Newsletter
5 Graders Jump into Fall!
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LANGUAGE ARTS
In Reading, we have been studying the
theme of Heroism by reading real accounts of
heroes in action. We’ve also been studying
author’s perspective and how that perspective
influences how information is delivered. We have
read multiple accounts of the same event in order
to compare author’s perspective and also to help
shape our own. All students have participated in
many “Close Reading” activities in order to deeply
analyze text in written form and in the form of
collaborative discussions. We’ve had some really
fantastic discussions and debates already this
year!
We have also begun our first novel study
this year, as well! All of the novels feature the
main characters as heroes which allows us to
continue our analysis of heroes and their roles in
different settings. The students are very excited
about their books and can’t put them down!
In writing, we are working on completing
our first narrative, the Adventure Story. Each
story includes a protagonist, an antagonist and a
main conflict. For this writing assignment, we will
be focused on studying and adding dialect and
physical gestures to add stronger description of
characters and aid the audience in making deeper
connections to those characters. We spent time
looking at “real” writing and how author’s use
these narrative techniques in order to use them in
our own writing. Students will participate in a
Peer Editing Workshop where they experienced
editing and revising for a classmate in addition to
providing written and verbal feedback. It will be a
great learning experience! Our next writing piece
will be Informative.
Math Info:
In Compacted 5.6 math, students are
finishing up the 5th grade
curriculum. Our current focus is
multiplying and dividing fractions,
whole numbers and mixed numbers.
In addition to using the standard
algorithm, students are expected to
model their work in area models,
number lines and decomposing.
Math discourse will be a focus in 5th
grade this year. We spend time each
day working collaboratively and
talking about different strategies we
use to solve similar problems.
Science & Social Studies
During Science the students have focused
on motion, force, and energy. We have
modeled and investigated the three
main types of motion: periodic, variable,
and uniform. In addition, students have
experimented with forces such as friction
and gravity, as well as potential and
kinetic energy. We will begin to work on
our Roller Coaster projects in the
upcoming weeks.
For Social Studies, the students are
currently learning about the events
leading up to the Revolutionary War.
These events include the Boston Tea
Party, Sugar Act, Stamp Act, and
Intolerable Acts, just to name a few.
Students worked together in groups to
become “experts” on one of these main
events, and then “taught” the class
through group multimedia
presentations.
Halloween Parade & Party
Friday, October 30th – 2:30-3:25
Look for information
concerning the upcoming
Halloween Party. Please let
your homeroom teacher know
if you are interested in
helping to organize this fun
afternoon.
Parent/Teacher Conferences:
November 11th-12th are the scheduled days
for parent-teacher conferences. There
were sign-up sheets during Back to School
Night. If you were unable to sign up for
a conference, please look for your child’s
homeroom teacher to contact you to
schedule a time. As the beginning of
November approaches, we will send home
a reminder of the scheduled time for your
conference.
Some upcoming events:
October 2 – ½ Day, SGA Elections
October 5 – PTA Sponsored
Assembly – Reptile Program
October 7 – Progress Reports Sent
Home
October 12 – Parent Open House
from 9:00-11:30; Artist in Residence
October 14 – Student Picture Day
October 15 – Mount Vernon Field
Trip (Extended Day); PTA Bingo
Night from 7:00-9:00 at CES
October 16 – No School
October 29 – Strathmore Field Trip
October 30 – Halloween Parade &
Parties from 2:30-3:25; End of the
First Marking Period
Contacting the teacher:
If you need to contact the fifth grade
teachers, email is the fastest method.
Emily Bizzell
[email protected]
Robin Weber
[email protected]
Stephanie Wilhelm
[email protected]
(There are underscores between each
part of the name.)
**In order to save paper, our monthly
newsletters will be sent electronically. If
you prefer to receive a hard copy of the
newsletter, please contact your
homeroom teacher. Thank you!!**