4/30/24

The month of April concluded with the fifth graders continuing to work multiplying decimals by whole numbers in math class. Each of the students worked on a series of math pages and then, if time allowed, they worked in pairs on some review work.

During ELA time, we focused intently on our body paragraphs of our informational pieces. The research papers are coming along slowly but surely. The next two weeks will look to see everyone finish a draft.

Tomorrow, the Thompson School will take part in an enrichment program pertaining to the water cycle and the local storm drains around the school.

4/29/24

We are going to look to get some serious reading done in our fantasy book groups and to continue to progress in our drafting of our informational pieces of writing this week.

In math class, we are also going to conclude unit seven at some point this week.

4/26/24

It was excellent getting to return to our normal routine today. We met with our fantasy book groups during ELA time and finished our study of the French and Indian War in our social studies time. Next week the members of A303 are going to look to wrap up unit seven in math class.

I hope everyone has a nice weekend.

4/25/24

We completed our math MCAS this morning. Another significant milestone for the fifth graders. The only assessments left are our two science sessions in May.

Tomorrow we are going to look to have each of the members of A303 finish the draft of their lead paragraphs for their informational essays and we are also going to have another fantasy book club session.

4/24/24

The focus of our ELA time was crafting memorable lead paragraphs for our informational writing pieces. Each of the fifth graders drafted this paragraph and then returned to their research. The kids did a nice job with thie work.

Tomorrow, the kids will take the second session of their math MCAS test in the morning.

4/23/24

Compliments to the fifth graders for working through the first session of their math MCAS test this morning. The second and final math testing session will be on Thursday.

Tomorrow we are going to focus on the opening paragraph of our informational writing pieces.

4/22/24

During morning meeting this week, the fifth graders will get to share any highlights of their vacation week with their peers. We are also going to be working in earnest on our informational writing projects and continue to read deeper in our fantasy books this week and next.

As a reminder, the fifth graders are going to be taking the first session of their math MCAS tomorrow morning. The second session will be this Thursday.

4/12/24

We ended the week with a productive math lesson and with each of the fifth graders selecting a topic for their informational writing. After the vacation week, the kids are going to take the math MCAS and we are going to look to dig into our fantasy novels.

I hope everyone has a nice vacation week.

4/11/24

The fifth graders took the second and final portion of their ELA MCAS this morning. Once again, I compliment the kids diligence to this material.

Tomorrow each of the fifth graders is going to select a topic for their informational writing unit. We are fortunate to have over one hundred Revolutionary War texts in the classroom and the kids will utilize their ELA time to peruse these books and make their choice.

4/10/24

The fifth graders met with their fantasy book groups and began their novels this morning. We are focusing on setting and how that is impacting the plot of the story this week. 

As a reminder, tomorrow the fifth graders are going to take the second and last session of ELA MCAS in the morning.

4/9/24

It was nice to return to a regular learning day. We focused on diving unit fractions by whole numbers during our math time. The kids kept up the momentum from last week and I was impressed with the resiliency of the fifth graders during this lesson.

We continued our exploration of the French and Indian War during social studies. The kids are honing their map making skills to track the changing face of the North American continent.

Tomorrow we are going to take the second and final session of ELA MCAS. Please help to ensure that all students arrive at school on time tomorrow.

4/8/24

The fifth graders took the first session of their ELA MCAS this morning. The students worked hard and I compliment them for their attentiveness. The second session will be this Thursday the 11th.

Tomorrow, we are going to have our first fantasy book group session.

This Friday the 12th, we are going to watch a movie in class.

4/5/24

We spent our ELA time looking at an online practice exam in preparation for next week's ELA MCAS.  I commend the fifth graders for their attention to this.

As a reminder, the fifth graders will take their two sessions of ELA MCAS next Monday the Thursday. Please help to ensure that all students arrive at school on time.

Have a nice weekend.

4/3/23

The remaining lessons in unit seven in our math book will have the kids working to divide whole numbers by fractions. Today was an important introduction to this material. The fifth graders worked to use reasoning and representations to solve these problems.

We had one final introductory informational writing session during our ELA time. Next week, each of the students will choose a topic pertaining to the Revolutionary War to explore.

4/2/24

The members of A303 learned who is in their fantasy book groups and the novel that they will be reading together. We also had a productive discussion about the expectations during book group days and the first point of focus during our reading, which will start on Friday.

After lunch, some staff members of the Gibbs were nice enough to visit the fifth graders and speak to what to expect as a sixth grader. This was valuable and the fifth graders asked some good questions.

4/1/24

The first day of April began with the fifth graders using arrays to represent multiplication of fractions. Strong start to the math week and we will look to carry that over into tomorrow's lesson.

Tomorrow, staff members of the Gibbs School are going to visit the Thompson. The Gibbs staff will speak with the fifth graders about what to expect next year. There will also be time for questions.