3/15/2020 0 Comments Pictures from March 2-6We had a busy week before spring break! On Monday, we made models of specific molecules with gumdrops and toothpicks for our Matter unit. Wednesday was Glow Day! First, the students solved math problems with area of rectangles, squares, triangles, and parallelograms including decimals and fractional sides. They also calculated radius and diameter measurements of circles. Once they solved the problems correctly, they received index cards to see who could build the tallest tower. For reading, they had to work with a partner to find and highlight text evidence in Bud, Not Buddy to prove one of the book's four themes. In science, the students made a Bohr model of neon showing the protons, neutrons, and electrons in their shells. Then we investigated chemiluminescence and how adding or taking away energy affects atoms and molecules. We put glow sticks in hot and cold water and observed the effects. It was a very fun day! On Friday, the students started their March "Math Madness" challenge. While we won't be able to complete the challenge as planned now, I'm glad they had the chance to at least participate in the first activity.
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2/29/2020 0 Comments Week of: March 2-6Religion:
Grammar: Verbs review Writing: Continue revising and editing Black History Month biographical essays (individual writing conferences with teacher) Reading:
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Important dates: Wednesday, March 4- Please have your child wear a white shirt if possible for a fun surprise activity :) Wednesday, March 4- Sports Banquet at 6 Friday, March 6- 5th grade leads Mass, wear polos March 9-13- Have a wonderful Spring Break! Tuesday, March 31- 2nd Battle of the Books We've enjoyed having WIU Ag Ed students teach our class about soil, trees, nutrition, and agriculture careers. The lessons have tied in nicely with our 5th grade science standards. 2/21/2020 0 Comments Week of: February 24-28Religion:
Grammar: Continued study of verb phrases and irregular verbs Writing: Black History Month biography research, essay, and poster Reading:
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Important notes: *Father's Fat Tuesday! Please donate canned goods for Loaves & Fishes by Tuesday *Athletic Banquet is March 4 at 6PM in the gym We had a great time on Friday helping our first grade buddies make clay heart models! 2/15/2020 0 Comments Week of: February 18-21Religion:
Writing: Black History Month biography research essay and poster Reading:
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2/7/2020 0 Comments February 10-14Religion:
Wordly Wise: Lesson due Friday; Vocab & spelling tests Friday Grammar: Perfect verb tenses Writing: Black History Month biography reports Reading: Poetry analysis Social Studies with Mrs. Bright: Middle and southern colonies Science: Energy and states of matter Important info: *Please bring valentines for everyone in the class on Friday, and a box or bag to hold the valentines. *Please wear polos Friday for Mass at 9:15 *Book Project form is due Feb. 19 We've been doing a lot of hands-on science labs with our matter unit. Last week we investigated how different solvents can be used to separate mixtures. We also observed how hot versus cold water affects ink molecules. This week we will investigate how adding or taking away energy affects matter. 2/1/2020 0 Comments Week of: February 3-7Religion:
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Highlights from last week: *Our class Battle of the Books was a nail biter! I thought I wrote very tough questions, but I could not stump them! They read those books cover to cover and all did such an amazing job that we still ended in a tie after a tiebreaker. We are sending two teams to the final battle against fourth and sixth grades. The battle will take place after Spring Break. The four selections for the second battle are: 1. When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead 2. Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai 3. Fred Korematsu Speaks Up by Lauren Atkins and Stan Yogi 4. Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling Two teams will be representing our class for the battle, but of course we encourage everyone to read at least one of these books. They're award-winning literature selections encompassing nonfiction, science fiction, biographical poetry, and realistic fiction. *Our Catholic Schools Week Charity Carnival was a huge success! Thank you to everyone for donating candy, baked goods, food donations or money, and other supplies. I just love how the older kids take ownership of this service event from start to finish. It's heartwarming to watch their leadership shine and how much joy they exude. *We were so privileged to welcome two new people to our class last week. We have a new classmate, Jaycee, and a new block teacher, Miss De'Laney Breen. Upcoming events: *D.A.R.E. begins this week and will run every Thursday afternoon for 8 weeks. Officer Denise Cremer will be our instructor. You can find out more information about the program here. *A few students have asked me about Valentine boxes. We will not be making anything in class. They can make something simple at home or just bring a box or bag to hold their exchanged valentines. Some of them had leftover candy from the carnival and I told them to save it for Valentine's Day! *The 3rd quarter Book Project is due Wednesday, February 19. They just need to fill out a form for this quarter, and they can use one of the Battle books if they wish. The form was sent home a few weeks ago but can also be downloaded here. Remember that the form is different for the third and fourth quarters. Some kids asked about still doing a project, and absolutely, if they want to do a project, they can bring it in and present it to the class. :) Religion:
