Weekly Update - LAST WEEK OF SCHOOL!

I can't believe we've made it to the last week of school! I know your fifth grader is so excited about finishing up elementary school and I am equally excited for each one of them. Every time we do something to celebrate the occasion, I'm reminded of my own fifth grade commencement and celebrations that surrounded it.

Along those lines, please remind your child to maintain a respectful and responsible attitude during the last week of school. It's an exciting time, but students must work to exhibit PRIDE for the younger students at North Ridge. Please review the PRIDE guidelines with your child with remind him/her what staff expects of every student that attends North Ridge Elementary School.

• Practice self control
• Respect yourself, others, and property
• Identify safe choices
• Demonstrate responsibility
• Excel in all you do

A few updates to add to your calendars:

• DARE graduation is Monday, June 6 at 1pm in the Multi-purpose facility. Students will receive their diplomas from their DARE officer, Officer Crudup. Each class also had an essay winner - those students will read their essays in front of attendees.
• To celebrate a successful semester with my students, we are having a small classroom party. Thank you to those of you that signed up to bring drinks and snacks. The celebration will follow lunch, so light snacks, fruit, and drinks are great contributions! If you have not donated anything but would like to, just shoot me an email. If we have leftovers, we'll donate them to the fifth grade picnic. Thanks in advance!
  
• Fifth Grade Picnic is Thursday, June 9 from 12-1:30 - Our class is signed up to bring cases of water and cookies for the fifth grade picnic. Please be mindful that there are about 100 students in fifth grade. If several people sign up, we'll have plenty of supplies for everyone. Please let me know if you haven't signed up, but would still like to do so. Know that I appreciate your help and support (and your child does too)!
  
• Fifth Grade Commencement Ceremony is June 10 from 9:30-11ish - Come help us celebrate your fifth grader's hard work! The commencement ceremony will start around 9:30. Please remember that seating is limited, so limit 2 guests per student. Also remember that you can check your child out of school following the ceremony. Make sure you see me following graduation. I will have a sign out sheet AND your child's report card. I hope to see you all there!

I look forward to a great last week. Please let me know if you need anything from me. I appreciate each of you - your help and support during this first semester of teaching has been great. Some days were harder than others (which was expected coming out of the gate). I love my job and I'm hopeful I get to stay at North Ridge. My fingers are crossed!

Please keep me posted about your fifth grader's progress. And come back and visit. I love updates (:

Have a great weekend! See you next week...

Weekly Update - March 23-27

This week's update comes close to the end of the week, but I have a lot to share and don't want to wait until next week!

First off, I'm so proud of all of my fifth graders for their hardwork and perseverance last week on the End of Grade tests. We had three days of testing and they all worked so hard. I was impressed with the scores and thankful for a great group of students this year! And I would like to apologize to those of you that emailed me during last week's tests. This was my first time administering the tests and it was tiring! I was slow to respond to many of you and I'm not even sure if my emails made sense when I did send them. Hopefully I'll get better at this for next year!

Now for the fun stuff...

In the coming weeks, we are going to be doing fun activities that require some supplies. I have asked students to please bring in shoe boxes. We are going to be making "6th grade survival kits." If you have a shoe box, please send it in with your child. If you have an extra shoe box, feel free to bring those in for students that might forget to bring theirs. Also, if you have any of the following items, these would help us make our boxes a little more"our own." Let me know if you would like to donate any of the following:

• glitter


• pipe cleaners


• colorful cotton balls (kind of like cotton balls, but for crafts)


• construction paper


• markers/sharpies

As a class, we will also be making a book for the rising fifth graders. Your child is going to write "advice for next year's fifth graders" and this book is going to stay with me. I'm looking forward to seeing what they learned this year in this fun and creative paper. Ask them about this - it could be interesting to see what they share!

We have a lot of celebrations and exciting events coming up in the next two weeks, all of which I am truly excited about. The first celebration is next Wednesday, June 1. I am going to transform Room 604 into a Poetry Cafe (as best I can - please shoot me an email if you want to donate supplies to help with this). The Poetry Cafe will open at 5pm. All family members are invited to come. An RSVP card will be coming home in next week's Monday folders. Please please try to come if you can. The students are so excited about their poems and can't wait to share them with everyone.

