It looks like we may have a white Christmas this year. Our son and daughter-in-law are coming home for Christmas, so I just hope the weather is kind to air travelers. :)
Upcoming events ~
Secret Santa exchanges will take place this week. All of the students chose to participate and the daily gifts should be small tokens with a value of $1.00 or less. On Friday, the final gifts may have a value up to $5.00. It is just a fun way to bless another student in the class.
White Elephant exchange will take place on Friday and kids who want to participate need to bring a wrapped gift to place under our classroom tree by Friday. This can be a funny gift or a nice one. The kids will draw numbers, will open gifts in numerical order, and may choose a gift from under the tree or a gift already opened by another student.
Gingerbread Houses with buddies will take place on Tuesday. Our class is providing the graham crackers and frosting. Your child should bring the items by Tuesday.
Last names beginning with A-L will bring a can of white frosting
Last names beginning with M-Z will bring a box of regular graham crackers.
5th & 6th Grade Band Concert - Tuesday at 10:10 in the gym
5th & 6th Grade Orchestra Concert - Thursday at 10:20 in the gym
Spelling: We will take a Unit 14 pretest on Monday, work with our words and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th ~ VCV pattern words
6th ~ More words with ion
Language ~ The kids will work on the MobyMax site this week, as well as daily grammar written work.
5th ~ Correlative conjunctions & subject pronouns
6th ~ Adjectives & adverbs
Reading: We will complete our novels and book clubs this week. Each student will write a book review on his or her chosen novel. Each child will submit unit work consisting of vocabulary & comprehension forms and questions.
Math: 5th will continue to work with the coordinate plane and ordered pairs. 6th will complete our work with integers and rational numbers and will take a quiz on Tuesday. 6th will then move into more advanced work with the coordinate plane using all four quadrants with positive and negative integers in the ordered pairs.
I will also have the students take a math assessment on the Moby Max site. This particular assessment analyzes specific skills and background aligned with the common core standards. It is one more tool to assist with individualized math instruction for your child.
Social Studies: The 6th graders will complete an ancient Egypt web quest and will begin thinking about the Egyptian god or goddess they wish to research after the break.
Science: 6th grade will discuss conservation of mass and radioactive elements and the students will complete an Investigation Review.
I would like to introduce a new addition to our classroom. In mid-January, our class will welcome a student-teacher from MSU Billings. His name is Mr. Monson and he is eager and excited to begin work with our class. He is a Billings native who graduated from Billings West and he played baseball for the Scarlets. Much of his volunteer and work history includes after school programs and work with kids of all ages. I know he will be a wonderful member of our classroom team!
I hope you have a fantastic Christmas and New Year . . . and I'll see you in 2014!!
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Sunday, December 8, 2013
December 9th ~ 13th
Well I don't know about you, but I'm ready for some warmer winter weather! At least the weather report sounds more promising for the 6th grade field trip on Tuesday. We will be walking a bit downtown, so I am thankful that the subzero days may be behind us.
Tuesday - 6th grade field trip to the Moss Mansion, Western Heritage Center (6th grade art on display), lunch at Wendy's, and goodies from Brockel's. The 6th grade fundraising is covering the costs except the goodies at the candy store. You will need to bring your own money if you want to purchase anything at Brockel's.
5th graders ~ Don't forget your cookie decorations on Tuesday!
Wednesday - Our counselor, Mrs. Tatum, will visit our classroom to continue sharing her lessons on friendship, caring and compassion, bullying, responsibility, etc.
Thursday - 3rd through 5th grade general music Christmas performances at 8:30 and 10:00 a.m.
Spelling: Unit 13 ~ We will take a pretest on Monday, work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th: VCCV Patterns
6th: Suffix: -ion or -ation
Language: We are working with the root words -pose- and -posit-
Throughout the week, we complete written practice covering various grammar concepts, as well as using the MobyMax online site. The lessons on MobyMax are individualized at your child's skill level.
5th: Written practice with coordinating conjunctions.
6th: Written practice with irregular and superlative adjectives
Reading: The kids will continue reading novels for our book clubs. There are reading and written requirements each day. We meet in groups to discuss, clarify, and summarize what we have read so far.
Writing: We are working on persuasive essays and each child has chosen a topic to research and then write an essay about his or her point of view.
Math: 5th graders will be assessed on dividing decimals and then we will move on to the coordinate plane and ordered pairs. We will use a combination of solving real world problems and games to reinforce this geometry concept.
6th graders are continuing with integers and we will subtract, multiply, and divide positive and negative numbers this week.
Social Studies: 6th graders will study the social classes of ancient Egypt and work through an online Web quest to learn about Egyptian daily life and customs.
Science: 6th graders will study Atoms and atomic structure and will build a model of an atom.
Have a fantastic week and be sure to bundle up!
Tuesday - 6th grade field trip to the Moss Mansion, Western Heritage Center (6th grade art on display), lunch at Wendy's, and goodies from Brockel's. The 6th grade fundraising is covering the costs except the goodies at the candy store. You will need to bring your own money if you want to purchase anything at Brockel's.
5th graders ~ Don't forget your cookie decorations on Tuesday!
Wednesday - Our counselor, Mrs. Tatum, will visit our classroom to continue sharing her lessons on friendship, caring and compassion, bullying, responsibility, etc.
Thursday - 3rd through 5th grade general music Christmas performances at 8:30 and 10:00 a.m.
Spelling: Unit 13 ~ We will take a pretest on Monday, work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th: VCCV Patterns
6th: Suffix: -ion or -ation
Language: We are working with the root words -pose- and -posit-
Throughout the week, we complete written practice covering various grammar concepts, as well as using the MobyMax online site. The lessons on MobyMax are individualized at your child's skill level.
5th: Written practice with coordinating conjunctions.
6th: Written practice with irregular and superlative adjectives
Reading: The kids will continue reading novels for our book clubs. There are reading and written requirements each day. We meet in groups to discuss, clarify, and summarize what we have read so far.
Writing: We are working on persuasive essays and each child has chosen a topic to research and then write an essay about his or her point of view.
Math: 5th graders will be assessed on dividing decimals and then we will move on to the coordinate plane and ordered pairs. We will use a combination of solving real world problems and games to reinforce this geometry concept.
6th graders are continuing with integers and we will subtract, multiply, and divide positive and negative numbers this week.
Social Studies: 6th graders will study the social classes of ancient Egypt and work through an online Web quest to learn about Egyptian daily life and customs.
Science: 6th graders will study Atoms and atomic structure and will build a model of an atom.
Have a fantastic week and be sure to bundle up!
Sunday, December 1, 2013
December 2nd ~ 6th
It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas! I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving and were able to spend time with family and friends. Now we only have three weeks until the Christmas break!
Upcoming Events ~
December 10th - 6th grade field trip to the Moss Mansion, Western Heritage Center, Lunch at Wendy's, and a side trip to Brockel's Chocolates. Details in the Wednesday Watch.
December 11th - Midterm grade reports go home
December 12th - Intermediate General Music Christmas Program - 8:30-9:30 and 10:00-11:00
December 17th - Band Concert - 10:10-11:10
December 18th - Butter braid Delivery beginning at 1:00 in the gym
December 19th - Orchestra Concert - 10:20-11:00
December 20th - Christmas break begins at 3:00 p.m. See you on January 2nd!
