They decorated shoe boxes with pictures of important people, things and events and then added some fun artifacts inside. The last step is to write a letter to the aliens that will be included in the box, explaining life on earth to an alien. Since, I have a boy heavy 5th grade class, this unit has been fun for them. They are broken into two groups, each with 10 students. One group is even, 5 boys, 5 girls, but the other group is 2 girls, 8 boys.

Interesting Fact # 5
Bratislava has four bridges, the Stary (old) bridge, the Novy (new) bridge, the Koaická bridge and the UFO bridge. This bridge looks has what looks like a flying saucer suspended above it. It is actually a restaurant and café inside the saucer and on the top is an observation deck. For just 100SK(Slovak krowns), you can ride a super fast elevator to the top. It feels very strange as the elevator does not go straight up and down, but has a gentle slope. From the top, you can see all of Bratislava and into Austria and Hungary. It is a beautiful sight, especially at night. I went to the top with our head English teacher and my roommates. After spending 20 minutes at the top, we went inside and had coffee. That was where we found the best view of the city. But, it is something you have to experience for yourself. So, for those of you who are planning to visit, we will definitely go and I will show you the best view of Bratislava from the UFO.