The last week of school is going to be slam full of celebrations! The DARE graduation is on Monday June 6 from 12:40-2:00. That time isn't set in stone, but it's a good estimate at this point. I'll let you know if anything changes. Don't forget the fifth grade picnic June 9 from 12:00-1:30. Please let me know if you would like to donate any items for the picnic. And the last day of school is graduation from 9:30-11:00. Report cards also go home that day - hopefully this will be a celebration too (:

I am looking to have a classroom celebration on Wednesday June 8. I am so proud of my fifth graders and want to thank them for being a fabulous first group of students. If you would like to help donate food items for this celebration, please let me know. If you would like to volunteer to come in and hang out during the celebration, let me know that too. I would love to have you! I haven't figured out the time yet, but it will be in the afternoon.

*The fifth grade team will begin teaching the Human Growth & Development curriculum next week. We are still trying to figure out all of the details for this, but please email me if you have questions. We will begin teaching next Wednesday through Friday.

Please do enjoy the long Memorial Day weekend! I'm looking forward to going to a few cookouts, relaxing by the pool, and doing more wedding planning. And I can't believe when we come back, we'll have a total of 9 days of school left. CRAZY!

Enjoy the rest of your week!

Weekly Update - May 2-6

Hi parents!

I hope you've enjoyed your weekend. The weather has been great!

Quick reminder - please don't forget to return EOG testing forms to school by Friday. These were left out of Monday folders, but they were sent home today in your child's agenda. Please ask about the forms. Your fifth grader definitely received one. Thanks!

This week, my focus is on wrapping up important material in each subject. In science, we will be finishing up the last unit. Your fifth grader will be learning about clouds. Students will take the Weather Blue Diamond on Friday, so remind your fifth grader to study throughout the week.

In math, we will focus on multiplication. We will also start on division. Students have learned three different strategies to use when multiplying two and three digit numbers together.

• Rectangle Rows
• Area Model of Multiplication
• Lattice Method
  

Multiplication can be a challenge for some, so students should practice the method that works best for them. Ask your fifth grader about method they have been using. Make sure they are working to prevent careless mistakes. They should be able to explain the model they are using to you.

Students will begin learning new test-taking strategies on Wednesday. The method students will start learning tomorrow is called UNRAAVEL. The Math and Language Arts' versions of the strategy are a little bit different. Find the Language Arts version below.

Underline the title.
Now predict the passage.
Run through and number the paragraphs.
Are you reading the questions?
Are the important words circled?
Venture (read) through the passage.
Eliminate wrong answers.
Let the questions be answered.

We will continue to work with poetry in Language Arts. Students have been really excited to write poems, which has been great to see. The creativity I see in each of them when writing poems is amazing! I'm proud of the work they're doing and can't wait to share it with each of you, the parents.

List of poems we've written so far...

• Haiku
• Cinquain
• Diamante
• Acrostic
• Concrete/Shape
• Free Verse
• Alliteration
• Metaphor/Simile

*We will continue adding new poems to the list. Ask your fifth grader about the poems he/she is writing in class (:

EOG Testing Schedule

• Wednesday, May 11 - Science EOG
• Monday, May 16 - Reading EOG
• Tuesday, May 17 - Math Part I
  
• Wednesday, May 18 - Math Part II

Feel free to contact me with questions or concerns. I'm here to offer support to your child, but also to you. I'm confident that my students are going to do a great job on their EOG Tests!

Thanks and have a great week (:

Weekly Update - April 25-29

Welcome back from Spring Break!

I'm so glad to be back and can't believe we're 3 weeks away from EOGs. Don't worry, we'll be ready (:

We have a busy week this week. The spirit walk is scheduled for Thursday. Right now, Thursday's weather looks iffy. But I'll keep you posted.

*** Book Report - The final book report is DUE on Friday April 29. I apologize for any confusion. I had hoped to add some other options to the list, but just simply ran out of time. I'll have to save those ideas for next year. Email me if you have any questions! Thanks ***

Also, conferences start tomorrow. I sent home conference reminder letters in four student's Monday folders. The remainder of the conference reminder letters will come home in your child's agenda. I will staple the sheet of paper in the agenda, to make sure it gets home.

The fifth grade team has a planning day on Thursday. Again, don't worry. Your fifth grader will be in good hands. I'll put together some challenging material to keep them busy. I am looking forward to planning with the team to get some ideas for the post-EOG period. We are also going to work on some things for EOG test-prep.

In guided reading groups, we are starting to practice using the variety of reading strategies we've learned this year. These strategies will be helpful for your fifth grader when he/she begins testing. I'm hopeful we will be able to pull in short passages where your child can write on and manipulate the text, as he/she will be able to do in three weeks. I will be teaching a useful strategy that I'm hopeful your child will begin to use while reading. A large toolbox of strategies will be most helpful during testing. Please ask your child about what they're learning in class.