Spelling - Unit 11 Pretest on Monday. We will work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week and take a final test on Friday.
5th: Final Schwa + /r/ sounds
6th: Endings and Suffixes
Language - The kids will work on the MobyMax site for daily practice, as well as complete the written work listed below.
5th: Prepositional phrases and conjunctions
6th: Comparative and superlative adjectives
Reading - We are beginning book clubs this week with four different novels. 5th graders will be reading Hatchet and Brian's Winter, and 6th graders have chosen The Limit and Turtle in Paradise. The kids will have daily reading assignments and we will wrap these up before the Christmas break.
Writing - The students will begin an expository opinion piece this week. They will choose a topic and then make their case to persuade the reader in essay form.
Math -
5th: We will be dividing decimals this week, utilizing a combination of online learning, online practice, games, and manual computation.
6th: The kids will continue hands-on work with positive and negative integers and rational numbers. We will begin working with adding and subtracting negative and positive integers.
Social Studies - 6th graders will continue learning about the monuments and social classes of ancient Egypt. Before the break, the students will choose an Egyptian god or goddess, conduct research, and prepare a report/project and short class presentation.
Science - We are learning about how matter changes and we will perform two hands-on activities on Tuesday. The students will use the computer lab on Friday to complete a virtual lab about physical and chemical changes.
Have a fantastic first week of December . . . and stay warm!!
Upcoming Events ~
December 10th - 6th grade field trip to the Moss Mansion, Western Heritage Center, Lunch at Wendy's, and a side trip to Brockel's Chocolates. Details in the Wednesday Watch.
December 11th - Midterm grade reports go home
December 12th - Intermediate General Music Christmas Program - 8:30-9:30 and 10:00-11:00
December 17th - Band Concert - 10:10-11:10
December 18th - Butter braid Delivery beginning at 1:00 in the gym
December 19th - Orchestra Concert - 10:20-11:00
December 20th - Christmas break begins at 3:00 p.m. See you on January 2nd!
Spelling - Unit 11 Pretest on Monday. We will work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week and take a final test on Friday.
5th: Final Schwa + /r/ sounds
6th: Endings and Suffixes
Language - The kids will work on the MobyMax site for daily practice, as well as complete the written work listed below.
5th: Prepositional phrases and conjunctions
6th: Comparative and superlative adjectives
Reading - We are beginning book clubs this week with four different novels. 5th graders will be reading Hatchet and Brian's Winter, and 6th graders have chosen The Limit and Turtle in Paradise. The kids will have daily reading assignments and we will wrap these up before the Christmas break.
Writing - The students will begin an expository opinion piece this week. They will choose a topic and then make their case to persuade the reader in essay form.
Math -
5th: We will be dividing decimals this week, utilizing a combination of online learning, online practice, games, and manual computation.
6th: The kids will continue hands-on work with positive and negative integers and rational numbers. We will begin working with adding and subtracting negative and positive integers.
Social Studies - 6th graders will continue learning about the monuments and social classes of ancient Egypt. Before the break, the students will choose an Egyptian god or goddess, conduct research, and prepare a report/project and short class presentation.
Science - We are learning about how matter changes and we will perform two hands-on activities on Tuesday. The students will use the computer lab on Friday to complete a virtual lab about physical and chemical changes.
Have a fantastic first week of December . . . and stay warm!!
Sunday, November 24, 2013
November 25th & 26th
The holiday season is officially here and I must admit that I am looking forward to the turkey dinner on Thursday.
I was not able to attend the Barnes & Noble book fair today and I am bummed that I could not watch kids from our class perform. I have nursed a bit of a cold over the weekend and did not want to spread germs before Monday. I am anxious to hear all about it from the kids.
Tuesday is Pajama Day ~ I told the kids that I always have a "pajama day" with electronics and breakfast served by me. A half day is a perfect time to do this and I have selected this Tuesday and will discuss appropriate pajama attire with the kids on Monday. The kids may bring hand-held game systems, iPods, iPads, etc. and while I am preparing a pancake breakfast with bacon and juice, they may use their electronics. We have band/music/orchestra from 10:00-11:00 on Tuesday, and then I will begin preparing our "brunch". I bring in my griddle to cook the pancakes and I will reheat bacon in our classroom microwave. I will also provide juice . . . so your kiddo will not leave hungry on Tuesday. :) Dismissal is at 12:00 noon.
We will not study a spelling unit this week, but we will be ready for Unit 11 the following week.
We will work on the MobyMax site this week, as well as complete written Daily warm up practice in language.
In reading, the kids will read an article on Monday and work to distinguish important details and the main idea.
For math, the 5th graders will be continuing with dividing larger numbers and the 6th graders will begin adding positive and negative integers. Each child will spend time on Khan academy on Monday and Tuesday.
The 6th graders will continue studying ancient Egypt, Kush, and Canaan on Monday.
I hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving ~ See you in December!!
I was not able to attend the Barnes & Noble book fair today and I am bummed that I could not watch kids from our class perform. I have nursed a bit of a cold over the weekend and did not want to spread germs before Monday. I am anxious to hear all about it from the kids.
Tuesday is Pajama Day ~ I told the kids that I always have a "pajama day" with electronics and breakfast served by me. A half day is a perfect time to do this and I have selected this Tuesday and will discuss appropriate pajama attire with the kids on Monday. The kids may bring hand-held game systems, iPods, iPads, etc. and while I am preparing a pancake breakfast with bacon and juice, they may use their electronics. We have band/music/orchestra from 10:00-11:00 on Tuesday, and then I will begin preparing our "brunch". I bring in my griddle to cook the pancakes and I will reheat bacon in our classroom microwave. I will also provide juice . . . so your kiddo will not leave hungry on Tuesday. :) Dismissal is at 12:00 noon.
We will not study a spelling unit this week, but we will be ready for Unit 11 the following week.
We will work on the MobyMax site this week, as well as complete written Daily warm up practice in language.
In reading, the kids will read an article on Monday and work to distinguish important details and the main idea.
For math, the 5th graders will be continuing with dividing larger numbers and the 6th graders will begin adding positive and negative integers. Each child will spend time on Khan academy on Monday and Tuesday.
The 6th graders will continue studying ancient Egypt, Kush, and Canaan on Monday.
I hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving ~ See you in December!!
Sunday, November 17, 2013
November 18th ~ 22nd
Greetings from Room 7 ~
Thanksgiving is almost here and then Christmas will be just around the corner. Wow, this year is flying by!
Poly Drive Barnes & Noble Book Fair ~ Next Sunday, November 24th, is the Poly Drive book fair at Barnes & Noble. If you have holiday gift items on your shopping list that could be purchased at Barnes & Noble, I encourage you to shop on the 24th. Every purchase made will benefit our school when you mention Poly Drive. We are usually able to purchase some pretty awesome things for our library with the proceeds from the book fair. Thanks for supporting our great school.
Looking ahead . . .
Next Tuesday (November 26th) is an early out day with dismissal at 12:00 noon. There is no school next Wednesday-Friday for the long holiday weekend. Enjoy your time with family and friends!
Spelling ~ Unit 10 : we will take a pretest on Monday, work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday. Last week, the 5th graders averaged 95% on the final and the 6th graders averaged 94%. Way to bring up those scores!
