MONTAUK UNION FREE SCHOOL DISTRICT
50 SOUTH DORSET DRIVE
MONTAUK, NEW YORK 11954
TELEPHONE: 631 668-2474
FAX: 631 668-1107
www.montaukschool.org
“ Th e L i gh t h o u s e S c h o o l D i s t r i c t ”
J . P HI L I P P E RN A , S u p e ri n t e n d e n t
B R I G I D CO L L I N S , A s s t . P ri n c i p a l
P . G R A C E L I G HT CA P , Di s t ri c t Cl e rk
M A UR A A . M I R RA S , Di s t ri c t T re a s u r e r
June 26, 2014
Dear Parents:
Hello and welcome to the summer of 2014. A voluntary Parent/Guardian letter, a supply list,
the fifth grade course outline, and a suggested reading list, are enclosed. Each student is required
to read the one book they were given:
The Invention of Hugo Cabret
The novel should be read before the beginning of the school year. In September, we will
start the year by completing projects and other work which center on this novel. It is very important
that your child read this book before school begins. In addition, please encourage your child to read
other books, too, over the summer.
The suggested reading list consists of many excellent pieces of literature. When students
have completed the required reading, they are encouraged to choose any of the books from the
list to read. The more books they read the better!
We are looking forward to next year already. Enjoy the summer and we’ll see you in September.
If you have any questions, please call the school and we will get back to you as soon as we can. We
will be checking in periodically to get mail and any parent/guardian letters. Thank you for your time.
Sincerely,
John Cossentino
Richard Larsen
BOARD OF EDUCATION
DIANE M. HAUSMAN, PRESIDENT
PATTI LEBER, VICE PRESIDENT
KELLY WHITE
LISA WARD
LEE WHITE
5TH GRADE COURSE OUTLINE 2014-2015
MATH – “Go Math” Series and the Triumph Learning
New York State Grade 5 Mathematics Performance Coach Book will be used to prepare for
the state test in April. In addition, students will use the computer lab to visit many
educational math sites.
Reading/ELA (RELA) – Reading and ELA are combined with an emphasis on reading
award-winning trade books, the Macmillan /McGraw Hill Reading Series, and the Triumph
Learning Performance Coach series. The language program provides grammar
fundamentals, a focus on improving students’ writing, with opportunities for listening,
speaking, and presenting. Students will take the NY State ELA Test in April.
SOCIAL STUDIES – Prentice Hall – Western Hemisphere, 2001
The grade five program stresses geographic, economic and social/cultural understandings
related to the United States, Canada and nations in Latin America today. Other sources will
be used in conjunction with the text.
SCIENCE – Interactive Science This text consists of four units; three we cover in science class and the fourth is covered
during health.
Life Science – Living Things and Ecology.
Physical Science – Matter and Energy.
Earth Science – Space, Earth, and Weather.
HEALTH – Current Health Magazine/Health Smart Program
The D.A.R.E. program is taught as part of the health curriculum. Current Health Magazine
will be used in conjunction with other health materials. The Health Smart Program consists
of: Personal and Family Health, Safety and Injury Protection, and Nutrition and Physical
Activity. In addition, students will participate in a program called Health Food for Life, which
is sponsored by the Wellness Foundation.
American Plays and Playwrights –students will dramatize monologues, skits and plays.
They will engage in and learn all aspects of plays and the presentation of them to an
audience.
WEB SITE: www.montaukschool.org This can be checked daily for homework, test and
quiz dates. Fifth grade information can be checked daily.
June 2014
Dear 5th Grade Parents:
This letter is written to ask a favor of you. We would like you to write a letter to us (in
any language that is most comfortable for you) about your child. We know it sounds like
homework, but it is voluntary. For example, “Scott is shy, but once he gets to know you, he
has a wonderful sense of humor, so ask him about chess, basketball, and dinosaurs and
he’ll open up quickly.” We believe your insights into your child can help us to be better
teachers for your particular child this year. Our first conferences seem to be short, and we
may not have enough time to find out from you, the real expert on your child, all the little
things that help us to understand better who he/she is as an individual and a learner.
Here are some of the things, we would like to know:
1. First tell us all the things that you think are wonderful about your child. Be honest and
don’t worry about bragging about his/her strengths, both academic and non-academic.
2. What are some areas where your child might not feel as secure: for example, a school
subject, art, sports, public speaking, or social situations.
3. Are there any special considerations we should be aware of this year: specific health
problems such as allergies, trips you’re planning (or took during the summer), new
brother or sister, previous school problems, attitudes about homework, a recent move,
divorce….?
4. What kinds of discipline and teaching does your child respond to best?
5. What are your hopes, dreams, expectations, and goals for your child this school year?
The letter can be a DRAFT copy. Don’t worry about handwriting and spelling. Just jot
a quick note, enclose it in an envelope if you wish, and drop it off in the office during
the summer vacation, or send it with your child on the first day of school.
Thank you in advance for your interest and cooperation.
John T. Cossentino
Richard Larsen
Supplies
On the first day of school (if possible), please send your child to
school with the following items:
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2 small boxes of #2 pencils
5 composition hardcover notebooks
5 thin folders (to hold papers for each subject)
Black, blue and red pens (a few of each) – erasable are best
1 box of colored pencils
5TH GRADE RECOMMENDED SUMMER READING LIST
2014
TITLE
20,000 Leagues Under the Sea
A Single Shard
A Wrinkle in Time
Abel's Island
An American History Through Poetry
Artemis Fowl
Ben and Me
Bud, Not Buddy
Call of the Wild, The
Chains
Charlie and Chocolate Factory
Charlotte's Web
Class Clown
Crazy Lady
Cricket in Times Square, The
Every Soul a Star
Freckle Juice
From Sea to Shining Sea
Giggler Treament, The
Graveyard Book, The
Great Gilly Hopkins, The
Harriet the Spy
Harry Potter
Hatchet
Hey Batta Batta Swing!: The Wild Old Days of Baseball
Holes
Island of the Blue Dolphins
James and the Giant Peach
Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key
Joyful Noise - Poems for Two Voices
Maniac Magee
Moon Over Manifest
Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of Nimh
Nathanial's Talking
Number the Stars
One and Only Ivan, The
Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes
Sarah, Plain and Tall
Secret Garden, The
Tangerine
Trumpet of the Swan, The
Watson's Go to Birmingham - 1963, The
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon
Where the Sidewalk Ends
Wonder
Wringer
AUTHOR
Verne, Jules
Park, Linda Sue
L'Engle, Madeline
Steig, William
Hopkins, Lee Bennet
Colfer, Eoin
Ronald Lawson
Curtis, Christopher Paul
London, Jack
Anderson, Laurie Halse
Dahl, Roald
White, E.B.
Hurwitz, Joanna
Conly, Jane Leslie
Selden, George
Mass, Wendy
Blume, Judy
Cohn, Amy T.
Doyle, Roddy
Gaiman, Neil
Paterson, Katherine
Fitzhugh, Louise
Rowlings, J.K.
Paulson, Gary
Cook, Sally
Sachar, Louis
O'Dell, Scott
Dahl, Roald
Gantos, Jack
Fleischman, Paul
Spinelli, Jerry
Vanderpool, Clare
O'Brien, Robert C.
Greenfield, Eloise
Lowry, Lois
Applegate, Katherine
Coerr, Elanor
MacLachlan, Patricia
Burnett, Frances Hodgson
Bloor, Edward
White, E.B.
Curtis, Christopher Paul
Lin, Grace
Silverstein, Shel
Palacio, R.J.
Spinelli, Jerry