Poetry - We are working hard in our poetry unit. Your child has written three-four poems. The poems include an acrostic, haiku, one using personification, and a beginner poem about school (now or next year). We will be creating poetry folders to hold all of their work. In a few weeks, we will be putting together a poetry book to share with parents. I'm looking forward to this. I'm seeing so much creativity out of every student! I'm excited to see the final product.

Homework Schedule - A homework schedule will be coming home tomorrow. Hopefully this schedule will keep everyone organized until the end of the year. We're so close! I wish I would've come up with this sooner, but your survey responses gave me the idea. Please hang it on your fridge or bulletin board to help your fifth grader stay organized (:

Please email me if you have any questions throughout the week! I look forward to seeing many of you this week for conferences.

The countdown begins...

One More Week!

Hi parents!

I hope you're enjoying a great weekend. This week's update is titled "One More Week" because we are one week away from Spring Break. I know your fifth grader is thrilled for the break.

Last Week Before Spring Break:
We will have a busy last week before Spring Break. We will be finishing up a Blue Diamond on Monday that your child started on Friday. This Blue Diamond is covering fat/skinny questions, connections, and personification, tone, and flashback. I will review with students before they get their test booklet and scan card. This information will be useful for us to discuss at your child's conference coming up.

Report Cards
Please remember to sign and return your child's report card envelope. I hope you also each found a conference letter inside your envelope. Many of your voiced interest in wanting to meet me in your feedback from the survey. Coming in midyear, it's been difficult to get in touch with all of you. I apologize for that. I'm hopeful you will each choose a time so we can sit down and discuss your child's progress. I also look forward to meeting each of you!! I love my fifth graders and want to share that love for teaching with each of you.

Survey Feedback - I am taking every word you offered in the survey feedback to heart. I'm starting by giving less homework. In accordance, I am also creating a homework schedule so it's easier for everyone to keep up with homework assignments that are due. Understand, though, that homework is important. It reinforces ideas and topics we're learning in the classroom. For those students that are completing homework assignments, their other grades are reflecting that hard work. The spelling contract is given to help your student work with his/her spelling words each week. The vocabulary activities are given to help your child understand the meaning of their words, since the vocabulary test asks your child to write a meaningful sentence with the word. At this time, I am going to keep these two activities - your child voiced that they were both helpful.

Grading for spelling contract/vocabulary activities - These will no longer be graded 1-4 on the grading scale. Your child will receive credit if they choose to do six activities on the spelling contract list. These will be practice for their spelling test. The vocabulary activities are shorter - your child will receive full credit if they complete each of the activities on the list. This will be denoted with a check-plus on your child's paper.

Reading Log Changes - The reading log is going to undergo some changes. I am going to give your child the option as to what they want to write about each week. Reading logs are meant to help your child think more critically about the book he/she is reading. This activity also helps your child write with more detail and description, which will translate into papers and performance assessments they are asked to write in the classroom.

Your child should choose to respond to ONE of the bullets below. Each bullet has multiple parts, but this should be easier for your child to do, since they all connect. No longer will they have to choose to write and answer three questions. Look for a new reading log assignment sheet on Monday.

• Write a response to what you've read this week. How did it make you feel? What was the tone of the story? How did the character's make you feel? Why? Make sure you include details from your book to support your ideas/thinking.
  
• Choose a character from your story. Using that character's point of view, write a prediction as to what will happen next in the story. Why do you think that? Make sure you include details from your book to support your ideas/thinking.
  
• Find 5 examples of personification in your book. Write a description of what's being personified (taking on human characteristics). Tell how that description affects your understanding of the book. What visual did you get in your head after reading that specific section in the book? How did it affect your understanding of the book?
• Use your CROP-QV strategies. From the section of the book you've read for this week, list a connection, reaction, opinion, prediction, question, and visualization you had while reading. Make sure you give details for each one. Only writing one sentence for your connection doesn't give me enough details. Make sure you also use evidence from your book to support your thinking.
  

*Reading logs will no longer be graded on a 1-4 scale. Your child will receive full credit for homework if they answer each section of the bullet above. I will denote that with a check-plus on your child's paper.

This Week
Math - We will be finishing up our measurement unit. Please continue to help your child work with units of customary measurement at home. If you're using a measuring cup to cook, ask your child how many ounces are in a cup? How many cups are in a pint? How many pints are in a quart? How many quarts are in a gallon? Etc. Students also learned about liters, grams, kilograms, etc. Whenever possible, ask your students questions about these units of measurement. It will help them stick! And will be good practice for you too (:

Social Studies - We finished up our Civil War unit with a test on Wednesday of last week. We are now looking west. Your child created a poster sharing information about the west with other pioneers - everyone decided the west was too dangerous, so their posters were meant to keep the pioneers on the east coast. On Tuesday, students will create a poster to recruit workers to factories. Many factories gained popularity during Reconstruction, which followed the Civil War. We'll continue to talk about growth and change on Friday as well.

Science - Your child is working with Ms. Veltri in the weather. They seem to be enjoying this and are more interested in the weather since they've started. I love the weather, so I look forward to asking them questions as they move through this unit.

Language Arts - We will be starting a unit on poetry this week! This month is National Poetry Month and I've decided we will be working to complete a unit on poetry for the next 30 days. Your child will write poems during class, either as a whole group or during stations. Students will create a variety of poems and we will work to choose their best poems to put into a poetry book. At the end of this unit, I look forward to inviting each of you into the classroom for a Poetry Jam. Students will share their poems and you'll get an opportunity to see other student work. More details to come!

Calendar Update
Students will be participating in Super Kids Day this week. Fifth grade will be out and about participating in Super Kids day on Wednesday, April 13.

Thanks for reading this long post. Please let me know if you have any questions!

Have a great week (:

Weekly Update - March 21-25

Parents - I hope you're having a great week!

We have had a busy three days so far. In Language Arts, we've been working on understanding the character's we're reading about by analyzing their motivation. We also started point of view today, reading Jack & the Beanstalk. In Science, students have been learning about the water cycle. I'm looking forward to reading their raindrop stories once they get them back. Students also finished up their Wild Thing stories last week. We are jumping back into a new story, writing about Spring. Students will be able to choose the type of format they want to use - poem, story, narrative, etc. I'm looking forward to seeing what they come up with.

Students have also been working hard to prepare for the 5th grade musical. They will be performing the show here at North Ridge next Thursday, March 31. Come if you can!

Don't forget - tomorrow is the PBIS assembly! Students will be recognized for academic achievement and success. Six awards will be given out to students from each grade level - GEMS, Terrific Kids, and Character Traits. Come if you can. The ceremony will start at 2:30 in the Multi-purpose Room.

I am so proud of my fifth graders!! They earned their 7th star in the cafeteria. That means we have also now earned our THIRD gold unicoin! We will be planning our celebration on Thursday. Don't forget to ask your fifth grader what they decided on for their celebration.

Please remember that we will not have school on Friday. Enjoy the short break (:

Also, please keep in mind that the third quarter is wrapping up. Help your child stay on top of work and assignments in the classroom, but also at home. I found a new website that may help with homework questions your child might have at home - http://www.bjpinchbeck.com/math.html. The site promises to answer questions you might have about ANY subject. Bookmark it so you can refer back to it often.

Enjoy the rest of your week - and contact me if you have any questions or concerns!

Cheers - Ms. Popple

Room 604 Weekly Updates

Room 604 weekly updates have now moved to my blog. Technical errors on the main classroom website made it difficult to keep adding updates to the page. This site will allow you to add comments directly to my updates. Please feel free to comment or ask questions at your leisure. I'm hopeful this will be a place where parents can communicate with me about what's going on in our classroom (aside from email).

Weekly Update - March 14-18
THANK YOU to each of you for making Teacher Appreciation Week so awesome! The kids were so sweet with their cards and hugs each day. I am so glad I'm a teacher at North Ridge. I'm thankful to have parents like you working with me this year as well.

Another thanks to all of you that helped with the pizza party last week. The kids had a blast! We had pizza and watched Because of Winn Dixie. Many of them loved the movie so much they were asking to check the book out from the library, which made me smile (:

Art
This week, if you haven't already heard from your 5th grader, he/she has working with an Artist in Residence. Students are creating animal scultures made out of wire, plastic bags, fabric, and yarn. They seem to be enjoying it. I've had fun watching them work.

Social Studies
We have started a new unit on the Civil War. Monday, we watched a video on Abraham Lincoln and discussed why he was such an important president. we also talked about the role he played in the Civil War. Students also worked on creating a timeline of the events leading up to the Civil War with their table group. Students will work with a partner in the coming days to create a specific event for our class timeline. One group will also be in charge of portraying Abraham Lincoln and the impact he had on the Civil War.

