4/30/19

The fifth graders continued to make steady progress in their writing on the final day of April. Many students are in the process of typing their next draft. Other students are working to peer edit each other's pieces.

As a reminder, the fifth graders will be taking their math MCAS exam on Thursday and Friday this week. As such, there is no written homework this week.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

4/29/19

One of our last school days in the month of April saw the fifth graders once again meet with their fantasy book groups. The reading groups are progressing into the later stages of their novels and will soon turn their attention to a piece of writing.

Later in the day, the members of A303 looked at some multi-step word problems in math class that tied in nicely with recent lessons.

As a reminder, the fifth graders will be taking their math MCAS exam on Thursday and Friday this week. As such, there is no written homework this week.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of reading per night

4/26/19

The fifth graders wrapped up the week by continuing to make steady progress with both their informational writing and their current math unit. I applaud the effort that was on display by the students today. It was a great week.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

4/25/19

The students completed their second and final session of ELA MCAS testing early today. The kids worked hard throughout and I am sure that will be reflected in the results. Tomorrow, it will be nice to resume a normal schedule once again.

Homework

Math - workbook pages 441 and 441, due Friday April 26th

4/24/19

The fifth graders completed session one of their ELA assessment today. I was proud of the effort that the students put into their testing today. Session two will be tomorrow.

Homework

Math - workbook pages 441 and 441, due Friday April 26th

4/23/19

The fifth graders continued to be hard at work on their informational writing pieces during our ELA session. Some of the kids were putting the finishing touches on their first draft. This was a productive time for the members of A303

As a reminder, on Wednesday and Thursday this week the students are going to take the two sessions of their ELA MCAS exam. We ask all students to try their hardest to arrive at school on time so that testing may begin on time.

Homework

Math - workbook pages 441 and 441, due Friday April 26th

4/22/19

It was nice to see everyone back after the vacation week. We spent some time during our morning meeting having the kids share some of the high points of their breaks.

During social studies class, we finished up our work with the Battle of Yorktown. The fifth graders used maps to explore the battlefield and then answered some focus questions.

As a reminder, on Wednesday and Thursday this week the students are going to take the two sessions of their ELA MCAS exam. We ask all students to try their hardest to arrive at school on time so that testing may begin on time.

Homework

Math - workbook pages 441 and 441, due Friday April 26th

4/12/19

I hope everyone has a great vacation week. As a reminder, the fifth graders will be taking the two sessions of their ELA MCAS exam on April 24th and 25th.

4/11/19

The focus of today's work in math class was continuing to multiply whole numbers by fractions. Emphasis was paid on using visual representations to explain reasoning. We had a productive lesson.

We also explored the deciding battle of the Revolutionary War. Students spent time exploring the ins-and-outs of the Battle of Yorktown.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - workbook pages 423 and 424, due Friday April 12th

4/10/19

Students took one final online practice ELA MCAS exam today. I very much appreciated the work that the fifth graders put into this and I feel confident that the students will do well on their ELA exam when they take it the week after April vacation.

Later in the school day, we began unit 7 in math class. This unit will see the kids begin to multiply fractions by whole numbers.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - workbook pages 423 and 424, due Friday April 12th

4/9/19

It is hard to believe, but today the members of A303 completed the last lesson in our decimal unit. We wrapped up by working with decimals in both expanded and standard forms. The kids did a great job working through this investigation. Tomorrow, we will take an end of unit assessment.

Earlier in the school day, many of the students began to collect background information in their informational writing pieces. It is great to hear the enthusiasm that the kids are bringing to their last unit of writing.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - students will receive homework tomorrow 

4/8/19

Many of the fifth graders took part in the school play or musical during the day. The students in A303 were able to watch the musical. All of the students who took part in both productions did a great job. The hard work and practice paid off.

Later in the day, we returned to one of our final lessons in our decimal unit in math class. We will look to wrap up the unit later this week.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading

Math - there will be math homework later this week 

4/5/19

The fifth graders spent some time preparing for their ELA MCAS exam. They looked at a practice exam that helped to familiarize them with the ins and outs of the online testing site. I appreciated student's attentive during this practice.

We wrapped up a productive week in math class by spending time working with small groups to play some of the various decimal games that were part of our investigations this week.

I hope everyone has a great weekend and good luck to the students in the plays.

4/4/19

We continued to progress in both our work with decimals as well as our fantasy book clubs. The students have had a great week and I compliment everyone for their continued effort.

We ended the school day by starting to investigate the Battle of Yorktown during our social studies time.

Tomorrow, the members of A303 will take an online practice ELA MCAS assessment to prepare us for the real exams the week after April vacation.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and reader's logs due Friday April 5th

Math - workbook pages 405 and 406 due Friday April 5th

4/3/19

The students continued to add and subtract decimals during our math lesson. Small groups reasoned their war through some more challenging word problems. Then using decimal grids they represented answers. We wrapped up the day's lesson by having some students share out their thinking. A great day's work.

Later in the school day, the human respiratory system was the focus of our exploration during science class.


Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and reader's logs due Friday April 5th

Math - workbook pages 405 and 406 due Friday April 5th

4/2/19

The students worked to subtract decimals during our math work today. The last two days have been very productive for the fifth graders. I was impressed with the level of discourse that the students are using when they are discussing problems together.

During writing class, the students continued the early research stage of their informational piece. Students are using graphic organizers to compile informational that will help them begin to construct their pieces. Later this week, the members of A303 will look to start working on their lead paragraphs.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and reader's logs due Friday April 5th

Math - finish workbook pages 400 and 401 if not done in class, due tomorrow 4/3

4/1/19

This week will see the fifth graders working on adding and subtracting decimals during math class. We began the week by making estimates before adding the values displayed on decimal cards. Tomorrow, similar strategies will be used to subtract values.

Our social studies lesson focused on the strategies used by both militaries during the Revolutionary War. We also were able to spend some time gathering information for our informational writing papers.

Homework

Reading - 30 minutes of quiet reading and reader's logs due Friday April 5th

Math - students will receive math homework tomorrow