5th: Compound Words
6th: words ending with -ed or -ing
Language ~ During our Language Arts rotations, we will continue to work with the MobyMax site to build common core language skills. Ask your child how to sign in from home and take a look at this site. It is customized for your child and covers his or her knowledge gaps. We will also work with other specific skills throughout the week.
5th: Prepositional phrases
6th: Adjectives
Reading ~ We will begin novels after the Thanksgiving break. Before the break, we will work on our comprehension skills with several close reading activities. The kids will read, annotate the text, discuss key events and details, and them summarize each passage.
Math ~
5th: We are working with divisions - zeros in the quotient, dealing with larger dividends, dividing with money and multiples of 10, and 2-digit divisors.
6th: We are continuing our work with integers, absolute value, and rational numbers.
Social Studies ~ The 6th graders should have completed their Mesopotamia research projects and will present to the class on Monday. Each student was required to complete an individual grading rubric, as well as provide a score for each of their team members. When presentations are complete, we will begin our study of ancient Egypt.
Science ~ 6th graders will continue our study of mixtures and compounds. We will complete a hands-on activity on Tuesday dealing with surface tension, and then we will make our own silly putty on Friday.
Have a wonderful week!
Thanksgiving is almost here and then Christmas will be just around the corner. Wow, this year is flying by!
Poly Drive Barnes & Noble Book Fair ~ Next Sunday, November 24th, is the Poly Drive book fair at Barnes & Noble. If you have holiday gift items on your shopping list that could be purchased at Barnes & Noble, I encourage you to shop on the 24th. Every purchase made will benefit our school when you mention Poly Drive. We are usually able to purchase some pretty awesome things for our library with the proceeds from the book fair. Thanks for supporting our great school.
Looking ahead . . .
Next Tuesday (November 26th) is an early out day with dismissal at 12:00 noon. There is no school next Wednesday-Friday for the long holiday weekend. Enjoy your time with family and friends!
Spelling ~ Unit 10 : we will take a pretest on Monday, work with our word lists and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday. Last week, the 5th graders averaged 95% on the final and the 6th graders averaged 94%. Way to bring up those scores!
5th: Compound Words
6th: words ending with -ed or -ing
Language ~ During our Language Arts rotations, we will continue to work with the MobyMax site to build common core language skills. Ask your child how to sign in from home and take a look at this site. It is customized for your child and covers his or her knowledge gaps. We will also work with other specific skills throughout the week.
5th: Prepositional phrases
6th: Adjectives
Reading ~ We will begin novels after the Thanksgiving break. Before the break, we will work on our comprehension skills with several close reading activities. The kids will read, annotate the text, discuss key events and details, and them summarize each passage.
Math ~
5th: We are working with divisions - zeros in the quotient, dealing with larger dividends, dividing with money and multiples of 10, and 2-digit divisors.
6th: We are continuing our work with integers, absolute value, and rational numbers.
Social Studies ~ The 6th graders should have completed their Mesopotamia research projects and will present to the class on Monday. Each student was required to complete an individual grading rubric, as well as provide a score for each of their team members. When presentations are complete, we will begin our study of ancient Egypt.
Science ~ 6th graders will continue our study of mixtures and compounds. We will complete a hands-on activity on Tuesday dealing with surface tension, and then we will make our own silly putty on Friday.
Have a wonderful week!
Sunday, November 10, 2013
November 11th ~ 15th
Parent-teacher conferences are a wonderful time to visit about your child's progress in class and I want to thank all of you for carving time out of your schedules to meet. As I've mentioned before, this is a remarkable group of young people and I am privileged to spend each day with these kids.
Don't forget to honor a veteran on Monday. We will spend a few minutes on Monday morning to learn a bit about the history of Veteran's Day and to contemplate the sacrifices made for our great nation. Some basic information about this day is located at http://www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp and the kids will complete a short scavenger hunt of information from this site.
Events for the week:
P.T.A. Meeting ~ Tuesday at 3:15 in the library
Picture Retakes ~ Thursday
Spelling: Unit 9 - we will take a pretest on Monday, work with our words and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th ~ Homophones
6th ~ final en, el, er
Language:
5th ~ Interjections and online work at MobyMax.com
6th ~ Irregular verbs and adjectives, as well as online work at MobyMax.com
Reading:
5th ~ We will continue working with various comprehension strategies in our Daybooks.
6th ~ The kids should have completed the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins. We will discuss the events in the book, the theme, and author's purpose. This kids will take a final comprehension quiz on Wednesday.
Math:
5th ~ We will be reviewing division and practicing with real-world examples.
6th ~ We will continue with exponents and then progress to the order of operations, properties of operations, and work with expressions/equations.
Social Studies: 6th graders will continue to work on their Mesopotamia research and group projects. Final projects/presentations are due next Monday.
Science: 6th graders will continue to learn about mixtures and compounds. We will do some hands-on work on Tuesday and Friday, as well as adding notes and definitions to our science notebooks.
Buddies:
We will be helping our kindergarten buddies create a turkey craft using traced hands.
That about covers it :) Have a fantastic fall week!
Don't forget to honor a veteran on Monday. We will spend a few minutes on Monday morning to learn a bit about the history of Veteran's Day and to contemplate the sacrifices made for our great nation. Some basic information about this day is located at http://www1.va.gov/opa/vetsday/vetdayhistory.asp and the kids will complete a short scavenger hunt of information from this site.
Events for the week:
P.T.A. Meeting ~ Tuesday at 3:15 in the library
Picture Retakes ~ Thursday
Spelling: Unit 9 - we will take a pretest on Monday, work with our words and vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th ~ Homophones
6th ~ final en, el, er
Language:
5th ~ Interjections and online work at MobyMax.com
6th ~ Irregular verbs and adjectives, as well as online work at MobyMax.com
Reading:
5th ~ We will continue working with various comprehension strategies in our Daybooks.
6th ~ The kids should have completed the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins. We will discuss the events in the book, the theme, and author's purpose. This kids will take a final comprehension quiz on Wednesday.
Math:
5th ~ We will be reviewing division and practicing with real-world examples.
6th ~ We will continue with exponents and then progress to the order of operations, properties of operations, and work with expressions/equations.
Social Studies: 6th graders will continue to work on their Mesopotamia research and group projects. Final projects/presentations are due next Monday.
Science: 6th graders will continue to learn about mixtures and compounds. We will do some hands-on work on Tuesday and Friday, as well as adding notes and definitions to our science notebooks.
Buddies:
We will be helping our kindergarten buddies create a turkey craft using traced hands.
That about covers it :) Have a fantastic fall week!
Sunday, November 3, 2013
I hope you remembered to set your clocks back this weekend . . . and enjoyed that extra hour to sleep or spend with family and friends.
Wednesday-Friday this week are early-out days to allow for parent-teacher conferences. I am looking forward to spending a few minutes to discuss your child's progress in class. Report cards will go home on Tuesday to allow you time to review them before we meet on either Wednesday or Thursday.
Looking ahead ~ Picture retakes are scheduled for Thursday November 14th.
The Barnes & Noble Poly Drive Book Fair will take place on Sunday November 24th - more information will follow shortly.
As you head down the hall for our conference, take a look at the wall outside our room. Each child chose a positive "Word of the Year". This is a word that holds significance for your child and he or she wrote a short essay explaining why that particular word was chosen ~ and what it means to them.
