Headlines 4/20

I apologize for not getting this out yesterday, but our students did a great job on AZMerit. We only have one more day of testing to go! Thursday we will do part two of both Math and Reading.

I hope everyone had a wonderful break and was able to relax and spend time with family. We are in the last stretch of the year and will continue to work hard for the next few weeks!

ELA:

The students are really enjoying  Across Five Aprils in Literature as they are able to make connections as they study The Civil War in History.

Most of the students did very well on their Grammar quiz last week. Tuesday through Thursday we will be taking a break from due to AZMerit testing, however, Friday we will be learning about friendly letters.

We will have a quiz over roots on Wednesday!

Math:

Tuesday and Thursday we will be testing and we will introduce our new unit covering rato on Wednesday and Friday.

Science:

This week we are finishing the skeletal and muscular systems, and beginning the endocrine system. We scheduled a test on Tuesday, but it is now moved to Thursday.

History:

This week, students will learn about the beginning of the Civil War, advantages and disadvantages of the North and South, why the Civil War was called a “Brother’s War”, the North and South’s war strategies, the battle at Antietam, and General McClellan. We will continue to discuss slavery. This may be sensitive content for some students, so please have a discussion at home if needed.

Headlines 4/10/17

We were very week last week and I was very proud of the hard work our students put forth on the writing portion of AZMerit. I have no doubt that their writing will be a wonderful example of the skills they have learned this year.

As a reminder there is no school on Friday or Monday so that your family can enjoy a relaxing Easter weekend. However we will be taking the Math and Reading portion of AZMerit on the Tuesday and Thursday of next week, so please be sure your child is at school and is well rested!

We are in the midst of planning our end of year celebration for our fifth graders for Friday, May 26th from 9:30-11:00. Be on the lookout for a sign-up for supplies and help coming soon.

Thank you so much for all the donations of pencils, glue, dry erase markers, and Kleenex, I am hoping we are stocked until the end of the year!

Also, as a reminder if you want your child to opt out of the Human Growth and Development lessons, the second page of the letter sent home last week needs to be signed and returned.

We have lots happening in the next few weeks, so please let me know if you have any questions!

ELA:

We will are enjoying reading  Across Five Aprils in Literature and will continue to read and discuss this week.

In grammar and writing we will be taking some time to review noun jobs as well as test-taking strategies. Our noun job quiz was moved to Wednesday of this week!

We will have a quiz over roots 84-85  on Wednesday and poetry recitation of, Barbara Frietchie will be on Wednesday as well.

Math:

This week we will be covering graphing line plots and will do a few short lessons covering volume. On Thursday we will be working in groups to review for AZMerit.

 

History:

This week, students will learn about Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe, The Kansas-Nebraska Act, Abraham Lincoln, Mary Todd Lincoln, Dred Scott, Lincoln-Douglas Debates, John Brown and the Election of 1860. The 50 states study guide is due 4/5. The test will be on Wednesday, 4/12. We will continue to discuss slavery.This may be sensitive content for some students, so please have a discussion at home if needed.

Math:

This week we will be covering graphing line plots and will do a few short lessons covering volume. On Thursday we will be working in groups to review for AZMerit.

Headlines 4/4/17

I apologize for  not getting these out yesterday. Our class had a great week last week. We have started a new contest where the students are earning points for making good choices and the teachers earn points when they are not. Our class has beat the teacher and has been working hard to stay focused and work hard at school!

We have lots going on as we head into April, be sure to read all the news below!

ELA

We are enjoying our reading of Across Five Aprils in Literature. This week we will be looking at how the impact of the Civil War has affected our main character.

Due to technical difficulties last week we will be taking the  writing portion of the AZMerit on Friday. Our students have worked hard and are well prepared to do their best! In writing and grammar we will be reviewing all of the noun jobs and will prepare for the noun job quiz next Monday.

We will have a quiz over roots 80-83 on Wednesday. Students have been put in groups for the poem, Barbara Frietchie, which they will be reciting on Wednesday, April 12th.

Math

We are continuing our study of data analysis this week. We will also be learning about how to use percentages and decimals in conjunction with pie graphs. Our unit test will be on Thursday and we will be having math groups on Wednesday from 8:00-8:45. Please let me know if you would like to help out! Our unit test will be Thursday.

Science

We are studying the human body. There is a muscles quiz on Wednesday!

History

This week, students will learn about the life of a slave, Nat Turner, Brer Rabbit, the Missouri Compromise, the Underground Railroad, Harriet Tubman, and the growing differences between the North and South. The 50 states study guide is due 4/5. The test will be on Wednesday, 4/12. We will continue to discuss slavery.This may be sensitive content for some students, so please have a discussion at home if needed.

Headlines 3/27

Good Morning! I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend. I was very excited to welcome my new nephew Brighton Mac to the world on Friday. A brand new baby is the perfect way to bring in Spring, so here is a little glimpse of his sweetness!

We begin AZMerit this week with the writing assessment on Friday. Please be sure your student is at school on time and has had a healthy breakfast. We have worked hard to prepare for this test and I have confidence that our class will do very well!

ELA

In Literature we will continue,reading  Across Five Aprils. We will will have a class debate about fighting in the Civil War and will continue looking at vocabulary in context.

We will be taking the  AZMerit writing test on Friday. To continue preparing we will be sharing our practice essays with the class and will look at sample persuasive essays.

We will have a quiz over roots 76-79 on Wednesday and will introduce our new poem, Barbara Frietchie. This is a long poem so students will be reciting this in groups on Wednesday, April 12th.