Wordly Wise: Lesson due Tuesday; Vocab and spelling tests Tuesday Reading: Continue literature circles Catholic Schools Week Information for 5th grade: Monday
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If you are able, please donate a bag or two of candy for our carnival on Friday. We will also need cookies and other baked treats for the Cake Walk game, individually bagged. Students chose their carnival games last week. Some students need to bring supplies from home. Try to send those by Wednesday. We are so excited to run this fun event to benefit Loaves and Fishes! Our class can also bring canned goods or money for tickets. They will be able to play each other’s games towards the end. Last week we turned the gym into a giant coordinate grid of the Marauder’s Map from Harry Potter, and they graphed ordered pairs that followed a storyline from the first book. 1/17/2020 0 Comments Week of: January 21-24Religion:
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Science: Continue study of atoms, molecules, and properties of matter Important Dates: Tuesday, Jan. 28- Wordly Wise due Friday, Jan. 31- 5th grade leads Mass Highlights from last week: We had a bit of Harry Potter fun this past week! On Monday morning, the students made their way to King's Cross Station in London and found Platform 9 3/4 where they rode the Hogwarts Express to school. They were promptly sorted into four houses and had to write an opinion essay on whether or not they agreed with the Sorting Hat. In their house groups, they completed a math assignment adding and subtracting mixed numbers and fractions to determine the measurements to make super slime. For science, Professor Dunsethdore took over for Professor Snape, and the students followed scientific procedures to make chemical reactions. In language arts, we read several passages from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone to find examples of figurative language by J.K. Rowling. The students learned some tech tips for how to make a Google Slide. Then they each chose an image and designed a Google Slide to demonstrate examples of figurative language for that image. This week, we will continue our mini Harry Potter unit by transforming the gym into a giant coordinate plane of the Marauder's Map to practice graphing ordered pairs kinesthetically. We will do our MAP testing on Wednesday and Thursday mornings. Please make sure your child gets a good night's sleep and hearty breakfast for testing. We want to make sure we have an accurate assessment of their academic growth and what they're ready to learn, in order to help guide instruction. 1/12/2020 0 Comments Week of: January 13-17Religion:
ELA: Figurative language Reading:
Science: Properties of atoms and molecules Last week the students learned how to run literature circles. I love seeing their leadership shine and how they are taking responsibility for their learning! Everyone is doing a fantastic job so far of coming to each discussion prepared with their roles and contributing meaningful ideas to the group. The students have been reading a LOT, and they've been working incredibly hard. Because of all the in-class reading and additional reading with the Battle books, I'm going to change the 3rd quarter Book Project a bit. I'm only going to require the students to complete the form and not a project. The form is a bit different for the 3rd and 4th quarters. I'll pass out the form in class but you can also download it here. The students can use a Battle book for their report. The form is still due February 19. On Wednesdays, I would like to invite anyone who is interested to come to Math Club after school until 3:15. We will eat a snack and work together to solve Math Olympiad-like challenges, logic puzzles, and algebra problems. Students of all math abilities are welcome, and they can come to any or all meetings. Just drop me a text or email that day to let me know they will be staying with me after school. Thanks! We have been learning about atoms, molecules, and mixtures in science, and how scientists use models to explain concepts. The students participated in two "matter mystery" experiments involving chromatography and ink to investigate properties of different molecules and separating mixtures. They have been working on recording observations and then making inferences. I love seeing how their science vocabulary has increased and how they're using scientific language in their discussions! Report cards will come home Wednesday. Have a great week! 1/4/2020 0 Comments Week of: January 6-10Religion:
Word Study: Greek & Latin roots (No Wordly Wise lesson) Grammar: Simple tense verbs Reading:
Science: New unit: Matter We're going to ease back into school this week. :) We'll tie up some loose ends from before break and review concepts. Then next week we're all in! Before break the students participated in a Twelve Days of Christmas math scavenger hunt in which they found clues around the school for the price of each of the gifts. Then they calculated the total price of all gifts, using many of our fifth grade math skills. On Friday morning they designed and constructed some really creative elf traps with their first grade buddies. Thank you all so much for the wonderful Christmas gifts. I am a very blessed teacher. Wishing you all a happy and healthy New Year! I'm excited thinking about all the fun upcoming units of study we have left this school year! |
Welcome to Fifth Grade at St. Paul! I am excited to start a new school year with your children. This website will be updated frequently with pictures and posts of the fun things we are learning, important dates, and class info. Be sure to set up the Remind app to receive alerts to new posts.
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