Spelling ~ Unit 8 Pretest on Monday. We will work with our words throughout the week and then take a final test on Friday.
Language ~
5th: Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
6th: Irregular Plural Nouns
Reading ~ The 6th graders are reading the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins. We will work with various comprehension strategies throughout. The 5th graders are working in our Daybook resource. We will work with drawing personal meaning from our reading, main idea and author's purpose, and writing brief summaries.
Math ~ Both grades continue to work on the Khan Academy site. I have made recommendations to each of the kids and you will notice some easier, basic skill work. These are all focus concepts for each grade level and I want to make sure that the kids have ongoing practice in these areas throughout the year. My goal for the year is concept mastery for each child.
5th: We will continue multiplying multi-digit numbers and decimals this week. The kids will work with partners to solve higher-level thinking tasks and will play a strategy game to build the largest product.
6th: We will work with exponents and the order of operations this week. Much of the work this week will include partner activities where the kids will need to justify and explain their thinking and processes.
Social Studies ~ 6th: The kids are working with a small group to research and create a presentation about one of the four empires of ancient Mesopotamia. They will have three class periods to complete this project and it appears that all groups have chosen to create a PowerPoint presentation. With our D2 apps, the kids can use their school district email accounts to collaboratively create and edit using Google Drive. If you are not familiar with this technology, ask your child to show you.
Science ~ 6th: The kids finished their periodic table element research and did a great job on their element tiles. We are delving deeper into chemistry and will read about compounds, take a few notes, and complete an investigation review on Tuesday.
I'll see you at conferences! :)
Wednesday-Friday this week are early-out days to allow for parent-teacher conferences. I am looking forward to spending a few minutes to discuss your child's progress in class. Report cards will go home on Tuesday to allow you time to review them before we meet on either Wednesday or Thursday.
Looking ahead ~ Picture retakes are scheduled for Thursday November 14th.
The Barnes & Noble Poly Drive Book Fair will take place on Sunday November 24th - more information will follow shortly.
As you head down the hall for our conference, take a look at the wall outside our room. Each child chose a positive "Word of the Year". This is a word that holds significance for your child and he or she wrote a short essay explaining why that particular word was chosen ~ and what it means to them.
Spelling ~ Unit 8 Pretest on Monday. We will work with our words throughout the week and then take a final test on Friday.
Language ~
5th: Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
6th: Irregular Plural Nouns
Reading ~ The 6th graders are reading the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins. We will work with various comprehension strategies throughout. The 5th graders are working in our Daybook resource. We will work with drawing personal meaning from our reading, main idea and author's purpose, and writing brief summaries.
Math ~ Both grades continue to work on the Khan Academy site. I have made recommendations to each of the kids and you will notice some easier, basic skill work. These are all focus concepts for each grade level and I want to make sure that the kids have ongoing practice in these areas throughout the year. My goal for the year is concept mastery for each child.
5th: We will continue multiplying multi-digit numbers and decimals this week. The kids will work with partners to solve higher-level thinking tasks and will play a strategy game to build the largest product.
6th: We will work with exponents and the order of operations this week. Much of the work this week will include partner activities where the kids will need to justify and explain their thinking and processes.
Social Studies ~ 6th: The kids are working with a small group to research and create a presentation about one of the four empires of ancient Mesopotamia. They will have three class periods to complete this project and it appears that all groups have chosen to create a PowerPoint presentation. With our D2 apps, the kids can use their school district email accounts to collaboratively create and edit using Google Drive. If you are not familiar with this technology, ask your child to show you.
Science ~ 6th: The kids finished their periodic table element research and did a great job on their element tiles. We are delving deeper into chemistry and will read about compounds, take a few notes, and complete an investigation review on Tuesday.
I'll see you at conferences! :)
Sunday, October 27, 2013
October 28th ~ November 1st
Fall is in the air and you can smell the leaves ~ I hope you enjoyed the beautiful weekend.
Conference Confirmation Slips: These will go home on Wednesday and I am looking forward to visiting with you about your child.
Personal Safety Lesson: Both grades will attend the personal safety lessons presented by our school counselor, Mrs. Tatum. The 5th graders will meet on Monday at 10:00 and the 6th graders will meet at 2:15 on Wednesday.
Halloween Treats? - If you would like to provide some type of treat for our class for Halloween, let me know. I will set aside the last few minutes on Thursday for a treat if one is provided. Send me an email if you are interested in providing something. If we have a volunteer, I will send a group email to let you know . . so we don't end up with an overload of goodies.
We have had a busy birthday month in our room - and we have two birthdays this week. Seth's is Monday and Dacee's is on Wednesday. Zoe's birthday was on the 1st and Quinn's was the 22nd. Birthday treats galore!
Our annual Yellowstone Art Museum presentation for the 5th graders is on Friday at 9:30 and they will head to Mrs. Saur's room with the other 5th graders. The 6th grade presentation will be scheduled at a later date.
Spelling: Unit 7 - We will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th - vowel + r sounds
6th - words with ei or ie
Language/Writing - We will work with the Latin roots act, aud this week and the kids will use prefixes, suffixes, and root words to create their own word in poster form.
Each of the students is working on an essay related to his or her "Word of the Year". They will complete these for display during conferences.
5th - Future perfect progressive tense and comparative adjectives.
6th - Possessive nouns
Reading - We will be working with close reading again this week. This process encourages the kids to closely investigate a piece of text, annotate effectively, and then determine the main idea or author's purpose. The 5th graders will work in their Daybooks this week as we continue to focus on these concepts. The 6th graders will begin the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins on Wednesday.
Math -
5th - We will finish our work with adding and subtracting decimals. We will be moving on to multiplication of decimals and will work with this for the remainder of the week.
6th - We are working with multiplication and division of fractions this week.
Social Studies - The 6th graders will complete work on ancient Sumer and the characteristics of civilizations.
Science - The 6th graders are working on periodic table element research projects in class. They will finish their element tiles by Friday.
Friday is the end of our 1st quarter - I honestly cannot believe that we have completed one fourth of our year together. This group of kids is amazing and I am blessed by each day with them!
Conference Confirmation Slips: These will go home on Wednesday and I am looking forward to visiting with you about your child.
Personal Safety Lesson: Both grades will attend the personal safety lessons presented by our school counselor, Mrs. Tatum. The 5th graders will meet on Monday at 10:00 and the 6th graders will meet at 2:15 on Wednesday.
Halloween Treats? - If you would like to provide some type of treat for our class for Halloween, let me know. I will set aside the last few minutes on Thursday for a treat if one is provided. Send me an email if you are interested in providing something. If we have a volunteer, I will send a group email to let you know . . so we don't end up with an overload of goodies.
We have had a busy birthday month in our room - and we have two birthdays this week. Seth's is Monday and Dacee's is on Wednesday. Zoe's birthday was on the 1st and Quinn's was the 22nd. Birthday treats galore!
Our annual Yellowstone Art Museum presentation for the 5th graders is on Friday at 9:30 and they will head to Mrs. Saur's room with the other 5th graders. The 6th grade presentation will be scheduled at a later date.
Spelling: Unit 7 - We will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th - vowel + r sounds
6th - words with ei or ie
Language/Writing - We will work with the Latin roots act, aud this week and the kids will use prefixes, suffixes, and root words to create their own word in poster form.
