10/29/21

We concluded the month of October with a productive math lesson that focused on some multi-step volume word problems. This was a challenging lesson, but one that the kids did a fine job with. Quality discussion time was had at the conclusion of our time as well. 

Compliments to the kids for turning in their reading logs this morning as well. I look forward to reading through these this weekend. 

I hope everyone has an enjoyable and safe Halloween. 

10/28/21

We are approaching the later stages of our read aloud book, Wonder. Within the next two weeks, the fifth graders will be doing some writing about the concluding chapter of the book. Today, some of the kids were able to make predictions as to what they believe will happen at the end of the book.

As a reminder, the reading logs are due tomorrow. 

Homework

Reading - 20 minutes of reading per night and fill out reader's log on a nightly basis. This is due on Friday October 29th.

10/27/21

Writer's conferences continued during ELA time. The fifth graders are impressing with their early drafts of their literary essays. Many other students spent time focused in on their concluding paragraphs this morning. I can't wait to meet with more writers over the next few weeks. 

We also continued our work with volume problems during math time. The kids also worked hard to solve word problems that incorporated division. 

Homework

Reading - 20 minutes of reading per night and fill out reader's log on a nightly basis. This is due on Friday October 29th.

10/26/21

The fifth graders had another productive writing session this morning. While I was holding conferences with some of the kids, others were continuing to be hard at work on their body paragraphs. Later this week, we are going to have a mini-lesson on incorporating quotes from the story into their pieces. 

Homework

Reading - 20 minutes of reading per night and fill out reader's log on a nightly basis. This is due on Friday October 29th.

10/25/21

This is going to be an important week for the fifth graders in math. We have wrapped up unit one and are going to move into our second unit. The fifth graders will begin working on volume problems. To that end, they will be using connecting cubes and other manipulatives to further their understanding. Today's lesson was a good first crack at the new material.

During our science time, the kids put the finishing touches on their solar system models. These models also included unique or interesting facts that the fifth graders learned about individual planets.

Homework

Reading - 20 minutes of reading per night and fill out reader's log on a nightly basis. This is due on Friday October 29th.

10/22/21

The focus of our writing lesson this morning was in working on our first body paragraph. The kids looked to craft a paragraph that touched upon important elements from the first portion of the story, while also incorporating how the start of the story touches upon their overall theme. The kids were once again very productive. I look forward to picking this work back up with them next week.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. Let's go Red Sox.

10/21/21

The fifth graders did a very nice job on their division assessment yesterday. To continue that momentum during today's lesson, the students paired up to play a division compare game and then transitioned into working on some word problems. Another quality lesson. 

I look forward to seeing all parents and family members during our curriculum night this evening. 

10/20/21

Members of A303 focused in on the first body paragraph of their literary essays this morning. This important writing lesson saw the fifth graders give a brief overview of their main character and look to firmly establish the theme of their essays. I was able to conference with many writers and I was impressed with the level of discourse throughout the lesson. 

We are also approaching the conclusion of our first read aloud book of the year. By the end of the month, the kids are going to be responding to some prompts concerning the text, Wonder. 

10/19/21

This week will see the fifth graders wrapping up both portions of the iReady online assessment. The kids worked hard on these two important exams last week and with one final push this week, they will have finished both.

These next few weeks will also see the fifth graders working extensively on their literary essays. Each student has selected the story that they will be writing about and the drafting/conferencing will be ongoing. 

10/15/21

We concluded the school week by working on the ELA portion of the iReady exam. Similar to the math exam yesterday, this assessment is a valuable tool and I once again commend the fifth graders for working hard during this testing window. Next week, we will look to have all of the kids cross the finish line with both halves of the test.

Each of the fifth graders also selected the short story that they are going to be crafting a literary essay about. We will be working on writing and refining these pieces over the coming weeks. 

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. Let's go Red Sox.

10/14/21

The fifth graders worked on the math portion of their iReady assessment this morning. I commend the kids for putting their best feet forward on this important assessment. The information gleaned from this exam will better inform my teaching practices as we move deeper into the school year. Tomorrow, we will have the kids look to work on the ELA portion of the exam.

We also had another productive book club session during ELA time. The fifth graders did some writing about traits that their main characters have displayed to this point and then picked up where they left off in their novels.

10/13/21

We continued to refine our strategies of solving division problems this morning. Many of the kids hit on a good strategy of using multiple towers to help them disassemble problems today. I was impressed with the level of perseverance today. 

Book groups were able to meet during our ELA time later this afternoon. The fifth graders continue to impress with their teamwork during this time. 

10/12/21

After the holiday weekend, the fifth graders returned to their literary writing during ELA time. The kids were exposed to two more short stories that they worked to annotate and do some writing about the theme of the pieces. Later this week, the fifth graders will look to select one of those stories to turn into a fully fleshed out literary essay.

We are also going to continue to work on division problems during math time. The kids persevered through some challenging problem sets this morning. 

Later this week, the kids will be taking the math portion of their iReady assessment. This online assessment will serve to show where the kids are with learn math progress at this point in time. Because of this, please make sure all of the kids charge their devices before coming to school in the morning. 

10/8/21

We concluded a productive week by completing the next unit session during math class. The fifth graders did quality work on their most recent multiplication quiz and that carried over into the lesson's work, which saw them moving into division. The next few weeks will allow us to fully explore this important skill.

Our book groups also met and read deeper into their texts. The focus of the after-read writing piece centered around observable character traits of the protagonist in each book.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend. Let's go Red Sox.

10/7/21

The fifth graders received their most recent math quiz back today. The results were quite impressive. They did a nice job of working through the multiplication problems and explaining their thinking. We continued to progress towards the conclusion of the next session in unit one during the math portion of the day.

It would be helpful for the fifth graders to charge their devices at home before coming to school. We are in the midst of our first writing unit and I would also like the kids to start using Dreambox to supplement their math work. Both of these work items require the kids to use their devices.

10/6/21

The book groups were able to meet again during our ELA time this morning. The first two days have been productive ones. After reading together for the majority of their time, the members of the groups then did some writing about a scene from the book that has stood out to them.

We also continued to work with different strategies for solving multiplication problems. The fifth graders did a nice job on yesterday's quiz and I was impressed with the work that was finished today.

10/5/21

Our ELA time saw the book groups meet to do some reading in their realistic fiction texts. While reading, the students are keeping a journal going. This journal will serve as fodder for various pieces of writing that the kids will be undertaking throughout the course of their work with the novels.

We also took a brief quiz in math class this morning. This quiz required the kids to solve multiplication problems and explain their reasoning. It will allow me a nice insight into where the students are with their progress in unit one. 

10/4/21

The first full week of October began with a bang in A303. The students continued to work with cluster problems in math class. This series of problems has been a great tool for the kids to use as they are attempting to learn different strategies for solving two digit by two digit multiplication problems. Great partner work this morning.

We also had a fantastic writing lesson during our ELA block. The kids are in the process of reading and annotating a series of short stories that will eventually serve as the foundation of literary essays. 

10/1/21

The start of October was a busy one for the kids in A303. The fifth graders completed their reading pre-assessment during our ELA black this morning. Now that this is complete, we can kick off our realistic fiction book groups next week. The kids are eager to start reading.

We also played a multiplication compare game during math class. The students used various strategies to help them solve problems and then kept track of the results on their recording sheets. They finished up the math session by working on two workbook pages.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend.