APRIL 2012
Dear Room 186 Families,
With the warm weather comes the much
anticipated, end of the year preparations. From this point on, 5th grade becomes a whirlwind
of activities. From preparation
for camping to MCAS to graduation, it seems that the students and their
families are going to be very busy. Be sure to check out our calendar page to
keep up to date with all our activities. Please know that if there is anything
I can do to support you or your child, don’t hesitate to ask. Below you will find an update of what
your children will be working on in class.
SCIENCE:
In
preparation for this year’s round of Science MCAS, we have been reviewing prior
year’s concepts several ways. One review method consists of topic packs that
have sample questions. Each
student has a folder, which contains 5 weeks of sample questions and 3 packs of
reference material they can use to refresh their memory. They will be working on these packs in
class and we will be correcting them together. Also, there have been sample MCAS homework packets
that will continue for the next few weeks. Another method of review will be in-class mini-units, the
first being a review of Simple Machines,
Math: We will soon be completing Unit 9, covering concepts such as Coordinates, and Formulas
for Area and Volume and moving on to Unit 10. There we will be reviewing fractions with an
extension of multiplication of fractions. From this point on our goal is going to
be review of concepts that will be tested on the upcoming standardized tests,
including open response problem solving.
Once that season has passed we will have the opportunity to do some work
with Algebra and Circumference as we round out the year.
Social Studies: The students are completing their
Explorers Research and urge you to take a few minutes during your conference
visit to view some that may be complete.
They have been working extremely well as small groups to collectively
complete this Poster Project. Our
next steps will be a journey through early colonial life with a focus on the
elements that led to the Revolutionary war where we will complete or cycle of
American History for this year.
ELA: Reading
Comprehension continues to be strengthened through short stories. Read alouds are the vehicle for
reviewing the methods we use to infer and questioning strategies are used to
delve deeper into understanding meaning.
For
writing, we have been enhancing our descriptive details by bring imaginary
doors we designed to life. By using
very specific explanations, the children wrote about door designs they
created. When they thought they
were complete they were given to random illustrators (other students in the
room) to attempt to recreate the drawing.
Boy, were they surprised to see just how many differences there were due
to lack of details or by assuming the reader could understand. So, back to the drawing board (writing
board) they went. Once again,
their description was given to yet another random illustrator who came up with
the final version. Side by side
you can see all the similarities and how well the students did the second time
around. It was quite a learning
experience for all, and we had a great time in the process.