Each of the students is working on an essay related to his or her "Word of the Year". They will complete these for display during conferences.
5th - Future perfect progressive tense and comparative adjectives.
6th - Possessive nouns
Reading - We will be working with close reading again this week. This process encourages the kids to closely investigate a piece of text, annotate effectively, and then determine the main idea or author's purpose. The 5th graders will work in their Daybooks this week as we continue to focus on these concepts. The 6th graders will begin the novel, The Great Gilly Hopkins on Wednesday.
Math -
5th - We will finish our work with adding and subtracting decimals. We will be moving on to multiplication of decimals and will work with this for the remainder of the week.
6th - We are working with multiplication and division of fractions this week.
Social Studies - The 6th graders will complete work on ancient Sumer and the characteristics of civilizations.
Science - The 6th graders are working on periodic table element research projects in class. They will finish their element tiles by Friday.
Friday is the end of our 1st quarter - I honestly cannot believe that we have completed one fourth of our year together. This group of kids is amazing and I am blessed by each day with them!
Sunday, October 20, 2013
October 21st ~ 25th
I hope you enjoyed the long weekend and were able to spend time doing some of your favorite things.
Conference preference sheets went home in the Wednesday Watch last week, so fill out the form and return to me. I will do my best to accommodate your schedule and wishes. I am looking forward to conference time so we can visit specifically about your child and his or her progress.
Parent-Teacher Conferences: Mark your calendars for November 6th-8th.
Spelling: We will work with Unit 5 words this week.
5th - vowel sounds /ou/, /o/, and /oi/
6th - Homophones
Language: We will work with the Greek/Latin root words -mar and -pugn.
The kids will complete class work and create a poster utilizing prefixes, suffixes, and root words.
Writing ~ The students will continue to work on expository essays about their focus word for the year.
Reading ~ We will work with articles and practice close reading techniques.
Math:
5th - We are working with decimals this week - adding, subtracting, and estimating.
6th - We will be working with adding and subtracting fractions this week. The kids will take a short quiz on Friday.
Social Studies: We are studying Ancient Sumer and attributes of civilizations.
Science: We are beginning our study of the periodic table. The kids will research and report on a chosen element.
Buddies: The kids worked with their buddies to create a creature from leaves. This week, they will help their kindergartner write a story related to the leaf creature.
Have a wonderful week!
Conference preference sheets went home in the Wednesday Watch last week, so fill out the form and return to me. I will do my best to accommodate your schedule and wishes. I am looking forward to conference time so we can visit specifically about your child and his or her progress.
Parent-Teacher Conferences: Mark your calendars for November 6th-8th.
Spelling: We will work with Unit 5 words this week.
5th - vowel sounds /ou/, /o/, and /oi/
6th - Homophones
Language: We will work with the Greek/Latin root words -mar and -pugn.
The kids will complete class work and create a poster utilizing prefixes, suffixes, and root words.
Writing ~ The students will continue to work on expository essays about their focus word for the year.
Reading ~ We will work with articles and practice close reading techniques.
Math:
5th - We are working with decimals this week - adding, subtracting, and estimating.
6th - We will be working with adding and subtracting fractions this week. The kids will take a short quiz on Friday.
Social Studies: We are studying Ancient Sumer and attributes of civilizations.
Science: We are beginning our study of the periodic table. The kids will research and report on a chosen element.
Buddies: The kids worked with their buddies to create a creature from leaves. This week, they will help their kindergartner write a story related to the leaf creature.
Have a wonderful week!
Sunday, October 13, 2013
October 14th ~ 16th
Fall is definitely in the air and the colder air seems to be here to stay. I hope you had a nice weekend with family and friends.
We have a short week due to the MEA Teacher's Convention. This provides an opportunity for educators to receive continuing education credits and brush up on strategies to use in our classrooms. Wednesday is an early-out day with dismissal at noon. There is no school on Thursday or Friday.
Spelling ~ We will not work with a spelling unit due to the short week.
Language ~ The kids will review verb tenses and noun forms.
Writing ~ We will continue working on our Bridge to Terabithia compare/contrast essays.
Math ~
5th: The kids will work with a partner to complete an expression and equation puzzle. We will also continue our work with place value.
6th: We will review greatest common factor and least common multiple concepts and then take a quiz on Tuesday. We will begin working with dividing fractions on Wednesday.
Social Studies (6th) ~ We will study the Sumerian city-states this week.
Science (6th) ~ We will begin looking at the Periodic Table of Elements this week.
Enjoy the long weekend!!
We have a short week due to the MEA Teacher's Convention. This provides an opportunity for educators to receive continuing education credits and brush up on strategies to use in our classrooms. Wednesday is an early-out day with dismissal at noon. There is no school on Thursday or Friday.
Spelling ~ We will not work with a spelling unit due to the short week.
Language ~ The kids will review verb tenses and noun forms.
Writing ~ We will continue working on our Bridge to Terabithia compare/contrast essays.
Math ~
5th: The kids will work with a partner to complete an expression and equation puzzle. We will also continue our work with place value.
6th: We will review greatest common factor and least common multiple concepts and then take a quiz on Tuesday. We will begin working with dividing fractions on Wednesday.
Social Studies (6th) ~ We will study the Sumerian city-states this week.
Science (6th) ~ We will begin looking at the Periodic Table of Elements this week.
Enjoy the long weekend!!
Sunday, October 6, 2013
October 7th ~ 11th
It is Bike or Walk to School Week. The kids are encouraged to get to school using their own power and to obtain sponsors if desired. Prizes are awarded for the greatest number of miles, the most trips, and the most money raised.
Our fall N.W.E.A. testing is complete and we can get back to our classroom learning routines. I will be out of the classroom on Wednesday attending an O.P.I. meeting/training. The Extended Studies kids will also be attending an all-day field trip to study architecture in our city.
Looking ahead to next week . . . Tuesday is an early-out day and there is no school for students on Thursday and Friday to allow educators to attend the state MEA Teacher's Convention.
Spelling ~ We are working with the Unit 4 words this week and will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th - vowel sounds /oo/, /yoo/
6th - words with vowel + r
Language ~ The kids will work with language concepts this week, as well as a selected word root.
5th - Irregular verbs & linking verbs
6th - Relative pronouns
Reading ~ We will complete our Bridge to Terabithia projects individually, and then work in Daybook groups. The concepts touched upon this week will be main idea and purpose, predicting and inferring, questioning, visualizing, and summarizing.
Writing ~ The students will work on their assignment to compare/contrast the Bridge to Terabithia book and movie. They must then choose their preferred version and explain and argue their point in a persuasive essay. We will be working on the essay in class this week.
Math ~
5th - We are continuing our study of expressions & equations and translating word problems into expressions.
6th - The kids will work with Least Common Multiple (LCM) and Greatest Common Divisor (GCD) and we will review Greatest Common Factor (GCF). We are preparing for a quiz next Tuesday.
Social Studies ~ 6th: The kids will continue comparing the Paleolithic Age with the Neolithic Age in a comic book format. A short quiz is scheduled for Thursday.
Science ~ We will read about energy and how it affects matter and particles. The kids will also investigate the various properties of matter during a hands-on lab.
Buddies ~ We will not meet with our buddy class this week because the kindergartners have a scheduling conflict. It is a highlight each week and I know both classes will be disappointed. We will meet with our buddies again next Tuesday.
