4/30/15

Students continued their work with conversions of measurements. Grade five has been working with both metric and standard units of measurement. Today we also began to discuss units of capacity and mass. I want to compliment my class on their continued hard work during math class. Room 312 has also been giving it their all when it comes to preparing for the upcoming math MCAS test.

Paul Revere remained the topic of conversation during social studies today. Students looked to gather as many facts as they could about this important event. Tomorrow we will begin to explore the Second Continental Congress.

During our writing block, students were tasked with crafting a literary essay about a short story from Cynthia Rylant. Prior to this writing assignment, students had a meaningful discussion about what they believed the author wanted to convey with this piece.


Homework

Math - workbook page 91

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Blog - Select one of the events that led up to the Revolutionary War. In a two paragraph essay, give a brief summary of events and tell why the event was important.

Science - practice MCAS Test

Trivia

How many future presidents attended the first Continental Convention as delegates?

4/28/15

Students wrapped up their work with the First Continental Congress and began to look at the famous ride made by Paul Revere. Students were exposed to a poem written by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and were encouraged to view this important events from a perspective other than a patriot.

In math class, students began to covert units of measurements. Using units of length, capacity and weight, students worked in small groups to make these conversions. The fifth grader did a nice job with this work.

Finally, during our ELA block, room 312 continued to look at different forms of poetry and also continued to put the finishing touches on their biography poems.

A busy day and a productive one.



Homework

Math - conversion of measurement worksheet pg. 89

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Blog - Select one of the events that led up to the Revolutionary War. In a two paragraph essay, give a brief summary of events and tell why the event was important.

Science - practice MCAS Test

Trivia

Which colony sent the most delegates to the first Continental Congress?

4/27/15

It was great to see everyone back in school today after the April break. It is hard to believe that there are less than fifty days left in the school year. As we approach the final round of MCAS testing and the conclusion of the school year, I am confident that all students will continue to be diligent workers who put their best effort forward.

During writing class, room 312 began to look at some short stories which they will be responsible for writing about. Students looked at an example from Charlotte's Web. We will be using many stories from the author Cynthia Rylant. I am eager to see how the fifth grade class responds to this new writing unit.

We are also approaching the completion of our decimals unit. Students have done a very nice job and I anticipate the unit assessment going well. Room 312 will also be continuing their work with geometry concepts over the next three weeks.



Homework

Math - decimal worksheet

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Blog - Select one of the events that led up to the Revolutionary War. In a two paragraph essay, give a brief summary of events and tell why the event was important.

Science - practice MCAS Test

Trivia

Who were the other two men who rode with Paul Revere to warn the colonists that the British were coming?

4/17/15

I hope everyone has a great April vacation and I look forward to seeing everyone back in school the last week of April.

4/16/15

I wanted to congratulate all of those students who took part in the play. The performances turned out well and it was a great day for all of the students. The hard work that the students put into this was evident.


Homework

Math - workbook page 185

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

Blog -


Trivia

What were the names of the 3 British ships boarded during the Boston Tea Party?

4/15/15

Students began to create their first piece of original poetry today. Students have looked at the components of poems and have started to come up with a biography poem. Students were active participants during today's lesson and I look forward to seeing these finished products.

During social studies, room 312 read about the First Continental Congress. A discussion was held about the who, what, where, why and when of this momentous event in the creation of America. This work will continue into tomorrow's lesson


Homework

Math - third page in math packet

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

Blog -


Trivia

What was the name of the British general who officially surrendered to America to end the Revolutionary War?

4/14/15

Students continued to work with geometry. We turned our attention to looking at different types of triangles. Students classified them by their length of sides and measurements of angles. We will continue this work tomorrow.


Tomorrow, room 312 will continue their work with poetry and will begin to look at specific types.


Homework

Math - second page in math packet

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

Blog -


Trivia

Where did the British officially surrender to the Americans to end the Revolutionary War?

4/13/15

Fifth grade began to turn their attention to poetry during our ELA block. Students were presented with a number of different poems and tasked with deciding what each poem was about and then taking a wider view of all of the poems and coming up with a definition for poetry itself. I look forward to getting deeper into this topic with my class over the next few weeks.

Room 312, also began to do some work with geometry today. Students started a discussion about polygons. Fifth graders looked at sides and angles and attempted to sort regular and irregular polygons.

Finally, in social studies the fifth grade looked at the causes and effects of the Boston Tea Party as we continue to inch closer to the actual Revolutionary War.


Homework

Math - first page in math packet

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

Blog -


Trivia

What was the name of the French military officer who became a trusted friend and advisor to George Washington during the Revolutionary War?

4/10/15

I wanted to compliment the entire Thompson school and particularly the fifth grade class for their performance during the concert today. I thought it was great and based on the reception the audience gave, many other people would agree. The hard work paid off and Ms. Havelin and the students deserve a lot of praise.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

4/9/15

Students looked at the causes and effects of the Tea Act and the Boston Tea Party during social studies today. The class had a lively discussion and I was impressed with the level of background knowledge that students are bringing to the lessons.

During reading today, students focused in on unanswered questions that Number the Stars left in the reader's minds. Students came up with some answers to these questions and worked in small groups to share their answers.


Homework

Math - workbook page 43-44

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

Blog - What parts of Number the Stars were fictional? What parts of the story are factual? (due 4/10, 2 paragraphs in length)


Trivia

This man was responsible for bringing canons from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston, which ended the British siege of the city. Who is this man?

4/8/15

Students began to turn their attention to dividing and multiplying decimals during math class. This work will continue into the next few days. Students continue to take daily quick checks which are giving me a nice glimpse into where my class stands in relation to the material being taught. Room 312 has been performing strongly in math.

We are also wrapping up our work with the book Number the Stars. Today, students posed questions that were left unanswered by the book. My class did a nice job of working in small groups and came up with some interesting ideas for how they felt the story could have ended.


Homework

Math - third page in math packet

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

Blog - What parts of Number the Stars were fictional? What parts of the story are factual? (due 4/10, 2 paragraphs in length)


Trivia

The original capitol of the United States was located where?

4/7/15

We wrapped up our look at the Boston Massacre today. Students looked closely at an engraving made by Paul Revere to look for hidden meanings and other information. Fifth grade had an interesting class discussion and worked well with small groups. We will turn our attention to the Tea Act and the Tea Party over the next few days.

Students also were hard at work practicing for the spring concert which will take place on Friday. I can't wait to see the hard work pay off.


Homework

Math - second page in math packet

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

Blog - What parts of Number the Stars were fictional? What parts of the story are factual? (due 4/10, 2 paragraphs in length)


Trivia

What was the name of George Washington's home?

4/6/15

This week, room 312 will begin to focus on adding decimals. Fifth graders continued their work today of organizing given decimals from least to greatest.

My class is close to publishing their final personal opinion pieces in writing. I look forward to later this week when students will get to share their completed work with their classmates. A lot of hard work and effort have went into these papers.


Homework

Math - first page in math packet

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

Blog - What parts of Number the Stars were fictional? What parts of the story are factual? (due 4/10, 2 paragraphs in length)

Science - practice MCAS sheet


Trivia

Which two founding fathers of America died on the same day?

4/2/15

I hope everyone has an enjoyable long weekend.

4/1/15

Students are hard at work putting the finishing touches on their personal opinion writing pieces. As we prepare to move on to our next writing unit, I wanted to mention that I was impressed with the level of engagement that my class put into their writing. Students wrote with passion about topics that are important to them. I look forward to turning our attention to literary writing.

Grade 5 continued to work in small groups during our math class. Fifth graders have been playing some challenging games to organize and name decimals. Tomorrow we will be taking an assessment to gauge the progress of the students to this point in the unit.

Homework

Math - workbook page 29

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Spelling - test tomorrow

Trivia

Which famous work of literature contains the first mention of April Fool's Day?