5/31/18

The students completed the month of May by taking the first of two sessions of their iReady ELA assessment. This assessment is meant to track the progress that students made throughout the course of the school year.

Tomorrow, the students will take the second and final session.


Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading per night

Blog Post - Due Friday June 1st. Students should respond to the following prompt with at least three paragraphs of 6-8 sentence length. 

Did you enjoy the ending of the Thief of Always? If you did, what did you enjoy about it? If not, what would you have changed? Be specific and use evidence from the text.

5/30/18

The students progressed deeper into their fantasy books today. I was able to circulate and check in with all groups. It was great to hear the conversations that were occurring while students were reading.



Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading per night

Blog Post - Due Friday June 1st. Students should respond to the following prompt with at least three paragraphs of 6-8 sentence length. 

Did you enjoy the ending of the Thief of Always? If you did, what did you enjoy about it? If not, what would you have changed? Be specific and use evidence from the text.

5/29/18

The fifth graders spent time continuing the writing process for their informational writing pieces. A few students have begun to turn their pieces into books using the Book Creator App on their iPads.


Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading per night

Blog Post - Due Friday June 1st. Students should respond to the following prompt with at least three paragraphs of 6-8 sentence length. 

Did you enjoy the ending of the Thief of Always? If you did, what did you enjoy about it? If not, what would you have changed? Be specific and use evidence from the text.

5/25/18

The fifth graders finished up the final Friday in the month of May by having one more day of informational writing. It is  great to see many students making serious progress. Next week, we should see some of the fifth graders getting very close to the finish line.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

5/24/18

The students had some time today to work on potential covers for the fifth grade yearbook. Each student is going to submit a single 8.5 by 11 paper that incorporates the theme of Viva La Vida. They will have some time to work on these tomorrow and also this weekend. They will be collected on Tuesday the 29th.

5/23/18

These next few days, the members of A303 are going to look to complete some work in their informational writing as well as their fantasy book groups during ELA time. I was able to conference with a few writers today to check their early drafts. The students are doing a nice job of highlighting some of the key points that I am looking for. This work will continue into next week.

5/22/18

The fifth graders officially finished their last MCAS test today. I want to once again congratulate the students for accomplishing this and thank you to all families for getting students to school on time these last two days.

Tomorrow we will resume a normal schedule.

5/21/18

The fifth graders took the first of two science MCAS session this morning. One final day of testing tomorrow and then the students are done for the school year. I once again ask all parents to help ensure that students arrive at school tomorrow on time so that testing can begin on time.

5/18/18

We wrapped up another week by taking an online practice science practice test. We have talked this week about reasoning through questions posed on next week's test and working to zone in on the most logical answer for questions.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. As a reminder, the two sessions for science MCAS testing are next Monday and Tuesday. We ask that all students arrive at school on time, so that testing may begin promptly.

5/17/18

After yesterday's field trip into Boston, the members of A303 returned to the classroom today. During our ELA time, students regrouped with their fantasy book groups to read deeper into their novels.

Science class, saw students doing one final piece of preparation for next week's science MCAS test.

5/15/18

The students had another day to work on informational writing during our ELA session. Many students have begun their first draft of their pieces. Attention was paid today to properly attribute sources in our papers.

Tomorrow, the fifth graders will be taking a field trip into Boston to visit some sites that tie into the Revolutionary War.

5/14/18

It was nice to see the students back at school today. This week will be a busy week for us. We will continue to make progress in our informational writing and we will also look to do some more preparatory work for next week's science MCAS exam.

As a reminder, this Wednesday the 16th, the fifth graders will be taking a field trip into Boston for a Revolutionary War themed day. Students are advised to bring a draw string backpack that contains a snack and water bottle. Students who bring a lunch from home should also bring that as usual because when we return to school around 130, the students will have lunch before dismissal.

5/9/18

Today was a productive writing day for the members of A303. The fifth graders have begun to transition from research to crafting an early draft of their informational pieces. It was nice to get to meet with some students one-to-one to begin to hear their lead paragraphs.

5/8/18

The fifth graders wrapped up the second and last day of their math MCAS today. I was proud of the effort the students put into their work. It will be nice to get back to a regular schedule tomorrow.

5/7/18

The students took the first session of their math MCAS today. Tomorrow, they will take session two. I once again ask for the help of all parents to ensure that their children get to school on time tomorrow. That way the testing can begin at the correct time.

5/4/18

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. As a reminder, the fifth graders are taking the first session of their math MCAS test on Monday. We ask all students to arrive at school on time that day to ensure that the test begins on time.

5/3/18

The students spent some time in math class reviewing core geometry concepts and applying them to some challenging problems. The students appear to be in a good frame of mind heading into the two math MCAS testing days next week. As a reminder, the testing days next week are Monday and Wednesday.


Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - Volume worksheet due Friday May 4th

5/2/18

Today was the first day that the fantasy book club groups were able to meet. The groups read chapter one in their books while looking to discover any information that the main characters learn in the early stages of the stories.

This Thursday, May 3rd, the students will have another yoga session.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - Volume worksheet due Friday May 4th

5/1/18

The students began the month of May by having a learning block dedicated to preparing for next week's MCAS math exam. The fifth graders spent some time looking at last year's math test. Special attention was paid to some problems that related to geometry. I feel like the fifth graders are well prepared for next week's testing.

This Thursday, May 3rd, the students will have another yoga session.


Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - Volume worksheet due Friday May 4th