September 20, 2015

Dates to Remember:

Fri.,  Sept. 25^th  EMES School Hike (Rain Date Oct. 2^nd)

Fri., Sept. 25^th  Solmate Sock orders due

Tues., Oct. 6^th  Picture Retake Day

Mon., Oct. 12^th Columbus Day (no school)

Tues., Oct. 13^th Teacher in-service (no school for students)

Wed., Oct. 14^th Oct. Nature journaling with Karen Liebermann

Class Photos

Several students have asked why the class photos were not in their packets.  They are currently being reprinted and will be sent home soon.

Open House

It was great to see so many at our Open House this past week.  The children were excited to share our classroom with you.  If you were not able to attend Open House on Wednesday and would like to schedule a time to visit our classroom with your child, please let me know.

Monarch Update

Our monarch larvae are growing nicely.  On Friday, we put them in a tank for their next phase of life – the chrysalis.  This past week we were able to look closely at the cuticle (their tough, waterproof skins) after one had molted on Tuesday.  Through our read aloud, An Extraordinary Life:  The Story of a Monarch Butterfly, we learned that the larva eats the cast-off old skin, which is full of proteins needed for them to grow.  We also learned that in just two weeks, these amazing caterpillars multiply their weight more than twenty-five hundred times!

A larva with its cast-off skin!

In Technology class the students have started learning about Google slide presentations.  During Technology class the students have been creating a “passion” project.  These slide presentations are about something the child is passionate about.  We will begin practicing our new skills on individual monarch slide presentations next Monday.

Math

In Math class we have continued our review of place value, first focusing on whole numbers through the trillions.  The favorite activity was “Building Numbers with M & M’s.”  I assigned a value for each color of these yummy candies (i.e. red = thousands).  Students were given M and M’s and asked to find the value of their candies.  They then practiced writing the number in standard form as well as expanded form.  Next, we reviewed >, <, and =.  This past week we began to explore decimals through thousandths.  On Thursday, we completed the Easy CBM math assessment.

Nature Journaling

The rain held off this afternoon and our class was able to go outside to work in our nature journals for the first time.  Everyone was excited to complete their first journal entry!

Nature Journal Watercolors

The students worked hard on these beautiful watercolors for their nature journals!

Newletter Week of Sept. 4th

We have had a busy second week of school.  Our class is still working on school expectations and classroom routines.  Early in the week we worked together to establish classroom rules.  The children were very thoughtful as they discussed what will be needed to have a safe, respectful and responsible class this year.

In Literacy, we have had several mini lessons, beginning with how to pick “just right” books.  We have also discussed that good readers “make connections,” connecting what they know with what they are reading.  Frequently during the mini lesson we will use a picture book for modeling.  For this lesson, we read Cynthia Rylant’s The Relatives Came to make a text to self connection.  We also learned about visualizing and how a good reader pictures what is happening while reading. 

The last mini lesson this week was on “check for understanding.”  This comprehension strategy teaches children to stop frequently and check whether they understand what they are reading.  We practiced each of these strategies  with our read aloud and our independent reading books.

In Math, we have worked this week to complete assessments.  These assessments covered fact fluency and other math skills.  Next week, we will begin a unit on place value that includes decimals.

I explained last week that fifth grade will participate in nature journaling this year.   Students created a nature watercolor for their journal covers, learned 5 basic colored pencil techniques, went over expectations for the nature journal, and learned about the basic cloud types on Friday.  We learned about the characteristics of each cloud type and the symbols used by meteorologists. On Tuesday, weather permitting, we will go outside with our journals for the first time.  Be sure to check our class blog next week to see some of the beautiful watercolors from our journals.

Have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Day Two - Working on PBIS Expectations

"Cup Pyramid" Team Building Activity

Newsletter August 25, 2015

Welcome to a new school year!  I hope everyone had a fun and relaxing summer.  Our specials schedule this year follows:

Monday:  Spanish
Tuesday:  Art
Wednesday:  P.E.
Thursday:  Music and P.E.
Friday:   Library

We will also be having Technology class on some Thursdays beginning in September.  We will not be having a regular Guidance class this year.

Please remind your child to wear appropriate footwear and clothing on our P.E. Days.  On days with good weather, P.E.  may be held outside.  Students might want to bring in an extra pair of shoes on the P.E. days.

This year our class will be participating in team-building activities.  These activities will help students develop the ability to collaborate and contribute within a team, practice positive attitudes and actions for learning in a team environment, and learn to foster mutual respect and trust, creating a successful team experience.

During our first week together we will participate in a "Cup Pyramid" activity and practice our communication skills with an activity, "Sneak Peek."  Students will work in teams to recreate a pattern block design.

In fifth grade we will also be participating in nature journaling.  Our first session will be on Wednesday, September 16th.  Our focus will be on trees and the changes that some go through during the Fall months.

Each Friday students will bring home a Friday Folder.  It may contain my newsletter, papers from the office and completed work.  Please send the folder back on Monday.  On the first day of school I am sending home a permission form for my blog.  Please fill it out and have your child return it as soon as possible.

Please feel free to contact me at any time with questions or comments.  My number at school is 223-7936 (extension 317) or my email is eshedd @ u32.org.

I look forward to an exciting year together!