January 15, 2014
Dear Fifth Grade Parents,
I am not able to log on to my web page right now, so I am sending a hard copy of this letter home today. I hope you all have a wonderful long weekend. We will be having our class “Thank you” auction during Catholic Schools Week. We are now accepting items for the auction! (Small items – under $3.00 – $5.00)
Reminders:
Donate to “Thank you” auction!
1/19 – MLK Day – Remember to do service!
Math
1/20 Ch. 4, L. 1 Rounding Decimals
1/21 Ch. 4, L. 2 Estimate Sums and Differences
1/22 Ch. 4, L. 3, Problem Solving and Investigation
1/23 Ch. 4, L. 4, L. 1-4 Check My Progress Quiz
Religion
This week we will be finishing up Ch. 15. The study guide and “small chart” are due on Wednesday 1/21. The test for this chapter will be on 1/23.
Social Studies
The fifth graders will take the Chapter 7, Comparing the Colonies test tomorrow 1/16. Next week we will begin Chapter 8, Facing Slavery. In this chapter we will look at the slave trade from the West African perspective. Students will be taking on roles of West Africans facing being taken from their homeland to be traded as slaves. We will also review the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and discuss his legacy.
Reading
The 5th graders just finished a very challenging selection on Cougars. There was a good deal of domain-specific vocabulary and plenty of complex ideas. We talked about what good readers do when they come to something in their reading that doesn’t make sense. Due to the complex nature of the selection, the test scores were not as strong as they’ve been. Next week, the students will have a chance to look back into the story to make corrections for added credit. I will ask them to cite the page number where they find the answer. Also, next week we will branch out into a Trade Book and Book Clubs. This will provide students with additional practice with the Book Club process before our next Book Club when they will be selecting the book they want to read.
Science
Student’s inventions are due Friday, January 23rd. They will be displayed in the hallway for Catholic Schools Week.
Students will take a quiz on microbes based on the notes they have taken in class next Tuesday (1/20).
Language Arts
This week in Language Arts students worked with using direct quotations in grammar. In writing students took their twenty research facts and wrote an outline for their research report. Students are currently working on a rough draft of this report for Tuesday. Next week students will peer edit and begin writing final drafts of these reports.
Ms. Semandiris