Have a fantastic week!
Our fall N.W.E.A. testing is complete and we can get back to our classroom learning routines. I will be out of the classroom on Wednesday attending an O.P.I. meeting/training. The Extended Studies kids will also be attending an all-day field trip to study architecture in our city.
Looking ahead to next week . . . Tuesday is an early-out day and there is no school for students on Thursday and Friday to allow educators to attend the state MEA Teacher's Convention.
Spelling ~ We are working with the Unit 4 words this week and will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
5th - vowel sounds /oo/, /yoo/
6th - words with vowel + r
Language ~ The kids will work with language concepts this week, as well as a selected word root.
5th - Irregular verbs & linking verbs
6th - Relative pronouns
Reading ~ We will complete our Bridge to Terabithia projects individually, and then work in Daybook groups. The concepts touched upon this week will be main idea and purpose, predicting and inferring, questioning, visualizing, and summarizing.
Writing ~ The students will work on their assignment to compare/contrast the Bridge to Terabithia book and movie. They must then choose their preferred version and explain and argue their point in a persuasive essay. We will be working on the essay in class this week.
Math ~
5th - We are continuing our study of expressions & equations and translating word problems into expressions.
6th - The kids will work with Least Common Multiple (LCM) and Greatest Common Divisor (GCD) and we will review Greatest Common Factor (GCF). We are preparing for a quiz next Tuesday.
Social Studies ~ 6th: The kids will continue comparing the Paleolithic Age with the Neolithic Age in a comic book format. A short quiz is scheduled for Thursday.
Science ~ We will read about energy and how it affects matter and particles. The kids will also investigate the various properties of matter during a hands-on lab.
Buddies ~ We will not meet with our buddy class this week because the kindergartners have a scheduling conflict. It is a highlight each week and I know both classes will be disappointed. We will meet with our buddies again next Tuesday.
Have a fantastic week!
Sunday, September 29, 2013
September 30th ~ October 4th
We will have a busy week with NWEA testing, a field trip to the Alberta Bair Theater, and watching Bridge to Terabithia in preparation for a compare/contrast persuasive essay.
We are testing on Monday from 9:30-11:30 (Math), Wednesday from 8:30-10:30 (Language), and Friday from 8:30-10:30 (Reading). The kids may bring chewing gum to enjoy during our testing times.
We will head downtown to the Alberta Bair on Tuesday from 8:45 to about 10:45. The presentation of Doktor Kaboom should be a fun science-themed show.
Our counselor, Mrs. Tatum will visit our class again on Wednesday. Her lessons will focus on feelings, friendship, bullying, etc.
We will not work with a spelling unit this week due to our testing schedule. We will practice our keyboarding skills on Friday afternoon. The kids do not love this activity, but our testing environments are online and will require some typing skill. These practice sessions will serve the kids well in the future . . . I just have to keep reminding them about all the positives. :)
Language ~ We will work with the Latin/Greek root words -celer- and -gress-.
Reading ~ The kids will create a project to summarize Bridge to Terabithia. We will watch the Disney movie version and the students will begin writing persuasive essay comparing/contrasting the book with the movie.
Math ~
5th: We will continue working with the order of operations, expressions, and equations.
6th: The kids will work with Greatest Common Factors and Least Common Multiples this week.
Social Studies ~
6th will continue learning about the Neolithic Age. The kids will create a comic strip on Thursday.
Science ~
We are working with the various states of matter - solid, liquid, gas. We will work with an online activity on Tuesday and then get a bit messy on Friday as we experiment with liquids and solids.
I was at Saturday Live fairly early, but it looked like a great turnout was in store. I am very thankful that the weather held out for us!! Thanks to everyone who donated, volunteered, or supported the event by attending.
Don't forget about the book order. I would love to have the forms back Monday, but will not place the order until Wednesday if you are still browsing.
Have a fantastic week!!
We are testing on Monday from 9:30-11:30 (Math), Wednesday from 8:30-10:30 (Language), and Friday from 8:30-10:30 (Reading). The kids may bring chewing gum to enjoy during our testing times.
We will head downtown to the Alberta Bair on Tuesday from 8:45 to about 10:45. The presentation of Doktor Kaboom should be a fun science-themed show.
Our counselor, Mrs. Tatum will visit our class again on Wednesday. Her lessons will focus on feelings, friendship, bullying, etc.
We will not work with a spelling unit this week due to our testing schedule. We will practice our keyboarding skills on Friday afternoon. The kids do not love this activity, but our testing environments are online and will require some typing skill. These practice sessions will serve the kids well in the future . . . I just have to keep reminding them about all the positives. :)
Language ~ We will work with the Latin/Greek root words -celer- and -gress-.
Reading ~ The kids will create a project to summarize Bridge to Terabithia. We will watch the Disney movie version and the students will begin writing persuasive essay comparing/contrasting the book with the movie.
Math ~
5th: We will continue working with the order of operations, expressions, and equations.
6th: The kids will work with Greatest Common Factors and Least Common Multiples this week.
Social Studies ~
6th will continue learning about the Neolithic Age. The kids will create a comic strip on Thursday.
Science ~
We are working with the various states of matter - solid, liquid, gas. We will work with an online activity on Tuesday and then get a bit messy on Friday as we experiment with liquids and solids.
I was at Saturday Live fairly early, but it looked like a great turnout was in store. I am very thankful that the weather held out for us!! Thanks to everyone who donated, volunteered, or supported the event by attending.
Don't forget about the book order. I would love to have the forms back Monday, but will not place the order until Wednesday if you are still browsing.
Have a fantastic week!!
Sunday, September 22, 2013
September 23rd ~ 27th
Thursday is an early-out day to allow for instruction-related training for teachers. Lunch is not served on early-out days and the kids will be dismissed at 12:00 noon.
Mark your Calendars ~ October 1st Field Trip to the Alberta Bair Theater. This is usually just a 6th grade treat, but I asked Mr. Croff and he was able to have our entire class included. You will find a permission slip in the Wednesday Watch this week and I would like to have it returned no later than next Monday, the 30th. The show this year is Doktor Kaboom, which focuses on the fun and intrigue that science and math can generate.
NWEA Dates ~ I have changed one of our NWEA dates because it conflicted with the Alberta Bair show. We will now test as follows:
Monday September 30th ~ Math
Wednesday October 2nd ~ Language
Friday October 4th ~ Reading
Spelling ~
5th: Unit 3 - long i and long e
6th: Unit 3 - vowel sounds
We will take a pretest on Monday, work with our words and selected vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
Language ~ Both grades will work with the Latin word roots ~brev, ~cede, ~ceed, & ~cess. Each week, the kids learn the meanings of these word roots and then use their expertise to "create" a new word using at least one prefix, one suffix, and one word root.
5th: Action Verbs and Past Tense Verbs
6th: Reflexive Pronouns and Demonstrative Pronouns
Reading ~ Both grades will finish reading Bridge to Terabithia this week. They will work on a final project for the book next week. For each reading selection, the students must make predictions, look for connections to self, text, or world as they read, maintain an awareness of unknown words or concepts as they read, and then write a short summary of each chapter.
Writing ~ The kids will begin doing a 15-20 minute rotation each day dedicated to using writing prompts for short pieces - or self-selected topics they choose to take to publication after revising and editing.
Math ~
5th: We will be working with the Order of Operations this week. This concept is pivotal for later concepts and we will complete several real-world activities to reinforce this concept.
6th: Our focus will be rules of divisibility, prime & composite numbers, factors & prime factorization, and greatest common factors.
6th Social Studies ~ We are continuing our study of Hominids.
6th Science ~ We are continuing our work with density and will create a layered density tower on Tuesday. It is messy, but fun! We will learn about the various states of matter.
Have a fantastic week - and thank you again for sharing your child with me!
Mark your Calendars ~ October 1st Field Trip to the Alberta Bair Theater. This is usually just a 6th grade treat, but I asked Mr. Croff and he was able to have our entire class included. You will find a permission slip in the Wednesday Watch this week and I would like to have it returned no later than next Monday, the 30th. The show this year is Doktor Kaboom, which focuses on the fun and intrigue that science and math can generate.
NWEA Dates ~ I have changed one of our NWEA dates because it conflicted with the Alberta Bair show. We will now test as follows:
Monday September 30th ~ Math
Wednesday October 2nd ~ Language
Friday October 4th ~ Reading
Spelling ~
5th: Unit 3 - long i and long e
6th: Unit 3 - vowel sounds
We will take a pretest on Monday, work with our words and selected vocabulary throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
Language ~ Both grades will work with the Latin word roots ~brev, ~cede, ~ceed, & ~cess. Each week, the kids learn the meanings of these word roots and then use their expertise to "create" a new word using at least one prefix, one suffix, and one word root.
5th: Action Verbs and Past Tense Verbs
6th: Reflexive Pronouns and Demonstrative Pronouns
Reading ~ Both grades will finish reading Bridge to Terabithia this week. They will work on a final project for the book next week. For each reading selection, the students must make predictions, look for connections to self, text, or world as they read, maintain an awareness of unknown words or concepts as they read, and then write a short summary of each chapter.
Writing ~ The kids will begin doing a 15-20 minute rotation each day dedicated to using writing prompts for short pieces - or self-selected topics they choose to take to publication after revising and editing.
Math ~
5th: We will be working with the Order of Operations this week. This concept is pivotal for later concepts and we will complete several real-world activities to reinforce this concept.
6th: Our focus will be rules of divisibility, prime & composite numbers, factors & prime factorization, and greatest common factors.
6th Social Studies ~ We are continuing our study of Hominids.
6th Science ~ We are continuing our work with density and will create a layered density tower on Tuesday. It is messy, but fun! We will learn about the various states of matter.
Have a fantastic week - and thank you again for sharing your child with me!
Sunday, September 15, 2013
September 16th ~ 20th
We are half way through September and are settling into our classroom routines a bit.
Mark your calendars for our NWEA Fall testing dates . . . they are:
Tuesday October 1st - 8:30-10:30 (Math)
Wednesday October 2nd - 8:30-10:30 (Language)
Friday October 4th - 8:30-10:30 (Reading)
Please do all you can to assure that your child is in school during these dates and times.
Your child will perform most effectively during testing if he or she is fully rested, has had a nutritious breakfast, and brings a healthy snack for the morning.
Our School Counselor, Mrs. Katie Tatum is new to Poly Drive this year. It is her desire to be in the classrooms regularly for lessons related to friendship, character traits, bullying, etc. She is scheduled in our classroom every other week on Wednesday afternoons, beginning this week. Each visit will last about 30 minutes and I am looking forward to sharing this amazing group of kids with her.
5th Graders - In math, we are working with decimals and will use food labels that indicate either weight or volume as a decimal for a classroom activity. Be on the lookout for labels to bring to school on Wednesday.
Spelling ~ Both grades will work in Unit 2 this week.
The 5th grade focus is long a and long e words.
The 6th Grade focus is long vowels.
We will take pretests on Monday, work with our word lists throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
Language ~
The 5th Grade lessons this week will concentrate on collective nouns, possessive nouns, appositives, and present tense verbs.
6th Graders will work with possessive adjectives and pronouns, pronouns that agree with antecedents, indefinite pronouns, and intensive pronouns.
Reading ~ We will continue reading Bridge to Terabithia and meet in Reading Clubs to discuss comprehension strategies, author's intent, and literary elements. We will read chapters 4-8, one per day.
The students will also work with their Daybook resource independently in class.
Math ~
5th Grade will study place value patterns, comparing and ordering decimals, and converting decimals to fractions. Bring food labels on Wednesday.
6th Grade will practice dividing by decimals and fluently computing with decimals. We will study and review on Tuesday and the students will take a quick quiz on Wednesday. Beginning on Thursday, we will move to divisibility rules and prime & composite numbers.
Social Studies
5th Grade - The kids will be working with geographic terms, such as compass rose & intermediate and cardinal directions.
6th Grade - We will review chapter 1 together on Monday and take a short quiz. We will begin chapter 2, dealing with Hominids and their timelines. We will read together from the text and students will complete a timeline activity with a partner.
Science
5th Grade - The kids are focusing on science professions and researching a scientist of their choice in groups.
6th Grade - We will perform hands-on activities this week as we explore what makes up matter and density.
Buddies ~ Weather permitting . . we will go outside with our buddies on Tuesday and use sidewalk chalk to help them practice writing names, letters, and numbers. We will also enjoy a quick snack of graham crackers.
I hope you have a fantastic week!!!
Mark your calendars for our NWEA Fall testing dates . . . they are:
Tuesday October 1st - 8:30-10:30 (Math)
Wednesday October 2nd - 8:30-10:30 (Language)
Friday October 4th - 8:30-10:30 (Reading)
Please do all you can to assure that your child is in school during these dates and times.
Your child will perform most effectively during testing if he or she is fully rested, has had a nutritious breakfast, and brings a healthy snack for the morning.
Our School Counselor, Mrs. Katie Tatum is new to Poly Drive this year. It is her desire to be in the classrooms regularly for lessons related to friendship, character traits, bullying, etc. She is scheduled in our classroom every other week on Wednesday afternoons, beginning this week. Each visit will last about 30 minutes and I am looking forward to sharing this amazing group of kids with her.
5th Graders - In math, we are working with decimals and will use food labels that indicate either weight or volume as a decimal for a classroom activity. Be on the lookout for labels to bring to school on Wednesday.
Spelling ~ Both grades will work in Unit 2 this week.
The 5th grade focus is long a and long e words.
The 6th Grade focus is long vowels.
We will take pretests on Monday, work with our word lists throughout the week, and take a final test on Friday.
Language ~
The 5th Grade lessons this week will concentrate on collective nouns, possessive nouns, appositives, and present tense verbs.
6th Graders will work with possessive adjectives and pronouns, pronouns that agree with antecedents, indefinite pronouns, and intensive pronouns.
Reading ~ We will continue reading Bridge to Terabithia and meet in Reading Clubs to discuss comprehension strategies, author's intent, and literary elements. We will read chapters 4-8, one per day.
The students will also work with their Daybook resource independently in class.
Math ~
5th Grade will study place value patterns, comparing and ordering decimals, and converting decimals to fractions. Bring food labels on Wednesday.
6th Grade will practice dividing by decimals and fluently computing with decimals. We will study and review on Tuesday and the students will take a quick quiz on Wednesday. Beginning on Thursday, we will move to divisibility rules and prime & composite numbers.
