Thursday, May 26, 2011

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!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

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 (: