3/31/15

As we completed the month of March, students finished the final chapter in Number the Stars today. The work that fifth grade did with this book was great. It was a continuation of the impressive work that was done while reading Bud Not Buddy. Over the next few days, students will complete some final assignments and take one final assessment. Fifth grade will next turn their attention to poetry.

In social studies, room 312 focused in on the onerous taxes that King George III placed on the colonies. Students have been thinking about possible compromises that might have avoided the Revolutionary War. Soon we will turn our attention to the Tea Party, a topic that my class has been eager to look at.

Homework

Math - page 21 and 22 on worksheet

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Science - worksheet

Social Studies - those students who have not finished their Proclamation of 1763 worksheet need to complete this tonight


Trivia

What is the largest species of fish?

3/27/15

It was nice to return to a normal schedule today for fifth grade. Students continued their work writing decimals in word form, as a number and as a mixed number today. Room 312 was also able to partner up and play a game that involved placing decimals on a number line. Our work with decimals will continue next week.

Students continued to dig deeper into the root causes of the American Revolution. We began to focus on some of the more onerous actions taken by King George III which spurred the colonists to action. I have enjoyed discussing this material with my class, as I have a number of students who are deeply interested in the subject matter.

I once again want to take the time to applaud all of my students about their performance this week. The MCAS testing sessions are never the most enjoyable experience a student has, but my class met the challenge head on. Parents and guardians, I also want to thank you for sending students to school in a proper mindset and on time.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

3/26/15

I commend my class for their performance this week. MCAS testing if never the most enjoyable experience for students, but my class came to school on time, ready to work. I particularly applaud their diligence during the exam, many students when finished took the time to go back through the answers. As always, I am confident that room 312 will have positive results on this assessment.

Tomorrow, we will return to a normal schedule. I hope everyone has a relaxing evening.

3/25/15

Fifth grade continued their work with decimals during our math lesson. Students have been naming decimals in both word and number form and today we discussed multiplying decimals by multiples of 10. Students were quick to pick up on patterns and I commend them for continuing to use their decimal vocabulary during our lessons.

Students also continue to be hard at work on their personal opinion writing piece. I have enjoyed getting to conference with small groups and on an individual basis over the last two weeks with my writers. Students are focusing in on straightening their evidence with quotes, statistics and informal polls. Room 312's goal is to publish final copies by the first week of April.

Once again, I ask all parents and guardians to be aware that MCAS resumes for fifth grade tomorrow. We ask that all students are in the classroom by 8:15. Thank you in advance for your help.

3/24/15

I want to compliment my class for their effort during todays MCAS session. Students came to school in the proper mindset and they worked hard. On Thursday, the fifth grade will be taking the second round of their ELA test. I ask that all parents and guardians, once again, have their children in school at the correct time. I hope everyone has a nice evening.

3/23/15

Students continued to look at the causes and the end results of the French and Indian War during social studies. During today's lesson, fifth graders also honed their map-reading skills by labeling before and after maps of North America.

Room 312, further investigated decimal. Students continue to obtain daily practice in writing decimals. They also were able to work with a partner in a number line activity.

With ELA MCAS taking place this week, I wanted to alert everyone that there will be no formal homework given to the fifth graders. I would strongly advise all of my students to continue to read on a nightly basis. I would also strongly recommend that students get a good night's sleep and eat a nice breakfast on testing days this week. One of the most important things a student can do this week and be mentally prepared for their testing days.

3/20/15

On this first day of spring, students in fifth grade were able to share their book trailers with their friends in second grade during book buddies today. Fifth graders have been working hard during library class to create this trailers using their iPads and the second grade class enjoyed getting to see them today.

Next week, fifth grade has the ELA portion of their MCAS on Tuesday and Thursday. Even thought the it hasn't been the most enjoyable experience, students have worked hard on practice prompts to better prepare them for next week. I think that my class enters this important part of the calendar year in a good mindset. Room 312 has been advised to get plenty of sleep and eat a healthy breakfast before them come to school on those testing days.

I hope everyone has a great weekend

Homework

Writing - blog topic due 3/20 - Make a prediction for how you think Number the Stars will end. Use evidence from the book to back up your prediction. (2 paragraphs in length, 6-8 sentences per paragraph)

3/19/15

Today, students used their peer editing skills to critique a fellow classmate's recent open response answer. We have been preparing for next weeks ELA MCAS and this lesson was a nice opportunity for students to look at other's work. The fifth graders were on the lookout for strong lead sentences, transition words and good use of evidence from the text. The class then shared out and chose a strength and something that needs to be worked out for next time. I believe students are entering next weeks testing period in a good mindset.



Homework

Math - workbook page adding tenths and hundredths

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading, fill out reader's log on a nightly basis

Writing - blog topic due 3/20 - Make a prediction for how you think Number the Stars will end. Use evidence from the book to back up your prediction. (2 paragraphs in length, 6-8 sentences per paragraph)

Trivia

In Greek mythology, Poseidon is the god of the what?

3/18/15

Room 312 put the finishing touches on their Colonial time line posters yesterday, I thought that they turned out great and I liked to see the teamwork that the class exhibited. Today, we began to turn our attention to the Revolutionary War. From talking with students, it seems like many are very interested in this time period, so I am looking forward to getting into this in greater depth with my class. Tomorrow we will look at the French and Indian War.


Homework

Math - workbook pages 10 and 11

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading, fill out reader's log on a nightly basis

Writing - blog topic due 3/20 - Make a prediction for how you think Number the Stars will end. Use evidence from the book to back up your prediction. (2 paragraphs in length, 6-8 sentences per paragraph)

Trivia

Which one of Dr. Seuss' characters did he call his favorite?

3/17/15

As we approach the end of Number the Stars, students are going to be presented with some open response questions which will serve as a concluding assessment for this work. Students have remain engaged with the book and continue to have enlightening discussions about the text.

We officially began our work with decimals today. Students used grids today and discussed in small groups different ways to name the amount represented. Homework tonight builds off of the material from class. I also wanted to mention, that I was impressed with the performance of the vast majority of my class on their unit 4 fraction assessment. Students worked hard throughout the unit and the results showed that. I am confident that the performance will continue into decimals.


Homework

Math - workbook pages 5 and 6

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading, fill out reader's log on a nightly basis

Writing - blog topic due 3/20 - Make a prediction for how you think Number the Stars will end. Use evidence from the book to back up your prediction. (2 paragraphs in length, 6-8 sentences per paragraph)

Trivia

What was Dr. Seuss' real name?

3/16/15

Grade 5 was fortunate enough to take part in their ceramic activity today. Students had been eagerly anticipating this after the first date was postponed by the weather. I want to commend the students for being actively engaged with the lesson and also want to thank the parent volunteer who were nice enough to come in and help during this lesson.

This week, room 312 will turn its attention to decimals in math class. Students will carry over many of the lessons from our fraction unit into this new area of study. I continue to advise all students of extra help offered on Wednesday after school. As the need arises, students are welcome to stay.



Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading, fill out reader's log on a nightly basis

Writing - blog topic due 3/20 - Make a prediction for how you think Number the Stars will end. Use evidence from the book to back up your prediction. (2 paragraphs in length, 6-8 sentences per paragraph)


Trivia

Which Dr. Seuss title is the highest selling of all time?

3/13/15

Another successful week completed today in room 312, students took their unit 4 assessment during math today. Throughout the course of the entire unit on fractions, students have rose to the occasion. As I go over these papers this weekend, I am confident that the results will indicate this.

During reading class, my class read chapter 12 in Number the Stars. Students were eager to get into this chapter as the preceding chapter set up a cliffhanger ending. Students also created murals that focused in on the early chapters of the book.

This weekend, I am asking all of my students to complete their boxes and bullets graphic organizer that focuses on an opinion writing topic of their choosing. Some students have already completed this, but many others have not. And for those students who have completed this process, I would strongly advise them to take some time over the weekend to dig for more pieces of evidence to support their opinion.

Homework

Writing - students need to complete their boxes and bullets graphic organizer for their opinion piece for class on Monday. All students should take time over the weekend to compile some additional evidence. Numbers and quotes are your friends.

3/12/15

Students used their math time today to accomplish two things. They completed their group posters concerning a challenging fraction word problem and they reviewed for their unit 4 math assessment which is tomorrow. I encourage all of my students to spend some time tonight going over the material from the last few days in preparation. I firmly believe everyone is capable of doing well on this assessment.


Homework

Math - unit 4 test tomorrow

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Writing - students need to have their boxes and bullets graphic organizer completely filled out by Monday


Trivia

Whats the first number greater than one million that is divisible by 9?

3/11/15

Students discussed their responses to a practice ORQ today. The fifth graders have been practicing to create strong lead sentences and to organize their supporting details coherently. This practice will continue into next week, as we are now two weeks away from the ELA MCAS.

Many of the colonies groups were able to officially begin their work with their timelines today. I have enjoyed getting to see students work closely with their group members to carefully plan out exactly how they want their posters to look.


Homework

Math - word problem worksheet, unit 4 test on Friday

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Social Studies - compile additional information about questions 5 and 6 in colony packet

Trivia

What is the fastest bird on land?

3/10/15

During math today, students in room 312 were presented with tape diagrams that they then had to create a story problem for and then solve the equation that resulted. This built upon the work that we were doing yesterday with division of fractions problems that also included measurement conversions. We are fast approaching the unit 4 exam and I firmly believe that fifth grade is prepared for this assessment. We will continue our work with these word problems into tomorrow.

Some of the groups in social studies began to turn their attention to their time lines. Students will be working in collaboration to create a timeline that gives important dates and information about the colonial period. Students have the freedom to take this aspect of the project in a number of different ways, so I am eager to see how they turn out.

In writing, fifth grade began to dig into research for the second component of their opinion writing piece. Students have all selected a topic that is important to them. This topic will serve as the foundation for their paper. Members of 312, used our boxes and bullets graphic organizer to start to gather key pieces of evidence to bolster their view. This will be an ongoing piece of work over the next few weeks.


Homework

Math - engage New York worksheet

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Social Studies - compile additional information about questions 5 and 6 in colony packet

Trivia

How tall in feet is the Statue of Liberty?

3/9/15

Students continued to impress me with their MCAS preparation. Room 312 has been working with some practice ELA prompts. I continue to be impressed with the writing that I am seeing. Students are becoming adept at building quality responses to fully answer these questions. This work will continue into next week.

Some groups in social studies have moved on to their colonial timelines. These collaborative efforts will continue to be worked on as this week progresses.

Homework

Math - engage New York worksheet

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Social Studies - students should work to completely answer questions 4 and 5 inside their colonies packet


Trivia

Which state was the first to join the Union after the 13 colonies?

3/6/15

This weekend I am giving my students some homework. It is not a lot, but I think it is important. I am asking all students to have completed at least the first three questions in their 13 colonies graphic organizers. If a students is done with the first three questions, they are more than welcome to continue on to the final three. I think if all students dedicate some time to this work for 15-20 minutes a day over the weekend, then they will be in great shape when we return to school on Monday.

I hope everyone enjoys their weekend and I will see everyone back at school on Monday.


Homework

Blog topic: What connections have you been able to make between Bud Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone. To this point in the book, which novel do you like better Bud or Deza?

Social Studies - students need to complete the first three questions on their 13 colonies graphic organizer. Students must phrase their answers in sentences or short phrases organized with bullet points.

3/5/15

The class as a whole did a very nice job with their Number the Stars assessment yesterday. They are understanding and analyzing the novel very well. We will continue to read the book tomorrow.

Students are also about to move into the timeline portion of their social studies research projects. Members of room 312 are going to be called upon to work closely with their group members to create a timeline on poster board using all of the resources at their disposal.


Homework

Math - last page in math packet

Tenmarks assignment - due Friday March 6th

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and fill out reader's log on nightly basis

Blog topic: What connections have you been able to make between Bud Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone. To this point in the book, which novel do you like better Bud or Deza?

MCAS - complete graphic organizer for Japanese house article, due tomorrow.


Trivia

What is the largest species of dinosaur to ever walk the earth?

3/4/15

Students completed their postcards in reading today. The class also took an assessment to judge their comprehension to this point in the novel. We will continue the book this Friday.

I would advise my students to continue to research their colonial region at home. Students have had ample time in the classroom to work on this project. But all students would benefit from bringing some additional information in from work at home.


Homework

Math - third page in math packet

Tenmarks assignment - due Friday March 6th

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and fill out reader's log on nightly basis

Blog topic: What connections have you been able to make between Bud Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone. To this point in the book, which novel do you like better Bud or Deza?

Social Studies - continue to compile additional research on 13 colonies project


Trivia

What was the largest recorded earthquake in the United States?

3/3/15

On this early release day, students continued their work with dividing whole numbers by fractions. Students were presented with a number of challenging problems that built on the work that was started yesterday. As we look ahead, we are fast approaching the unit four assessment. I am confident that all students in my class are capable of turning out positive results. Math extra help is offered tomorrow after school.

Due to the altered schedule, room 312 was also presented with a nice opportunity to get to work on their 13 colonies research project for an extended period of time. Today, many students turned their attention to geographic characteristics and the importance of religion within the region that they selected. Students have done a nice job of collaborating on their research to this point.


Homework

Math - second page in math packet

Tenmarks assignment - due Friday March 6th

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and fill out reader's log on nightly basis

Blog topic: What connections have you been able to make between Bud Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone. To this point in the book, which novel do you like better Bud or Deza?

Social Studies - continue to compile additional research on 13 colonies project


Trivia

Which continent has the most species of spider?

3/2/15

Room 312 began their work dividing whole numbers by fractions during math today. Students did a great job representing their work with models and justifying their answers verbally in front of the class. We will continue this work tomorrow.

Students also continued their reading of Number the Stars. Students read a chapter together in small groups and then began the work of designing a postcard which was addressed to one of our characters. These are turning out well and will be hung up in the classroom


Homework

Math - first page in math packet

Tenmarks assignment - due Friday March 6th

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and fill out reader's log on nightly basis

Blog topic: What connections have you been able to make between Bud Not Buddy and The Mighty Miss Malone. To this point in the book, which novel do you like better Bud or Deza?


Trivia

What was the nickname of the new species of spider that we discussed in class today?