Social Studies
5th Grade - The kids will be working with geographic terms, such as compass rose & intermediate and cardinal directions.
6th Grade - We will review chapter 1 together on Monday and take a short quiz. We will begin chapter 2, dealing with Hominids and their timelines. We will read together from the text and students will complete a timeline activity with a partner.
Science
5th Grade - The kids are focusing on science professions and researching a scientist of their choice in groups.
6th Grade - We will perform hands-on activities this week as we explore what makes up matter and density.
Buddies ~ Weather permitting . . we will go outside with our buddies on Tuesday and use sidewalk chalk to help them practice writing names, letters, and numbers. We will also enjoy a quick snack of graham crackers.
I hope you have a fantastic week!!!
Sunday, September 8, 2013
September 9th ~ 13th
Wow . . what a wet weekend! I hope your homes and yards are in tact. We sustained some landscaping damage at our home (one tree down, sidewalk washed out, fence sections blown out, and 12 inches of hail and mud in our yard), but thanks to some wonderful neighbors and lots of hours holding a shovel, we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. It wasn't really the way I wanted to spend my Sunday, but life is an adventure!
We are beginning some rotations this week so that all students are learning, practicing, and reinforcing concepts while I am working with various groups. We will rotate during our Language Arts time and during Math.
Open House is this Thursday from 5:30 to 7:00 and our P.T.A. is hosting an ice cream social for the event. The annual Open House Book Fair will be set up in the library and your child was able to preview books that he or she may be interested in reading. Don't forget to stop by to see all of the wonderful reading material . . and help raise money for our Poly Drive library. I will give a short presentation at 5:30 and another at 6:00. I hope you join us for a bit of information about our year, a tour of the room, the book fair, and some ice cream.
Spelling: Both 5th and 6th graders will begin Unit 1 in their books this week (short vowels for both groups). We will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week via assignments, and take a final test on Friday.
Language: We are working with a new Latin root word each week and the kids will complete a worksheet and then create a word poster using at least one prefix, root word, and suffix.
Each grade level will also work with a Language Daily Warm Up to reinforce Language skills and concepts.
Reading: I will be designing a variety of lessons and activities focused on the Common Core State Standards for Language Arts. This will include Language, Writing, and Reading. As a class, we will be reading Bridge to Terabithia as we focus on literary elements and comprehension strategies. For the Fifth graders, I will infuse Lead21 concepts, standards, and materials throughout the year. The Sixth graders will also use our Daybook resource for additional non-fiction selections.
Math:
5th Grade ~ We will be working with place value as it relates to whole numbers and decimals.
6th Grade ~ We are focusing on multiplication and division of decimals.
Science:
6th Grade ~ We will continue delving into chemistry as we perform hands-on activities to learn about density and what makes up matter.
Social Studies:
6th Grade ~We are continuing our study of early man and the artifacts that archaeologists have found that shed some light on what life might have been like. We will investigate in small groups.
Buddies ~ Mrs. Bell's kindergarten class is our buddy room and we will meet with the little ones on Tuesday each week.
That gives you a brief overview of our week of learning. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions. Have a fantastic week!!
We are beginning some rotations this week so that all students are learning, practicing, and reinforcing concepts while I am working with various groups. We will rotate during our Language Arts time and during Math.
Open House is this Thursday from 5:30 to 7:00 and our P.T.A. is hosting an ice cream social for the event. The annual Open House Book Fair will be set up in the library and your child was able to preview books that he or she may be interested in reading. Don't forget to stop by to see all of the wonderful reading material . . and help raise money for our Poly Drive library. I will give a short presentation at 5:30 and another at 6:00. I hope you join us for a bit of information about our year, a tour of the room, the book fair, and some ice cream.
Spelling: Both 5th and 6th graders will begin Unit 1 in their books this week (short vowels for both groups). We will take a pretest on Monday, work with the words throughout the week via assignments, and take a final test on Friday.
Language: We are working with a new Latin root word each week and the kids will complete a worksheet and then create a word poster using at least one prefix, root word, and suffix.
Each grade level will also work with a Language Daily Warm Up to reinforce Language skills and concepts.
Reading: I will be designing a variety of lessons and activities focused on the Common Core State Standards for Language Arts. This will include Language, Writing, and Reading. As a class, we will be reading Bridge to Terabithia as we focus on literary elements and comprehension strategies. For the Fifth graders, I will infuse Lead21 concepts, standards, and materials throughout the year. The Sixth graders will also use our Daybook resource for additional non-fiction selections.
Math:
5th Grade ~ We will be working with place value as it relates to whole numbers and decimals.
6th Grade ~ We are focusing on multiplication and division of decimals.
Science:
6th Grade ~ We will continue delving into chemistry as we perform hands-on activities to learn about density and what makes up matter.
Social Studies:
6th Grade ~We are continuing our study of early man and the artifacts that archaeologists have found that shed some light on what life might have been like. We will investigate in small groups.
Buddies ~ Mrs. Bell's kindergarten class is our buddy room and we will meet with the little ones on Tuesday each week.
That gives you a brief overview of our week of learning. Please feel free to email me if you have any questions. Have a fantastic week!!
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
September 3rd ~ 6th
We are beginning to dive into our 5th and 6th grade curriculum and you will start to see more daily work from your child. We are concentrating on some pre-assessments so I can see where the kids are ~ and can then plan our course accordingly.
I explained to the kids that we will use a rotation system for math and language arts. One group will be meeting with me while other groups are working on various seat work assignments, learning activities, and computer & iPad applications.
Spelling and language work will be specific for each grade weekly, but we will work together on writing concepts and assignments.
During Social Studies and Science, the 5th graders will be going to Mrs. Saur's and Ms. Schaff's classrooms for grade-specific curriculum. The 6th graders will remain with me for those content areas.
Our open house is scheduled for September 12th from 5:30-7:00. The open house times are earlier this year so that you can attend other open houses that may be scheduled on the same evening. I will have a brief presentation at 5:30 and another at 6:00. I will be available to answer any questions you may have after the 2nd presentation. I am still working on our daily rotation schedules and making curriculum delivery decisions to best meet the needs of the kids.
I take your child's education and progress very seriously and I am committed to making this a fun and meaningful year for your kiddo. Thank you for trusting him or her with me!!
Have a fantastic week!
I explained to the kids that we will use a rotation system for math and language arts. One group will be meeting with me while other groups are working on various seat work assignments, learning activities, and computer & iPad applications.
Spelling and language work will be specific for each grade weekly, but we will work together on writing concepts and assignments.
During Social Studies and Science, the 5th graders will be going to Mrs. Saur's and Ms. Schaff's classrooms for grade-specific curriculum. The 6th graders will remain with me for those content areas.
Our open house is scheduled for September 12th from 5:30-7:00. The open house times are earlier this year so that you can attend other open houses that may be scheduled on the same evening. I will have a brief presentation at 5:30 and another at 6:00. I will be available to answer any questions you may have after the 2nd presentation. I am still working on our daily rotation schedules and making curriculum delivery decisions to best meet the needs of the kids.
I take your child's education and progress very seriously and I am committed to making this a fun and meaningful year for your kiddo. Thank you for trusting him or her with me!!
Have a fantastic week!
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