LANGUAGE ARTS

Spelling/Grammar:
Students will take a weekly Spelling Test every Friday. The spelling 
will help students develop as confident writers. Specific grammar 
skills will be introduced and reviewed on a daily basis.
 
Writing:
Writing is a huge focus. We will spend a significant amount of time 
working through the entire writing process and strengthening our
ability to incorporate the six traits of writing (ideas,
organization, word choice, sentence fluency, voice and conventions). 
We will write in many creative ways, including daily journal 
writing, essays, short stories, poetry, reports, and personal 
brochures. 

Independent Reading:
Students understand that they need to read at least 30 minutes 
nighty, with weekend reading encouraged, but not required. This will 
be a part of their effort grade in reading. 
Students have the opportunity to read many types of literature with 
the different genre required each month. This exposure to a variety 
of literature should help to foster a real enjoyment and love for 
reading. Students will keep me updated with their reading at home 
with the monthly Reading Logs and Literature Log responses.
 
Reading:
We will be reading a variety of novels in literature groups. 
Accompanying the reading will be activities that help students 
develop reading strategies. With the activities students will 
practice questioning the text, connecting to 
its meaning, developing inferences about characters, and combining 
prior knowledge with new ideas the text presents. Typically, there 
will be a comprehension assessment on Friday. 

Vocabulary:
Vocabulary words will be given out on Monday and tested on Friday. 
The words will relate to the novel being read 
or Social Studies unit that we are studying. The homework will 
involve various activities to help insure understanding.
 
MATH

The 5th/6th grade program is intended to review and build upon math 
skills learned previously, as well as introduce new 
and higher level concepts. Students will keep a well organized Math 
Binder with Daily notes/homework/study guides. 
 
SOCIAL STUDIES

This year we will be taking an exciting journey into the history of 
our great nation! We will begin by looking at the U.S. government 
and election process and by the end of the year we will see our 
country recovering from one of its most defining moments: The Civil 
War. We'll use historical fiction and primary source documents in 
order to dig deeper into the following topics. 
• Geography (seven continents, U.S. geographic regions, bodies of 
water, 50 states) 
• Native Americans 
• Explorations and Encounters 
• Colonial America 
• The American Revolution 
• The Constitution and the Bill of Rights 
• Westward Expansion 
• The Civil War 
• Reconstruction
Students will practice note-taking skills, learn to use outlines, 
and be introduced to a variety of organizational strategies.