Math

This week the students will learn how to interpret a set of data in many ways- mean, median, mode, histograms, tables, and pie charts.  There will be no math groups this week!

Science

We are studying the human body. There is a skeleton quiz on Wednesday!

History

This week, students will take their Westward Expansion Before the Civil War test. The study guide is due Monday, 3/27. The unit test will be on Tuesday, 3/28. Students will also finish learning about US Geography with the West Coast, Alaska, and Hawaii. A study guide for the 50 states map test will go home on Wednesday, 3/29, due 4/5. The test will be on Wednesday, 4/12. We will start our unit on the Civil War this week. We are discussing slavery throughout the unit, with an emphasis on the life of a Civil War era American slave this week. This may be sensitive content for some students, so please have a discussion at home if needed.

Headlines 3/21

I hope everyone had a wonderful spring break and was able to relax and enjoy time with family. I must admit, the alarm seemed to go off awfully early this morning!  

Today I spoke to the class about preparing for sixth grade and practicing being a self-advocate in our behavior and study skills. We will accomplish a great deal this quarter!

French and Fine Arts night is Friday, April 7, see the following for more info. It should be a wonderful evening:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxSuyHM9YtLNS3E5NlFvYWRKaVU/view?usp=sharing

ELA: This week in Literature we will begin our next book, Across Five Aprils. Our focus for this book will be integrating our study of the Civil War in History with the novel. We will also be concentrating on vocabulary and defining words using context clues.

In Writing this week we will be preparing for the AZMerit writing test by using all of our block time today to use the writing process to write a five paragraph informative essay.  In order to give students immediate feedback on their writing each teacher will be conferencing individually with students about their essays. Our hope is that this gives them confidence in their writing abilities!

We will use the remainder of the week to review parts of speech, noun jobs, and add predicate adjectives to our diagramming.

Math:

We will finish Unit 11 this week by solving rate problems. We will have math groups on Wednesday and will take the unit test next Monday. If you are able to help with math groups, please let me know. We love having you in our classroom!

Science:

This quarter, we will be learning all about the human body. We will start with the skeletal system this week. There will be a quiz on the human skeleton during the following week.

History:

This week, students will finish learning about westward expansion before the Civil War. Students wil cover the Mexican-American War, and settlers moving further west, such as the gold miners and the Mormons. The study guide is going home Tuesday, and it will be due Monday, 3/27. The unit test will be on Tuesday, 3/28.

Headlines 3/6/17

I can't believe this is the last week of the third quarter. The students have been working hard the last eight weeks and I have been so impressed with their diligence and perseverance.

Our focus this quarter has been becoming a self-advocate and I continue to see the students making improvements in their maturity and level of responsibility.

Last week we had a class conversation about appropriate playground and social behavior. We came up with a list of acceptable and non-acceptable behaviors for our class. I reminded students that we keep our hands to ourselves in line and on the playground, and to be respectful of others' boundaries. We also discussed how to solve problems with others in a constructive way. I am hoping this will help some of the issues that have arisen in the last few weeks!

Here is everything we will be doing this final week!

ELA

This week in Literature we will be using the character studies we have completed to complete a “Most Dynamic Character Award” writing prompt. Students will be writing a persuasive paragraph based on who they believe has changed the most in The Secret Garden. Please be sure your student has the novel, Across Five Aprils, which we will begin when we return from Spring Break.

In Grammar and Writing we will be reviewing similes and metaphors and will use these to describe the virtues.

The Tyger, by William Blake will be recited Wednesday, March 8th.

Science

This week we will continue studying the life of the famous botanist, George Washington Carver.

History

This week, students will continue learning about westward expansion before the Civil War. Students will cover the expansion of canals, invention of railroads, the Trail of Tears, Manifest Destiny, acquiring of Texas, and the settling of the Oregon territory. There is also a geography quiz over the Midwest, Rocky Mountain, and Great Plains regions on Wednesday, March 8th. Students will also be learning about the Southwest region in Geography.

Math

Last week we began learning about finding averages, this week we will begin learning about rate. Math groups are back on this week on Wednesday from 8-9! Please let me know if you are able to help this week. Thank you!

Headlines 2/27

Happy Monday! We have a busy week ahead and a lot to look forward to. I have had a lot of questions about the forecast for tomorrow's field trip. The last forecast I saw is giving a 30% of rain tomorrow.  The Renaissance Faire is a rain or shine event, so I suggest bringing a rain jacket, and umbrella just in case it does rain. 

Have a wonderful week!

ELA:

We will finish reading The Secret Garden this week and will begin a writing assignment based on the character studies we have been working on throughout the book. Our next book will be Across Five Aprils, which we will begin when we return from Spring Break.

In Grammar and Writing we will add the noun job of Predicate Nouns and will add this to our diagrams.

Our  Greek and Latin Roots quiz over roots 51-75 will be Friday, March 3rd.However, we will still be having our weekly quiz on Wednesday. Students were given the review sheet on Friday, and this should be complete by Tuesday.

The Tyger, by William Blake will be recited Wednesday, March 8th.

Math:

After the unit assessment over decimals Monday , we will begin our next unit covering averages and rate.

History:

This week, students will continue learning about westward expansion before the Civil War. Students will cover the exploration of Lewis and Clark, the resistance of the Native Americans and Tecumseh, as well as advances in transportation.

Science:

This week we will be studying the life of the famous botanist, George Washington Carver.