Dear Fifth Grade Parents,
I have enclosed a reminder letter about camp in your childs boomerang today. Camp is April 2-4, the week after spring break. Please remember to turn in your paper work if you have not yet done so.
Here is a brief curriculum update:
Math
Monday: Test # 15
Tuesday: Investigation #8
Wednesday: Lesson 81, Reducing Fractions, Part 1
Thursday: Lesson 82, Greatest Common Factor
Religion
This week we are learning about the Stations of the Cross. Students are working on skits and will be performing them next Wednesday. We will also be learning about Holy Week and the Triduum. The students will be receiving the sacrament of Reconciliation on Monday. This will be a communal Reconciliation service for grades 2-5.
Science
Students are learning how energy moves through an ecosystem. Students will discover what food chains, food webs and energy pyramids show about energy flow. Students will construct a food web of a marine ecosystem to show energy flow.
Social Studies
The fifth graders are learning about Chapter 10, Growing Tensions Between the Colonies and Britain. We are using the metaphor of a parent/child relationship to understand the relationship and dynamics that Britain had with the colonists. We will learn about the Boston Massacre and the Boston Tea Party.
Language Arts
This week, students compose descriptive paragraphs that focus on using good word choice. Students learn to use Comic Life, a program on the laptops which allows students to easily create their own comic strips. We incorporate onomatopoeia into some brief comic strips. After Easter, students will plan and write a detailed comic with a complete story line and character development. Mrs. McFaul will integrate this concept with reading instruction as the students read and analyze various appropriate comic books.
Reading
Students have been given a choice of 3 options for a culminating activity for The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe. They are choosing between taking a test on Tues. March 18th, making a timeline due March 20th, or creating a series of bookmarks, also due on March 20th. They have received a detailed description and rubric for each option. Students have been asked to give it some careful thought, consider their own learning preferences, and make a decision. Students turned in their decision sheet as homework today.
Request: 5th graders will be doing an activity in Reading and L.A. after Easter using comic books. Please begin collecting appropriate comic books to bring in after the Easter break. Thank you!
Ms. Semandiris