Science
Your child started a new science unit this week - WEATHER! I think they are all genuinely excited about it. The weather fascinates me, so I'll be sure to question them about their new science class with every chance I get. Their first assignment is due next Wednesday (raindrop story).

Math
We have been working extinsively with fractions over the last month or so. Each math class is now focusing on decimals and fractions - comparing them, converting them, and estimating with them. We should be wrapping up with this unit in the next week or so. Make sure your fifth grader continues to study since these skills build on one another.

Writing
We have been putting together Wild Thing stories for the last two weeks. Students will turn in their completed story, as well as a picture of their Wild Thing, on Friday. They have thoroughly enjoyed the writing process. Our next prompt will be based on spring - we will take a nature walk and investigate the different elements in nature that show us that spring is coming or has arrived. Since this coming Saturday is the first day of spring, I think this will be very timely!

Spelling
Your child received new spelling words and a new spelling contract this week. The spelling contract will be due next Tuesday. Please notice that there are new Spelling City activities included on the sheet. If the assignment cannot be printed out, a parent will need to sign saying the child completed the activity. Simply sign the spelling contract assignment sheet to let me know your fifth grader did the activity.

I have gotten a little bit behind with projects and grading. However, I expect to have the social studies timelines and book report grades in next week's Monday folder (March 21). You will find a small strip of paper with the grade and comments from me. Most of the book reports looked great, as well as the timelines. Be sure to help your child get started on their second book report, which will be due on March 31. Just a reminder - your child can turn in the book report early too!

Thanks again for all of your hard work and help last week! I am learning a lot and continue to make changes to the classroom environment to make it a better place for your child. Ask them what we're doing in the classroom, question them about the books that they're reading, and keep them on their toes. I definitely work to do that in Room 604!

Thanks (:

Do you wear the rookie badge proudly?

My first official week of teaching alone in the classroom is under my belt. I felt every emotion possible last week. Pure joy and excitement that the door of Room 604 says Ms. Popple's Class. But I also felt mad, frustrated, anxious, happy, and a little out of place. For me, feeling all of these emotions made sense because I entered a classroom at the middle of the year that didn't feel like "mine" yet. The students have already had 2 teachers, so they're all a little unsure about the third (me). They worked on testing my nerves and patience, but they also made me feel confident in my abilities to quiet them down and teach them. Some of the best moments were when we were sitting together on the floor reading a book. Needless to say, I was excited for my first week to end. I am looking forward to creating lessons and activities that are more engaging and exciting for all levels of learners. But I'm also ready for students to know my expectations in the classroom...I know that comes with time.

Week two started with an unexpected early release from school yesterday. Of course, students were wired and excited about the snow. And I can't blame them. But I made sure my class had plenty to do to keep them distracted. Once students were released, I stayed and organized my desk, student's desks, and hung some posters. I'm hopeful each of these things will help my students stay on task and work together - but I also know the environment will be beneficial to me and my ability to teach them.

With this new job comes loads of paperwork, meetings, oh and did I mention report card grades are due in less than 2 weeks. I think the man upstairs is watching out for me - a day off today is just what I needed to catch up. I have been working on report card grades for my math class today. Those are due by Friday of this week. There's a lot to do and to think about when you're a homeroom teacher, but more when you're a new teacher (just out of college). I think I'm doing well and handling all of the pressures as they hit me, but I know I can do better. I am proudly wearing the rookie badge and I'm thankful for my team of teachers! I'm pretty sure I've asked them a million questions a day so far. But they're amazing and all are very willing to help.

I wanted to share a great resource that I think has been very beneficial to my class. I created a classroom website to help keep parents connected to the classroom happenings. Check it out - http://misspopplesclass.weebly.com/. I created it using weebly.com. Once you create an account, you can choose any type of layout or display you want. It's very easy to navigate and change. Each week, I make sure I add homework assignments and other necessary tools students might need if they forget something at school. I also post newsletters, the classroom wishlist, and our class rules/consequences/rewards for parents.

My biggest piece of advice is "don't be afraid to ask questions." I have asked quite a few and feel like I learn something new from each of the people I ask. Everyone in a school has a unique skill set and they can teach you a lot. I have sough help from the technology teacher on down to the custodian. Time is the one thing that is scarce, but knowing who you can contact for help is essential.

Ask away and wear the rookie badge proudly - I definitely am!